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Climate Change Could Equal Teeth-Rattling Flights

Credit AFP/Getty Images

Fly the bumpier skies?

By Scott Neuman

Originally published on Mon April 8, 2013 6:23 pm

Buckle up — climate change could make this a bumpy flight.

That's according to a newly published study by two British scientists who say increased levels of CO2 in the atmosphere will make "clear air turbulence" — which can't be easily spotted by pilots or satellites — more common over the North Atlantic. That means the potential for gut-wrenching flights between the U.S., Europe and points east.

4:10 pm

Mon April 8, 2013

A Close-Up Of Syria's Alawites, Loyalists Of A Troubled Regime

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Credit Khaled Al-Hariri / Reuters/Landov

Director Nidal Hassan spent a year filming in Tartous, a Syrian beach town made up mostly of Alawites who still support embattled President Bashar Assad.

Credit Courtesy of Nidal Hassan

The beach man

By Kelly McEvers

Originally published on Mon April 8, 2013 9:59 pm

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The film on Syria's Alawite community isn't finished yet, but filmmaker Nidal Hassan's favorite scenes are beginning to take shape.

It opens with fireworks on New Year's Eve in Tartous, Syria. "May God preserve the president for us," one young man yells in a reference to Syrian leader Bashar Assad.

3:55 pm

Mon April 8, 2013

Struggling W.Va. Town Hopes Boy Scout Camp Brings New Life

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Credit Noah Adams / NPR

Mount Hope, W.Va., population 1,400, was once a thriving coal town. Today, many of the storefronts in its tiny downtown sit empty.

Credit Noah Adams / NPR

A mannequin in the window of an odds-and-ends store in downtown Mount Hope sports an assortment of Boy Scout-related paraphernalia.

Credit Noah Adams / NPR

Mount Hope Mayor Michael Martin hopes some of the Scout camp's 90 year-round, full-time staff will choose to live in the town.

Credit Noah Adams / NPR

The Summit Bechtel Family National Scout Reserve while under construction in 2011. The camp will open in July 2013 with the National Scout Jamboree.

By Noah Adams

Originally published on Mon April 8, 2013 9:59 pm

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Picture a tiny town set along a creek in West Virginia. A mountain rises from the town's eastern edge, overlooking the 1,400 people living below. Then, July comes — and 50,000 people arrive on that mountain for the National Scout Jamboree.

The town is called Mount Hope. I've heard some call it "Mount Hopeless." The town went through the long, downward slump from the boom days of deep-mine coal, when it was a grand, small-town capital of coal mining.

3:47 pm

Mon April 8, 2013

Webster Celebrates College Chess Title, As New Hire Pays Off

Credit Alan Greenblatt / NPR

Webster University chess coach Susan Polgar, second from left, won two national titles at Texas Tech. When Webster hired Polgar last year, the entire Tech team followed her to St. Louis.

By editor

If there's no such thing as bad publicity, how much is good publicity worth? Webster University wants to find out.

Last year, the university didn't have a chess team. On Sunday, its team took home the national college championship, the President's Cup, after winning what is often called the "Final Four" of chess.

3:32 pm

Mon April 8, 2013

After Tumultuous Three Years, Seattle Police Chief John Diaz Will Step Down

Credit Ted S. Warren / AP

Seattle Police Chief John Diaz in 2009.

By Eyder Peralta

With his department under the watch of the federal government, Seattle Police Chief John Diaz announced today he was stepping down.

The Seattle Times reports:

"Diaz, who has been with the Seattle Police Department for more than 30 years, didn't say why he decided to retire now.

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5:03 pm

Mon April 8, 2013