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Scientists have taken another step on the way toward building an organism from the ground up. They built from scratch the genetic code of an entire bacterium and then assembled it into one piece.

Every effort to remake America's health care system since the 1930s has been scuttled by the same technique — scaring the public. The opponents have been different, ranging from the AMA to the insurance industry to conservative ideologues. But the playbook has remained the same. In this 1993 television commercial (above), a couple named Harry and Louise helped sow seeds of doubt in the public about how changes to health care would affect them.

Alongside China's astonishing economic boom, an almost unnoticed religious boom has been taking place. The collapse of the communist ideology created a void that has left many Chinese looking for a value system. NPR looks at the trend in a five-part series beginning Monday on All Things Considered.

The Nobel Committee's decision to award Obama the prize is primarily for changing the tone of American policy, but real accomplishments are yet to come, several foreign policy observers said.

The Islamist militia that ousted the secular warlords who ran the Somali capital of Mogadishu for 15 years have begun imposing their own brand of Muslim rule. Alex Chadwick talks with Rob Crilly, reporting from Somalia for The Christian Science Monitor, about the changes seem with the transfer of power. Crilly is one of a very few reporters reporting from Mogadishu -- a neglected, crumbling city the ousted warlords have vowed to recapture.

Many Americans know Somalia as a lawless country controlled by warlords. Somalia has seen two decades of civil war, and the militant group Al-Shabab continues to fight government forces. NPR's Frank Langfitt, recently returned from Somalia, sheds light on what some call "the most-failed state."

We'll explore whether the San Diego Unified School District's plan to put a parcel tax on the ballot in November will gain the support of voters.

Researchers aren't exactly sure why, but interval training, versus a steady-paced workout, helps people get in shape faster and lose weight more quickly. That's the idea behind Mommy Bootie Camp, and experts say the short-burst workouts are great for older people, too.

We speak to local Congressional Representatives Bob Filner and Brian Bilbray about the shooting in Tucson that left six dead and 20 injured, including Arizona Rep. Danielle Giffords, who is in critical condition in a nearby hospital. What lessons have been learned from the tragedy? How will Congress move forward following the shooting incident?

Many parents in China who lost a child in the earthquake lost their only child. Chinese officials this week said families are allowed to have another child if their child was killed, injured or disabled in the quake. Tyrene White, author of a book about China's birth planning, talks about the policy.