Morning Edition on WRVO-1: NPR News

Why Apple (And Lots Of Other Companies) Wound Up In Ireland

Zoe Chace — Wed, 22 May 2013 07:07:00 +0000

Apple was criticized in a Senate hearing Tuesday for using a complex accounting to minimize the corporate taxes it pays.

West Bank Businesses Seek Growth Amid Uncertainty

Emily Harris — Wed, 22 May 2013 07:04:00 +0000

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry heads back to Israel and the West Bank Thursday for more talks on restarting peace negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians. When he was there last month, he walked away with at least one agreement – to improve the West Bank economy.

Quantum Or Not, New Supercomputer Is Certainly Something Else

Geoff Brumfiel — Wed, 22 May 2013 07:03:00 +0000

It's exactly the sort of futuristic thinking you'd expect from Google and NASA: Late last week, the organizations announced a partnership to build a Quantum Artificial Intelligence Lab at NASA's Ames Research Center.

But questions surround the new type of computer at the lab's core. D-Wave systems, the company that makes the machine, says it is a quantum computer — a machine that runs on the strange laws of quantum mechanics.

Backing Becks: Don't Knock The Soccer Star's Talents

Frank Deford — Wed, 22 May 2013 02:04:00 +0000

The most unforgiving criticism in sport is directed at any athlete who fans believe is celebrated too excessively above his true talent level — especially those stars who are gloried because they're such pretty people.

To wit: As David Beckham retires, so much attention is being devoted not to how good he was but to how good he was not. I never saw that emphasized with a fine athlete before.

After Okla. Tornado, Obama Offers Prayers Backed With Deeds

editor — Tue, 21 May 2013 15:13:00 +0000

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

And let's return now to our top story, that devastating tornado that struck south of Oklahoma City yesterday. President Obama spoke just moments ago at the White House. He offered words of comfort to the people of Moore, Oklahoma.

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: What they can be certain of is that Americans from every corner of this country will be right there with them, opening our homes, our hearts to those in need, because we're a nation that stands with our fellow citizens.

GREENE: This was just a devastating storm.

Tumblr Users Urge New Owner Yahoo To Keep The Site Weird

Ilya Marritz — Tue, 21 May 2013 15:13:00 +0000

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

Yahoo's purchase of the blogging site Tumblr sent shockwaves through the Tumblrverse. Is that actually a word now?

WNYC's Ilya Marritz reports that the site's users want to keep Tumblr out of the mainstream.

ILYA MARRITZ, BYLINE: When word got out about the acquisition, Tumblr users reacted in their distinctive way. Homemade, quirky, sharp. One site showed an animated gif of Marissa Mayer, Yahoo's CEO, wearing a diabolical smile as $20 bills rain down over her.

Destiny USA tries to make it a comfortable destination for tour bus drivers

Ellen Abbott — Tue, 21 May 2013 12:32:08 +0000

Bus drivers who bring customers to Destiny USA in Syracuse won't be waiting in their buses for passengers to finish shopping anymore. The mall has created a new bus drivers lounge and the idea is to expand on what is already a big source of shoppers at the Syracuse mall.

Fighting fire blight in New York's apple industry

Kate O'Connell — Tue, 21 May 2013 12:25:44 +0000

New York is the second biggest apple producing state in the country. But, last year production dropped dramatically due to a warmer winter, early blooms, and harsh spring frosts. The total production from the state plummeted from 1.2 million pounds in 2011, to just 710,000 pounds in 2012. But, weather isn’t the only challenge growers are contending with.

Rep. Cole Is From Moore, Where Deadly Twister Hit

editor — Tue, 21 May 2013 11:49:00 +0000

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

This is MORNING EDITION from NPR News. I'm David Greene.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

And I'm Steve Inskeep. More Oklahoma. The Oklahoma City suburb most devastated by yesterday's tornado is the hometown of the man we'll talk with next. Oklahoma Republican congressman Tom Cole is on the line. Congressman, I'm sorry for the occasion but welcome back to the program.

REPRESENTATIVE TOM COLE: Yeah, Steve, thank you very much.

INSKEEP: Is your family OK?

COLE: Fortunately, yes. My home and my wife was in it.

