http://news.wbfo.org en http://news.wbfo.org/post/tracking-killer-tornadoes A series of tornadoes struck the central United States this week, including a powerful storm in Oklahoma that killed at least 24 people. Marshall Shepherd, the president of the American Meteorological Society, describes the ingredients of major tornadoes, and how they are predicted. Fri, 24 May 2013 18:58:00 +0000 editor 33711 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/studies-question-potential-alzheimers-treatment Last year scientists reported that a skin cancer drug appeared to reverse the effects of an Alzheimer's-like disease in mice. But four studies out this week in Science question the original results. Ronald Petersen, director of the Mayo Clinic's Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, talks about the new findings, and the hunt for Alzheimer's drugs. Fri, 24 May 2013 15:53:00 +0000 editor 33701 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/reinventing-farming-changing-climate Scientists say climate change could increase pests and weeds, lengthen growing seasons and turn dry soil to dust. Farmers are already on the offensive, adopting no-till cropping methods to conserve water and experimenting with different seeds. And scientists are using a technique called gene silencing to develop new crops--without tinkering with the plants' DNA. Fri, 24 May 2013 15:53:00 +0000 editor 33702 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/crazy-ants-spreading-southeastern-us In parts of the southeastern US, aggressive fire ants have been driven out by an even more recent arrival, the tawny crazy ant. Edward LeBrun, a researcher at the University of Texas at Austin, describes the newcomers and how one invasive species can out-invade another. Fri, 24 May 2013 15:53:00 +0000 editor 33703 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/having-dog-may-mean-having-extra-microbes North Carolina State University biologist Rob Dunn and colleagues surveyed people's pillow cases, refrigerators, toilet seats, TV screens and other household spots, to learn about the microbes that dwell in our homes. Among the findings, reported in the journal PLoS One, homes with dogs had more diverse bacterial communities, and higher numbers of "dog-associated" bacteria. Fri, 24 May 2013 15:53:00 +0000 editor 33706 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/tackling-new-tech-golden-years Smartphones, tablets and computers could help seniors stay connected to their communities and families. But a hefty price tag, steep learning curves, and designs meant for younger eyes and hands could keep some older adults from logging on. Guests discuss the best ways for seniors to tackle new technology, and how devices can be adapted to accommodate older users. Fri, 24 May 2013 15:53:00 +0000 editor 33708 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/read-down-memory-lane-lessons-your-former-self Writings from childhood — cards, stories and other notes — can hide for decades, like time capsules tucked away in boxes, old bedrooms, attics and journals. Writer Jim Sollisch talks about how old thank you notes from his youth foreshadowed his adult life. Thu, 23 May 2013 17:55:00 +0000 editor 33663 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/look-ahead-flash-point-south-china-sea Beijing continues to pressure its neighbors over strings of disputed areas in the South China Sea that reportedly hold massive deposits of oil and gas. The ongoing disputes raise serious questions about China's goals in the region and how the United States should address escalating tensions. Thu, 23 May 2013 17:53:00 +0000 editor 33662 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/presidents-remarks-future-national-security In a speech at the National Defense University, President Barack Obama addresses the use of U.S. drones to target terrorists — including U.S. citizens — and his renewed efforts to close the military prison at Guantanamo Bay. Thu, 23 May 2013 17:48:00 +0000 editor 33661 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/how-nigerian-email-scam-got-started You've probably seen it in your inbox before: Someone who claims to have come into a fortune needs your help. You can share in the profits — if you send along a deposit or your bank account number. Boston Globe correspondent Finn Brunton talks about the history of the "Nigerian prince" or "419" scam, which actually got its start long before email. Wed, 22 May 2013 20:31:00 +0000 editor 33634 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/why-urban-dictionary-comes-handy-witness-stand Transcript <p>NEAL CONAN, HOST: <p>This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Neal Conan.