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4:00am

Thu April 12, 2012
NPR Story

The Last Word In Business

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RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

Our last word in business is about another driving hazard, DWD: driving with dogs.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Mitt Romney has taken a lot of heat this political season over a decades-old story in which his dog was strapped to the roof of his car while going on a family vacation.

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4:00am

Thu April 12, 2012
Law

Justice Department Sues In E-Book Price-Fixing Case

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RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

The publishing business is still trying to absorb the news that the Justice Department is suing Apple and publishers for price fixing in the e-book market. Three publishers - Simon and Shuster, Harper Collins and Hachette - decided to settle the suit. But Apple, along with the companies Macmillan and Penguin, plan to fight the allegations. Here's NPR's Lynn Neary.

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4:00am

Thu April 12, 2012
Around the Nation

Calif. Study: Nail Products Contain Toxic Chemicals

Originally published on Fri April 13, 2012 10:22 am

Transcript

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

If you want a mani-pedi - that's a manicure and pedicure to the uninitiated - you don't have to walk very far here in California. There are about 48,000 nail salons throughout the state. A new study by the state government now says some products used in those salons contain toxic substances, even though the products are billed as nontoxic. That sounds scary for salon owners and workers and clients, but representatives of the nail care industry say the study is nonsense. NPR's Ted Robbins reports.

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4:00am

Thu April 12, 2012
Business

Business News

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STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

NPR's business news starts with a big fine for Johnson & Johnson.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

INSKEEP: So much for no more tears. A judge in Arkansas ordered the company most famous for its baby shampoo to by more than a billion dollars in fines yesterday over its marketing for a very different product. That would be an antipsychotic drug, Risperdal.

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4:00am

Thu April 12, 2012
Business

Losing Its Edge, Sony CEO Tries To Turn Company Around

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RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

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4:00am

Thu April 12, 2012
Around the Nation

Zimmerman To Plead Not Guilty In Teen's Death

Originally published on Fri April 13, 2012 10:22 am

Transcript

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

It's MORNING EDITION from NPR News. I'm Renee Montagne.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

And I'm Steve Inskeep.

The man who authorities said could not be charged with a crime will now face charges.

MONTAGNE: George Zimmerman is expected in court today in Sanford, Florida. Special prosecutor Angela Corey says she plans to charge him with second-degree murder for shooting an unarmed high school student.

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3:22am

Thu April 12, 2012
Planet Money

Why Didn't Passengers Panic On The Titanic?

Credit via Foreign Policy

As the Titanic was sinking and women and children climbed into lifeboats, the cellist and violinist from the ship's band stood and played. They died when the ship went down. Men stood on the deck and smoked cigars. They died, too.

This behavior is puzzling to economists, who like to believe that people tend to act in their own self interest.

"There was no pushing and shoving," says David Savage, an economist at Queensland University in Australia who has studied testimony from the survivors. It was "very, very orderly behavior."

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3:20am

Thu April 12, 2012
Law

Does The Case Against John Edwards Go Too Far?

Credit Chuck Burton / AP
Former Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards (left) speaks to the media with attorney Abbe Lowell last October. His trial on alleged campaign finance violations is set to begin Thursday.

Prospective jurors head to court in North Carolina on Thursday to find out whether they'll be chosen to sit in judgment of former U.S. Sen. John Edwards.

Only four years ago, Edwards was running for the White House as a Democratic candidate. Now, he's a defendant, fighting campaign finance charges that could send him away for as long as 30 years.

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3:19am

Thu April 12, 2012
Middle East

'One-State' Idea Gains Support Of Some Palestinians

Credit Bernat Armangue / AP
Palestinian children play next to Israel's separation barrier in the West Bank town of Abu Dis in 2011. As peace talks between Israel and Palestine remain at a standstill, people are looking to other possible solutions.

Peace talks between Israelis and Palestinians are at a standstill and have been for almost two years. The stated aim of those negotiations is what is known as the "two-state solution," which means the establishment of a viable, independent Palestinian state existing in peace alongside Israel.

But as hopes for an agreement diminish, Palestinians — and even some Israelis — are now talking about other solutions to the conflict. Among them, the so-called "one-state solution."

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3:17am

Thu April 12, 2012
Media

Huckabee Pledges More Civil Alternative To Limbaugh

Credit Gary Kline
Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee says his new radio show will be more "conversation and less confrontation."

Mike Huckabee fell short four years ago in his quest to become the Republican presidential nominee. As of this week, the former Arkansas governor has a new job: national radio talk show host.

The Mike Huckabee Show started Monday with an anticipatory flourish.

"Welcome to the community of conversation. You've just made a right turn, and you've arrived at the corner of conservatism and common sense," he said. "In this show, we're going to be confronting the issues — not the listeners."

