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The SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) Institute's Jill Tarter has spent decades searching for the signals that would tell us we aren't alone in the cosmos. Tarter discusses the hunt, and what the presence of intelligent life elsewhere might tell us about our own future on Earth.

California will host two major events this week: First City Festival and FYF Fest. Do they fill a gap left by Coachella? And is making a festival rock-centric a good way to draw concertgoers?

Bands like Pixies, Pavement and Sleater-Kinney might reunite for money, unfulfilled glory or a renewed creative spark. But can album sales help us measure how much they have been missed?

The American Dialect Society deemed "hashtag" the word of the year. NPR digital culture correspondent Laura Sydell and NPR senior strategist Andy Carvin explain how the social media tool works and why some get so popular.

Hillary Clinton's second run for the White House has gone much further than her first. But in the end, her biggest opponent of 2016 may be herself.

In a speech delivered at Harvard Law School's 2018 Class Day last Wednesday, U.S. Senator Jeff Flake criticized President Trump and Congress, saying the presidency has been "debased."

In 2016, Chile passed gratuidad, or "free college." As the idea gains popularity ahead of the 2020 presidential election in the U.S., Chile offers some lessons from what has happened there.

Many people buy and eat organic food because they believe it's more nutritious. A new study suggests that may not be the case. But with a vast number of influences and variables, from the ripeness of produce to the length of the studies, researchers note that more research is needed.

The Boy Scouts of America recently reaffirmed its longtime policy of excluding openly gay members. While some praised the group, a growing number of adult Eagle Scouts are returning their badges in protest of the policy, including Kelsey Timmerman, who worries about the moral integrity of the BSA.

For the first time, a Mormon is leading the GOP ticket. The vast majority of Mormons identify as Republican or conservative, according to Pew Research Center. But some Mormon Democrats say their numbers are growing. Host Michel Martin speaks with a roundtable of Mormons who find inspiration in their faith for liberal political positions.

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of NPR's first on-air broadcast, we look back at our origins in radio, how we grew from a staff of 65 to thousands, and into our future in the digital space.

Masekela, who died in 2018, was a symbol of South Africa's anti-apartheid movement. He performed around the world, including at the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival. Originally broadcast in 1988.

Confessional songs are all over the pop charts, from Tyler, The Creator's Call Me If You Get Lost to Olivia Rodrigo's Sour. What do musicians who blend fact and fiction owe their real life subjects?

Former senator and vice presidential candidate John Edwards has a new job as the director of the Center on Poverty, Work and Opportunity at the University of North Carolina. He's touring the country in an effort to drum up support for the plight of the nation's poor.

Latin hip-hop percussionist Eric Bobo is out with his debut solo album, "Meeting of the Minds." Bobo talks about his broad musical influences and how he managed to blend such genres as rock and hip-hop into one CD.

He calls his latest project a "musical novel." It's a new CD, Greendale, a 10-song cycle with his band Crazy Horse, set in a fictional California seaside town. He also shot a feature film version on Super8, which made the film festival circuit and will be in wider distribution in April.

The Nashville star helps us break down the appeal of the beloved 2000 song by Wheatus, a truly strange cult hit that has stood the test of time.

After having his novel repeatedly rejected by publishing houses, writer Ron McLarty took his work straight to the people, and to the Internet. But now McLarty, a successful character actor who's been on both TV's Law and Order and on Broadway, has another challenge: attracting readers.

A Civil War battle of Ball's Bluff, near Leesburg, Va., forms the backdrop for the opening scene of Geraldine Brooks' new novel, March. Its principal character, Capt. March, becomes undone by the evils of war and his own moral shortcomings.

After Nirvana ended, Grohl wasn't sure he wanted to continue making music. But, he says, "I realized that music was the one thing that had healed me my entire life." His memoir is The Storyteller.