PRI: Public Radio International In South Africa, funny hats mark boys' circumcision, transition to manhood ================================================================================ PRI's The World on 24 May, 2013 10:30:00 South African tribes have long had traditions with respect to circumcising their men -- typically happening around their 18th birthday. And while more organizations are criticizing the timing and methodology, if not the practice entirely, the tribal groups hold firm to their customs. U.K. tries to get back to business, make sense of brutal attack on British soldier in London ================================================================================ The Takeaway on 24 May, 2013 09:00:00 Two men are in custody, accused of hacking British solider Lee Rigby to death on the streets of London. As law enforcement try to make sense of the brutal attack, being referred to as a terrorist attack, Londoners are trying to get life back to normal. New York design company turning to mushrooms to grow natural packaging to replace styrofoam ================================================================================ WBUR's Here & Now on 24 May, 2013 08:00:00 The increase in online shopping has led to more items arriving on doorsteps ensconced in styrofoam packaging. The purchase is safe-and-sound, but what to do with the styrofoam? One New York-based company is turning to mushrooms to literally grow new, biodegradable, all-natural packaging. Peru's president orders environmental clean-up in Amazon oil region ================================================================================ PRI's The World on 23 May, 2013 01:30:00 Peru's economy has long run on the extraction of minerals from beneath the earth's surface. And that has come at a cost to the environment and the health of people. But environmental activists are heartened to see the government make tentative steps to rein in environmental excesses. Right whale born in cold North Atlantic waters beats odds, survives winter ================================================================================ Living on Earth on 23 May, 2013 11:21:00 Right whales typically give birth in warm waters off the coasts of Florida and Georgia, but this past year, one whale mother didn't make the migration, and gave birth off Massachusetts. Scientists worried the calf would die but, against the odds, it survived and the pair met back up with its pod this spring. Catholic priests in Philippines bring Mass to shopping malls to meet the people ================================================================================ PRI's The World on 23 May, 2013 09:00:00 The Philippines is one of the largest Catholic countries in the world, but recent surveys have shown that the country's devotion is waning, as churchgoers object to sex scandals and morality that seems old-fashioned. So priests are having to work harder, including saying mass in malls. In Tornado Alley, weathercasters admired for keeping communities safe ================================================================================ The Takeaway on 23 May, 2013 08:00:00 In the wake of Monday's deadly tornado in Oklahoma City, the media was widely praised for providing timely, accurate information to residents to help them stay safe during the storm. In many cases, the media was represented by the local TV meteorologist, who is on the front line of warning viewers of impending severe weather. Sushi chef tries to get people to open up to more sustainable ingredients ================================================================================ Living on Earth on 22 May, 2013 04:26:00 Many of the ingredients that people associate with sushi can't be fashioned into food in a sustainable way. And as sushi becomes more popular, that's becoming a big problem. But one sushi chef is trying to change that by introducing new ingredients in his sushi. Spaniards outraged by new, strict EU regulations on olive oil ================================================================================ PRI's The World on 22 May, 2013 09:00:00 In Spain, olive oil might as well be considered one of the food groups. And, often, that olive oil comes in unmarked, unlabeled containers from small orchards. But the European Union wants to make sure consumers know exactly what they're eating, which means big changes for the olive oil industry. James Rosen case prompts frank discuss about balance between First Amendment, national security ================================================================================ The Takeaway on 22 May, 2013 08:00:00 The Justice Department has launched an unprecedented crackdown on leaks within the government -- going so far as to seize the phone records of several AP journalists and searching the personal email of a Fox News correspondent. The crackdown has prompted an outcry from media and civil rights advocates.