National Public Radio News

All caucus sites have now closed in Nevada, and based on actual vote returns NPR says Mitt Romney is the winner, followed by Newt Gingrich in second place followed by Ron Paul and Rick Santorum. This is Romney's second straight triumph over a field of rivals suddenly struggling to keep pace.

Despite Mitt Romney's time as governor, his previous presidential run and quite a few years in the spotlight, many people still feel they don't know much about him. The clean-cut, buttoned-up candidate is notoriously quiet about his private life, and his former colleagues and friends haven't revealed much, either.

Miles Davis was honored with a postage stamp, but his childhood home has fallen into disrepair. Only a few homes of the talented and famous become tourist meccas like Graceland or Monticello. Architecture, beauty and politics all play a role.

Some highly improbable events lately have embarrassed the host states in the presidential nominating process, including Nevada, which held its caucus Saturday night.

All caucus sites have now closed in Nevada, and based on actual vote returns NPR says Mitt Romney is the winner, followed by Newt Gingrich in second place followed by Ron Paul and Rick Santorum. This is Romney's second straight triumph over a field of rivals suddenly struggling to keep pace.

Nevada holds its Republican caucuses today it is the first Western state to weigh in on the nominating contest. NPR's Ari Shapiro reports that Mitt Romney is widely favored to win and has the latest from Nevada.

Russian researchers in Antarctica are on the verge of piercing a hole through two miles of ice into an ancient lake, untouched by the light of day for some 20 million years. But it'll be a delicate process to break through without disturbing the pristine waters. Guest host David Green speaks with Antarctic researcher John Priscu about the process.

A new map from the USDA has some northern gardeners hoping to grow plants that used to be considered too fragile for cold weather zones. The hardiness zone chart is about a half zone warmer than the last one issued in 1990. The USDA says the changes are not due to global warming, but to more sophisticated mapping methods. Seed sellers and buyers say that, whatever the reason, the warmer temperatures expand possibilities for planting this spring.

For snow fans in the contiguous US, this winter has left much to be desired. The warm and mild season in the lower 48 and the wild snow dumps and cold weather up north in Alaska can be blamed largely on a weather pattern called "arctic oscillation." Audie Cornish gets an explanation of the weather phenomenon from meteorologist Jeffrey Masters.

One employer just starting to come back from the brink is Majestic Yachts Incorporated, a houseboat manufacturer in Kentucky. Guest host David Greene checks back in with the CEO, Jim Hadley. He last spoke to Hadley in February 2009 as part of NPR's First 100 Days Project about the impact of the recession.

In an about-face, the Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation announced Friday that it is not cutting off funding for Planned Parenthood. Komen is one of the nation's most prominent breast cancer groups. They came under intense criticism for their initial decision to cut off some funding for Planned Parenthood. Guest host David Greene talks with NPR's Julie Rovner and Rob Stein, who have been covering the story.

The Chinese automaker JAC unveiled their latest design this week, and it bears a rather notable resemblance to the Ford F-150. Though the engine is much smaller, the JAC 4R3 will go on sale across China and in Africa and Latin America, after its debut at the Beijing motor show in April.

In 1988, journalist Tom Rose was sent to Barrow, Alaska, to cover the dramatic rescue of three gray whales. His book has been adapted into a movie called Big Miracle — but the real miracle is how this event became a news story at all.

Known to many devoted genre fans for his methodical horror movies, the director of The House of the Devil and Trigger Man talks with Neda Ulaby about his influences and his newest film.

Based on Thomas Rose's 1989 book, the film follows an Alaska town's real-life struggle to free whales from thickening ice that prevents their migration to a warmer climate. Critic Ella Taylor says the film, like many of its characters, is flawed but amiable.

Nothing classes up a Super Bowl party as effortlessly as some high-quality cheese. And nothing goes better with cheese than beer, says brewmaster Garrett Oliver. He shares a list of beers and cheeses that taste great together.

The Susan G. Komen Foundation's decision to remove funding from Planned Parenthood has set off a storm of criticism. Katha Pollit of The Nation says it's pretty shocking that Komen would deprive women of services it has itself admitted they have no other way of getting.

China has been cracking down on dissidents within its country. Sophie Richardson of Foreign Policy argues that foreign governments need to make freedom of expression in China an inescapable topic in all discussions with Chinese officials.