State and National News

Transcript

MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

I'm Michel Martin, and this is TELL ME MORE from NPR News.

It's time for our Friday features. And in Faith Matters, we decided, in honor of our fifth anniversary on the air, to ask five faith leaders from around the country to offer some words of encouragement. That's later in the program.

But first, to what has become one of our signature segments over the past five years: the Barbershop. That's where the guys talk about what's in the news and what's on their minds. Normally, we conclude every Friday's show with a shop visit.

Here at The Salt, we've taken note of the all-too-common habit of letting food rot in the fridge. Food waste can cost hundreds of dollars a year, and once it arrives at a landfill to decompose, it turns into a greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming. And that makes us feel guilty.

Now some home appliance companies are banking on the hope that some consumers will turn over their food waste worries to a computer inside their fridge.

Saying that the rules would "make sure that fracturing operations conducted on public and Indian lands follow common-sense industry best practices," Interior Secretary Ken Salazar this morning issued proposed regulations that would:

-- Require "public disclosure of chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing operations on federal lands."

-- Ensure that "wells used in fracturing operations [on public lands] meet appropriate construction standards."

-- Require operators to "put in place appropriate plans for managing flowback waters from fracturing operations."

As soon as it was learned on Wednesday that former NFL star Junior Seau had killed himself, there was speculation about whether he may have suffered brain injuries during his career that in turn led to depression or dementia.

Part 3 of the TED Radio Hour episode "The Pursuit of Happiness." Watch Malcolm Gladwell's full TEDTalk, "Spaghetti Sauce," on TED.com.

About Malcolm Gladwell's TEDTalk

"The secret to happiness is realistic, modest expectations." — Barry Schwartz

Being happy is a universal human yearning, but this simple goal often eludes us. If we're truly able to attain happiness, then how do we find it? Three TED speakers offer some big ideas for achieving happiness.

An American tradition is in jeopardy.

The bake sale, a staple of school fundraising for generations, is getting squeezed. The epidemic of childhood obesity is leading some districts to restrict the kinds of foods sold or to ban the sales altogether, Bloomberg Businessweek's Stephanie Armour explained on Friday's Morning Edition.

The U.S. and China formed the outlines of a deal Friday in an attempt to resolve the dispute over Chinese activist Chen Guangcheng. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said progress was made to fulfill Guangcheng's request to take his family abroad. David Greene talks to NPR's Michele Kelemen for the latest on the story.