Opinion

Stones placed on a Jewish grave to show respect for the deceased. Orthodox Rabbi Joseph Telushkin says Jewish tradition holds that there is an afterlife but doesn't encourage speculation on what it might be like.

Religion

For Rabbi, A Just God Without An Afterlife Is 'Inconceivable'

8:33pm October 10, 2013

by NPR Staff

Orthodox Rabbi Joseph Telushkin says his belief in some form of life after death flows from the persistence of injustice on earth. If there were no afterlife, he says, "it would mean that Adolf Hitler and Anne Frank had the same fate."

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A St. Louis-area imam spoke with NPR about what Muslims believe about life after death.

Religion

Imam: 'We Can't Imagine' The Beauty Of Paradise After Death

7:26am October 09, 2013

by NPR Staff

This week, All Things Considered is talking with leaders from different faiths about their perspectives on an afterlife. Mufti Asif Umar says Muslims believe that a person who enters paradise will find whatever he or she desires waiting there.

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Dawn and Don Burke opened a rat sanctuary, The Rat Retreat, in their home in Boise, Idaho. Most people don't realize what affectionate pets rats can be, Dawn says.

Science

Out Of The Rat Race: Lucky Rodents Find Their Own 'Taj Mahal'

11:12am October 07, 2013

by NPR Staff

Dawn and Don Burke never intended to turn their home into a rat sanctuary. But after Dawn brought home a rat from a pet store, it wasn't long until the couple began taking in abandoned rats. The rodents' cage doors stay wide open, giving them plenty of space to run around.

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The Straight Dope: The use of steroids and blood doping traces back at least into the 1970s.

Sports

Love Of Victory In The Time Of Steroids

12:18pm October 02, 2013

by Frank Deford

On Sept. 27, 1988, Canadian sprinter Ben Johnson was stripped of his 100-meter gold medal when tests showed a performance-enhancing drug in his system. As Alex Rodriguez appeals his illegal doping ban from Major League Baseball, Frank Deford reflects on a historical moment of drug use among athletes.

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Books
Arts

A Predictably Pynchonian Take On The Internet And Sept. 11

7:07pm September 19, 2013

by Meg Wolitzer

Elusive and iconic, author Thomas Pynchon may intimidate some readers, but he has a devoted following. Bleeding Edge, his new new novel, is about a spunky, Upper West Side mother and fraud investigator in the era between the dot-com boom and Sept. 11.

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More Than Average: Dow Jones Adds The 'Swoosh'

4:01pm September 18, 2013

by Frank Deford

Nike made the leap onto the stock averages index when Hewlett-Packard, Bank of America and Alcoa were dropped because of their low stock prices. Yes, says, commentator Frank Deford, a mere sporting goods company has joined the wealthy elite.

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Arts

The Internet's 'Twerk' Effect Makes Dictionaries Less Complete

5:45pm September 12, 2013

by Geoff Nunberg

When dictionaries add trendy words like "twerk," they're prioritizing the fleeting language habits of the young, says Geoff Nunberg. And our fascination with novel words tends to eclipse subtle changes in the meanings of old ones — "which are often more consequential," he says.

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Diana Nyad's Accomplishment Makes America's Cup Look All Wet

7:54am September 11, 2013

by Frank Deford

America's Cup yachts can gracefully skim above water at better than 40 mph, but Frank Deford says when he looks back at the seven seas in 2013 he'll remember 64-year-old Nyad "plowing, all by herself, freestyle, through 100 miles of surf from Havana to Key West."

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Is There Any Meaning In Poet Seamus Heaney's Last Text?

5:20pm September 10, 2013

by Andrei Codrescu

Commentator Andrei Codrescu reflects on the text message written by poet Seamus Heaney just before he died. In Latin he wrote to his wife "do not be afraid." The 74-year-old Heaney died in a Dublin hospital last week. Codrescu says no great meaning should be implied — it was just a personal message to his wife.

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Basketball, with sneakers and a stack of sweats, jeans and books.

Why Keep Athletes Eligible But Uneducated?

4:31pm September 04, 2013

by Frank Deford

Each football season brings exciting plays and game heroes, but Frank Deford says the real heroes are often overlooked. He points to Mary Willingham, an educator who decided to speak up.

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