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February 19, 2013 The eye-popping, ear-splitting meteor streaking over Russia last Friday was an invitation to look up more often, to track the shooting stars we might see on any given night. These daily visitors to our planet put cosmic history into context, lighting up a past that is full of debris.

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February 19, 2013 What if, before your child was born, you could make sure they had the genes to be taller or smarter? Would that tempt you, or would you find it unnerving? Two teams of experts debate genetic engineering in the latest Intelligence Squared U.S. debate.

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February 19, 2013 The politics of beehives might be able to teach our Congressional leaders a little bit about governing.

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February 19, 2013 Coast Guard investigators say a fuel leak caused the fire that hobbled Carnival's cruise ship Triumph for days. Dave Granlund thinks the experience must have been awful for the people on board, while Randy Bish puts their ordeal in perspective.

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February 18, 2013 North Korea conducted another nuclear weapons test this week. No matter where he looks, Dave Granlund can't escape a feeling of impending doom, while Jeff Danziger wonders when China will rein in its southern neighbor.

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February 17, 2013 NPR contributor Glen Weldon talks about why he, a Superman nerd and a gay man, won't be reading a new iteration of the Man of Steel penned by author Orson Scott Card.

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February 17, 2013 The money and mansions of the turn of the century provide rich fodder for some fabulous reads. Author Janet Wallach recommends three books that give a glimpse of Gilded Age houses. Do you have a favorite book that highlights architecture? Let us know in the comments.

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February 17, 2013 Florida Sen. Marco Rubio's GOP response to the State of the Union address resonated more for style than substance. Nate Beeler thinks you can't fault Democrats for enjoying the senator's awkwardness, but Mike Lester blames media bias for drowning out the Republican message.

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February 16, 2013 State officials in Illinois want to conduct DNA tests on the top hat on display at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum to see if he ever really wore it. Museum officials think the idea is worse than bad.

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On Weekend Edition SaturdayPlaylist

February 16, 2013 Tracy Johnson lost her wife to war, but she didn't lose her family.

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On Weekend Edition SaturdayPlaylist

February 16, 2013 News that hundreds of professional soccer games may have been fixed and the announcement that in 2020 wrestling won't be in the Olympics have rocked the sports world. Joep Bertrams sees the soccer scandal as a new opportunity, while Mike Luckovich thinks wrestling's loss could be America's gain.

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February 15, 2013 Karen Russell's new collection of short stories has dead presidents reincarnated as horses, girls turning into silkworms, and vampires who quench their thirst for blood with lemons. Reviewer Meg Wolitzer says that in Russell's world we aren't fixed in space and time but can change at any moment.

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February 15, 2013 You have to go to Berlin to see Adolph Menzel's best work. In the estimation of Alva Noë, it would be well worth the trip. Menzel is an exciting artist whose work explores the nature of human experience.

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February 15, 2013 The Senate has never filibustered a nominee for secretary of defense ... until now. Eric Allie and Steve Sack see hypocrisy among the supporters and opponents of former Nebraska senator and Vietnam combat veteran Chuck Hagel.

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