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Nobody won a big race across the desert in Nevada. To be more precise, a robot won that race. A Volkswagen controlled by computer, with nobody behind the wheel, finished first in a course across the desert. The Pentagon sponsored the 132-mile race to encourage new technology. The winning robot is called Stanley. And the Pentagon pays a $2 million prize to the people who created him -- or rather "it."

A group called the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta has grabbed four oil workers and also attacked pipelines and platforms of Royal Dutch Shell. Shell is the biggest producer in the swamplands of the Niger River Delta. Financial Times reporter Dino Mahtani discusses developments with Steve Inskeep.

Director Harold Ramis brings his brand of dark -- and often silly -- humor to holiday audiences with The Ice Harvest. The irreverent film stars John Cusack, Billy Bob Thornton, and Randy Quaid.

Satirist David Sedaris first won national recognition for his talent after reading from his "Santaland Diaries" on NPR in 1992. Sedaris is now a best-selling author of satirical and witty books.

Victor Hanson has grounded his life in the study of the classics and in the land his family has farmed for six generations. By following in the footsteps of his ancestors, he believes he is never alone.

New Orleans is the hometown of our editor, Gwendolyn Thompkins, and she went back recently to to see how the city is making out. With more than 300,000 people gone, she says, New Orleans really is 'new'. She sent back these impressions.

In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, almost half the residents of New Orleans are in need of mental health services. Health experts say African Americans experiencing emotional problems are not likely to seek care. This is the final of four reports in a series on mental health after the storm.

Seth Borenstein, national correspondent for Knight Ridder, talks about a report he co-wrote on the reduction of fines for mine safety violations imposed by the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration since President Bush took office.

Southwestern New Mexico is littered with rock art and artifacts from long-gone ancient cultures. Doug Fine goes on a trek through the desert back country with a local man who sleuths out hidden "rock art" sites.

The Pentagon is defending its use of a toxic agent called white phosphorus to smoke out and capture insurgents in last year's battle for Fallujah. If ignited particles of the chemical land on a human, they can burn through flesh and bone. John Pike of GlobalSecurity.org discusses the controversy.