World News

World News

Protests Allow Brazilians To Feel Part Of Global Movement

11:54am June 24, 2013

by Lourdes Garcia-Navarro

Brazil's government has been caught by surprise by the size and scale of recent protests. But analysts say they shouldn't have been. In a connected world, what happens in one part of it — say Turkey — can inspire social movements as far away as Brazil.

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Turkey's Protests Are An Impediment For Its Prime Minister

11:54am June 24, 2013

by Peter Kenyon

After more than three weeks of anti-government protests, Turkey's leaders insist they will restore order and quickly bounce back from any damage to the country's economy or image abroad. The crisis comes at a delicate time for Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. He is in the midst of a fragile peace initiative with the Kurdish minority, dealing with an escalating war next door in Syria, and trying to convince parliament to strengthen the office of the president, which he is expected to run for as his final term as prime minister winds down.

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Rodan Gatia gets water from a spring. A chlorine dispenser is behind her.

World News

A Surprising Barrier To Clean Water: Human Nature

10:38am June 24, 2013

by David Kestenbaum

Getting clean water to people in the developing world isn't just an engineering problem.

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Spanish director Pedro Almodovar's new film is called I'm So Excited.

World News

'I'm So Excited': Pedro Almodovar's Spanish Metaphor

8:29am June 23, 2013

by Jasmine Garsd

The legendary film director's new film is about a group of passengers stuck on an airplane. It's a comedy: In between panicking, the passengers find time to fall in love, make love — and come out of the closet. It's also a return to the filmmaker's Spanish roots.

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A steamroller tries to flatten tusks, without much luck.

World News

Philippines Pulverizes Ivory To Discourage Traffickers

6:18pm June 22, 2013

The Philippines is a stopover for dealers trying to unload illegal ivory into the Asian black market. On Friday, the government destroyed 5 pounds of confiscated ivory.

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India Revives An Ancient University

10:59am June 22, 2013

At one time, Nalanda University was a prestigious center of learning that attracted scholars from all over Asia. But after it was destroyed in the late 1100s, it languished. Weekend Edition Saturday host Scott Simon talks with Nobel economist Amartya Sen about plans to revive the ancient university as a collaborative school between several Asian nations.

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Brazil Protests Continue

10:59am June 22, 2013

Weekend Edition Saturday host Scott Simon talks with Brazil Foreign Minister Antonio Patriota about the mass protests taking place in that country over corruption and the rising cost of living.

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A Calculating Win for China's New Supercomputer

11:17am June 21, 2013

China's "Tianhe-2" (Milky Way 2) supercomputer took first place in one recent speed test, clocking in at 30 quadrillion calculations per second--about twice as fast as the best American machines. The U.S. still has more supercomputers than any other nation, but some experts say computer speed is a measure of a country's scientific innovation, and worry the U.S. is lagging behind.

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Can Iran's New President Resolve Nuclear Program Dispute?

4:45am June 21, 2013

Many are wondering whether Iran's newly elected president Hassan Rowhani will be able to change his nation's posture on nuclear enrichment and convince the West to end crippling economic sanctions. To find out, Steve Inskeep talks to Gary Samore, a former White House coordinator for arms control and weapons of mass destruction.

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After A Surge Of Violence, The Threat Of A New Civil War In Iraq

2:10pm June 20, 2013

Since the beginning of April, more than 2,000 people have died in bombings and other attacks in Iraq. NPR foreign correspondent Kelly McEvers, just back from a trip to Baghdad, explains what's behind the recent rise in violence and what's changed since U.S. troops left the country in 2011.

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