Border Collies Protect Scientsts' Research From Geese

editor — Tue, 21 May 2013 11:34:00 +0000

Scientists in Canada were working at an experimental research farm, testing crops like corn and barley. But packs of Canada geese had been swooping in and destroying the crops. Two border collies were hired to chase away the geese.

Now's Your Chance To Own A Little Bit Of Gandhi

editor — Tue, 21 May 2013 11:28:00 +0000

Transcript

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Good morning, I'm Steve Inskeep.

Today is your chance to own a little bit of Gandhi. The quirky, unpredictable and ultimately triumphant leader spent decades leading India to independence. Along the way, Mohandis Gandhi became known as Mahatma, or venerated one, and he had an appendectomy. Afterward, doctors took samples of his blood. Two microscope slides bearing that blood are being auctioned today in London with bids expected over $15,000.

It's MORNING EDITION. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

Fox News Reporter James Rosen Caught Up In Federal Probe

David Folkenflik — Tue, 21 May 2013 10:36:00 +0000

There is word of another controversial leak investigation by the Department of Justice. The target is Fox News reporter James Rosen, who was monitored by the department after breaking a story about North Korea's nuclear weapons program in 2009.

Young People Cast Out Of Italy's Welfare System

Sylvia Poggioli — Tue, 21 May 2013 10:30:00 +0000

Transcript

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

We are also following a subtler story of economic devastation, even with all the news about unemployment in Europe, this next number is hard to absorb. In Italy, among younger people, the jobless rate us close to 40 percent. The government is focused on the middle-aged and the elderly leaving little room it seems for their kids

Here's NPR's Sylvia Poggioli.

(SOUNDBITE OF SCREAMING AND SHOOTING)

SYLVIA POGGIOLI, BYLINE: Shots rang out outside the prime minister's office the day Italy's new government was sworn in.

Unclear Laws May Have Contributed to Tax-Exempt Controversy

Scott Horsley — Tue, 21 May 2013 10:28:00 +0000

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

Let's turn to another story for now: The acting head of the IRS has resigned, but is still facing questions about the agency. Lawmakers continue their probe into the federal tax agency targeting Tea Party groups seeking tax exemption.

Late last week, the House Ways and Means Committee demanded answers from top IRS officials to find out why the agency singled out conservative groups for scrutiny. Well, now, the Senate Finance Committee gets its chance to grill the outgoing commissioner.

Proposed line would move natural gas from Binghamton to Syracuse

Ryan Delaney — Tue, 21 May 2013 10:24:00 +0000

An energy company is looking into building a natural gas pipeline from near Binghamton to the Syracuse area. Millennium Pipeline Company is currently soliciting feedback from natural gas suppliers about their proposal to connect three supply lines running east-west across upstate New York, with a north-south line.

CEO Cook To Defend Apple Before Senate Committee Hearing

John Ydstie — Tue, 21 May 2013 08:24:00 +0000

Giant technology firm Apple is paying billions of dollars less than it should in U.S. taxes each year, according to a report by the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. In a hearing Tuesday in Washington, D.C., Apple CEO Tim Cook will defend the company.

The subcommittee's report says Apple avoids the tax payments mainly by shifting profits to three subsidiary companies in Ireland. The investigation found Apple is taking advantage of technicalities in U.S.

JPMorgan Shareholders Consider Splitting CEO, Chairman Jobs

Yuki Noguchi — Tue, 21 May 2013 08:22:00 +0000

Transcript

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

JPMorgan Chase holds its annual shareholder meeting today in Tampa, Florida, and the shareholders will vote on a key measure: a proposal to strip the CEO, Jamie Dimon, of his other title, chairman of the board. A growing number of companies have split the CEO and chairman roles.

Shareholder activists and corporate governance experts say having a balance of power at the top helps to reduce risk. The bank and its supporters disagree.

The Doors' Keyboard Counterpoint Goes Silent: Remembering Ray Manzarek

Mandalit del Barco — Tue, 21 May 2013 07:15:00 +0000

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvVCCMG-JoQ

After Crashing In Canadian 'Abyss,' Four Men Fight To Survive

editor — Tue, 21 May 2013 07:09:00 +0000

On the night of Oct. 19, 1984, Erik Vogel was uneasy about flying. It was snowing; his plane's de-icer and autopilot weren't working; and his co-pilot had been bumped to fit one more passenger on his 10-seater. But the young pilot was behind schedule and he felt like his job was on the line, so he took off, as he did most days, shuttling between the remote communities that dot the Canadian wilderness.

