NPR

Since medical marijuana was legalized in California, the illegal side of the business has also exploded. The state is spending millions of dollars to search for and wipe out as much illegal marijuana as they can find.

In October, NPR photographer David Gilkey spent a few weeks with the Army medevac team known as "Lucky Dustoff." They are members of the Army's 82nd Airborne Division, currently deployed in southern Afghanistan's Zabul province.

It's time for All Songs Considered listeners to pick their favorite music of 2009. Vote by choosing up to 10 selections from our list, and feel free to suggest others not on the list by posting a comment.

While much of the attention paid to the Senate health bill has been about the public option or financing, there are many lesser-known provisions that would affect consumers, from breast-pumping at work to retiree health benefits.

Do you cut sandwiches into triangles or rectangles? If you go for the diagonal slice, you're in good company. Chefs, foodies, an architect and even a mathematician all told us that diagonal rules. But why?

In 2008, California voters outlawed gay marriage, largely on the argument that a ban was needed to protect the sanctity of traditional marriage. If that's the case, then John Marcotte reasons that voters should have no problem banning divorce, too.

A sheriff's spokesman says Maurice Clemmons was shot and killed by police early Tuesday in a Seattle neighborhood. Three people were arrested for allegedly helping Clemmons, suspected of gunning down four police officers at a coffee shop, elude authorities during a two-day manhunt.

The highly anticipated new record from Spoon isn't out until January, but you can hear a cut from the record now, exclusively on All Songs Considered. "Written In Reverse" is the first single from the album, called Transference.

It's boom times for the marijuana trade in Northern California. Rural Humboldt County's economy depends on both the legal and illegal sales of pot, as growers to trimmers to entrepreneurs aim to land quick cash.

There been a long-running debate about the future of America's one-cent coin, and at least one store owner in Berkeley, Calif., has decided to take a personal stand. Alko Office Supply refuses to take any pennies.

You probably know Norman Rockwell for his illustrations, which defined the rosy aesthetic of mid-20th century America. But what you might not know is that almost all of his paintings began as photographs, as can be seen in this interactive gallery.

These days, smart phone apps can imitate bagpipes, flutes and bird calls and even translate a baby's cries. Now, there's an app to relax — from Deepak Chopra. Chopra is taking his message of mind-body healing to the iPhone with interactive stress-reducing exercises.

His best-known work — the music to A Charlie Brown Christmas — is currently airing across the country once again. But as a new anthology attests, Vince Guaraldi wrote and performed a lot more music that deserves attention, too.