Turn Your Trash to Treasure and Win $10,000!

The deadline to enter the Trash to Treasure Contest from Design Squad has been extended to August 31, 2008! To enter this contest, open to kids 5 - 19, recycle, reuse, and re-engineer everyday materials into an out-of-the-box invention.

Your invention should:
• Move things or people or
• Protect the environment or
• Be used for indoor or outdoor play


GRAND PRIZE
• $10,000
• A Dell™ laptop powered by Intel®
• A trip to Boston to see your design built

4 FINALISTS Receive Dell™ laptops powered by Intel®

Visit the Design Squad web site for more details!

PBS Children's Programs Earn Creative Emmys!

PBS Kids and PBS Kids GO! programs produced by WGBH were recently honored with five awards at the 35th Annual Creative Arts & Entertainment Daytime Emmy® Awards!

Emmys were given to:
Between the Lions - "Outstanding Writing in a Children's Series"
Curious George - "Outstanding Children's Animated Program"
Design Squad - "Outstanding Directing in a Children's Series"
FETCH! With Ruff Ruffman - "Outstanding Theme Song"
PEEP and the Big Wide World - "Outstanding Writing in Animation"

Congratulations to the teams behind these quality children's shows! These programs have all aired on WGVU TV as part of our PBS Kids and PBS Kids GO! programming blocks. Currently, you can see the following programs on WGVU TV:

Between the Lions: Tuesday - Thursday at 3 p.m.

Curious George: Weekdays at 8 a.m.
FETCH! with Ruff Ruffman: Tuesday - Thursday at 5:30 p.m.

America's Parks on NPR

As families across the country head out on their holiday road trips, NPR is taking listeners to America's parks. Starting June 30 and finishing up on the Fourth of July, NPR will feature stories from many of the nearly 400 parks, monuments and recreation areas managed by the National Park service. We'll visit iconic places, for sure - the Grand Canyon, Yosemite and Glacier Bay. We'll also learn about some more out-of-the-way spots - including the smallest national park, the Thaddeus Kosciuszko National Memorial in Philadelphia. And we'll hear about the issues facing the parks, such as climate change, the threat of wildfire and thieves who steal artifacts and other parts of our natural heritage. So, lace up your boots, put on your pack, and grab your radio - as NPR takes you to America's national parks.

A Selection of Scheduled Stories:

Monday, June 30
Morning Edition: Take a behind-the-scenes tour of the Grand Canyon and the hard and dangerous work that goes into maintaining the awe-inspiring vistas.
All Things Considered: Visit the largest national park - Alaska's Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, and the smallest - Thaddeus Koscuiszko National Memorial in Pennsylvania.

Tuesday, July 1
All Things Considered: Survey efforts to rehabilitate the Everglades, and hear from critics who question the value of the rehab if global warming is going to flood the park regardless.

Wednesday, July 2
Morning Edition: Go digging for dinosaurs at the Dinosaur National Monument in Utah.
All Things Considered: Go looking for road kill with quirky environmental education instructor Moose Mutlow in Yosemite to figure out which animals are at most risk, and why.

Thursday, July 3
Morning Edition: Visit Glacier Bay National Park in southeast Alaska, where a group of international scientists is measuring how gravity in the area is changing due to the glaciers receding.
All Things Considered: Meet Marta Becket, an artist and dancer who set up shop in old Borax company buildings in Death Valley in 1967, and has been creating art and performing there ever since.

Friday, July 4
All Things Considered: Meet composer Phillip Bimstein, who uses human voices and the natural sounds of Springdale, Utah, and Zion National Park to celebrate the local culture of one of the nation's oldest national parks.


Submit your National Parks photos HERE.

You've Got (Too Much!) Mail

This week-long series airs on Morning Edition and Weekend Edition, June 15-21
Once viewed as a time-saver, email now seems to consume a large part of our day. NPR explores the hassles and challenges of managing email, and tools software designers are developing to ease the burden.

You've Got (Too Much!) Mail: Family Spam
Weekend Edition, June 15
Almost everyone has a family member or a friend who - bless ‘em - sends too much of the wrong kind of email, from alarmist hoax letters to incendiary political mail. What do you do when most of your junk email comes from family member who you can't tell to just knock it off? NPR's Yuki Noguchi talks to recipients and perpetrators of family spam.

You've Got (Too Much!) Mail: Inbox Overload
Morning Edition, June 16
Your inbox overfloweth. Billions of e-mails change hands every day - and that number is growing. This is prompting some to declare email bankruptcy and others to be constantly tethered to their email. NPR's Yuki Noguchi reports on the different ways people manage the deluge and solutions being developed by technology companies.

You've Got (Too Much!) Mail: Seriosity
Morning Edition, June 17
Silicon Valley start-up Seriosity thinks that economics will help people learn which of their emails have value, and to whom. The company's software allows the sender to attach a value to an email to denote how important the sender thinks it is. The recipient can then let the sender know whether the email was valuable or not. The idea is for people to self-regulate what they send. But would they? NPR's Wendy Kaufman reports.

You've Got (Too Much!) Mail: Email and the Law
Morning Edition, June 18
How should companies handle sensitive emails which could potentially be evidence used against them in court? On the other hand, deleting email that could be demanded by the court can get them in trouble, too. NPR's Ari Shapiro looks at the policies of several different organizations regarding deleting email.

