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Plenty of computers know thousands of words and complex rules of grammar. But they're dismal communicators. So a group of scientists at MIT is trying a different approach: They're creating robots that learn what words mean the same way humans do.

Rebecca Peterson talks candidly about the difficulties of caring for her husband, Stewart Selman, who was dying from a brain tumor. Peterson experienced both compassion and anger, which is a fairly normal reaction when one spouse cares for another, according to Sarah Gupta. Director of support services for the Brain Tumor Society, Gupta talks about what families should know when caring for a loved one who is sick.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice asks the Russian government to investigate reports that Russia passed intelligence about the U.S. military to Saddam Hussein in 2003. The Pentagon says Iraqi documents indicate the Russian ambassador in Baghdad was giving the Iraqis information about American military plans and troop movements just before the invasion.

Atlanta area donors didn't want to see the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.'s papers go up for auction, so they raised enough money to bring the collection to the city's library for historically black colleges and universities. Many say King's papers will be at home in the city of his youth.

The votes are being counted after millions of Congolese voted in national elections on Sunday. It is the vast, impoverished nation's first democratic elections in 46 years. Joseph Kabila was considered the front-runner. But no candidate in the field is expected to win the majority needed to avoid a runoff.

Arkansas professor Michael Mullane believes the rule of law must be upheld -- even in times of threat and crisis. As fragile as it can be, Mullane says we are all protected by and accountable to the law.

Rep. William Jefferson (D-LA) is defending himself against bribery allegations, and an unprecedented search of his Capitol Hill office has politicians from both parties crying foul. Ed Gordon discusses the historic impact of embattled lawmakers with Lanny Davis, former special counsel to President Bill Clinton and Colorado State Sen. Peter Groff, who heads the University of Denver Center for African-American Policy.

The discovery of figs in an 11,400-year-old house near the ancient city of Jericho may be evidence that cultivated crops came centuries before the first farmers planted cereal grains.

Liberal bloggers are assembled en masse in Las Vegas this week for the first-ever convention hosted by the Daily Kos. The new media feels almost old school with keynote addresses by House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, and panels on poverty, health care and the electoral process.

The U.S. Soccer Federation said it has agreed with its men's and women's national teams to pay them the same amounts for all games and competitions and split prize money from World Cup appearances.

The nation’s largest supplier of platelets is moving to a method it says is easier for hospitals, but one that sharply raises costs, leading some centers to demand more options.

The school board agreed Tuesday to pay the extra fees, as the district's lead lawyer warned that even more legal costs could be on the way.

At least six retired military generals have recently criticized Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and his handling of the invasion and continued occupation of Iraq, calling for him to step down. How significant is this action within the larger context of retired and active generals? Mike Pesca reports.

L.A.'s mayor wants control over the failing school district. History offers lessons for lawmakers on the benefits -- and pitfalls -- of stepping in and taking over.

Christian Hardigree most recently served as the founding dean of the School of Hospitality at Metropolitan State University of Denver.

The Supreme Court reviews Clark v. Arizona, a new test of the insanity defense. The parents of an Arizona man who killed a police officer want their son declared guilty but insane. The state does not want his mental state considered in court.

Supreme Court nominee John Roberts begins a series of courtesy calls, meeting members of the Senate Judiciary Committee and leaders of both parties. Congress goes into recess at the end of July; confirmation hearings for Roberts could begin in September.

At 88, Phyllis Diller has published a memoir, appears in the film The Aristocrats and has a documentary out about her retirement from stand-up comedy.

The Senate balked at confirming John Bolton partly because of his reputation for being abrasive with colleagues and for also being harshly critical of the United Nations. Throughout American history, presidents have angered senators by using recess appointments

European leaders have called for the continent's integration to continue, despite Dutch voters' decisive rejection Wednesday of a new EU constitution. The vote, coming just days after a similar outcome in France, has thrown the process into doubt.

A majority of Iraqis approved the country's draft constitution in the Oct. 15 referendum, Iraq's Electoral Commission announces. Sunni Arabs opposed the document, which was drafted mainly by Kurdish and Shiite politicians who dominate the legislature. Dan Murphy of The Christian Science Monitor has the details.

In the U.S. media, it's reported that insurgents carry out much of the violence in Iraq. But commentator Anisa Mehdi says that while some attacks are part of an insurgency, others have civilian targets, and those should be called terrorism -- thus changing the nature of the debate about Iraq.

Human-rights groups are concerned the Iraqi constitution will place restrictions on women's freedom in areas such as property rights and divorce. Host Jacki Lyden talks about the future role of women in Iraq with Bushra al Samarai, who helped establish a radio station for Iraqi women.

More than 30 years after it was filmed, a documentary that chronicles war crimes committed by U.S. troops in Vietnam is being re-released. The film, Winter Soldier, is based on the Winter Soldier Investigation of 1971, in which Vietnam veterans testified to atrocities they witnessed or participated in.

Israel prepares for withdrawal from the Gaza Strip. The move has many potential ramifications for Palestinians in the area. Michele Norris talks with Peter Kenyon.