Minnesota Public Radio Stories

• Widow, ex-wife move in together to keep a horse farm alive
  Two women in central Minnesota forged an unusual partnership to help a horse farm survive the recession.3:50 p.m.
• Art Hounds
  Each week Minnesota Public Radio News asks three people from the Minnesota arts scene to be "Art Hounds." Their job is to step outside their own work and hunt down something exciting that's going on in local arts.4:44 p.m.
• Poet Tony Hoagland's latest collection
  If you're looking for some culture before the weekend, Poet Tony Hoagland is reading from his latest collection tonight in Minneapolis at the Loft Literary Center.4:48 p.m.
• A call for calm after Mpls teen's shooting death
  Minneapolis community leaders and police are trying to prevent any violent retaliation over the recent shooting death of a teenage girl.4:53 p.m.
• 3 Minn. residents sue to save expiring health plan
  Three Minnesota recipients of General Assistance Medical Care are suing Gov. Pawlenty and other state officials to keep the subsidized health care program in place, at least temporarily.5:20 p.m.
• Minn. passed by in first round of "race to the top" school funding
  The U.S. Education Department named 15 states and the District of Columbia as finalists Thursday in the so-called "Race to the Top" competition, and Minnesota is not among the finalists.5:24 p.m.
• Air pollution alert upgraded for Rochester, metro
  The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency has upgraded an air pollution health advisory issued Wednesday for Rochester and the Twin Cities to an air pollution alert through Friday.5:48 p.m.
• Duluth public workers strike averted
  A strike could have crippled Duluth snowplowing, clerical work, natural gas and water operations. Libraries would have closed.5:54 p.m.
• Widow, ex-wife move in together to keep a horse farm alive
  Two women in central Minnesota forged an unusual partnership to help a horse farm survive the recession.6:20 p.m.

National Public Radio Stories

• Pervasive Post-Quake Looting Dismays Chileans
  Crime is low in Chile, a country considered Latin America's most politically and socially stable. So the widespread looting that has followed last weekend's earthquake astonished many Chileans — and has people questioning just how much progress Chile has really made.
• Inchvesting In Detroit: A Virtual Realty
  For $1, anyone can own a square-inch corner of this Rust Belt town. Real estate developer Jerry Paffendorf has "inchvestors" from as far away as Australia. It operates like a SimCity computer game, except buyers get real land. Some locals hate the idea.
• Girl Scouts Venture Online To Market Their Cookies
  This year, the Girl Scouts are taking pitches for their $700 million a year business online. That's despite a controversy last year, in which 8-year-old Wild Freeborn of North Carolina put together a YouTube video — and the organization called it a violation of its rules.
• One Scientist's Prescription: Grow Your Own Drugs
  Ethnobotanist James Wong believes there is no reason to always use conventional medicines when you can find relief from the plants in your garden. Wong, who wrote Grow Your Own Drugs, says that herbal medicines can be a useful complement to conventional drugs.
• 'Still Bill': Documenting A Soul Icon
  Bill Withers was working as an airline mechanic, installing toilets on 747s, when his song "Ain't No Sunshine" was released. It was the first in a string of simple, soulful hits, including "Lean on Me," "Lovely Day" and "Just the Two of Us." Though his music is still heard everywhere, Withers himself retreated to a private life more than two decades ago. A new documentary explores what happened to the hit maker when he stepped off the stage.
• Overshooting Obama's Health
  The president’s checkup was thorough, but the extra testing doesn't translate to extra benefit. Commentator Joe Wright says that over-testing adds greater risk to your health ... especially when the answers could be as clear as your basketball game.
• Anti-Incumbent Sentiment Grows Ahead Of Iraq Vote
  It seems a bit early for anti-incumbent fever as Iraq's democratic tradition is only a few years old. But the one lesson drawn from provincial elections last year was that Iraqis like to vote out sitting officials, including possibly the prime minister.
• Ex-U.S. Envoy: Iraq Attacks Attempt To Destabilize
  The former U.S. ambassador to Iraq says the recent spate of attacks in the country is another attempt to disrupt the political process in Iraq. But Ryan Crocker warns that the attacks are a reminder that the fight is not over in Iraq.
• How Smithsonian Selects, Rejects Donations
  The Smithsonian Institution announced this week it won't accept a donation of the suit worn by O.J. Simpson on the day of his murder acquittal. Lonnie G. Bunch, director of the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture, discusses how proposed donated objects are sorted though for acceptance and rejection at the institution.
• Ethiopia-Born Businessman Runs U.S. Aid Program
  Daniel Yohannes, who left his home country of Ethiopia when he was 17 to make a new life in the United States, says he's happy to give back to his adopted country, by serving in the Obama administration. Yohannes runs a multibillion dollar aid program that started under the Bush administration to fight poverty and promote good governance.

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