New current events added daily.
March 21, 2014
3:45
Nevada's farms are few and far between, and the recent drought has not made survival easier. Some farms decided to "hack" the drought by adapting to the region's water shortage by growing better suited crops.
Read MoreMarch 13, 2014
4:14
The same methane gas emitted from humans is also produced by the same bacteria that lives in old pizza crusts, curdled milk, and other discarded food. Scientists have found ways to convert the methane gas from old food into energy. Several cities are already converting waste into energy, listen to this story to learn how New York City is trying it out.
Read MoreMarch 7, 2014
6:03
Being a working mother is difficult, but being one of the first two females on the Supreme Court may be even harder. Listen to learn how the female justices of the Supreme Court juggle family obligations and the demands of the court, and how challenges facing working women have changed over the past decades.
Read MoreMarch 6, 2014
4:20
Is it fair to charge countries per carbon emission? Some leading researchers think so. They also believe that this could motivate countries to be more prepared for climate change and energy reductions.
Read MoreFebruary 26, 2014
5:04
Rosa Finnegan did not stop working until she was 101. Now 102, she lives at a nursing home and comes to realize her perceptions on race and the end of life.
Read MoreFebruary 17, 2014
4:10
Twist, lick, and dunk is familiar to Americans growing up with Oreos, but it did not make sense to Chinese cookie lovers when Oreos were first introduced. It was only after the Oreo team changed the shape and taste of the Oreo did it succeed. Listen to this story to learn what the Chinese Oreo looks like.
Read MoreFebruary 7, 2014
3:50
Kraft’s Mac and Cheese products are going through a change because parents and nutritionists believe that the food coloring caused hyper activity in children.
Read MoreFebruary 5, 2014
3:26
One of the first instances of a plague was found during the Roman Empire. The plague, which occurred during the 6th century, spread through Europe, Africa, and Asia. Today, an ancient burial site may hold DNA evidence of why and how it occurred. Listen to this story to learn the difference between ancient and modern bacteria.
Read MoreFebruary 3, 2014
3:27
Many Chinese citizens did not light fireworks this year to ring in the year of the horse because many parts of China already have toxic air pollution levels. Lighting fireworks during the Lunar New Year, also known as the Chinese New Year, is traditionally done to bring good luck. Listen to this story to learn why the Chinese are especially worried about air pollution.
Read MoreJanuary 23, 2014
11:45
Since the Syrian Civil War began, more than 2 million people have fled the country. Half of the Syrian refugees are children. A majority of Syrians have crossed borders into neighboring countries in the Middle East. Listen to this story to hear about a seventeen-year old Syrian refugee in Lebanon that must now support his family.
Read MoreJanuary 22, 2014
6:53
Nearly six decades after schools were ordered to desegregate, students at a Little Rock High School still believe today there is work to be done to feel fully integrated. Listen to this story to learn how Arkansas high school students feel about race at their school.
Read MoreJanuary 21, 2014
7:26
Kate Byroade knew her family once owned slaves. She feels uncomfortable acknowledging that her ancestors dominated other people, but she knows that the story is important. As Kate has learned more about her family’s past, it has become increasingly personal for her and hard to reconcile. For instance, she felt troubled when she learned that an ancestor once owned an 8-year-old child. Listen to this story to hear more about how Kate thinks about her family’s slave-owning past.
Read MoreDecember 7, 2013
3:00
In 1960, American author John Steinbeck took a 10,000 mile road trip around the United States with his poodle, Charley. They rode in his pickup truck, which he converted to a camper and named Rocinante after Don Quixote’s horse. This counterclockwise trip from New York to Maine, to the Pacific Northwest, California, Texas, the Deep South and back to New York inspired Steinbeck’s novel “Travels with Charley” and allowed Steinbeck to see his country and answer the question “What are Americans like today?” A modern day journalist retraced Steinbeck’s journey, using the novel, Steinbeck’s letters and some old-fashioned detective work.
Read MoreDecember 6, 2013
8:53
The former President of South Africa Nelson Mandela died at the age of 95. Mandela was the founding president of the democratic nation. Listen to this story to learn about Mandela's life and legacy.
Read MoreDecember 6, 2013
3:05
The British legend of King Arthur dates back to the late 5th and early 6th centuries. The details of his life story are populated by folklore and medieval fiction and have been expanded by authors throughout the centuries. The tale of the sword and the stone has resonated through the ages. A young King Arthur learns from sorcerer Merlin with no knowledge of his noble blood. This concept of childhood and the unexpected hero has transcended time and resonates in tales of unlikely heroism today. Listen as modern author Lev Grossman discusses his favorite version of this tale 'The Once And Future King.'
Read MoreNovember 27, 2013
4:44
In life and in math class we use the numerals 0 through 9 every day. They are the basis of our financial system and shape the way we understand value. We have a young Italian mathematician named Leonardo da Pisa, nicknamed Fibonacci, to thank for this. In 1202 he published a book called “Book of Calculation” that introduced these numerals to Europe, replacing Roman numerals and the abacus once and for all. Listen to learn more about the man and concept behind Fibonacci and his numbers.
