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Some Muslims hope to create political, economic and educational opportunities for women, while others condemn women's empowerment as anti-Islamic. A new brand of feminism is taking hold in the Middle East and beyond. It's led, more often than not, by women.

Two scientists look at the science behind happiness and satisfaction. What does it really mean to be happy? What does your brain really want?

From the case of the Black Dahlia to the unsolved murders of rappers Biggie and Tupac, many Americans have a fascination with murder mysteries. Our series on crime continues with a look at the history of unsolved crimes in this country and abroad.

Michael Pollan, author of In Defense of Food and The Omnivore's Dilemma, believes that food policy should be high on the next president's agenda. Pollan argues that how our food is produced, moved and consumed directly affects the life and vitality of the nation.

New York City wants to limit artificial trans fats. Are they really that dangerous? Rovenia Brock, author of Dr. Ro's Ten Secrets to Livin' Healthy, weighs in.

In America's poor neighborhoods, there are ways to make a living, but many of them are "off the books." Sociologist Sudhir Venkatesh immersed himself in one Southside Chicago community and discusses his findings.

Five FDA advisers assigned to review the agency's policies say it does not adequately protect the public from unsafe drugs. Dr. Curt Furberg of Wake Forest and health care journalist Fran Hawthorne, author of Inside the FDA, discuss the results.

Comedian and author John Leguizamo talks about his new book, Pimps, Hos, Playa Hatas and All the Rest of My Hollywood Friends and what it's like to be a Latino in Hollywood.

Author and musician Kinky Friedman talks about his music, his new book, The Christmas Pig: A Fable, and his recent political campaign as an independent candidate for Governor of Texas.

Isaac Newton is best known for his studies of physics and for developing the three basic laws that describe motion. In Newton and the Counterfeiter, author Thomas Levenson describes another side of Newton: his career as the crime-fighting head of the Royal Mint.

Fourteen-year-old Josseline Quinteros died while trying to cross into the U.S. along the Mexico-Arizona border. Quinteros' is just one of the border crossing stories Margaret Regan tells in her book, The Death of Josseline.

There's a new way to study for the SATs. Rather than a cursory glance at a vocabulary list, this study guide sets words to music and also offers humorous definitions.

Bob Motley, the last surviving umpire from baseball's legendary Negro Leagues, has a memoir out called Ruling Over Monarchs, Giants, and Stars: Umpiring in the Negro Leagues and Beyond.

In his new book, writer Dave Zirin discusses the intersection of sports and politics. In Welcome to the Terrordome: The Pain, Politics and Promise of Sports, Zirin explains why he thinks sports have ceased to be sports.

Josh, the protagonist of former Atlanta Falcons player Tim Green's book Baseball Great, is a budding and promising baseball player who uncovers disturbing secrets about the youth championship team that he plays on.

Washington Post personal finance columnist Michelle Singletary invites you to start 2010 right by curbing the need to consume. She lays out a 21-day financial fast to curb debt and stress in her book, The Power to Prosper.

One of the lesser-known provisions of the Energy Bill would expand daylight savings time by two months. We look at the history — and possible future — of springing forward.

Writer Lee Siegel has watched years worth of dramas, sitcoms, reality shows and news as the television critic for The New Republic. In a collection of essays, Siegel discusses the evolving television landscape.

Larry Berman's new book, Perfect Spy, tells the true story of reporter Pham Xuan An. He was a Time magazine reporter who also worked as a secret agent for the Communist Party in Vietnam during the Vietnam War.

From gravity to the greenhouse effect, Richard Muller, a physicist at University of California at Berkeley, details the basic physics President-elect Barack Obama should know. Muller is author of Physics for Future Presidents and teaches a class at Berkeley by the same name.

A new generation of activists and political dissidents are at the heart of politics in the Middle East, but many are not well known outside the region. Robin Wright, author of Dreams and Shadows: The Future of the Middle East, offers her insights.

Is persuasion an art or a science? Robert Cialdini, a social psychologist, explains how a little psychology can improve your shot at getting what you want. Cialdini is one of the authors of Yes!: 50 Scientifically Proven Ways to Be Persuasive.

Stanley Fish argues that universities should be under no obligation to promote good moral character, and that professors should leave world-changing agendas out of the classroom. His new book is entitled Save the World On Your Own Time.

Blacks in America have a rich religious history. But the diversity of African-American religion doesn't stop with Christianity. For more on the many facets of black spirituality, Farai Chideya speaks with professors Barbara Savage and Obery Hendricks.

The real and the virtual converge in role-playing games such as World of Warcraft and Second Life. Heather Chaplin and Aaron Ruby write about the phenomenon in Smartbomb: The Quest for Art, Entertainment, and Big Bucks in the Videogame Revolution.