Minnesota Public Radio Stories

• A sesquicentennial choral tour of Minnesota
  Audiences at the State Fair on Saturday can tour Minnesota through choral music. Six choirs from around Minnesota will perform specially commissioned music reflecting the diverse histories, landscapes and people of the state.6:49 a.m.
• Weather with Mark Seeley
  University of Minnesota Climatologist Mark Seeley discusses Minnesota weather history and looks ahead to the weekend forecast.6:54 a.m.
• MPR poll: Coleman, Franken tied; many undecided
  A new Minnesota Public Radio News/Humphrey Institute poll shows Democrat Al Franken in a statistical tie with Republican Norm Coleman in Minnesota's U.S. Senate race.7:20 a.m.
• A first-timer's trip to the Fair
  The Minnesota State Fair can be overwhelming, even for long-time fans. But what about the first-time fair-goer?7:24 a.m.
• Beijing from the ground up
  There are just a few more days of competition left to go at the 2008 Summer Olympics. Melody Ng, who works in the Minnesota Public Radio newsroom, is on vacation in Beijing right now.7:54 a.m.
• Future Tense with Jon Gordon
  Frustrated with digital pirates stealing his games, a game developer asks the thieves why they do it.8:20 a.m.

National Public Radio Stories

• Potential First Ladies Walk The Fashion Tightrope
  Two intensely fashionable women are campaigning with their presidential candidate husbands. If Republican Cindy McCain and Democratic Michelle Obama want to fit in the White House come January, they might want to avoid looking too stylish, says Jacqueline Kennedy's social secretary.
• 5 Things Delegates Should Do In Denver
  When the Democratic delegates descend on Denver for the party's national convention, they should try to see the "real" Colorado — like getting out of town to see bison or to climb a mountain. Or hit the Buckhorn Exchange for some Rocky Mountain oysters.
• Family Traditions: Hard Work And Italian Food
  When he opened a restaurant nearly 30 years ago, Joe Spano Sr. used the cooking skills he had learned from his mother. The lessons he passed on to his own son have kept the restaurant in business.
• Oil Expansion Plans In L.A. Rile Residents
  Oil fields aren't new in Los Angeles. But with the price of crude beyond $100 a barrel, it is cost-effective to start drilling there again, in both old and new wells. And that has made some residents very unhappy. Last year, Los Angeles County had 3,400 wells in operation.
• 'Hamlet 2': Something Deliriously Rotten
  Steve Coogan stars as an Arizona drama teacher inspired to save his failing theater program — with a musicalized sequel to the best-known drama in the English language. The results? Tragically funny.
• Russian Troops Seen Leaving Area Near Tbilisi
  There are signs of Russian troop movements in the republic of Georgia. About 20 miles from Tbilisi, Russian soldiers suddenly packed up their gear and moved out with their tanks, and Georgian forces are moving in. Russia has promised that the troop pullback would be completed today.
• Pingpong: A Chinese Obsession
  When Americans play pingpong, it just isn't that big a deal. In China, however, table tennis is a national craze — and fans treat top players like rock stars.
• Rising Travel Costs Hit College Sports Hard
  Fuel prices and airline woes are putting college sports teams in a headlock. Teams face extra surcharges for baggage, and bankrupt airlines have schools scrambling for group rates on charter flights. When the fall season begins, thousands of athletes, trainers, and coaches will be on the road each week.
• Roach Race Predicts McCain Victory in Fall
  We can confidently predict that John McCain will win this fall's presidential election. Or rather, we can make that prediction confidently, provided that we trust a cockroach. At the New Jersey Pest Management Association's annual trade show, they staged a cockroach race to forecast the election. Racing on a six-foot track, the roach representing Barack Obama lost to one representing McCain.
• Book 'Em: Library Fees Lead to Arrest, Fine
  A Wisconsin woman was arrested for failing to pay her library fines. Heidi Dalibor is 20 years old. And the good news is, she likes books enough to go to the library. But she ignored the library's calls and letters asking her to return the books. Then she ignored a notice to appear in court. Finally, police knocked on her door, put her in handcuffs, and booked her. After being fingerprinted and photographed, she paid the $30 fine.
• McCain, Obama Make Housing Issue Personal
  As followers of this year's presidential campaign await news of vice-presidential choices, other questions have taken hold. They center around housing — how many homes John McCain owns, for instance, and how Barack Obama came to own one in particular.
• Measles, Once Declared At An End, Makes A Return
  About a decade ago, health officials declared an "end" to measles in the United States. That has changed: 131 cases of measles have been reported so far this year, the most in more than a decade. The virus is finding its way to unvaccinated children — including the home-schooled.
• Pessimism Up In Business World
  The NewYork-based Conference Board says its monthly measurement of future economic activity showed its largest decline in a year. The private organization pointed to lower building permits, a faltering stock market, high unemployment claims, a tight money supply, and falling orders for consumer goods. Mark Vitner of Wachovia Corporation called the situation "economic purgatory" ... "stuck somewhere between sluggish growth and recession."
• Last Word: Musician Hears His Work In Beijing
  The source of the American national anthem being played at the Beijing Olympics during medal ceremonies is in question. Peter Breiner wasn't watching the Games until his friends starting calling to say, "That sounds like your arrangement." It does. Especially the "Rockets Red Glare" section — an unusually soft string rendition that brought some controversy when it was used in Athens in 2004.He got paid for that rendition in 2004. Now Mr. Breiner says he's "100-percent positive" that the Chinese borrowed it from his work. In an email to The Washington Post, the Chinese insist they came up with the arrangement themselves.
• Suicide Bombers Hit Pakistani Arms Factory
  Suicide bombers have killed 67 people at Pakistan's largest arms factory. One of the country's deadliest terror attacks is adding to the turmoil that's threatening to tear apart the ruling coalition now that Pervez Musharraf has quit as president. Steve Inskeep discusses the situation with retired Gen. Talat Masood, a defense and political analysts in Islamabad.

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