Minnesota Public Radio Stories

• Near whiteout in Duluth
  A blizzard warning is in effect through Friday for Duluth and along Lake Superior's North Shore.5:20 p.m.
• Two Minnesota soldiers killed in Iraq
  The Defense Department says a Marine from Maple Lake, Minnesota, Sgt. Chad Allen, was killed Wednesday during combat in Iraq. He is the second Minnesotan killed in Iraq this week. Army Sgt. William Beardsley of Coon Rapids died Monday in Diwaniyah, Iraq, when a bomb exploded near his vehicle.5:46 p.m.
• How do school officials decide when to cancel school?
  John Landgaard, superintendent of the Worthington Area School District, reveals what goes into deciding to cancel school5:51 p.m.

National Public Radio Stories

• Oldest Solar Observatory in Americas Found in Peru
  Almost 2,000 years before the Inca sun cult appeared, a culture in coastal Peru built a series of towers to track the movement of the sun. Archeologists say it may be the oldest solar observatory in the Americas.
• Rash of Tornadoes Kills 14 in Alabama, Missouri
  At least a dozen people have died in Alabama as severe storms rake through parts of the South. Many of the deaths came when a tornado hit a high school in Enterprise, Ala. The deadly storm system killed at least 13 people as it moved across Alabama.
• Calif. Grocery Workers' Contract to Expire
  Three years after a bitter strike and lockout, supermarket employees in Southern California are once again looking for a new contract. They hope to get rid of the two-tiered wage and benefit system adopted in 2004 after a four-and-a-half-month walkout.
• U.S. Attorney Says Firing Had Political Origins
  David Iglesias, who until this week was the United States attorney in New Mexico, says that his firing is tied to political pressure put on him in October by two members of Congress. So far, Iglesias has refused to name them, but that may change.
• Bush Checks on Gulf Coast's Katrina Rebuilding
  President Bush visits the Mississippi Gulf Coast and New Orleans for the first time since late summer, saying the government has written a check for $110 billion — and now the challenge is getting that money to the people who need it.
• Bush Administration Sets 'Real ID' Guidelines
  The Bush Administration releases regulations to implement the Real ID law, which establishes nationwide standards for what identification people need to show to get a driver's license. Some states have protested the cost of the program.
• U.S. Hedges Intel Estimate on N. Korean Uranium
  The U.S. backs away from confident statements that North Korea is making progress toward enriching uranium. That assertion by the Bush administration in 2002 helped to derail negotiations to end its nuclear weapons program.
• Scientists Befuddled in Missing Teaspoon Caper
  A group of epidemiologists investigated the phenomenon of disappearing teaspoons in the workplace. They found that 80 percent of their office's teaspoons went missing in the course of the five-month study.
• Futures Market to Predict the Next Flu Pandemic
  Governments are spending billions to prepare for a flu pandemic that everyone agrees is inevitable. But nobody knows when it will come, or how bad it will be. University of Iowa researchers are launching a new way to tap into experts' best hunches. It's modeled on the futures markets that farmers use to lock in the price of corn or pork bellies.
• National Guard Faces Shortage of Chaplains
  Nationwide, 40 percent of the National Guard's chaplain vacancies remain unfulfilled. In response, the National Guard has increased incentives for chaplains and produced new recruitment materials, including "Courageous Spirit," a DVD targeting clergy who might consider joining.
• Fort Dix Holds Jobs Fair for Wounded Soldiers
  The Pentagon is inviting soldiers wounded in Iraq to job fairs around the country where they can look for employers who will accommodate their disabilities. It's part of a program called Hiring Heroes.
• Colleague Recalls Historian Arthur Schlesinger
  American historian Robert Dallek was a contemporary and friend of Arthur Schlesinger Jr., the prolific historian who died Wednesday of a heart attack while dining in Manhattan. Dallek talks about Schlesinger's contributions to the canon of 20th-century American history.
• Mississippi Mayor Hails Return of Wal-Mart
  Leo McDermott, Mayor of Pass Christian, Miss., was one of the local officials who met with President Bush today. McDermott talks about efforts to revive the city, and says a big boost came when Wal-Mart decided to rebuild their store, which was destroyed in Hurricane Katrina.
• Dick Cheney, 'Senior Administrative Official'
  Vice President Dick Cheney was caught with his pronouns down earlier this week. He spoke grudgingly to reporters on his plane only as a "Senior Administrative Official" — and then talked about himself in the first person. What purpose does this kind of farcical kabuki dance serve? Is he speaking any more candidly than he would have on the record?
• U.S. Launches New Operation in Baghdad Area
  In what appears to be a new major U.S. military operation in Iraq, multiple explosions have been heard in the Baghdad region.

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