Ten days into the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, the truce remains tenuous. Today our correspondent speaks to people on the ground in Gaza about what they expect from the future. Why global cities are coming round to bikes again. And being left-handed may give you an advantage in certain sports. Photo courtesy of Omar Mahmood.
A.M. Edition for Oct. 20. Facebook, Snapchat and Robinhood are just a few of the hundreds of companies affected by the outage overnight. Trump vows to halt U.S. aid to Colombia, as the president turns up the heat on Latin America. And, U.S. stocks might be close to all time highs, but Rebecca Feng says warning signs are flashing just below the surface. Caitlin McCabe Hosts hosts.
Ken Liu is a big name in science fiction. His latest novel All That We See or Seem takes place in a world that’s not too different from ours. But in the book, AI is more embedded in day-to-day life and one character uses it to guide collective dream experiences. In today’s episode, Liu speaks with NPR’s Andrew Limbong about the novel’s hacker protagonist, dreams as knowledge, and how human patterns influence technology.
To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookoftheday
Gov. Mike Dunleavy (R-AK) predicts many of the more than 2,000 people uprooted by historically damaging storms may not be able to return to their villages for more than a year and a half. In at least one village, officials say 90% of the residences are destroyed – and, as their lives are suddenly and drastically changed, the mostly Alaska Native inhabitants of the hardest-hit areas face the possibility of increasingly severe weather as the climate changes. We’ll get updates on the current efforts to provide relief and assess the long-term options for the people who have always lived there.
We’ll also hear about how a new influx of $15 million in federal money over the next five years will help the StrongHearts Native Helpline, which provides culturally specific outreach for Native domestic violence survivors. The money comes at a time when the federal government is cutting back and eliminating staff for many other social programs.
GUESTS
Walter Nelson (Yup’ik), managed retreat coordinator for Village of Napakiak
Lori Jump (Sault Ste. Marie Band of Chippewa Indians), CEO of StrongHearts Native Helpline
Taylar Sausen, director of communications for American Red Cross of Alaska
Rick Thoman, Alaska climate specialist with the Alaska Center for Climate Assessment and Policy at the University of Alaska Fairbanks
Eric Stone, state government reporter for Alaska Public Media
Break 1 Music: Ocean Prayer [Version A] (song) Pamyua (artist) Side A/Side B (album)
Break 2 Music: Thunderbird (song) Blue Moon Marquee (artist) Scream, Holler, and Howl (album)
California has enacted a law requiring rideshare giants Uber and Lyft to collectively bargain with their drivers. Because the drivers are technically independent contractors, they otherwise would not have federally-protected labor rights like full-time employees. The new state law could be a game changer.
Marketplace’s Nova Safo spoke with Levi Sumagaysay, reporter at CalMatters, who helps sift through the details of the law.
Malibu declares a state of emergency to remove homeless encampments over wildfire fears. The Trump administration escalates military action in Venezuela, risking a wider conflict. L.A. County prepares to pay nearly $1 billion more to sexual abuse victims. John Bolton pleads not guilty to mishandling classified information. Walmart teams with OpenAI to bring ChatGPT to its shopping app, and Beyond Meat’s stock crashes to record lows amid massive losses.
Israel says the ceasefire is back on after it launched strikes on Gaza in response to clashes over the weekend that threaten to unravel a fragile deal. It's day 20 of the government shutdown, but the usual pressure points that push lawmakers toward a deal haven’t been felt yet. And the U.S. steps up military operations in the Caribbean, raising fears and tensions in the region.
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Today’s episode of Up First was edited by Rebecca Rosman, Jason Breslow, Tara Neil, Mohamad ElBardicy and Ally Schweitzer.
It was produced by Ziad Buchh, Nia Dumas and Christopher Thomas
We get engineering support from Stacey Abbott. And our technical director is Carleigh Strange.
Millions of protesters take to the streets for “No Kings” protests. President Trump threatens foreign aid to Colombia amid growing criticism of military strikes on suspected drug transports. And thieves break into the Louvre in broad daylight, stealing the crown jewels of France.
OA1200 - We've got another great law and science episode for ya! Are polygraphs admissible? Do they work? Matt and Jenessa talk about the history, law, and science of polygraphs, and how criminal courts treat scientific testimony in general.
Check out the OALinktreefor all the places to go and things to do!
The Library of Lost Maps by James Cheshire, Professor of Geographic Information and Cartography, tells the story of the discovery of a treasure-trove at the heart of University College London. In a long-forgotten room James found thousands of maps and atlases. This abandoned archive reveals how maps have traced the contours of the world, inspiring some of the greatest scientific discoveries, as well as leading to terrible atrocities and power grabs.
But maps have not always been used to navigate or reveal the world, according to a new exhibition at the British Library on Secret Maps (from 24 October 2025 to 18 January 2026). Jerry Brotton, Professor of Renaissance Studies at Queen Mary University of London, and author of Four Points of the Compass, explains how mysterious maps throughout history have been used to hide, shape and control knowledge.
The biographer Jenny Uglow celebrates a different kind of mapping in her new book, A Year with Gilbert White: The First Great Nature Writer. In 1781 the country curate Gilbert White charted the world around him – from close observation of the weather, to the migration of birds to the sex lives of snails and the coming harvest – revealing a natural map of his Hampshire village.
