Talk of the Nation

Trayvon Martin, Social Media, and Jury Selection

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Trayvon Martin, Social Media, and Jury Selection

Yesterday, NPR’s Talk of the Nation discussed jury selection in the context of the trial of George Zimmerman for the shooting of Trayvon Martin with Corey Dade, contributing editor to The Root magazine, and Karen Fleming-Ginn, jury consultant with Verdix Jury Consulting in Walnut Creek, California.  

Here is a description of the podcast: 

Jury selection is underway in the George Zimmerman trial. Zimmerman has pleaded not guilty to the second-degree murder in the shooting death of teenager Trayvon Martin in Sanford, Florida in 2012. Lawyers on both sides are questioning candidates for the high-profile case.

Agriculture in the Age of Climate Change

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Agriculture in the Age of Climate Change

Recently, NPR’s Talk of the Nation discusses how agriculture has been affected by climate change with David Nielsen (Research Agronomist, Central Great Plains Research Station, Agricultural Research Service), David Wolfe (Climate Change Leader, Atkinson Center for a Sustainable Future, Professor of Horticulture, Cornell University), and Sally Mackenzie (Professor of Plant Science at the Center for Plant Science Innovation, University of Nebraska, Lincoln).

Here is a description of the segment: 

Scientists say climate change could increase pests and weeds, lengthen growing seasons and turn dry soil to dust. Farmers are already on the offensive, adopting no-till cropping methods to conserve water and experimenting with different seeds. And scientists are using a technique called gene silencing to develop new crops—without tinkering with the plants’ DNA.

MOOCs: The Future of Higher Education?

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MOOCs: The Future of Higher Education?

Top universities are increasingly offering MOOCs, or massive open online courses.  

Don’t ever email the professor. Never friend the teacher on Facebook. Those are some of the rules A.J. Jacobs learned when he joined the ranks of millions enrolled in massive open online courses, MOOCs. Harvard, MIT and Stanford are among universities offering virtual classes free of charge

 

http://www.npr.org/2013/04/01/175938451/the-politics-of-the-guest-worker-program

/ Matthew Clemente / Leave a comment

U.S. Chamber of Commerce and AFL-CIO Reach Deal on Immigration Reform

In a major breakthrough for the prospect of comprehensive immigration reform the AFL-CIO and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce reached an agreement regarding the nation’s guest worker program.  The deal brings together labor unions and big business, two groups that clashed during the last immigration reform effort in 2007.  

NPR’s Talk of the Nation discussed the agreement and the problems with the broken immigration system.  This segment runs approximately 17 minutes.   

The Chamber of Commerce’s position on immigration reform is available here, while the AFL-CIO’s position is available here.