Read MoreNovember 25, 2013
7:47
Decades of Americans are able to remember where they were at the moment they heard President John F. Kennedy had been shot and killed in Dallas, Texas on November 22, 1963. Fifty years later in this radio story we relive the events of that fateful day through the memories of two reporters who were there. Hugh Aynesworth was a local reporter for The Dallas Morning News and Sid Davis was a White House correspondent traveling with the president's press corps. Put yourselves in their shoes as they take you through how they learned about and covered the assassination.
Read MoreNovember 22, 2013
3:24
St. Cuthbert, an Anglo-Saxon monk, hermit and saint, was known for his ability to heal and was revered in Medieval England. During his lifetime he recorded the St. John’s gospel in Latin. This book went with him to the grave and was rediscovered when his body was moved to a new shrine in 1104. The British Library purchased the book, known as the St. Cuthbert Gospel, for $14 million. Listen to learn more about the fascinating history of this medieval book.
Read MoreNovember 21, 2013
4:11
Richard III, the last York King, was the King of England from 1483 to 1485. After his death in 1485 at the Battle of Bosworth, the Tudor dynasty began. The Tudors, with the help of William Shakespeare, worked to depict Richard has a hunchbacked villain. But the real story is more complex. In 2012 Richard’s remains were found under a parking lot, the site of a cathedral in the 15th century. They were exhumed and reburied at Leicester Cathedral in 2015. Listen to learn more about this fascinating discovery and the Medieval smear campaign that led to Shakespeare’s depiction of Richard III.
Read MoreNovember 18, 2013
4:09
We often think of Shakespeare’s verse as grand, beautiful and proper. The British Library has analyzed the rhyme of Shakespeare’s work and discovered the original pronunciation and dialect of his writings when they were first performed at the Globe Theater. Listen to hear how Shakespeare may have sounded 400 years ago.
Read MoreNovember 15, 2013
5:42
The King James Bible has a rich history. King James I, a Scot who became King of England, had the Christian Bible translated for the Church of England in order to legitimize his rule in the early 1600s. The legacy of the King James Bible lives on in the English language. From books to songs and idioms, the King James Bible has become part of English culture and language. Listen to learn more about the King James Bible from 1603 to today.
Read MoreNovember 14, 2013
8:01
Dante Alighieri finished writing the three part epic poem “Divine Comedy” in 1321. The poem’s three parts, hell, purgatory and heaven follow one man on his journey through all three imaginary places. This great work of Italian literature has survived the ages and remains a classic today. There have been many translations of Dante’s work. This story interviews Clive James, the most recent English translator, about this epic poem and his translated version of “Divine Comedy.”
Read MoreNovember 8, 2013
5:35
Mary Shelley’s gothic classic “Frankenstein” was published anonymously when she was just twenty. The novel was a horror story, but it was also part of the romantic movement and is considered by some to be one of the first science fiction novels. Shelley’s work has been retold through illustration and movies in the past, but not all have been true to the original story. A new graphic novel by artist Gris Grimly brings this tale to life with care and accuracy. Listen to learn what drew Gris Grimly to the story and what drove him to create this graphic novel.
Read MoreNovember 6, 2013
3:46
The Brontë sisters, Charlotte, Emily and Jane, were successful novelists and poets. Their childhood, relationships and imagination shaped their famous works. A tiny “magazine” created by 14-year-old Charlotte Brontë to go with their set of toy soldiers is a lens into their world of imagination and gothic extravagance. Listen to learn more about this work, just half the size of a credit card, and what it tells us about the life of these famous literary figures.
Read MoreNovember 5, 2013
3:00
Author Rudyard Kipling was the most popular writer of his era. He wrote novels, short stories and poems that adults and children have enjoyed for generations. Kipling lives on through his children stories like “The Jungle Book” and his most controversial poem “The White Man’s Burden." Born in India and relocated to England, Kipling experienced colonial life firsthand. Kipling’s support of colonial expansion has caused some to brand him as an imperialist. Listen to learn more about his life and hear some of his newly discovered poetry.
Read MoreNovember 1, 2013
7:42
From the early days of Pong to the current obsession with Minecraft, the pull to video games has never wavered; if anything, it has strengthened through the targeted efforts of the video game industry. As players sit at home, researchers are gathering data about your habits and interests from each action you make in the game, so they are literally "getting into" the minds of players as well as their wallets. Listen to this story to see how they do it.
Read MoreNovember 1, 2013
5:14
Winston Churchill, prime minister of Great Britain during World War II, was a master orator. His speeches were painstakingly written, meticulously planned and seamlessly delivered. Churchill was given a Nobel Prize in LIterature for his powerful speeches and his other written works. Listen to learn more about the speeches that Churchill wrote and delivered, and the effect they had on shaping World War II.
Read MoreOctober 31, 2013
3:18
In the last 30 years the rich have become richer. Lower-income earners gained 18%, the middle class earned 40%, and the top 1% of wage earners gained 275%. What's a good way to illustrate to students how the gap as widened? Candy Corn! Listen to this story to hear an audio graph of the income gap. Then discuss with students what it means for an economy and society with a large income gap and possible alternatives to redistribute wealth more evenly.
Read MoreSeptember 11, 2013
7:22
What is heroism? Explore this question through a discussion with author Conn Iggulden, who wrote a book about heroes throughout time. From Florence Nightingale to Harry Houdini to the passengers of United Airlines Flight 93, heroes of all different kinds have shown admirable bravery. This story discusses the courage and grace that makes heroes of ordinary people.
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