Toast Of The Nation

An NPR tradition every New Year's Eve since the 1970s, "Toast of the Nation" features jazz music that people can party to all night. Spirited, improvised, grooving and swinging, each segment is a stop in a sequence of celebrations. WBGO's Rhonda Hamilton anchors the show.


Arts & Culture

NPR

Fictional 'Mothers' Reveal Facts Of A Painful Adoption Process

After years trying to conceive, novelist Jennifer Gilmore and her husband decided to adopt. What they thought would be a relatively simple process was instead a long and painful one. In her latest novel, Gilmore channels these autobiographical experiences into fiction.

Food

NPR

How Genomics Solved The Mystery Of Ireland's Great Famine

Although scientists have known that a funguslike organism caused the potato blight that triggered the Great Famine in Ireland in the 1840s, they didn't know which strain was the culprit. But they do now, thanks to the genes in some 19th century potato samples.

Politics

NPR

Scandal Politics: The Downstream Effect

The trio of scandals that have engulfed the White House may not be big news by 2014, but now is the time when prospective candidates must decide if they want to be on the ballot. Is the news of the moment hurting the effort?

Technology

NPR

How That 'Nigerian Email Scam' Got Started

You've probably seen it in your inbox before: Someone who claims to have come into a fortune needs your help. You can share in the profits — if you send along a deposit or your bank account number. Boston Globe correspondent Finn Brunton talks about the history of the "Nigerian prince" or "419" scam, which actually got its start long before email.