Injured In Battle, Libyans Recuperate In U.S. Hospital

Libya’s civil war toppled a dictator and put the country on a path to democracy, but many of the rebel fighters who helped create that change are still recovering from battle injuries. Spaulding Hospital in Salem, Massachusetts, near Boston, is treating about two dozen of them — the only hospital in the country providing this [...]

Singing Therapy Helps Stroke Patients Speak Again

Debra Meyerson was hiking near Lake Tahoe 15 months ago when a stroke destroyed part of the left side of her brain, leaving her literally speechless. It happens to more than 150,000 Americans a year. But now Meyerson is learning to talk again through an approach that trains the undamaged right side of her brain [...]

Philadelphia Practice Flight Helps Autistic Kids Fly

Air travel horror stories typically involve lost luggage, missed connections and overzealous security staff. But families affected by autism face other challenges in navigating airports and planes. A Philadelphia program is bringing families, airport employees and airlines together to help autistic kids fly more comfortably. Airports are loud, hectic places: blaring announcements, glaring lights and [...]

Jimmy Fallon’s ‘Thank You Notes’ For Everything

This week on Fresh Air, we’re marking the year’s end by revisiting some of the most memorable conversations we’ve had in 2011. This interview was originally broadcast on May 23, 2011. Every single day of Jimmy Fallon’s life is like Thanksgiving. The comedian and host of Late Night tells Fresh Air’s Terry Gross that he [...]

The Wisdom Of Trees (Leonardo Da Vinci Knew It)

Hurricanes topple plenty of trees, but when you think about it, the more amazing thing is that many trees can stand up to these 100-mile-per-hour winds. Now a French scientist has come up with an explanation for the resilience of trees. And astonishingly, the answer was first described by Leonardo da Vinci 500 years ago. [...]

Now Hovering Above Us All: ‘The Cloud’

The digital cloud became a household word in 2011.You can now store and share things via the Internet in ways you never could before. But what does the cloud look like, and where can we find it? The section of the cloud we visited has a lot of concrete and security. Behind a ballistics-grade door, [...]

Horse Breeders Seek To Rein In Bets On Barrel Races

At rodeos, barrel racing has long been a popular event. Riders, often young women, race their horses in a cloverleaf pattern around barrels in an arena. Using quarter horses, the sport has grown in popularity in recent years and has its own circuit of races and competitive riders. But in Gretna, Fla., a plan to [...]

Silent For A Night (Or Two) In Iowa, Candidates Keep Pace In Ads

If Iowans feel they’ve been bombarded by political ads in recent weeks, that’s nothing compared to what the next eight days will be like. With the caucuses only a week from Tuesday, the ad wars are changing gears for the final stretch. Iowans didn’t get much of a break from campaign spots over the weekend. [...]

Gingrich Ballot Stumble In Virginia Could Be Sign Of Delegate Fight Ahead

Every four years, a small subset of political junkies starts salivating over the prospect that no one candidate will garner enough delegates to win his or her party’s nomination for the presidency. That would lead to the junkie’s greatest fantasy: a brokered convention. The way the GOP primary is playing out so far this year [...]

Bill Cosby Enlists Santa’s Staff For A Silent Night

Ah, the joys of a houseful of family on Christmas — the tensions, the simmering resentments, the screaming children. Bill Cosby’s three grandchildren visit him every year for the holiday. But the comedian tells weekends on All Things Considered host Guy Raz that he’s not a traditional sort of grandfather, who “believes they came from [...]