Author Carol Shaben tells NPR's Steve Inskeep what happened next: "He's hearing these chunks of ice coming off the props and banging like rocks against the fuselage.

Courtside Chemistry: How NBA's Phil Jackson Won 'Eleven Rings'

editor — Tue, 21 May 2013 07:08:00 +0000

Phil Jackson is famous not only for coaching stars — Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen with the Chicago Bulls, Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal with the L.A. Lakers — but also for his distinctive "zen" approach to basketball. He introduced his teams to yoga and meditation, and regularly assigned his players books to read.

Jackson once gave O'Neal a copy of Siddhartha, a novel about a man's search for enlightenment. He joked that O'Neal should give him a book report — and then the star actually did. His report?

Texas Medicaid Debate Complicated By Politics And Poverty

editor — Tue, 21 May 2013 07:01:00 +0000

When the sun rises over the Rio Grande Valley, the cries of the urracas — blackbirds — perched on the tops of palm trees swell to a noisy, unavoidable cacophony. That is also the strategy, it could be said, that local officials, health care providers and frustrated valley residents are trying to use to persuade Gov.

Campaign finance reform proposal making its way through Albany

Ellen Abbott — Mon, 20 May 2013 13:31:00 +0000

In the wake of a series of political corruption cases out of Albany in recent weeks, campaign finance reform has become a popular issue in the state capitol. Among the proposals for reforming the way money is used in political campaigns, is one from the Independent Democratic Conference. The group is wrapping up a set of statewide hearings on their plan today in Albany.

Most school budgets expected to pass

Karen Dewitt — Mon, 20 May 2013 13:09:10 +0000

Voters in New York state go to the polls Tuesday to approve new school budgets. The New York State School Boards Association finds that many school districts are living within the limits imposed by a property tax cap enacted two years ago.

New York's "local" beef, often not as local as you think

Ryan Delaney — Mon, 20 May 2013 12:07:53 +0000

The steaks stacked in the coolers of butcher shops in New York may be marketed as local, but just what that label means varies widely.

Germany May Have Paid A Price For Its Financial Power

editor — Mon, 20 May 2013 11:00:00 +0000

Germans had to finance bailouts for countries like Greece, and imposed austerity measures in return. Those who disapprove may have struck back. People across the continent and beyond watched the Eurovision song contest. The German entry finished near the bottom, with countries giving the Germans no points at all

Right Lottery Numbers, Wrong Date

editor — Mon, 20 May 2013 10:55:00 +0000

A California woman turned on the TV last week and saw she had the winning numbers in Wednesday's drawing. She thought she had won $360 million. It turns out she bought her ticket an hour after Wednesday's drawing.

Growing Vegetables From Seeds Take Root For Many Gardeners

editor — Mon, 20 May 2013 09:15:00 +0000

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

It's planting season, at least for those growing things like summer squash, beans and cherry tomatoes. And we're seeing a change. Rather than buy already developed seedlings, which are more expensive, many gardeners are buying seed packets. It's a sign they want to start their gardens from scratch.

Yahoo To Buy Tumblr In An Attempt To Revitalize Itself

KUNC-FM: Kirk Siegler — Mon, 20 May 2013 09:06:00 +0000

Yahoo is expected to announce Monday that it's acquiring the social media site Tumblr, in a deal The Wall Street Journal and other news outlets are reporting to be worth about $1.1 billion. Some analysts are calling the acquisition an effort by Yahoo to be "cool and relevant" again.

Calif. Law To Require Ships To Cut Pollution

KUNC-FM: Kirk Siegler — Mon, 20 May 2013 09:06:00 +0000

California is about to become the first state to require shore power at its ports. A new law mandates at least half of a shipping line's fleet to shut down their diesel engines and plug into shore-side electric power when they unload their cargo. It's part of a larger effort to cut pollution at the state's busiest ports, but costs have been a sticking point.

Advocates Struggle To Reach Growing Ranks Of Suburban Poor

Pam Fessler — Mon, 20 May 2013 07:07:00 +0000

Poverty has grown everywhere in the U.S. in recent years, but mostly in the suburbs.