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As the U.S. Supreme Court held its civil hearing on the election arguments, NPR's Madeleine Brand was outside the Court, where the scene was more chaotic. The area was filled with noisy protests on behalf of both George W. Bush and Al Gore. The differing of opinions among the protestors may reflect a similar split among Court members themselves, as well as among the American people.

Palestinian human rights groups are calling for an international boycott of Burger King. They're angry that the company has maintained a franchise in a West Bank Jewish settlement -- one Burger King officials promised last year they would close. Protesters charge by maintaining the restaurant in an area populated by Israeli Jews, the company is tacitly endorsing Israeli claims to the land. NPR's Linda Gradstein reports.

NPR's Debbie Elliott reports that oyster harvesting along parts of the Gulf of Mexico, from South Florida to Texas, is in danger because of a large algal bloom, usually called "red tide." The algae can be toxic to fish and other sea creatures...and that toxin cannot be destroyed by cooking, so the area's entire seafood harvest could be destroyed along parts of Mississippi, Alabama, and Louisiana.

Noah talks with NPR's Melissa Block about a published report that investigators have found the first evidence that an explosive device was detonated on Trans World Airlines Flight 800. The report, published in Friday's editions of the New York Times, says the FBI has found traces of a chemical used in plastic explosives on a piece of wreckage retrieved from the area that investigators believe was the epicenter of the blast.

NPR's Dan Charles reports that a patent used in DNA fingerprinting and throughout the biotech industry is being called into question. A court has ruled that the company that applied for the patent withheld crucial information from the U.S. Patent Office. The ruling could have widespread implications for the biotech industry by allowing competition into an area that has been dominated by the Swiss pharmaceutical firm Hoffmann-LaRoche.

Scott Horsley of member station KPBS reports firefighters in rural San Diego County, California are beginning to make progress today against a wildfire that's scorched more than 10-thousand acres and destroyed a handful of backcountry homes. The fast-moving blaze temporarily closed two Indian casinos, and halted mail delivery in the area for the first time in more than a decade.

Two more U.S. soldiers are killed in Iraq -- one in an area controlled by Shiites that has until now been relatively calm. And an American special operations soldier dies after a "hostile fire" incident in Afghanistan. A U.S. plea for military help from U.N. allies to restore order in Iraq is not gaining much support. Hear NPR's Anne Garrels.

NPR's Edward Lifson reports on the rebuilding of Bosnia. The area has been quiet for nearly a year and hopes for easing unemployment lies heavily on the reconstruction. The United States has loaned money, as has the Islamic community. Glass is being installed, roofs are being built over burnt out houses. The rush is on to beat the winter weather. But Bosnians know that rebuilding their country will be a long-term struggle.

Scott Horsley of member station KPBS in San Diego reports that California residents may face higher gas prices as a result of a U.S. Supreme Court decision yesterday. The court upheld a patent held by Unocal Corp on the reformulated gasoline that is used in California and in many other urban areas around the country. Now the major oil companies will have to begin paying royalties to Unocal.

Iraqi interim Prime Minister Ayad Allawi vows to hold parliamentary elections in January, as planned. U.S. forces are planning an all-out offensive on insurgent-held areas to help ensure elections can take place, according to a report in The New York Times. Hear NPR's Jennifer Ludden, retired Air Force Col. Sam Gardiner, and professor Fawaz Gerges.

Hollywood's biggest night --- the 81st Annual Academy Awards — is just around the corner. This year's nominees represent a broad range portrayals, from growing up in India's poorest areas and a man who ages backwards, to a mother who is facing an unthinkable family tragedy. Author and film historian Esther Iverem takes listeners inside the race for the Oscars, and looks at nominees of color.

Grand Rapids Area Library Children's Librarian Tracy Kampa has been giving us her book recommendations throughout the fall and she's been counting the days until the Newbery and Caldecott book awards, which were just announced on Monday. Tracy joins our staff librarian and What We're Reading producer Tammy Bobrowsky to go over the results.

Angry civilians attacked U.N. offices in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo, accusing U.N. peacekeeping troops of failing to protect them. Rebels are making gains against government troops in the region. Michael Kavanagh, a reporter trapped in a U.N. base in Goma, says the U.N. troops are too few in number to protect the vast area of 8 million people.

Authorities confirm that the white powder found Monday in the offices of Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist is the deadly toxin ricin. Three Senate office buildings have been closed; Senate staffers and Capitol Hill police officers who were near the area where the ricin was discovered Monday have reportedly not been exposed to dangerous levels of the poison. NPR's Allison Aubrey reports.

News of Thursday's bomb attacks in London meet with condemnation in Kabul. A moderate former Taliban official says he watched the TV coverage with anger -- like many in his area, he has relatives in London. But he also believes that the attacks will strengthen terrorist organizations, providing it's another reminder to their grassroots supporters that al Qaeda is capable of mounting sophisticated attacks on Western powers.

Catholic worshippers across the country express their feelings about last week's meeting between American cardinals and Pope John Paul II. Some parishioners are satisfied with the Church's statements on sexually abusive priests -- while others feel more should be done. We hear voices from Washington, D.C., as well as reports from Missy Shelton from member station KSMU in Springfield, Missouri, and Bellamy Pailthorpe from member station KPLU in Seattle.