<p>The use of slang in court can be tricky, especially in criminal cases. Judges and juries may not understand that to jack can translate as to steal, or that dap refers to a fist bump, usually used as a greeting. Slang changes quickly, might be regional, even local, and agreed definitions are not going to be found in Webster's or the OED. We'd like to hear from lawyers and judges in our audience today. Wed, 22 May 2013 17:57:00 +0000 editor 33628 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/white-house-bogged-down-scandal-gop-looks-boost Transcript <p>NEAL CONAN, HOST: <p>This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Neal Conan, in Washington. Immigration reform heads to the Senate floor, ex-congressman Weiner guns for Gracie Mansion, and Senator Inhofe on the distinction between disaster aid for a superstorm and tornados. Wed, 22 May 2013 17:55:00 +0000 editor 33630 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/apple-tech-giants-and-industrial-age-tax-code Apple CEO Timothy Cook made a rare appearance on Capitol Hill on Tuesday, testifying after congressional investigators revealed that Apple avoided billions in taxes. Reporter Charles Duhigg of <em>The New York Times</em> and guest host Jennifer Ludden talk about how, as Duhigg writes, "technology giants have taken advantage of tax codes written for an industrial age." <div class="fullattribution">Copyright 2013 NPR. Tue, 21 May 2013 18:07:00 +0000 editor 33581 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/art-and-science-motivation Transcript <p>JENNIFER LUDDEN, HOST: <p>This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Jennifer Ludden in Washington. Neal Conan is away. It's graduation season, and that means 20-somethings and parents sitting through long commencement ceremonies while the older and wiser give advice. Here's comedian Stephen Colbert speaking at the University of Virginia.<p>STEPHEN COLBERT: If you must find your own path, and we have left you no easy path, then decide now to choose the hard path that leads to the life and the world that you want, and don't worry if we don't approve of your choices. Tue, 21 May 2013 18:05:00 +0000 editor 33621 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/would-lowering-drunk-driving-threshold-make-us-safer Transcript <p>JENNIFER LUDDEN, HOST: <p>Last week, the National Transportation Safety Board recommended lowering the blood alcohol content threshold for drunken driving from .08 to .05. The NTSB argues this could save millions of lives each year, but critics beg to differ. Some say lack of enforcement is the problem. Others point to our casual attitude about drinking and driving. Meanwhile, lowering the threshold could have implications for law enforcement, bartenders, maybe your dinner party.<p>If passed, how would the new limit change what you do? Our number is 800-989-8255. Tue, 21 May 2013 18:03:00 +0000 editor 33583 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/when-tornadoes-are-way-life Monday's tornado tore through parts of Oklahoma City at 200 miles per hour and killed at least 24 people. Many more are missing orinjured. Guest host Jennifer Ludden talks to KOSU reporter Michael Cross and to meteorologist Paul Douglas about why it's so hard to track tornadoes. Tue, 21 May 2013 17:56:00 +0000 editor 33582 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/tiny-living-rise-small-spaces Transcript <p>JENNIFER LUDDEN, HOST: <p>This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Jennifer Ludden, in Washington. Population in America's big cities is surging, and more people are choosing to live alone. But where? As the demand for housing rises, some renters are opting to downsize their belongings and move to smaller spaces - much smaller. Mon, 20 May 2013 18:14:00 +0000 editor 33546 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/future-workers-movement Transcript <p>JENNIFER LUDDEN, HOST: <p>This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Jennifer Ludden in Washington. Neal Conan is away. Non-unionized fast food workers walked off the job in Milwaukee last week, demanding, among other things, a raise to $15 an hour. Mon, 20 May 2013 18:10:00 +0000 editor 33548 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/life-argentinas-little-school-prison-camp Transcript <p>JENNIFER LUDDEN, HOST: <p>On Friday, the man who oversaw Argentina's Dirty War died. Jorge Rafael Videla was 87 and in prison for his role in thousands of brutal killings and kidnappings in the 1970s. Many were sent to concentration camps and never heard from again. Others survived. Alicia Partnoy is an Argentine poet and one of the women imprisoned at a place called The Little School. She was eventually released and has written about her experiences in a memoir, an account submitted as evidence to Argentina's Truth Commission. Mon, 20 May 2013 18:04:00 +0000 editor 33547 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/resetting-theory-time Generations of physicists have claimed that time is an illusion. But not all agree. In his book Time Reborn: From the Crisis in Physics to the Future of the Universe, theoretical physicist Lee Smolin argues that time exists--and he says time is key to understanding the evolution of the universe. Fri, 17 May 2013 15:23:00 +0000 editor 33487 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/researchers-report-cloning-advance-producing-stem-cells Transcript <p>IRA FLATOW, HOST: <p>This is SCIENCE FRIDAY, I'm Ira Flatow. This week, scientists at the Oregon Health and Science University, OHSU, announced a breakthrough in cloning of a human embryo. They took adult cells, put the cells into specially prepared human eggs and created genetically identical embryos. It's something lots of stem cell researchers have been trying to do for years without success.