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NPR's Anthony Brooks examines Vice President Al Gore's campaign, as he moves toward the Democratic Presidential nomination. Gore hopes to use the current economic boom to help propel him into the White House.

1970's singer/songwriter Jimmie Spheeris created a fantasy-carnival world on his four albums for Columbia Records. He won over devoted fans as he toured the U.S. But his sudden death in the early 1980s meant that all that lingered were echoes. That is, until an Internet designer named Andy Markley met the singer's former bass player, Johnny Pierce, over the internet. They began working together to bring Spheeris' music back. The fans rallied, and now, all of Jimmie's CD's, including an unreleased recording, Spheeris (Rain Records RR006), are in stores. Liane talks with Markley and Pierce, and we get to sample some of this long-unheard music.

Noah and Ariel Dorfman, a professor at Duke University discuss the history of the Chilean ship, the B.E. Esmeralda. The ship is part of the Tall Ship celebration, and is visiting New London, Connecticut today. Of all the Tall Ships, this one is the most controversial, because it had been used to hold and torture political prisoners.

Computers can greatly improve the lives of people with disabilities, but Charlotte Renner reports that blind people can't access much of the very visual content on the World Wide Web. Adaptive software can help, but some web designers are trying to create sites that can be accessed by people who can't see well enough to point and click with a standard mouse. (4:30) (Note: The website mentioned in this story is http://www.cast.org. This link will open in a new browser window.)

Two groups of scientists report that have successfully transplanted lab-grown cells to repair severely damaged corneas. Their findings appear in the journal "Cornea" and in tomorrow's New England Journal of Medicine. NPR's Wendy Schmelzer reports.

Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers today urged Congress to approve the administration's request for $472 million, to provide debt relief to developing nations. Republican leaders in the House are refusing to approve the full amount and are holding out for reforms at the World Bank and International Monetary Fund, the institutions that manage the debt relief program. NPR's Kathleen Schalch has this story.

NPR's David Kestenbaum reports on a new set of rules from the EPA that would reduce the amount of arsenic in drinking water tenfold below current limits. Arsenic usually comes from natural sources and doesn't occur in all parts of the country. But the new rules will require upgrades in water systems in thousands of small towns and rural areas.

Noah speaks with David Brower, who was the Sierra Club's first executive director. Brower talks about why he quit the board of the Sierra Club, an organization he has been affiliated with since 1933. He has been quoted as saying "The Earth is burning but I hear nothing from the Sierra Club board except the music of violins. It's time for them to shape up."

Weekend Edition popular culture commentator Steven Stark addresses the impact of the internet and cable TV on the presidential campaigns.

NPR's Tom Gjelten reports that the Clinton administration is consulting with other Latin American nations with regard to possible punitive steps to be taken against Peru. The US sharply criticized Peru's government for not postponing Sunday's presidential runoff to deal with irregularities. A state department spokesman refused to say what steps, if any, the US is prepared to take against President Alberto Fujimori. Peru receives the most US aid in Latin America after Colombia, and is a close partner with Washington in fighting drug trafficking.