Search results for

After his 22-year-old son Lucas died during a whitewater kayaking trip, Gil Turner took a closer look at one important piece of gear: the helmet. Turner partnered with engineering students to build a better helmet -- and change industry standards in the process.

A new book, Lost Sounds, profiles a man named George W. Johnson, a former slave and New York City street performer who became the very first African-American recording artist — singing some very racist tunes.

The Transportation Security Administration announces changes to the way airline passengers are searched, including more random searches. Also, it updates the list of prohibited items aboard planes, allowing more sharp objects, such as small scissors and screwdrivers. The changes are effective Dec. 22.

A close friend of Princess Diana, Patrick Demarchelier was one of the leading fashion photographers of his era.

Australian officials said the restrictions, which include a ban on bauxite, is designed to curtail Russia's ability to produce aluminum — a vital ingredient in arms and munition manufacturing.

The latest from French filmmaker Barbet Schroeder (Single White Female, Reversal of Fortune) is titled L'Avocat de la Terreur — released in the U.S. as Terror's Advocate. It's a documentary about lawyer Jacques Verges, known for defending war criminals, militants and yes, terrorists.

Writer Joseph McElroy's latest work is Actress in the House, another in a series of complex novels. He discusses the writer's craft with NPR's Steve Inskeep.

An ongoing study by sociologist Robert Cushing examines the list of U.S. military deaths in Iraq and reveals an apparent statistical anomaly: soldiers and Marines from rural areas are dying at higher rates than troops from cities and suburbs. NPR's Howard Berkes looks at the research and at a Nevada family's loss.

During the first few months of the Iraq war, field historians armed with digital recorders conducted hundred of interviews with U.S. Marines, often fresh off the battlefield. The raw recordings offer a stirring, intimate look of the triumphs and failures on the road to Baghdad. NPR's Jackie Northam reports.

Alice Sebold has produced difficult books before: The Lovely Bones centers on a 14-year-old looking down from heaven after her own rape and murder. Her latest, The Almost Moon, features a middle-aged woman who murders her ailing elderly mother.