2:00am

Thu January 5, 2012
Around the Nation

Boeing To Close Wichita Defense Plant

Residents of Wichita, Kansas, are outraged after Boeing announced Wednesday that it will close a massive defense plant there. More than 2,000 highly skilled jobs will be gone by the end of next year. The announcement sparked considerable frustration among elected officials who had been lead to believe that more Boeing jobs were on the way to Wichita.

2:00am

Thu January 5, 2012
Business

The Last Word In Business

Linda Wertheimer has the Last Word in business.

2:00am

Thu January 5, 2012
Election 2012

With Iowa Under His Belt, Romney Focuses On N.H. Primary

Fresh off a win in the Iowa caucuses, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney campaigned in New Hampshire yesterday. There, he picked up the endorsement of Senator John McCain. Four years ago, McCain beat Romney in the state's Republican presidential primary.

2:00am

Thu January 5, 2012
Africa

Senegal Singer To Run For President

Originally published on Thu January 5, 2012 5:00 am

Senegalese singer Youssou N'Dour made his name in music, and now he wants to be president of his homeland.

N'Dour gained an international audience in 1994 with his hit song "Seven Seconds," with Neneh Cherry. He went on to earn a Grammy in 2004 for the album Egypt, becoming one of Africa's most influential and popular singers.

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2:00am

Thu January 5, 2012
NPR Story

GOP Candidates Rush To Campaign In First Primary State

Now that the Iowa caucuses are over, all eyes are on New Hampshire and its Republican presidential primary which is next week.

12:57am

Thu January 5, 2012
The Salt

How The Russians Saved America's Sunflower

Next time you buy some potato chips, take a look at the list of ingredients. There's a good chance that, right after potatoes, you'll see this: "Sunflower oil."

You might think nothing of it. After all, the sunflower is the state flower of Kansas. Why wouldn't the potato chip industry use this home-grown oil?

But before the sunflower ended up helping to fry potatoes, it had to take a long detour through, of all places, the Soviet Union.

Let's follow this trail from the beginning.

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10:01pm

Wed January 4, 2012
Author Interviews

Growing Up Muslim And Midwestern In 'Dervish'

In American Dervish, playwright and author Ayad Akhtar draws from his own Midwestern childhood to tell the coming-of-age story of 10-year-old Hayat Shah, the son of Pakistani immigrants, whose humdrum world of baseball and video games is interrupted by the arrival of a family friend from Pakistan: the glamorous Mina, who's fleeing a disastrous marriage.

The spiritual and lively Mina lights up the glum Shah home, and Hayat falls under her thrall.

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10:01pm

Wed January 4, 2012
National Security

Critics Question Pentagon's New Strategy

For two decades, the Pentagon has maintained that it could fight two wars at the same time. But as the Obama administration releases its new military strategy Thursday, some question whether the Pentagon will abandon that long-held commitment.

An early draft of the Pentagon's new strategy, The New York Times reported, said the military would only be able to win one war and spoil an adversary's efforts in a second war.

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10:01pm

Wed January 4, 2012

10:01pm

Wed January 4, 2012
Shots - Health Blog

The Real Holiday Party For Weight Loss Firms? It's Now

Credit Cindy Ord / Getty Images

The New Year is almost always happy for the weight-loss industry. When the holiday gorging ends, the resolutions to shed those extra pounds begin.

Weight Watchers North America president David Burwick says the first week of the year is the biggest week in what is typically his company's most profitable quarter.

"This is our Super Bowl," he says. "The first week of January is our Super Bowl for Weight Watchers."

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