Talk of the Nation

The ongoing conflict between North Korea and South Korea is the legacy of the Korean War, which can help explain relations between the two countries. In a new book, historian Victor Davis Hanson discusses how the strategies of U.S. Gen. Matthew Ridgway helped to turn around what appeared to be "a lost war."

Hanson, author of The Savior Generals, tells NPR's Neal Conan that although the three-year war "ended right where it began," it did allow for South Korea to flourish as a democracy.

NPR's Neal Conan reads from listener comments on previous show topics, including postcards from New Orleans and our talk with astronaut Buzz Aldrin.

The debate continues over the handling of the September attack on the U.S. compound in Benghazi, Libya. But retired Marine Col. Gary Anderson says some important lessons have already been learned about strengthening diplomatic security and inter-agency communication.

The trial of Jodi Arias, convicted of murdering her boyfriend, has become a national media sensation. Former Law and Order producer Robert Nathan and authors Laura Lippman and Walter Mosley explore why Americans are so drawn to real-life courtroom dramas.

Retailers are under pressure after a building collapse killed more than 1,100 garment workers in Bangladesh. But global demand for inexpensive clothing shows no sign of abating. The New York Times' Steven Greenhouse and Elizabeth Cline, author of Overdressed: The Shockingly High Cost of Cheap Fashion, unravel the prospects for improved safety in the garment industry.

David Matsumoto, a psychology professor at San Francisco State University, trains national security officials and police officers to recognize "microexpressions"--fleeting, split-second flashes of emotion across someone's face. Matsumoto says those subtle cues may reveal how an interview subject is feeling, helping officials to hone their line of questioning.

How long can you go without checking email, or glancing at your smartphone? Clifford Nass, a psychology professor at Stanford University, says today's nonstop multitasking actually wastes more time than it saves--and he says there's evidence it may be killing our concentration and creativity too.

Saul Perlmutter shared the 2011 Nobel Prize in physics for his discovery that the universe was expanding at an accelerating rate. Perlmutter explains how supernovae and other astronomical artifacts are used to measure the expansion rate, and explains what physicists are learning about "dark energy" — the mysterious entity thought to be driving the acceleration.

Buzz Aldrin's name is practically synonymous with space exploration. As one of only 12 people to ever set foot on the moon, the former astronaut is a pioneer in the field.

Today, Aldrin continues to advocate for what he considers the next phase of space discovery — putting humans on the red planet. Host Neal Conan talks with Aldrin about his experience as an astronaut, his new book, Mission to Mars: My Vision for Space Exploration and his ideas for the future on Mars.

Transcript

NEAL CONAN, HOST:

Between the ages of 36 and 38, Sarah Elizabeth Richards spent $50,000 to have her eggs frozen. That wiped out her savings and the money her parents had set aside for a wedding, and she writes, it was the best investment I ever made. Improved technology gives women the choice to freeze their eggs when they're younger and schedule motherhood when they're ready. The experimental status of this procedure was lifted last year.