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3:15am

Thu April 12, 2012
Shots - Health Blog

Water In The Time Of Cholera: Haiti's Most Urgent Health Problem

In the teeming city of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, millions of people have no reliable water supply.

Many of the underground pipes that did exist were ruptured by the 2010 earthquake. Many public water kiosks are dry.

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3:15am

Thu April 12, 2012
Latin America

After Taint Of Drugs, Colombia Reinvents Itself

Credit Javier Galeano / AP
A woman looks over vegetables in Carulla Supermarket in Bogota, Colombia. The country, which plays host this weekend to the Summit of the Americas, is a rising star in the region. Foreign investment has quadrupled over the past decade, and it has a new free-trade agreement with the U.S.

Colombia was once associated with cocaine trafficking and powerful drug lords, but today's reality is different: It's stable, a magnet for foreign investment and diplomatically engaged — and this weekend hosts the Summit of the Americas. Increasingly, Colombia is seen as South America's rising star.

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3:14am

Thu April 12, 2012
Energy

Scientists Link Rise In Quakes To Waste-Water Wells

Scientists who watch for earthquakes have discovered a big increase in the number of small quakes in the middle of the country. It's an area that's usually pretty quiet geologically.

The scientists suspect the quakes are caused by wastewater wells. They plan to discuss their findings later this month at a seismology conference, but they've shared the basics with NPR.

Bill Ellsworth, a seismologist at the U.S. Geological Survey, says new technology over the past decade has given scientists a much better feel for when the Earth shakes.

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7:27pm

Wed April 11, 2012
It's All Politics

Turning The Tables, Romney Hits Obama For A 'War On Women'

Credit Steven Senne / AP
Mitt Romney holds a flier titled "Women & The Obama Economy" as he speaks in Hartford, Conn., Wednesday

Mitt Romney was on the attack Wednesday, using a specific statistic to back up his claim that women, especially, have suffered economically under President Obama.

"Over 92 percent of the jobs lost under this president were lost by women," Romney said on Fox News. "His policies have been really a war on women."

The Romney campaign claims that 92.3 percent of those who have lost jobs during the Obama administration are women. It's a claim the campaign has made in speeches, on Twitter and on the Romney website.

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6:49pm

Wed April 11, 2012
Law

Decoding Legalese: Up Next In Trayvon Martin Case

George Zimmerman has been charged with second-degree murder in the shooting of Florida teen Trayvon Martin. Audie Cornish speaks with former federal prosecutor Brett Meltzer about the legal aspects of the case going forward.

6:25pm

Wed April 11, 2012
Shots - Health Blog

TEDMED Takes Its Big Health Tent To Washington

Credit NPR
TEDMED: Live from the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.

The phenomenon that is TEDMED has rolled into the nation's capital. And I'm camped out at the Kennedy Center for the nerdfest.

What's the big deal? I'm still trying to figure that out as the meeting is well into its second day. It's an event, that's for sure, and it's supposed to be a way for people who care a lot about health care to get together and make some headway on thorny problems.

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6:18pm

Wed April 11, 2012

6:06pm

Wed April 11, 2012
The Two-Way

Zimmerman Arrested On Murder Charge In Trayvon Martin Case

Originally published on Wed April 11, 2012 9:13 pm

George Zimmerman, who says he killed unarmed Florida teenager Trayvon Martin in self-defense, has been arrested and will face a charge of second-degree murder, says State Attorney Angela Corey, the special prosecutor investigating Martin's death.

Corey said that Zimmerman turned himself in to the authorities Wednesday.

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5:50pm

Wed April 11, 2012
The Two-Way

2 Marines Killed, 2 Injured In Osprey Crash In Morocco

Two U.S. Marines have been killed and two others injured when the V-22 Osprey they were in crashed Wednesday during a training exercise in Morocco.

NPR's Larry Abramson is reporting that the reservists were part of a Marine unit participating in the annual African Lion exercise with the Moroccan military. The two severely injured Marines are being treated in country.

More information about those killed and wounded will be released after the notification of next of kin.

The cause of the crash is still being investigated, but NPR's Abramson notes:

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5:23pm

Wed April 11, 2012
Your Money

Your (Virtual) Future Self Wants You To Save Up

Originally published on Wed April 11, 2012 9:22 pm

Credit Chinthaka Herath / Courtesy of Hal Hershfield
Professor Hal Hershfield (left), 32, uses a computer program to get an idea of what he might look like at 70 (right).

A retirement crisis is looming. As people live longer, one study finds that half of all households are at risk of coming up short on retirement money. And while many working households may feel they simply don't have enough to spare for retirement, experts say some of the biggest barriers to saving up are psychological.

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