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and tobacco use is on the rise among eighth and tenth-graders.

or the V-chip due to be put into all new televisions.

NPR's Elaine Korry reports that the Oakland, California school district has declared "Ebonics" or black English to be a second language as a way of addressing the low performance of some black students. The school district says the move is intended to help black students the same way that English as a second language programs help new immigrants. But opponents of the idea say calling black English a distinct language simply validates bad grammar and won't help black students succeed.

NPR's Barbara Mantel has the first in a series of reports on student teacher Lea Ricci (LEE-uh RICH-ee), a student teacher at Fordham College who begins her first week of student teaching at Emerson High School in Yonkers, New York. Ricci will be paired with an experienced teacher at Emerson, and she says she's looking forward to learning from a teacher who's already worked with kids. But she's also hoping to try out some of her ideas about getting the kids involved in exciting, hands-on teaching methods, and wonders whether the reality of the classroom will accommodate her ideas about teaching.

about the unexplained events nearly four years ago in the Australian outback. Was the huge explosion, felt hundreds of miles away, a small earthquake, a meteorite crashing or worst of all, a nuclear blast?

NPR's Andy Bowers reports from Moscow on fears that old Soviet habits are creeping back into Russia. Human Rights groups cite as example the case of Alexander Nikitin (neh-KEE-tuhn). Nikitin wrote a report on nuclear waste contamination by the Russian Navy. He was arrested and charged with espionage and high treason.

of Carl Sagan. He spoke with NPR's Ira Flatow earlier this year.

NPR's Brooke Gladstone reports on the long-awaited television rating system, which was unveiled today. A TV industry group chose an age-based plan that child advocates say doesn't give parents enough specific information about a program's sexual or violent content. The proposed six-tiered system is designed to work with the so-called "V-chip" to allow parents to block unwanted shows. The ratings plan is subject to approval by the Federal Communications Commission. President Clinton thanked the industry group that came up with the voluntary plan and said it will be up to parents and child advocates to use, evaluate and comment on the system's effectiveness, once it's implemented.

Commentator Andrei Codrescu explores the twisted qualities of health care in the age of HMO's. He talks about the absurdity of insurance companies that put financial profits before human life.

Commentator Stuart Cheifet explains that an "avatar" is the incarnation or embodiment of a spirit or concept. Now in cyberspace, you can create a "virtual you" — a graphic image representing who you are. These avatars can wander through a 3D cyber environment, meeting other avatars along the way.