Oct 15 Solar Energy as Competitive Sport Green technology can take many forms, be it in eco-friendly light bulbs, hybrid cars, or wind turbines. It can even take the form of homework, as in the case of students competing in the Department of Energy's "Solar Decathlon."… Continue reading
Oct 14 Gustavo Santaolalla, Making Music For Both Stage and Screen The first thing Argentine musician Gustavo Santaolalla wants people to know about him is that he is an artist: one who works with a guitar rather than an easel. The 57-year-old has spent the last four decades recording, producing and… Continue reading
Oct 13 Finance Committee Passes Reform Bill With Support From Snowe The Senate Finance Committee on Tuesday became the last of five congressional panels to act on a health reform bill, passing its legislation in a 14-9 vote that saw Maine Sen. Olympia Snowe breaking from Republicans -- at least for… Continue reading
Oct 13 'Herb & Dorothy,' a Love Story About Art, Opens New Season of Independent Lens By Arts Desk The story of a postal worker and his librarian wife, who with modest means created one of the most priceless collections of contemporary art in the world, is the subject of Tuesday's season premier of Independent Lens on PBS. Continue reading
Oct 12 Unusual Battle Lines Are Drawn on Role of Individual Mandate in Reform Bill The Senate Finance Committee is expected to approve its health reform bill Tuesday, but the legislation may include an amendment that weakens penalties designed to support an individual mandate requiring most Americans to carry insurance. Continue reading
Oct 12 Poll: Americans Support Civil Unions, but Oppose Same-sex Marriage Americans broadly support giving gay and lesbian couples the same rights as people in heterosexual marriages, but using the term "marriage" still draws opposition, according to the latest Pew Research Center survey on same-sex marriage. Continue reading
Oct 12 6 Uighurs Sentenced to Death Over Xinjiang Riots A Chinese court sentenced six Uighur men to death and a seventh to life in prison on Monday for murder and other violent crimes committed this summer during ethnic rioting in Xinjiang, China's western region. Continue reading
Oct 12 Weekly Poem: 'Domestique' Heather McHugh was among the recipients of the so-called "Genius Award" (i.e. the 2009 MacArthur Fellowship). Continue reading
Oct 09 Obama's Reform Effort Faces More Hurdles After Finance Committee Vote A key component of President Obama's health reform overhaul faces a vote next week in the Senate Finance Committee after the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office gave it an upbeat assessment. Continue reading
Oct 09 Conversation: Hilary Mantel, Winner of the 2009 Booker Prize By Arts Desk Hilary Mantel took home the coveted Man Booker Prize this week for her novel, "Wolf Hall," a detailed look at the contemptuous court of Henry VIII during the English Reformation. Continue reading