In Camden, S.C., A Family’s Generations Talk Race

Part of a series With the 2012 presidential election on the horizon, NPR’s Debbie Elliott heads to Camden, S.C., to hear from the close-knit Gaither-James family. Like other African-Americans — considered the political base for President Obama — they’re concerned about the economy and today’s political climate. Members of Camden Second Presbyterian Church in Camden, [...]

Author Neil Gaiman Plays Not My Job

Neil Gaiman, author of Coraline, American Gods, Anansi Boys, Stardust, The Graveyard Book (and many more) specializes in writing dark, creepy stuff for kids and adults alike. He was born in Hampshire, U.K., and now lives near Minneapolis. We’ve invited Gaiman to answer three questions about the royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton. [...]

For ‘Downton’ Fans, A New Season And A New Book

It’s almost here. And by “it,” we mean the new season of Downton Abbey, the BBC drama about the Crawley family and their servants that PBS imported for Masterpiece Classic with great success. Series two has already run in the UK, but if you’ve been good and patient and resisted the urge to obtain it [...]

Poked And Prodded For 65 Years, In The Name Of Science

One night in early March, well over a hundred people gathered together in the British Library in central London to celebrate their collective 65th birthday. I was lucky enough to tag along. These people, together with thousands of others living around the United Kingdom, were all born in the first week of March 1946, and [...]

Heroes Of The Taj Hotel: Why They Risked Their Lives

On Nov. 26, 2008, terrorists simultaneously attacked about a dozen locations in Mumbai, India, including one of the most iconic buildings in the city, the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel. For two nights and three days, the Taj was under siege, held by men with automatic weapons who took some people hostage, killed others and set [...]

Tweeting All The Way, Buddy Roemer Continues His Quixotic White House Bid

You may not have heard of Buddy Roemer. But he’s running for president. And despite an impressive resume and gift for turning a phrase, Roemer barely registers in the polls. He’s conducting his quixotic run for office without accepting campaign contributions that exceed $100. Roemer’s credentials sound plenty presidential. He’s been governor of Louisiana. He [...]

Feds Trash Old Proposal On Animal Antibiotics

Have you ever come across a dust-covered “to-do” list, filled with tasks that you never actually finished because they were unpleasant, you just weren’t in the mood, or you found something easier to do instead? The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has one of those lists. It’s 34-years-old. And the agency decided this week to [...]

Critics Say Obama’s Efforts To Protect Science Are Slow and Weak

Critics cried foul when Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius overruled the Food and Drug Administration earlier this month, saying that teenage girls can’t buy the emergency contraceptive plan B without a prescription. Their complaint: That the move went against the Obama administration’s stated goal of protecting science from the taint of [...]

Two Strengths Of Infant Acetaminophen Boost Confusion, Risk

When makers of acetaminophen for infants said back in May that they were reducing the strength of the medicine so it would be less likely that babies would be accidentally given too much, it all made sense. Some infant acetaminophen had as much as 80 milligrams of acetaminophen in a milliliter, while products for older [...]

Marines Say Afghanistan Forever Changed Their Lives

Daron Diepenbruck and Josh Apsey were members of the 2nd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment — called “America’s Battalion.” NPR followed that battalion in 2009, on the homefront and in battle in Afghanistan. The two Marines are back home now. One left the military; the other stayed in. Their lives have changed dramatically, as Catherine Welch [...]