Reverbiage: Stories from NPR tagged 'distant'

For One Autoworker, Big Three's Troubles Distant

Wed, 17 Dec 2008 16:53:00 EST

Carla Kesterman of Fairland, Ind., has been an autoworker since April, when she went to work for Honda's new Indiana plant. She makes about $34,000 a year as an assembly worker. She has not been following the bailout deliberations and is only vaguely interested in the problems of the Big Three automakers.

Retiring At 60 Becomes Distant Dream

Tue, 21 Oct 2008 13:00:00 EDT

The Sparks of Petaluma, Calif. had planned to retire to Hawaii. The couple may now have to adjust their dreams given the situation on Wall Street.

Young Galaxy's Magnetic Field Is Surprisingly Strong

Fri, 03 Oct 2008 13:53:00 EDT

Current models indicate that the magnetic fields that enclose galaxies grow slowly over billions of years. But scientists have used a telescope to peer back millions of years in time and discovered a distant galaxy with a magnetic field at least 10 times the average strength.

Keira Knightley: 'Duchess' Isn't Diana In Disguise

Tue, 16 Sep 2008 11:38:00 EDT

British actress Keira Knightley was just 11 years old when Princess Diana was killed. Now at age 23, Knightley stars in The Duchess as Georgiana Spencer, Diana's distant 18th-century relative.

The Exurbs: Houses, Cornfields — And Empty Lots

Fri, 22 Aug 2008 00:30:00 EDT

A Pennsylvania cornfield gave way to an ambitious housing development, attracting buyers with its traditional style and open spaces. With the housing boom gone bust, this distant suburb community now struggles to fill vacant lots.

Night Driving: Take Time To Listen

Tue, 05 Aug 2008 13:56:00 EDT

The history of road trip mixtapes is cluttered with tense and muscular songs that act as aural caffeine, especially at night. But night time offers its own set of stimuli if we're paying attention. Here are some songs to accompany the throbbing glow of lights in a distant town and tiny futures coming into focus.

Young Victim of Iraqi Insurgents Heals in U.S.

Thu, 26 Jun 2008 17:12:00 EDT

Hamoody Jauda was 2 years old when he was shot in the face by insurgents in Iraq. An American group brought him to the U.S. for medical treatment. Two years later, he's still undergoing treatments — and much about his old life is a distant memory.

Pluto Gets Consolation Prize after Demotion

Fri, 13 Jun 2008 06:00:00 EDT

Bodies like Pluto — which was demoted from being a planet — will now be called Plutoids in its honor. Plutoids are certain distant bodies too small for full planet status. That "oid" construction may be useful elsewhere.

Asbury: 'Covered in Acrylic'

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 16:02:00 EDT

The music of Asbury plays like a soundtrack to a haunted circus. It jangles and rattles with dirge-like rhythms and scratchy, distant voices. The instrumentation — glockenspiel, synths, piano — is drenched in reverb, with the wispy voice of frontman David Franklin tiptoeing delicately through the haze. Asbury's debut CD, Under the Asbury is a calming, if fantastical world, with rich character studies, sometimes haunting narratives and a touch of humor.

Lucy's Laugh Tours the Solar System

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 17:09:00 EDT

We make a lot of noise here on Earth with our TV and radio broadcasts and some of that sound escapes into space. But how far will those signals travel? Is someone or something in the distant universe hearing Lucille Ball in the sky right now?

Stars in the Candidates' Family Trees

Wed, 26 Mar 2008 09:54:00 EDT

Hillary Clinton's husband and daughter have been campaigning hard for her. Now the senator has discovered more relatives who could at least provide some entertainment. A genealogical society found that she's distant cousins with Madonna and Celine Dion. But Barack Obama may have more to sing about.

Swimming Robot Takes Its First Icy Plunge

Wed, 20 Feb 2008 16:03:00 EST

An aquatic robot takes an experimental dip into the icy waters of Lake Mendota in Wisconsin. Scientists hope someday to use the technology to explore ice-bound lakes in Antarctica and even distant icy moons.

