U.S.

The PBS Kids version of ScratchJr features characters from PBS cartoon shows like Nature Cat.

A Kids' Coding Expert Says We're Making Computer Class Way Too Boring

10:06am December 11, 2015

by Anya Kamenetz

This week, thousands of events around the world are encouraging computer-coding literacy. "Coding is really about creative self-expression and storytelling," says Mitchel Resnick of MIT's Media Lab.

The cookbook, featuring those handprints left in beet juice.

National

At The Root Of It All, A Little Girl's 'Grandmapal' Left Her Lifelong Love

10:04am December 11, 2015

by NPR Staff

More than a grandmother, more, even, than a mentor, Doris Louise Rolison was Chloe Longfellow's best friend growing up. Their love remains inscribed with beet stains in their favorite cookbook.

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Hoverboards like the one seen here won't be allowed on flights by America's top three airlines, which are citing a potential fire hazard related to the self-balancing scooters' powerful lithium-ion batteries.

National

Hoverboards Put On No-Fly List, As Airlines Cite Fire Concerns

9:38am December 11, 2015

by Bill Chappell

The bans come as the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission says it's looking into at least 10 reports of the self-balancing electric scooters bursting in flames.

Specialist Thomas McArdle (left) works with traders at the post that handles Dow Chemical on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. If a proposed merger goes through, Dow's and DuPont's respective shareholders would own about half of the new entity.

DuPont And Dow Agree On Terms For Huge Merger

9:07am December 11, 2015

by Bill Chappell

After the merger, the resulting behemoth would be split into what Dow's chairman and CEO, Andrew Liveris, calls "three powerful new companies." That is, if regulators sign off on the deal.

MLB Commissioner To Decide Whether To Reinstate Pete Rose

12:52am December 11, 2015

by Tom Goldman

One of Major League Baseball's greatest players has been banned since 1989 for gambling on the game. But sports leagues' traditionally hard attitudes toward sports gambling seem to be softening.

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National

Connecticut Governor Wants To Bar People On Watch Lists From Buying Guns

9:17pm December 10, 2015

by Jim Zarroli

Criticizing Congress' lack of action, Gov. Dannel Malloy says he will sign an executive order. The move comes in direct response to the attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, Calif.

National

La. Marshals Indicted On Murder Charges In Death Of 6-Year-Old Boy

8:51pm December 10, 2015

by Laura Wagner

Last month the marshals were arrested in the fatal shooting of Jeremy Mardis while he was strapped into the front seat of his father's SUV. His father, Chris Few, was severely wounded.

Priyanka Chopra plays Alex Parrish in ABC's Quantico.

From Bollywood To Hollywood: Shattering Stereotypes On The Silver Screen

8:46pm December 10, 2015

by Eric Deggans

Priyanka Chopra is the first South Asian woman to play a lead in a network TV drama. She has an advocate in a venture capitalist who has made it her business to meld South Asian and U.S. pop culture.

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How Poor And Disadvantaged Students Will Fare Under The New Education Law

8:14pm December 10, 2015

by Eric Westervelt

When it comes to the success of students in poverty, UCLA's Pedro Noguera says that "schools can't do it alone."

The Citadel Suspends 8 Cadets Over White-Hooded Photos

8:02pm December 10, 2015

by Bill Chappell

Citadel President Lt. Gen. John W. Rosa says it seems the cadets "were singing Christmas carols as part of a 'Ghosts of Christmas Past' skit."