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From member station WNYC in New York, Amy Eddings reports that 35-thousand Verizon Communications employees are still on strike despite an agreement that was reached over the weekend. Approximately 50-thousand of the telephone workers in New York and New England who were on strike returned to work yesterday after the agreement was reached.

Commentator Bill Lessard -- an experienced dot-com employee himself -- says that all those perks you hear about at technology companies don't really add up to as much as workers think they're getting.

From member station KPBS, Scott Horsley reports on the latest fast food craze in California. Jollibee is a Filipino chain that serves up classic American food with a taste of the islands: hamburgers are topped with pineapple, and dessert pies are filled with mango.

NPR's Michele Kelemen reports from Moscow that Norwegian divers in the Barents Sea have confirmed Russia's worst fears: all 118 men aboard the submarine Kursk are dead. As the rescue effort wound down, Russians continue to ask questions about their government's handling of the tragedy. Attention also turned to the task of raising the sub from the ocean floor before its nuclear reactors begin to leak.'

New research suggests that transplanted brain cells can help some people whose brains have been damaged by a stroke. As NPR's Joanne Silberner reports the technique has been tried on only a few patients. But the results are promising.

NPR's Mary Ann Akers reports that Transportation Secretary Rodney Slater is assembling a federal task force to monitor airline performance after a summer travel season marred by thousands of flight delays.

NPR's Richard Harris reports on the watery North Pole. Last month, a group of tourists traveled there, expecting to see ice. Instead, they found open water. Many people are blaming global warming, and suggest this is an unusual phenomenon. But other scientists say so much open water could be due to the season and other weather conditions.

Commentator Sydell Rabin talks about how her 50th high school reunion.

Linda talks with Tim Nickens, Political Editor forthe St. Petersburg Times, about the presidential race in Florida, which has become a close contest. Six months ago, it seemed that George W. Bush had a lock on the state where his brother Jeb is Governor. The state still seems to be leaning toward Bush, but Nickens says Gore may have a chance to gain the upper hand.

The soccer mom personified the swing voter in the last presidential election. This time everyone's talking about the "working waitress." Governor George W. Bush uses the example of the waitress to describe his tax cut. Vice President Al Gore attacks Bush's tax plan and recalls his own mother's working days as a waitress. Scott Horsley reports on how the candidates' competing tax plans would affect a real working waitress.

NPR's Eric Weiner reports Australia is engaged in its largest peacetime security operation, in advance of the 2000 summer Olympics, in Sydney in two weeks. Australian security agencies are preparing for every possibility from hostage situations to biochemical warfare. Over the weekend, New Zealand police said they had uncovered a possible plot to target a nuclear plant near the Olympic site in Sydney. Australian officials are downplaying the incident as workers put finishing touches on the Olympic facilities. The government spent more than one-billion dollars on the construction. But Australians, known for their fierce enthusiasm for sports, are not complaining about footing the bill.

Bunny Austin, tennis star of the 1930's, has died at the age of 94. Austin -- teamed with Fred Perry -- won four Davis Cup finals in a row in the mid-30's. Austin was the first man to wear shorts at the All England Club at Wimbledon in 1934. Linda Wertheimer and Bud Collins, asports columnist for the Boston Globe and commentator for NBC, talk about Austin's career. (2:30) MUSIC HEARD AT ONE MINUTE BEFORE THE HOUR: Cut 2 from the CD "DJ Kicks" by the Thievery Corporation, from Studio K-7 Records.

NPR's Special Correspondent Susan Stamberg concludes a month-long series on female vocalists with a profile of Rosemary Clooney, whose new album is titled, Brazil. (7:19) Stations: Rosemary Clooney's latest CD Brazil is on Concord Jazz label; ASIN: B00004TQYE

Vice President Al Gore took a tour of a neighborhood pharmacy today in Tallahassee Florida, then met with about 150 senior citizens to talk about prescription drug costs. Gore told the seniors they ought to demand details from his presidential rival, Texas Gov. George W.Bush, who says he wants to help make prescription drugs affordable for all seniors. We hear excerpts from the campaign today.

Robert talks to Richard Kroehling, creator andco-producer of the show Confessions, which debuts next month on Court TV.The show plans to play videotaped confessions of murders taken by the Manhattan District Attorney's office, without narration.

NPR's Jennifer Ludden reports on his way home tomorrow, President Clinton will stop off in Cairo for urgent talks with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak about the stalled Middle East peace process. Clinton is urging Mubarak to try to get his fellow Arabs to agree to continued Israeli sovereignty over the Old City of Jerusalem, something Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat refuses to accept.

Michele Kelemen reports from Moscow that a fire raged for more than a day in the city's television tower, leaving at least two people dead. The blaze caused considerable damage to the structure -- the world's second tallest tower -- and nearly all television service to the capital has been cut. The fire -- coming just after a bomb blast in Moscow and the sinking of the submarine Kursk -- has prompted more talk about Russia's crumbling infrastructure.

NPR's Mike Shuster reports from Arusha, Tanzania, that President Clinton has arrived there to lend American support to efforts to end Burundi's civil war. He met with former South African President Nelson Mandela, who has been trying to broker a Burundi peace, as well as with Burundi leaders. But five hard-line Tutsi groups boycotted the accord between Hutus and Tutsis that Clinton saw signed today.

Commentator Andrei Codrescu ruminates on pigeons, old women, gondolas, and the quest for romance by young women visiting Venice. (3:30) MUSIC FOLLOWING STORY: "A Vucchella", on the CD "La Musica from Italy", copyright 1990, Delta Music Inc.

County lawmakers in Washington state are considering tighter restrictions on whalewatching. Conservationists argue the noisy boatloads of tourists are contributing to the mysterious decline in numbers of the orca whale population. From member station KUOW in Seattle, Sam Eaton reports.

Robert talks to Kai Strom, the First Assistant Golf Professional at the Springfield Country Club in Springfield, Virginia, about the golf balls that are specially manufactured for Tiger Woods. A consumer group filed suit against Nike last week for an advertising campaign in which Woods endorses a Nike golf ball that he doesn't really use. The company says it will soon be selling the exact type of ball that Woods uses. Strom tells Robert that using the same ball Woods uses is unlikely to make another golfer play like Woods.

Fewer flights are being cancelled by United Airlines now that it's reached a tentative settlement with its pilots. The airline is still negotiating a new contract with the union representing its mechanics and ground workers. But Chicago Public Radio's Jason DeRose reports the carrier is already striving to win back angry travelers.

Howard Berkes reports on the fires that continue torage in the western states. Millions of acres of forest and brush have been blackened, and politicians have begun pointing fingers at the Clinton Administration for failing to do enough to prevent the blazes.

Alan Cheuse reviews a new novel by T.C.Boyle called A Friend of the Earth. It's the story of an eco-terrorist andhis family. (1:45) The book is published by Viking Press.

New research shows exercise need not be done all at once to protect against heart disease. NPR's Richard Knox reports that two15-minute sessions are as good as one 30-minute session.