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The Two-Way
1:50 pm
Tue August 14, 2012

Actor Ron Palillo Dies, He Was Horshack On 'Welcome Back, Kotter'

Credit Todd Williamson / Getty Images for TV Land
Actor Ron Palillo, best known as Arnold Horshack.

Originally published on Tue August 14, 2012 2:40 pm

"Ooh, Ooh, Ooh, Mr. Kotter!"

If you watched TV in the '70s, you probably recognize that line.

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All Songs Considered Blog
1:32 pm
Tue August 14, 2012

Song Premiere: Title Fight, 'Sympathy'

Credit Manny Mares
Title Fight.

Originally published on Tue August 14, 2012 2:10 pm

As much as its music pervaded my high school existence, I never attended Warped Tour — the sneaker-sponsored touring festival that has dipped into rap, Top 40 pop music and metalcore, but for the most part has stuck to its skater-friendly punk roots. On a recent mid-week day-off in late July, however, I was extremely tempted to hitch a ride to Merriweather Post Pavillion for the largely teenage-populated festival to see one band: Title Fight.

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The Picture Show
1:25 pm
Tue August 14, 2012

A Dark Chapter Of American History Captured In 'Colors'

Originally published on Tue August 14, 2012 3:00 pm

They look like vacation photos at first glance. Women in flowery kimonos gossip together in a circle. A boy on ice skates takes his first steps on a crowded rink. Two sumo wrestlers share a chuckle in the ring as a crowd watches on.

But behind the smiles, the same shadowy presence looms in the background: the tar paper barracks that housed the thousands of Japanese-American prisoners of the Heart Mountain Relocation Center in Wyoming.

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The Two-Way
1:01 pm
Tue August 14, 2012

Multiple Suicide Attacks Cause Double-Digit Death Toll In Afghanistan

Suicide bombers struck in a normally peaceful area of southwestern Afghanistan today.

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Deceptive Cadence
12:54 pm
Tue August 14, 2012

Making A Case For Massenet, The Misunderstood Sentimentalist

Originally published on Thu August 16, 2012 11:07 am

Poor Jules Massenet. How could the most successful French opera composer of his generation fall so far out of fashion? Perhaps the new 23-CD box set of Massenet's music, marking the 100th anniversary of his death (yesterday), holds some clues.

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Author Interviews
12:51 pm
Tue August 14, 2012

Climate 'Weirdness' Throws Ecosystems 'Out Of Kilter'

Originally published on Tue August 14, 2012 1:47 pm

Science journalist Michael Lemonick doesn't want to be a doomsday prophet, but he does want to be realistic about the threat of climate change. "Since I started writing about climate change all the way back in 1987, we've known what the cause is, we've known what the likely outcome is, and we've had time to act — and essentially we haven't acted," he tells Fresh Air's Dave Davies.

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The Two-Way
12:50 pm
Tue August 14, 2012

Commission Says Penn State's Accreditation Is 'In Jeopardy'

Credit Gene J. Puskar / AP
Penn State during the football team's media day in State College, Pa., on Thursday.

The commission in charge of accrediting universities in the Mid-Atlantic region has warned Penn State that if it doesn't make changes in light of the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal, it could lose its accreditation.

The Middle States Commission on Higher Education put the university "on warning," the AP reports, saying that it wants a report on how the university is complying with integrity standards.

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The Record
12:45 pm
Tue August 14, 2012

An Electronic Composer Reconstructs The Natural World

Credit Will Bankhead / Courtesy of Honest Jon's
The British producer Darren Cunningham, who records electronic music under the name Actress.

Originally published on Tue September 18, 2012 7:18 pm

Participation Nation
12:32 pm
Tue August 14, 2012

Blind Stokers Club In San Diego, Calif.

Credit Evan Rasmussen / Courtesy of the BSC
Captain and stoker in the BSC.

In tandem bicycle lingo, the captain is in the front, the stoker in the back.

The San Diego-based Blind Stokers Club, founded by Dave White, pairs sighted captains with blind stokers on high performance tandem bikes. As part of a year-round cycling program, members train for Cycling for Sight, a three-day, 200-mile event that benefits the San Diego Center for the Blind.

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Arts & Life
11:30 am
Tue August 14, 2012

With Ryan's Ascent, A Few Thoughts On 'Entitlement'

Credit Win McNamee / Getty Images
Rep. Paul Ryan has made changes to social safety net programs like Medicare and Social Security — often called "entitlements" — a key part of his political agenda.

Originally published on Tue August 14, 2012 3:27 pm

People are saying that Mitt Romney's selection of Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan as his running mate creates an opportunity to hold what Ryan likes to call an "adult conversation" about entitlement spending. In the present political climate, it would be heartening to have an adult conversation about anything. But bear in mind that "entitlement" doesn't put all its cards on the table. Like a lot of effective political language, it enables you to slip from one idea to another without ever letting on that you've changed the subject.

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