PRI: Latest Stories

"China's ultimate goal is to use democracy to undermine democracy," says one expert on Chinese dissent.

Humans are the only creatures on Earth that can choke on their own food. Yes, that’s right. Why would humans have evolved such potentially fatal architecture? Some experts say the reason is speech. This week on the podcast, we explore several theories about where language comes from.

These days, the online debates about gun control come with a steroid boost from Twitter bots seeking to divide Americans even further. Host Marco Werman speaks with Erin Griffith, a senior writer at Wired, who wrote about the surge in bot traffic.

New research suggests Caesar's forces may have landed further north — and locals don't want to believe it.

The tragic shooting death of 17 people at a Florida high school is renewing calls for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to research the causes of gun violence. The CDC used to study what triggers mass shootings and how to end gun violence until Congress threatened to cut off funding if research continued. Is it time to revisit?

"I’m not here to say that my experience ... is the definitive Filipino American experience," said Ruby Ibarra, who is out with her first album. "It’s just one lens, one glimpse of the story.”

Marvel Comics reimagines the sub-Saharan.

Doctors call it “a concussion without concussion.” But what’s causing it? The medical mystery continues.

Most of the chain's 900-some UK stores are closed after a new supplier couldn't deliver chicken to stores

The United States and Australia struck a deal back in 2016. The US agreed to accept about 1,200 refugees from Australia's offshore detention centers. In return, Australia would resettle refugees from Central America.

The US military conducted nuclear weapons tests in the Marshall Islands in the 1940s and '50s, leaving a legacy of radioactive waste that could be washed into rising seas.

2018 may be the National Audubon Society's Year of the Bird, but birds face a variety of threats from human activity. Novelist and avid birder Jonathan Franzen makes the case that birds matter greatly and deserve our respect and protection.

A new contract could give the federal government a way to track license plates. But it’s with a private company that is collecting a lot of data, which concerns the mayor of Alameda, California.

Playwright Mary Kathryn Nagle's new play, "Sovereignty," at the Arena Stage in Washington, DC, puts her Cherokee ancestors center stage along with American history to tell a bold tale of justice.

Much of the work being done in the budding field of artificial intelligence ethics has been approached with Western ethical traditions in mind. One group of researchers is trying to change that, and recently released a report on what artificial intelligence developers — and the technologies themselves — can learn from Buddhism, Confucianism, Ubuntu and other non-Western ethical traditions.

South Korean media speculate that the country’s birthrate, one of the world’s lowest, could rise thanks to the perceived enhanced fortune during this year of the "golden dog."

COMMENTARY: Chinese state media often hypes American problems and foibles to redirect attention away from China’s poor human rights records. And yet, when it comes to American gun violence, it takes a measured tone.

She is just one out of 1.7 million Korean Americans living in the US. Do they all have to be exceptional to deserve to immigrate?

The National Rifle Association has called the AR-15 the "most popular rifle in America" and estimates Americans own more than 8 million of them. The NRA says the gun is popular because it's "customizable, adaptable, reliable and accurate." Those features may also explain why it's also become a weapon of choice for mass shootings.

COMMENTARY: Reporter Amy Costello writes that speaking plainly about sexual abuse and harassment in the humanitarian aid sector is long overdue.

A big push into offshore wind power in the UK is pushing down the cost of the low-carbon energy source, but fishermen say it's also harming fish populations. Scientists say they're not so sure.

Understanding a mother’s mental illness through photography.

Listener Sam Cook left the church — but he can’t leave Christian rock behind.

“The First Family” broke new ground for comedy by openly mocking — and impersonating — a sitting president.

How actress Denise Gough gets into character for “Angels in America.”

The Panama Papers revealed Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's offshore accounts. Mass protests demanded his ouster... and then the military took matters into their own hands.

In recent years, more and more overseas beer drinkers were trying out the bold, often hoppy experiments coming from America's craft brewers. Exports of US craft beers boomed. But now, exports are cooling off. We visit the New Belgium Brewing Company in Fort Collins, Colorado, the nation’s fourth-largest craft brewer, to learn about the challenges becoming a global player.

Marvel's new superhero movie, "Black Panther," had a premier Tuesday night in Kisumu, Kenya, the hometown of Lupita Nyong'o, one of the film's stars.

Europe's investments in offshore wind have fueled better technology, more competition and cheaper capital for new projects. That's driven down the cost of offshore power and now the US is capitalizing on the savings.

A family holds its breath, wondering if a young son will be deported back to El Salvador — and the dangers of gang life.

The UK's big push into offshore wind power is bringing down the cost of the low-carbon energy sources, and bringing new life to some down-on-their-luck English ports.

The joint hockey team was popular, but the North Korean cheer squad was called "a little robotic." Either way, it's unlikely to make a huge difference in North-South relations.

Discussing race, religion and gender in France has long been the third rail. And activists who thought things would be different under Emmanuel Macron are sorely disappointed.

Offshore wind has gotten way cheaper in the UK, thanks to technological innovations and government subsidies. That's always been the plan.

He wrote to her mainly in Swedish, and she replied in Finnish. A linguist in Texas says the letters are a goldmine for the study of code-switching.

More than 800 Puerto Rican families have evacuated the island to Philadelphia. What happens when aid runs out?

If someone in your family is sick with the flu, you already know this: the flu season this year is bad. Maybe even record-breaking bad, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Last Friday, the CDC said this could be the worst flu outbreak since the 2009 swine flu pandemic. Join The World for a discussion about the flu outbreak during an event at Harvard's T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Tuesday from noon-1 p.m. ET. We'll be live streaming the forum here.

Leading Pakistani human rights activist lawyer Asma Jahangir died on Sunday in Lahore. But her influence continues.

In December, three months after Puerto Rico was pummelled by Hurricane Maria, a spokesman for the island's tourism industry declared it was open for business. But much of Puerto Rico is still struggling to get back on its feet. So what's an island lover to do for spring break? Embrace the devastated destinations or give them space to breathe?

Mokhtar Alkhanshali is sourcing some of the world’s best ranked beans from Yemen — and arguing that we should rethink just how much we pay for our daily brew.

More than 200 athletes representing Team USA are taking part in 15 sporting events during the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea. One competition that always gets attention is figure skating, and this year, it's notable for the record number of Asian American skaters.

If you ever wondered why America is slow to protect the environment compared to Europe, you might consider how we educate our children.

The Migratory Bird Treaty Act and related rules have helped safeguard many millions of birds since 1918, but now the Trump Administration has reinterpreted the act in a way that would loosen its protections and shield from prosecution companies that kill birds.

When one Finnish journalist smashed her laptop with a hammer, causing it to catch fire, she didn't know that it would lead to one of the biggest debates about security and press freedom in Finnish history.

The American economy is strong by most metrics. But income inequality remains a huge concern: In some cases, a CEO can make a workers' annual income in a single day.

Lykanthea nestles comfortably in the electronic-ambient genre. But she's begun to add traces of her childhood training in Carnatic music.

Pope Francis appears to be eager to make a historic compromise with the Chinese government for the sake of Chinese Catholics. His critics worry that he’s making a huge mistake.