Willie Brown Gets Personal in New Book

Wed, 20 Feb 2008 12:00:00 EST

Willie Brown grew up in the segregated south at a time when political power and basic civil rights were a distant concept for many African-Americans. Brown later moved to California, where he became one of the most influential leaders in Golden State politics. He talks about his career, love and Sen. Barack Obama.

Clinton Wins Nevada Democratic Caucuses

Sat, 19 Jan 2008 17:09:00 EST

New York Sen. Hillary Clinton wins Nevada's Democratic caucuses, followed closely by Illinois Sen. Barack Obama. Former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards finishes a distant third. Clinton received support from women, Latino voters and senior citizens.

Richardson Trails in New Hampshire Primary

Wed, 09 Jan 2008 09:51:00 EST

Democratic presidential hopeful Bill Richardson gets just 13,000 votes in the New Hampshire primary. He finishes a distant fourth, but it wasn't for lack of trying. He observes that you could hardly sit down in a New Hampshire diner without a visit from a candidate.

Sarajevo 1914 Echoes in Pakistan

Mon, 31 Dec 2007 08:33:45 EST

In the summer of 1914, a Serbian nationalist named Gavrilo Prinzep went to the Bosnian capital of Sarajevo to view the Archduke Ferdinand of Austria and his bride, the Duchess of Hohenberg. Prinzep, a 20-year-old student, brought along a homemade bomb and a magazine pistol. The first time he saw the royal entourage approaching, Prinzep readied his bomb but lost his nerve. Later in the day, after another would-be assassin had disrupted the Archduke's planned route, Prinzep got another chance. This time he stepped from the crowd with his gun and shot the Archduke and Duchess dead. That assassination more than 90 years ago dominated the news worldwide, much as the murder of Benazir Bhutto has done. In both cases, many Americans wondered why an event so far away should be such a big deal. Both slayings were dramatic and brazen, carried out in broad daylight against public figures of international renown and consequence. But the victims were not their respective countries' actual leaders, only prospective ones. And the meaning of their deaths for the United States seemed obscure. If most Americans had not even heard of them, what difference could their demise really make to us? Of course we know now what followed Prinzep's political act. An international crisis escalated into the multi-front conflagration known as the Great War (and later as the First World War). It cost the lives of millions and profoundly altered history -- not only in Europe but around the globe. It also set the stage for the even greater catastrophe that was the Second World War, the effects of which are still reverberating in our time. For the moment, the consequences of Bhutto's death are on an entirely different scale. Her party and supporters are devastated, the national elections may be postponed and the chances for a healthy Pakistani democracy have been set back. But so far the damage done is primarily to one country and its hopes. The greater danger arises if, as the current unrest continues, repression follows and exacerbates the crisis. Many fear the country could descend into chaos, empowering elements of violent jihadism present in the current political mix. That would have profound implications for the U.S. mission in Afghanistan, and that's just for starters. Pakistan is the only country with both a nuclear arsenal and an immediate prospect of takeover by Islamic militants. And that implies a worst case scenario in our century quite worthy of comparison to those of the last. A Pakistani government or military beholden to such radical forces might use these weapons of mass destruction against longtime rival India -- or against others farther away in Israel, Europe and the United States. Missiles are not the only means of delivering smaller nukes, especially if a rogue state were in league with terrorists willing and able to provide alternative means. It is also possible that such a government might merely threaten to use its nuclear warheads, provoking a pre-emptive strike. Several countries that might consider themselves potential targets already have nukes of their own. So the next weeks and months in Pakistan and its region may well pose diplomatic challenges of exactly the kind the world's leaders failed to meet in 1914. Prinzep's act set off an explosion that had been in the making for generations. The Balkans of 1914 bred tension and hostility and the rest of Europe seemed eager to catch the fever. The volatile ingredients included ethnic and religious conflict, the competing ambitions of great powers and the deadly momentum of a long-running arms race. All these deadly elements are present today in the region on the rim of the Arabian Sea; and they are just as present among the more distant powers that choose to play here. The tragedy of 1914 was not just that the worst happened but that it might have been prevented. Diplomats who could have sought accommodation delivered ultimatums instead. Governments and peoples that might have seen a larger picture were driven to presume the worst of each other. So every nation mobilizing and rushing its forces to the front believed it did so in its own defense; and each such action was interpreted by the other side as a provocation (and as proof their suspicions were correct). Today the rivalries of old, dead empires seem antique to us, and much in the world has changed. Today's conflict is not so much about territory as about resources, less about politics than culture. But we still suffer from smallness of vision in trying to resolve these conflicts, and we are captives of our outdated concept of victory -- just as Europe was in 1914.

