Talk of the Nation on Xtra HD

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NEAL CONAN, HOST:

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NEAL CONAN, HOST:

This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Neal Conan, in Washington. While funerals and memorial services continue for those killed by bombers in Boston and a fertilizer plant explosion in West, Texas, we want to talk today with survivors of traumatic events like those, from car accidents to hurricanes, and ask how you deal with the range of emotions and the range of questions - maybe newfound appreciation for life or survivor's guilt, maybe even blame.

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NEAL CONAN, HOST:

This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Neal Conan in Washington. Sanford trails in South Carolina, the Democrats get it on in Massachusetts, and the lady from Maine scoffs at sequestration. It's Wednesday and time for a...

SEN. SUSAN COLLINS: Manufactured crisis...

CONAN: Edition of the political junkie.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDINGS)

PRESIDENT RONALD REAGAN: There you go again.

VICE PRESIDENT WALTER MONDALE: When I hear your new ideas, I'm reminded of that ad: Where's the beef?

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JENNIFER LUDDEN, HOST:

This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Jennifer Ludden in Washington. Neal Conan is away. When the West Fertilizer Company in West, Texas, exploded last week, many of the first responders on the scene were volunteer firefighters, and they make up most of the 14 known victims so far.

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JENNIFER LUDDEN, HOST:

This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Jennifer Ludden.

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JENNIFER LUDDEN, HOST:

This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Jennifer Ludden in Washington. Neal Conan is away. Accusations that the Syrian government has repeatedly used chemical weapons against its own people are piling up. First were British and French officials who say they have credible evidence. Today, an Israeli military official joined the chorus.

The U.S. says it's evaluating the allegations. The stakes are high. Last year the Obama administration said the use of chemical weapons would be a game-changer that could provoke a stronger U.S. response.

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JENNIFER LUDDEN, HOST:

We've heard any number of remembrances today of legendary folk singer Richie Havens. He died yesterday of a heart attack. He was 72. The Brooklyn-born singer is perhaps best known as the opening act at Woodstock, for his unorthodox guitar style and his message of peace that helped define a generation. In 2004, Havens talked with Neal Conan on this program around the release of his album, "Grace of the Sun." We thought the most fitting way to remember Havens on this day is to let you hear from the man himself.

NEAL CONAN, HOST:

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NEAL CONAN, HOST:

This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Neal Conan, in Washington. Too many of those injured in Boston last Monday lost limbs in the explosion and now face a long and difficult recovery. Because the pressure-cooker bombs were in bags placed on the sidewalk, the shrapnel maimed and shredded many people's legs. Their basic challenge, of course, is to walk again. But the physical, mental and emotional process stretches far beyond those first steps.

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NEAL CONAN, HOST:

This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Neal Conan in Washington. And now it's time for the Opinion Page. Investigators in the Boston Marathon bombings used all kinds of images to identify the suspects in Boston: pictures from cell phones, portable video recorders and from TV. But the most useful came from surveillance cameras placed to monitor public places like the entrance to the Lord and Taylor department store and Forum Restaurant.

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NEAL CONAN, HOST:

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FLORA LICHTMAN, HOST:

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FLORA LICHTMAN, HOST:

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IRA FLATOW, HOST:

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IRA FLATOW, HOST:

Explosions at the Boston Marathon, potentially ricin-laced letters intercepted en route to the White House and Sen. Roger Wicker, and an explosion at a fertilizer plant in Texas have each prompted investigations. In each case, authorities sift through evidence to construct a timeline of events.

Fifteen-year-old Malala Yousafzai has become a symbol of hope for change in Pakistan and the world. Since her near-fatal shooting in 2012, her voice and reach has grown, as she speaks out against the Taliban's influence, and advocates for education for Pakistani youth.

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CELESTE HEADLEE, HOST:

This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Celeste Headlee.

For Arab and Muslim-Americans, news of a terrorist attack or possible terrorist attack on U.S. soil is complicated by fears that the perpetrator might be a member of their own community and in the hours after the Boston Marathon, rumors of a young Saudi suspect spread like wildfire despite statements from law enforcement that no suspect had been identified.

