Minnesota Public Radio Stories

• Big names battle in the 8th
  Familiar names face off in the 8th District race this year. Long-time incumbent Democrat Jim Oberstar faces a challenge from Republican Rod Grams, the former TV news anchor who served both in the U.S. House and Senate.5:20 p.m.
• Heart attacks and the marathon
  One of the runners in yesterday's Twin Cities Marathon collapsed and died from a heart attack. George Spears, 49, collapsed at the 6-mile-mark, near Lake Calhoun in Minneapolis. It was the second death in the 25-year-history of the Twin Cities Marathon. The marathon's medical director, Dr. Bill Roberts, says race participants don't need to prove they're physically fit, and it may not help if they did.5:23 p.m.
• Legal? Don't bet on it
  You may have noticed a number of new billboards in the Twin Cities promoting BetUS.net. The Web site says it just teaches sports fans how to bet. But is there more to it? You bet.5:40 p.m.
• Twins rally
  MPR reporter Annie Baxter reports from the scene of a Twins rally in Minneapolis.5:45 p.m.
• Hewlett Packard's snooping reveals workplace truth: there are no secrets
  Although it's making headlines now, workplace spying is quite common -- and usually legal.5:47 p.m.

National Public Radio Stories

• Yom Kippur and Ramadan: A Holy Coincidence
  Every three decades, for a period of a few years, Judaism's holiest day -- Yom Kippur -- falls during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. Commentator Anisa Mehdi says that some of the faithful among Muslims and Jews are trying to make this alignment into more than just a coincidence.
• Netflix Puts Bounty on Viewer Habits
  Netflix, an online movie rental company, offers a $1 million reward for new software that improves recommendations on what its users should watch next. James Bennett, vice president for recommendation systems at Netflix, explains.
• Hastert Defends Leadership over Foley Allegations
  Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert said today that none of the House leaders knew the messages Rep. Mark Foley (R-FL) was sending to underage boys were explicitly sexual. Hastert (R-IL) defended his leadership team's handling of the incident, which led Foley to resign last week and enter a treatment program for alcoholics.
• Club Musicians, Owners at Odds Over Pensions
  New York state is eliminating a food and beverage sales tax paid by jazz clubs so that the money -- about $20 billion -- can be redirected to the musicians union for pensions. The plan, supported by the union and most club owners, is voluntary. But many club musicians don't belong to the union and would rather get better pay.
• Peace Remains Elusive in Anbar, Iraq
  Anbar Province, northwest of Baghdad, remains the most dangerous area in Iraq. American Marines are trying to bring order, but without much help from the Iraqi police battalions, whose numbers are dwindling.
• Police: Gunman Planned Long Siege at Amish School
  At least three children are dead and seven others are critically wounded after an attack on an Amish school in Lancaster County, Pa. The gunman had been planning the attack for days and had no intention of surviving it, according to authorities.
• Shooter at Amish School Identified
  Authorities say a 32-year-old milk truck driver barricaded the doors of a one-room Amish school house in Lancaster County, Pa., and shot at least three girls, before apparently turning the gun on himself. The incident marks the nation's third deadly school shooting in less than a week.
• New Rules Send Web-Gambling Stocks Falling
  New legislation that sharply limits the ability of U.S. gamblers to use credit cards, checks and electronic-fund transfers sends online-gambling stocks plummeting. British gambling sites Sportingbet and PartyGaming were especially hard hit, dropping more than 60 percent in trading Monday.
• Casino Giant Harrah's Weighs Buyout
  Two private equity firms offer $15.1 billion for the casino operator Harrah's Entertainment. At $81 a share in cash, the offer's premium is more than 20 percent over Harrah's closing price Friday. Harrah's said it hasn't determined whether the proposed deal is in stockholders' best interests.
• Siege at Amish School Ends in Murders, Suicide
  In the nation's third deadly school shooting in less than a week, a truck driver kills three female students at a one-room Amish schoolhouse in Nickel Mines, Pa. Authorities say the gunman also killed himself.
• Americans Win Medicine Nobels for 'Silencing' Genes
  Americans Andrew Z. Fire and Craig C. Mello win the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for discovering "RNA interference," a way organisms turn off individual genes. The discovery is considered by many scientists to be a breakthrough in modern biology.
• Programmer Finds Moon Landing's Missing 'A'
  Computer programmer Peter Shann Ford claims to have located the missing "a" from Neil Armstrong's famous first sentence on the moon. According to Ford's software analysis, Armstrong did say "That's one small step for 'a' man, one giant leap for mankind." Ford is the CEO of the Sydney-based company Control Bionics, which specializes in technology development for the physically handicapped.
• Precisionist Nears a New Pasture
  At a retirement home for Thoroughbred racehorses in Kentucky, a once-great stallion is nearing the end of the line. In his career, Precisionist earned more than $3 million.
• Ashcroft Reflects on War on Terrorism
  Former U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft talks about his work in the war on terrorism, including his authorization of warrantless domestic surveillance. Ashcroft writes about some of these issues in his new book, Never Again: Securing America and Restoring Justice.
• Small Towns Lack Veterinarians
  The United States is facing a shortage of vets, according to the American Association of Veterinarians. This is especially apparent in small towns, rural areas and in states without vet colleges.

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