- by Ellen Grafton -
On Feb. 27 to March 2, almost 12,000 young people gathered at the Convention Center in Washington D.C. for Power Shift 2009.
Power Shift is an annual event that encourages young people to lobby for environmental causes. This year, participants attended three days of forums, lectures and workshops about [...]

During inauguration weekend a group gathered on a D.C. sidewalk with a different sort of celebration in mind After practicing for less than an hour in an office, they took to the streets to celebrate inauguration in their own way: they were going to dance.
Whitney Gratton: Photographer
Jason Sparks: Audio Reporter
Inaugural Dance Party from Jason [...]

-by Christopher Toothman-
I wandered down to the Tidal Basin in DC on Thursday to enjoy the sunset and to capture the finale of the peak bloom season of some 300 cherry trees that line the waterfront.
Each year, around April 4th, the trees bloom and attract thousands of visitors from all over the world.
The trees were [...]

DOWNLOAD the radio version (mp3). Also, don’t miss these web-exclusive radio features:
At The Academy of Washington, Family Is A Drag | Shauna Miller

Immigration Law & Same-Sex Marriage | Julia Thompson

Street Superheroes | Rachel Kowal

-Produced by Eleanor Kagan & Whitney Gratton-
An Artful Protest from Eleanor Kagan on Vimeo.
For the 6th annual protest against the U.S. invasion of Iraq, thousands of people gathered on the National Mall on March 21, 2009 to march toward the Pentagon. Many protestors carried cardboard ‘coffins,’ wrapped in Israeli, American, Iranian, Afghani and Iraqi flags [...]

-Photos by Christopher Toothman-

Jazz pianist Omar Sosa, known for his Afro-Cuban rhythms, placed an effigy on the piano during his performance.

Childo Thomas (left), Sosa’s longtime collaborator from Mozambique, Tell Me More host Michel Martin and Omar Sosa pose after the performance.

Childo Thomas plays the kalimba, or thumb piano, is a modernized version of the [...]

-Photos by Christopher Toothman-

For some long distance runners, scaling back on mileage to ease the pressure on aging joints is an even tougher test of willpower than running a marathon. But doctors and coaches say there are plenty of good ways to stay fit and get the rush of running without pounding the pavement.
Retired Navy [...]

-by Megan Meyer-
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The other-worldly music in this story comes from…mobile phones.
The composer of this piece is Ge Wang. He’s a professor at the Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics at Stanford University. He started by making music with laptops.
“So we actually have this formal course here at Stanford-and that’s the laptop [...]

-Video by Christopher Toothman-
New toys due out later this year will use the power of the mind -– but these playthings are actually controlled by brain waves.
The goal of Uncle Milton’s “The Force Trainer” is to focus your thoughts in order to levitate a ball. There are no blinking lights or 3-D graphics -– just [...]

-by Eleanor Kagan-
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Posted by Eleanor Kagan
It’s a tradition on Valentine’s Day to give flowers to the person you love, and then they love you more, right? That’s the theory anyway. In this audio postcard from Boston, Eleanor Kagan finds out her friend, a flower delivery man, just isn’t sold.
Galen Mook is is a grad [...]