<p>How did they get it to work, and what happens next? Will the technique be used to treat disease? We have other ways of creating stem cells, ways that don't involve creating embryos. Fri, 17 May 2013 15:23:00 +0000 editor 33488 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/insects-may-be-taste-next-generation-report-says A report from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization says insects offer a huge potential for improving the world's food security. Peter Menzel, co-author of Man Eating Bugs, describes some insect-based cuisine and the western aversion to creepy-crawly snacks. Fri, 17 May 2013 15:23:00 +0000 editor 33489 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/will-strong-summer-travel-be-turning-point-airlines Transcript <p>NEAL CONAN, HOST: <p>By this point in the spring the air travel industry has a pretty good idea of how many people plan to travel on airplanes this summer, and that projection in turn says some interesting things about consumer confidence and the health of our economy. So we want to hear about your plans. Are they different from last year? Are you planning more air travel? 800-989-8255. Email: talk@npr.org. You can also join the conversation on our website. That's at npr.org, click on TALK OF THE NATION. Thu, 16 May 2013 17:52:00 +0000 editor 33456 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/managing-30-million-one-fund-aid-boston-victims Transcript <p>NEAL CONAN, HOST: <p>This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Neal Conan in Washington. Thirty million dollars is a lot of money, but how do you divide it among the families of the three people killed, the dozens maimed, the hundreds who spent time in the hospital, the thousands who witnessed the blasts at the finish line of the Boston Marathon last month?<p>After 9/11, the shooting at Virginia Tech, the BP oil spill and now the bombs in Boston, Kenneth Feinberg has been asked to manage the money provided for victims. He's held town meetings to talk about his process. Thu, 16 May 2013 17:52:00 +0000 editor 33457 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/ex-ambassador-iraq-weighs-talking-monsters Transcript <p>NEAL CONAN, HOST: <p>As the death toll in Syria climbed over the past two years, many critics charge that President Obama has not done enough to aid the opposition. Thu, 16 May 2013 17:52:00 +0000 editor 33458 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/analyzing-language-suicide-notes-help-save-lives Transcript <p>NEAL CONAN, HOST: <p>Every 14 minutes, someone in this country commits suicide, and research on ways to reduce that grim statistic appears to be on a plateau. In other words, psychologists don't have much in the way of new ideas - at least, right now - except maybe for what's described as groundbreaking work on the notes that those who kill themselves sometimes leave behind. A team of researchers at the Cincinnati Children's Hospital use computers to break down the language in these messages of despair, in the hope that they can better identify those at risk.<p>Dr. Wed, 15 May 2013 18:10:00 +0000 editor 33425 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/looking-ahead-chris-hedges-poverty-politics-us-culture Transcript <p>NEAL CONAN, HOST: <p>This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Neal Conan in Washington. Today as part of our Looking Ahead series, we'll talk with writer Chris Hedges, former New York Times foreign correspondent and old friend and colleague who's joined us many times over the years, going back to what's probably still his best known book, "War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning."<p>We'll talk politics and the future of America, I promise. We'll also talk about his evolution as a reporter and how some unusual choices affected his career. Wed, 15 May 2013 18:06:00 +0000 editor 33428 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/treadmill-desks-and-benefits-walking-alive Transcript <p>NEAL CONAN, HOST: <p>This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Neal Conan.<p>Like so many of us who spend much of the day at a desk, writer Susan Orlean spent years trying to find the right chair. She tried a Herman Miller Aeron Chair. She experimented with a balanced kneeling chair but found that it hurt her knees, plus she said it felt like sitting inside a giant Birkenstock sandal. She considered the yoga ball but worried it might deflate like the Hindenburg. And then three months ago, she decided to ditch the office chair altogether and step onto a treadmill desk. Wed, 15 May 2013 18:00:00 +0000 editor 33427 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/promise-and-limitations-telemedicine Telemedicine is nothing new, but advancements in technology have made it even more widely available. Neurologists can now treat Parkinson's patients from miles away, therapists can reach service members overseas, and general practitioners can work in rural areas without actually going there at all. Tue, 14 May 2013 17:52:00 +0000 editor 33388 at http://news.wbfo.org http://news.wbfo.org/post/legacy-gen-ridgway-and-americas-war-korea The ongoing conflict between North Korea and South Korea is the legacy of the Korean War, which can help explain relations between the two countries. In a new book, historian Victor Davis Hanson discusses how the strategies of U.S. Gen. Matthew Ridgway helped to turn around what appeared to be "a lost war."<p>Hanson, author of <em>The Savior Generals</em>, tells NPR's Neal Conan that although the three-year war "ended right where it began," it did allow for South Korea to flourish as a democracy.<p>Conan also speaks with retired Marine Gen. Tue, 14 May 2013 17:48:00 +0000 editor 33387 at http://news.wbfo.org