Search results for

Life is a collection of "extraordinarily ordinary moments," says the Academy Award-winning director, if only people would "wake up and pay attention to how beautiful it all is." Payne's latest film, The Descendants, puts the power of everyday moments to use, and is nominated for five Oscars.

Each year, as Congress works to wrap up budget and tax bills and other "must-pass" legislation, inevitably not so must-pass items creep into the mix — inserted either to smooth passage for the more important things, or in the hopes that no one will notice. This year marks the first time that leadership has been unable to use earmarks to buy off reluctant votes, and has turned to other forms of grease instead. NPR's David Welna reports.

Though Colorado is often held up as the model of a healthy lifestyle, the state isn't immune to the obesity crisis. One in four children is either overweight or obese. "This is a major problem," says one state health official. "We are far from setting the model of where we want to be."

Record executive Simon Cowell is a judge on the talent show American Idol, which begins a new season this month. The hour-long show is a spin-off of one Cowell helped create in Britain, Pop Idol.

By Peter BielloWilmington, NC – Brunswick County is bracing for Tropical Storm Hanna by preparing as if Hanna still had hurricane strength. Officials in…

What do you get when you add Jay-Z's 'Problems' to Three Dog Night's 'Loneliest Number'? A bunch of pop culture math questions that weren't on your SAT. Puzzle guy Art Chung proves calculus is a lot less scary when it involves your favorite band.

A Colorado gas station and car wash owner is already feeling the impact of sharply rising crude prices. Some analysts say continued increases could slow down the economy as it struggles to recover.

Hear opera reinvent itself in the hands of cutting-edge composers facing an uncertain new century.

Will unmarried women, representing about a quarter of the nation's eligible voters, retain their ballot-box ardor for President Obama? And will their married counterparts give Republican Mitt Romney more electoral love than they gave John McCain in 2008? The answers could decide the election.

A canceled-then-reinstated trade shakes basketball before it can even start up again. Also, do Tim Tebow's victories speak as loud as his prayers? Host Scott Simon talks sports with NPR's Tom Goldman.