Midcentury Furniture + Grandkid Nostalgia = Modern Trend()  

NPR's Andrea Hsu paid $75 for her midcentury modern table and chairs, shown here in a 1963 Drexel Declaration catalog. She quickly realized it was a steal.

May 29, 2013 It first showed up in the 1950s and '60s — think low-slung sofas, egg-shaped chairs and the set of Mad Men. Today, midcentury modern furniture is "blazing hot," as one dealer puts it. One explanation is that people often like what their grandparents liked.

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Discovering A Family Member's Lost Time In Amsterdam()  

Suzanne Hoogendijk, shown here in 2009, hid for two years with her mother in Amsterdam to escape the Nazis.

May 21, 2013 When Margot Adler learned that a cousin had hidden from the Nazis in Amsterdam, she was stunned. Adler started digging around and discovered that like Anne Frank, 25,000 Dutch Jews hid, and two-thirds of them survived. Her cousin was one of them.

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New York: A Concrete Jungle And 'City Of Trees,' Too ()  

Tulip

April 30, 2013 People generally don't associate trees with New York City, and if they do, they tend to think only of Central and Prospect parks. But the city is filled with old, beloved trees, some dating back more than 200 years, many of them located in the unsung outer boroughs.

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Iowa Town Braces For New Reality In Factory Closure's Wake()  

Main Street in Webster City, Iowa, has so far survived the 2011 closure of an Electrolux factory. But retraining funds and unemployment are running out for former workers, leaving businesses worried that a serious downturn is ahead.

April 8, 2013 Appliance manufacturer Electrolux closed its Webster City, Iowa, plant in 2011. Now, the retraining programs for former workers are wrapping up, and the town of 8,000 is bracing for the true impact of the closure. It's a familiar story for many former manufacturing towns across the Midwest.

Summary

For Some In Minneapolis, National Gun Debate Hits Close To Home()  

President Obama greets law enforcement officers after speaking on ideas to reduce gun violence at the Minneapolis Police Department Special Operations on Monday.

February 9, 2013 Earlier this week, President Obama was in Minneapolis advocating new limits on guns; no law or set of laws, he said, can keep children completely safe. NPR's David Welna sent this reporter's notebook about what he heard from some of those engaged in the gun debate in his home state.

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Puerto Rican Hip-Hop Icon Tego Calderon Mixes Prose And Politics()  

Puerto Rican hip-hop artist Tego Calderon outside his studio, El Sitio, in Santurce, San Juan, Puerto Rico.

February 8, 2013 The legendary rapper is responsible for some of Latin hip-hop's most danceable music. His lyrics also advocate for the Puerto Rican independence movement.

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Fine Art

In 'According To What?' Ai Weiwei Makes Mourning Subversive()  

Grapes, a spiky cluster of wooden stools from the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), is part of Ai Weiwei's repurposed furniture series.

January 23, 2013 A Washington showcase of work by the Chinese dissident artist reveals his preoccupation with the tragic 2008 Sichuan earthquake: To create one of the pieces, Ai ran afoul of Chinese authorities, asking for help collecting the names of children who died when their schools collapsed.

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All Tech Considered

Distracted Driving: We're All Guilty, So What Should We Do About It?()  

Despite the well-publicized dangers and laws against it in many states, texting or emailing while driving remains a huge problem.

November 11, 2012 Despite the danger, millions of people continue to text or email while driving. The desire to stay connected is often hard to resist, so here are a few tips to help keep your hands on the wheel.

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Through Thick And Thin, Simmons Is Still Sweatin'()  

Fitness advocate Richard Simmons, wearing his signature shorts and tank top, leads Capitol Hill staff and visitors through an exercise routine July 24, 2008, in Washington, D.C.

August 14, 2012 Richard Simmons opened his first aerobics studio in Beverly Hills nearly 40 years ago. Since then, he has become an international celebrity, selling millions of fitness videos and writing best-selling books. But all along the way, Simmons never stopped teaching aerobics classes at that Beverly Hills studio. NPR's Sam Sanders stopped in for a session.

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Hillary Clinton: 'Incredible Rush' Will Have Its End()  

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee greet each other before a meeting in Kolkata, India, on May 7.

May 13, 2012 Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says she plans to get off the "high-wire" of politics after she wraps up her tenure as secretary of state, but she's still questioned about her political future wherever she goes. NPR's Michele Kelemen gives a behind-the-scenes account of Clinton's most recent swing through Asia.

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