War Comes Home for Mother-Soldiers

Tue, 13 Nov 2007 00:01:00 EST

For two Southern California mothers who served in Iraq, returning home was a difficult transition. One National Guard sergeant said she had to "unplug the warrior" in her. The other found herself distant, mentally, from her children.

Could Robots Replace Humans in Mines...

Thu, 09 Aug 2007 15:33:00 EDT

Why do human beings still risk their lives burrowing miles under ground and doing one of the most dangerous jobs in the world? Engineers envision a day in the not-too-distant future when robots do most of the dangerous mining work, and even help rescue trapped miners, like the six men trapped in a mine in Utah.

How to Pick the Perfect Peach

Fri, 20 Jul 2007 14:50:00 EDT

It's a classic problem in agriculture: how to produce fruits and vegetables that taste good, look good, and can survive the often grueling journey from a distant farm to your supermarket. Food writer Russ Parsons talks about whether there's any hope for folks seeking farm-fresh flavor.

New, Distant Planets Discovered

Wed, 30 May 2007 06:00:00 EDT

Astronomers have announced the discovery of 28 more planets outside our solar system. Although the new finds are Jupiter-like "gas giants" with no solid surface, they are all part of multiple planet systems like our own. Smaller, Earth-like planets could also be in those systems, but for now, they're too small to detect.

The Places: 'I'm A-Gone Down to the Green Fields'

Fri, 18 May 2007 10:46:00 EDT

The Places are a dark, backwoods folk group featuring the voice and songwriting of Amy Annelle. The instrumentation is mostly traditional with lap steel and dobro. But Annelle sweetens the mix with haunting harmonies, drum loops and eerie, distant voices.

Direct and Rhapsodic, Emotive and Distant

Tue, 24 Apr 2007 13:06:00 EDT

Though Lura fully discovered her Cape Verdean heritage later in life, her music is deeply rooted within those island traditions. M'Bem di Fora incorporates the rhythms of her parents' homeland, with vibrant stories of love and loss pouring out of every syllable and song.

'A Distant Shore' and the Segregated Units of D-Day

Wed, 21 Feb 2007 09:00:00 EST

A new documentary explores the history of African-American's involvement in the D-Day invasion. Filmmaker Doug Cohen, and D-Day veteran David Brown talk with Tony Cox.

Brainy Jazz Meets Gut-Level Expression

Wed, 14 Feb 2007 17:26:00 EST

George Benson helped kick-start "smooth jazz," that not-so-distant cousin of "easy listening." But before that, Benson's early records -- including the spry It's Uptown, which he recorded at age 23 -- are more musically adventurous.

A Protest Anthem That Rocks and Stomps

Fri, 25 Aug 2006 16:55:00 EDT

The backbeat of Gov't Mule's "Mr. High and Mighty" is a heavy-lidded blast of '70s stomp-rock -- Foghat's "Slow Ride" functions as a not-so-distant cousin. But rather than extol stoner virtues, the song expresses indignation over the doings of the craven and powerful.