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Among the U.S. troops serving in Iraq, a small group of soldier-poets convene to share their verses. At Camp Victory, a U.S. military base at Baghdad's international airport, the "poetry jams" occur every two weeks.

In a high school in Germany, students were preparing to take an exam when something miraculous happened. Teachers were unable to open a safe containing the tests. Firefighters were called to help.

NPR's Madeleine Brand talks with former CIA Director James Woolsey about how environmentalists and so-called "neo-conservatives" have found common ground -- on hybrid cars. Both groups are buying the energy-efficient cars, but for different reasons.

The Congressional Budget Office forecasts a deficit of $368 billion for the current fiscal year, a $20 billion jump from its prediction last fall. The numbers do not include the additional $80 billion for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan that the Bush administration has said it will seek from Congress.

Spies spend their whole careers hiding secrets from family and close friends. Yet, when they retire, they don't necessarily disappear into history. Many of them turn around and publish memoirs. We discuss what's behind the urge to spy and tell. Is it bad for sources — or the agencies?

A continuing look at the recovery of Marine 1st Sgt. Brad Kasal, who was shot several times in the leg in Iraq. In an effort to save the limb, he is undergoing multiple surgeries at Bethesda Naval Hospital in Maryland.

President Bush nominates Undersecretary of State John Bolton to be the new U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Bolton has been critical of the United Nations, but he insists his past remarks will not hinder his effectiveness as a diplomat.

Over the past three years, the U.S. has held dozens of suspected terrorists off the books, in a legal no-man's-land: Detainees have been treated in ways that mean they can't be prosecuted, begging the question of what happens to them now.

Dijanna Figueroa is one of only a few African Americans working in the specialized field of marine biology. She tells Ed Gordon how she went from the laboratory to a starring role in director James Cameron's underwater film Aliens of the Deep.

In the West, new ways are emerging to make ranching compatible with preservation. For financial incentives, ranchers keep their lands away from developers and try to preserve fragile desert landscapes.

NPR's Farai Chideya talks to trial attorney and CBS legal news analyst Trent Copeland about the latest testimony in the Michael Jackson child molestation trial.

A new exhibit reveals some of more unusual pieces of American history contained in the vaults of the National Archives. Items include Albert Einstein's immigration papers.

Twenty-five years ago, the U-S hockey team defeated a superstar Soviet team at the Lake Placid Olympics. The victory was a stunning upset on the ice -- and on the world stage, amid chilly relations between two Cold War superpowers. Three New York friends remember being part of history that day.

In Egypt, reformers were gratified when the government approved a new, liberal political party last year, hoping there might be a loosening of President Hosni Mubarak's hold on office. But the Tomorrow party's push for a true multi-party vote was met with a government crackdown.

Israel frees 500 Palestinian prisoners, making good on promises made to Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas last month. The mass release comes one day after the Israeli government gave final approval to dismantling Gaza settlements.

In this first installment of a three-part series on Social Security, NPR's John Ydstie examines the system's shortfalls and possible ways to extend its long-term solvency. Among the remedies: raising the retirement age; raising the tax that workers and employers pay into the system; and mandating that all federal and state workers take part in the national retirement program.

An auction of rare documents and artifacts related to the evolution of computer technology and the Internet will be held at Christie's Auction House in New York on Wednesday. Day to Day technology correspondent Xeni Jardin reports.

President Bush concludes his five-day European tour on Thursday in Bratislava, Slovakia where he will meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Tom Nicholson, publisher of The Slovak Spectator, speaks to NPR's Madeleine Brand talks about the summit.

USA Next, a conservative consulting group that orchestrated the Swift Boat Veterans' ads against Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry, are taking on a new adversary. In new ads, the group attacks the AARP, one of the most vocal opponents of President Bush's Social Security plan. NPR's Madeleine Brand speaks with representatives from both groups.

Journalists have compiled instances of favoring international staff over local staff and treating people of color inequitably. A grassroots group of staffers agrees. Here's how MSF is responding.

Want a bigger house, a svelte figure or a gender change? It's possible in the online game "Second Life," where residents trade real money for virtual land, designer clothes and other trappings of a fantasy life.

The Israeli cabinet approves the dismantling of 21 Jewish settlements in Gaza and four in the West Bank. Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has said the Gaza pullout will begin in July and take 12 weeks.

The uproar over remarks by Harvard University President Lawrence Summer doesn't seem to be dying down. Now his ability to lead the institution is in question. But just what is the role of a university president? We host a discussion of what's expected of academic leaders, and what's acceptable.

Critics call her "alluring" and "utterly enchanting." At Carnegie Hall, Sam Phillips delights her audience with her own songs of love and heartbreak. The Section String Quartet and Phillips' own band join her in an unplugged performance.

Marine Lt. Gen. Mike Mattis caused an uproar at a recent public appearance by declaring that war can be "a hell of a hoot." Evan Wright, author of Generation Kill and a journalist who was embedded with Mattis' platoon in Iraq, joins NPR's Alex Chadwick to discuss the comment.