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CELESTE HEADLEE, HOST:

You know, many of those injured and all three of the people who were killed at the scene of the Boston Marathon were there to cheer on the runners. They weren't running. Running is usually a fairly solitary sport, but a marathon is a unique moment when these athletes run alongside others, for one thing, and they're cheered on by sometimes thousands of spectators. Runners rely on those familiar faces and their cheerful signs to motivate them through all 26.2 miles.

The bombings at the Boston Marathon have lead to heightened security across the world. Organizers of the London Marathon contacted local police to discuss increased security measures. Officials in California monitored its emergency system after the blast.

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CELESTE HEADLEE, HOST:

This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Celeste Headlee, in Washington. It's Wednesday, and it's time for the Political Junkie.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDINGS)

PRESIDENT RONALD REAGAN: There you go again.

VICE PRESIDENT WALTER MONDALE: When I hear your new ideas, I'm reminded of that ad: Where's the beef?

SENATOR BARRY GOLDWATER: Extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice.

SENATOR LLOYD BENTSEN: Senator, you're no Jack Kennedy.

PRESIDENT RICHARD NIXON: You don't have Nixon to kick around anymore.

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CELESTE HEADLEE, HOST:

This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Celeste Headlee in Washington. Neal Conan is away. Though the Gang of Eight has postponed the full, public unveiling of their immigration bill until tomorrow, the rollout began in earnest over the weekend with Republican Senator Marco Rubio making the rounds on Sunday talk shows.

In the hours after two explosions rocked the finish line at the Boston Marathon, social media was alight with offers of assistance — from restaurants inviting guests to pay what they could, to Bostonians offering couches and inflatable mattresses to anyone who needed a place to stay.

NPR's Celeste Headlee talks with three Bostonians who offered help to strangers after the crisis.

Interview Highlights

Jim Hoben, owner, El Pelon Taqueria in Boston, offered pay-what-you-can service at his restaurant.

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CELESTE HEADLEE, HOST:

This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Celeste Headlee in Washington; Neal Conan is away. It's been less than 24 hours since two explosions rocked the Boston Marathon, and there are still more questions than answers about what happened. We can tell you so far that three people were killed, more than 170 injured.

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CELESTE HEADLEE, HOST:

Chilean poet Pablo Neruda was exhumed in early April, with the goal of discovering whether the poet's death was from prostate cancer or poison. In a The New York Times op-ed, Amherst College professor Ilan Stavans argues that Neruda's legacy is more important than the way he died.

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CELESTE HEADLEE, HOST:

This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Celeste Headlee in Washington. In the summer of 2002, Brian Banks was a promising high school football player with a verbal agreement to play college ball on a scholarship at USC. But when another student accused him of rape, that all changed.

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CELESTE HEADLEE, HOST:

This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Celeste Headlee in Washington. Imagine April 15 but without tax returns, without the mad scramble to finish them, the long wait at the post office, the piles of receipts piling up for deductible expenses, in other words an America without tax returns.

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FLORA LICHTMAN, BYLINE: Up next, another mover and shaker in the alimentary canal - coffee. Whether you're a home brewer or a latte devotee, whether you take it light and sweet or on ice, your coffee is guaranteed to be chock full of chemistry. It starts in the bean, which is actually not a bean at all.

It's a seed, according Harold McGee, author of "On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen" along with other books on science and food. And we caught up with Harold, to hear more about how coffee gets its signature taste.

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FLORA LICHTMAN, HOST:

This is SCIENCE FRIDAY, I'm Flora Lichtman, filling in for Ira today. You know the phrase you are what you eat? Well, new research suggests a slight modification: Your gut bacteria are what you eat. And if you eat more red meat, for example, you'll nurture populations of microbes that like to eat red meat, too, which might not seem like a bad thing except that researchers have pinpointed a compound in red meat called L-carnitine that when broken down by gut bacteria might contribute to heart disease.