U.S.

Obama Announces His Picks For EPA, Other Cabinet Posts

1:02pm March 04, 2013

President Obama rounds out his Cabinet for his second term, nominating three new leaders Monday: Walmart Foundation's Sylvia Mathews Burwell for budget chief, MIT scientist Ernest Moniz to head the Energy Department and veteran regulator Gina McCarthy to run the EPA — a post that's likely be a lightning rod during Senate confirmations.

Queue Listen Now

Students at Westlake High School in Waldorf, Md., participate in an interactive digital conversation with historian Kenneth C. Davis about late 19th and early 20th century American history on Thursday. The school uses a state of the art "telepresence cent

Teaching 2.0: Is Tech In The Classroom Worth The Cost?

5:05pm March 03, 2013

by NPR Staff

The growth of tech and Internet use in schools has brought one unexpected benefit: Kids can get lectures from high-level scholars via Skype, and interact with them over the Internet. This opens up a larger question, though, of how to measure if the new technologies are improving learning.

Queue Listen Now

'It Can't Go On Forever': Michigan Steps In To Help Detroit

11:04am March 02, 2013

Host Scott Simon talks with the Republican governor of Michigan, Rick Snyder, who on Friday announced he will appoint an emergency financial manager for Detroit. The city faces a $327 million budget deficit and more than $14 billion in long-term debt.

Queue Listen Now

National

Dealing With 'Root Causes' To Tackle Incarceration Rates

11:04am March 02, 2013

Host Scott Simon talks with Jeffrey Beard, secretary of the California Department of Corrections, about high incarceration rates and the social effects they have on communities. Beard is a member of a National Academy of Science committee studying the high rates of incarceration in the United States.

Queue Listen Now

Let The Cuts Begin: Sequestration Deadline Passes

11:04am March 02, 2013

by Ari Shapiro

A last-ditch meeting between the president and congressional leaders did not produce a deal, which means sequester cuts have begun.

Queue Listen Now

American Electric Power's natural gas-burning plant in Dresden, Ohio, is one of the energy company's new investments in alternatives to coal-burning plants.

Natural Gas Dethrones King Coal As Power Companies Look To Future

8:01pm March 01, 2013

by Christopher Joyce

It's a brave new energy world, with two major opponents: natural gas and coal. As prices fluctuate and renewables, such as wind and solar, fight for a share of energy generation, there's heated competition for access to your wall socket.

Queue Listen Now

With a declining population and dwindling tax base, Detroit has grappled with severe financial problems in the past decade.

Michigan Officials Take Control Of Detroit's Empty Wallet

8:01pm March 01, 2013

by Quinn Klinefelter

With Detroit deep in the red, Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder has announced that the state will take over the city's finances, cut existing labor contracts and sell city assets. The business community and some residents applaud the move, but others fear a greater decline in already faltering city services.

Queue Listen Now

National

Stay-At-Home Workers Defend Choice After Yahoo Ban

1:51pm March 01, 2013

by Jennifer Ludden

Yahoo's telecommuting ban may be just what that company needs in a time of crisis. But some stay-at-home workers resent the implication that they are slacking off when the boss can't see them. Should society resurrect all the barriers between work and home?

Queue Listen Now

Mapping The Effects Of The Sequester On Science

1:03pm March 01, 2013

On Friday March 1, automatic cuts known as the 'sequester' go into effect across the federal budget. Michael Lubell of the American Physical Society discusses what scientific programs will likely be affected, in fields from medical research to renewable energy development.

Queue Listen Now

National

Administration Asks Supreme Court To End Calif. Gay-Marriage Ban

8:47am March 01, 2013

by Nina Totenberg

The case before the court tests the constitutionality of a California referendum, narrowly passed by voters in 2008, that reinstituted a ban on gay marriage. The U.S. is calling on the court to declare the California law unconstitutional, a violation of the principle of equal protection.

Queue Listen Now