In her latest report from Russia, Margaret Warner takes a look at the health and well-being of the Russian people, including the low life expectancy for adult males. Russia’s population now stands at 141 million, a drop of 12 million people, says the U.N., since the collapse of the Soviet Union 16 years ago.
Grade levels: Adult
-
Bargain Hunting Adds Up to Unexpected Costs
Author Ellen Ruppel Shell talks about her new book “Cheap: The High Cost of Discount Culture.”
-
Alaskan Village Copes with Impacts of Climate Change
In Shishmaref, Alaska – a 600-person village 20 miles south of the Arctic Circle – residents are feeling the effects of climate change: earlier sea ice melts and increasing storm surges. Tom Bearden reports on how the residents are coping.
-
Students Build Biological Machines
Scientists in the growing field of synthetic biology use basic biological “building blocks” – snippets of DNA – to engineer useful living organisms, like bacteria that can break down plastic. Tom Bearden reports on a do-it-yourself biology competition for college students.
-
Young Engineers Envision Cities of the Future
Correspondent Tom Bearden reports on a competition of young engineers designing ecofriendly urban centers of the future.
-
In Iraq and Afghanistan, Military Relies on Robots
The military has deployed thousands of robots in Iraq and Afghanistan, where the machines search for IEDs and conduct aerial surveillance. NewsHour correspondent Tom Bearden reports on the future of military robots.
-
Behavioral Economist on Money, Morality and Rationality
In the latest in economics correspondent Paul Solman’s ‘Making Sense’ series, behavioral economist Dan Ariely mulls decision-making mechanisms in finance and they ways in which many people rationalize their unethical actions.
-
Deep Sea Chemicals
Scientists are studying coral reefs for the next medical breakthrough. It is hoped that they will provide raw materials for life-saving drugs.
-
Scientists, Students Study Space Storms
High school students and teachers in Alaska are helping NASA scientists collect data for a mission that aims to learn more about the space weather that causes the aurora borealis, or Northern Lights.
-
Chinua Achebe: “Things Fall Apart”
Jeffrey Brown interviews Chinua Achebe on the 50th anniversary of the publication of “Things Fall Apart.”