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National

Sunday

World

Displaced Haitians Find Shelter Abroad

The U.S. government issued temporary protected status to Haitians who arrived before the earthquake hit earlier this month. The West African nation of Senegal has offered land to Haitian refugees. Host Liane Hansen speaks with Nicole Lee, president of TransAfrica Forum, about Haiti's refugee migration.

Displaced Haitians Find Shelter Abroad

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California Handing Water Wasters The Bill

Recent rainy weather notwithstanding, California is still reeling from the effects of a long-term drought and mandated water conservation. Many water districts are hiking up rates for water use. In southern California, one water district has come up with a system that rewards conservation and penalizes water waste. The system is a model for other water districts around the state and, increasingly, around the country.

California Handing Water Wasters The Bill

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Technology

Exactly How Do We Go Forth And Innovate?

President Obama mentioned innovation a number of times in his State of the Union address last Wednesday. But what exactly is innovation? Host Liane Hansen speaks with Rob Atkinson of the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation about how to measure it, how to define it and how to ensure America doesn't lag behind in the international innovation economy.

Exactly How Do We Go Forth And Innovate?

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Business

Sticky Pedals Accelerate Toyota's PR Campaign

Toyota recalled millions of its vehicles in the U.S. and Europe last week to fix faulty gas pedals. The problem led to at least 19 fatalities in accidents over the last 10 years. Toyota says it's shipping new parts to factories and dealers to fix the problem. While they've temporarily suspended sales in the U.S., they haven't suspended advertising. In fact, they bought full-page ads in 20 major newspapers Sunday morning. Host Liane Hansen talks to John Neff, editor-in-chief of Autoblog.com, about the Toyota recall, Ford's 2009 profits and GM's sale of Saab to Spyker.

Sticky Pedals Accelerate Toyota's PR Campaign

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Politics

Obama Adds Up The Tab For His Plans

President Obama laid out his goals for this year and the years to come in his State of the Union address last week. Now he's preparing to lay out how to pay for his agenda. Host Liane Hansen talks with NPR News Analyst Juan Williams about President Obama's budget proposal, which the president submits to Congress on Monday.

Obama Adds Up The Tab For His Plans

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Technology

What's Wrong With The iPad Besides The Name

The much-anticipated iPad debuted this week, introduced by Steve Jobs as a device that will revolutionize the industry. The 1 1/2-pound slate computer will bring you books, movies, music and even word processing, all on a 9.7-inch screen. Host Liane Hansen talks with NPR's Laura Sydell about the much-hyped device and whether it's worth all the fuss.

What's Wrong With The iPad Besides The Name

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U.S. Haggis Lovers' Hopes Dashed

Scottish master butcher Neil Watt and his haggis. Martin Cleaver/AP File hide caption

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Martin Cleaver/AP File

Food

U.S. Haggis Lovers' Hopes Dashed

It's still illegal to import haggis from Scotland, despite reports saying otherwise. There's been a ban on this concoction of sheep meat cooked in a stomach since 1989, when mad cow disease was in the news.

U.S. Haggis Lovers' Hopes Dashed

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Wisconsin Ice Fishers Feel The Recession's Chill

Could ice shanties like this one, built on Wisconsin's Lake Waubesa in 2005, be considered something of an economic indicator? Joseph W. Jackson III/Wisconsin State Journal via AP hide caption

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Joseph W. Jackson III/Wisconsin State Journal via AP

Economy

Wisconsin Ice Fishers Feel The Recession's Chill

WPR News

It's not the GDP or the unemployment rate, but in one northern Wisconsin community, there's something else that might be considered an economic indicator: the number of ice-fishing shanties popping up. Many of those out on the ice are also out of work and fishing for food.

Wisconsin Ice Fishers Feel The Recession's Chill

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Texting Underground Can Save Lives And Caves

Alexander Kendrick stands in the Lake of the Clouds after testing his invention. He and the team of cavers executed the deepest known digital communication ever to take place in the United States. Brad Horn for NPR hide caption

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Brad Horn for NPR

Science

Texting Underground Can Save Lives And Caves

Sixteen-year-old Alexander Kendrick's prize-winning invention combines "teen-tech" with underground communication. His text messaging device could help rescue stranded cavers and preserve sensitive cave environments.

Texting Underground Can Save Lives And Caves

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Saturday

Religion

Virginia Islamic School's Expansion Met Protests

A Northern Virginia community had to decide whether to let a Saudi-funded Islamic school expand to serve more kids. The debate turned to the curriculum at the Islamic Saudi Academy and draws attention to the still-tenuous relationships between Muslims and non-Muslims in America.

Virginia Islamic School's Expansion Met Protests

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Catching Hospital Workers Dirty-Handed

Studies show that only about 40 percent of health care workers in the U.S. wash their hands as often as they should. Rob Carr/AP hide caption

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Rob Carr/AP

Health Care

Catching Hospital Workers Dirty-Handed

Studies show only about 40 percent of health care workers in the U.S. wash their hands as often as they should. So some hospitals are trying to monitor just how regularly their employees are washing up — by testing out new surveillance technologies.

Catching Hospital Workers Dirty-Handed

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Politics

Is Bipartisanship Really Possible?

One political idea that gets broad bipartisan support these days is, well, bipartisanship. But is it really practical — or even possible? Host Guy Raz speaks with retiring Republican Sen. George Voinovich and firebrand Democratic Rep. Alan Grayson, and gets a historical perspective on bipartisanship from Harvard historian Sam Haselby

Is Bipartisanship Really Possible?

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U.S. Halts Medevac Flights From Haiti

U.S. Navy and Air Force personnel prepared to airlift a girl with head injuries to an offshore medical facility last week in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. The U.S. military says it halted flights carrying Haitian earthquake victims to the United States on Wednesday. Gregory Bull/AP hide caption

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Gregory Bull/AP

Haiti Quake: Ruin And Recovery

U.S. Halts Medevac Flights From Haiti

Military planes have been flying some wounded earthquake victims to be treated in U.S. hospitals, but that practice has stopped for now because states have raised questions about the cost of such care.