You've Got (Too Much!) Mail: Email Encryption
Morning Edition, June 19
For all the hand-wringing about how insecure email is, why doesn't anybody encrypt their messages? The option is readily available from Microsoft or free PGP (pretty good privacy) software. Hardly anyone does this, except for a handful of hearty privacy enthusiasts. NPR's Martin Kaste talks to a few of them about why they do it, whether they trust it, and how it works.

You've Got (Too Much!) Mail: Email-Free Fridays
Morning Edition, June 20
Can you go a day at the office without email? Employees at U.S. Cellular do it every Friday. Executive Jay Ellison implemented the policy a few years ago after workers said they were swamped by emails. How does it work? Does it include BlackBerries? And does everyone really stick to it? NPR’s David Schaper finds out.

You've Got (Too Much!) Mail: Too Many Ways to Connect
Weekend Edition, June 21
The ways for people to connect and communicate seem innumerable - text messages, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter, IM and the old-fashioned phone call. How many connections can one person manage? How do people decide what is the best way to keep in touch? NPR's Laura Sydell trys a few of these methods to find out.

Morning Edition airs weekdays at 5 a.m. and Weekend Edition airs Saturdays and Sundays at 8 a.m. on WGVU AM & FM.

South Africa at a Crossroads

A six-part series on NPR's Morning Edition and Weekend Edition, June 10-15

Fourteen years after the end of apartheid, South Africa's young democracy is at a crossroads. The country is facing a bitter leadership contest, slowing economic growth, an education system in shambles, a failing public health care system and deeply ingrained racism. Despite more than a decade of black rule, the country remains divided between two separate societies - one white and prospering, despite complaints about black advantage, and one black and in decline. This six-part series from NPR's Charlayne Hunter-Gault examines these issues and looks at what lies ahead.

South Africa at a Crossroads: Racism
Tuesday on Morning Edition
It's been 14 years since the end of white rule in South Africa. Nelson Mandela - a lifelong warrior in the battle against apartheid - became the nation's first black president in 1994. His vision: a democratic and free society in which all live together in harmony with equal opportunities. He dubbed it a "rainbow nation." But in the first in her series examining South Africa today, NPR's Charlayne Hunter-Gault finds that the rainbow is dimmed by some lingering clouds of racism.

South Africa at a Crossroads: Crime
Wednesday on Morning Edition
Since the end of apartheid, crime of all types has increased in South Africa, and remains one of the biggest challenges facing the nation. Ironically, the government may disband one of the country's most successful crime busting units. After naming some of South Africa's most powerful men as suspects in corruption probes, the unit known as "The Scorpions" may not be long for this world. NPR's Charlayne Hunter-Gault has the story.

South Africa at a Crossroads: Education
Thursday on Morning Edition
Post-apartheid South Africa has put a priority on giving all children a quality education. The challenge of redressing the 40-year legacy of imbalance between the nation's white and black students, however, is huge - particularly in poorer, rural provinces. The needs are many, from books to buildings. NPR's Charlayne Hunter-Gault looks at the state of education in this young democracy.

South Africa at a Crossroads: Health Care
Friday on Morning Edition
South Africa has an internationally-renowned private health care system known for providing top-notch care and science. But the majority of South Africans can't afford private care and have to rely on the public system - which is a different matter altogether. In a nation battling widespread AIDS, a high incidence of TB, malnutrition and many other diseases, the public facilities are inadequate and direly understaffed. NPR's Charlayne Hunter-Gault reports.

South Africa at a Crossroads: The Economy
Saturday on Weekend Edition
Recent deadly attacks against immigrants seeking a better life in South Africa have put a spotlight on the nation's economy. Many say the violence is the result of anger over too few jobs, not enough money, and little opportunity for black South Africans today. This, coupled with widespread inflation and discontent over government policies has taken its toll on the economy -growth has fallen to a six-year low. NPR's Charlayne Hunter-Gault examines what these economic realities mean for day-to-day life.

South Africa at a Crossroads: Leadership
Sunday on Weekend Edition
In our final report for "South Africa at a Crossroads," NPR's Charlayne Hunter-Gault looks at the current state of the country's leadership which is now divided for the first time since the new black-led government came to power in 1994. Many worry about the impact of having two centers of power, and the possibility of gridlock in a young democracy dealing with many critical issues.

Morning Edition airs weekdays at 5 a.m. and weekends at 8 a.m. on WGVU Radio.

Note: air dates subject to change.

Enter the Car Talk Look-A-Like Contest!

Know someone who reminds you of Tom or Ray? The guys offer their condolences! But they'd like to see a photo, please! Snap a photo, and share it using the link below. Have a look at the other unfortunate souls who've been nominated. In a few weeks, they'll post the finalists. And then, each of the Car Talk crew will have a chance to vote to select their favorite matches for their humble hosts. The winners will get deepest sympathies.

To submit a photo, visit the Car Talk web site.

Car Talk airs Saturdays at 10 a.m. on WGVU FM & AM and Sundays at 10 a.m. on WGVU AM.

Between the Lions picks up Four Emmy Nominations

Between the Lions has received four (4) Daytime Emmys nominations, for Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction/Set Decoration/Scenic Design; Outstanding Achievement in Music Direction and Composition; Outstanding Writing in a Children's Series; and Outstanding Pre-School Children's Series. Between the Lions was also recently honored with a prestigious Silver plaque in the Children's Series category at the 44th annual Hugo Television Awards.

Between the Lions airs Tuesday - Thursday at 3 p.m. on WGVU TV.