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Jacki Lyden talks with Elizabeth Abbott, author of A History of Celibacy: From Athena to Elizabeth I, Leonardo da Vinci, Florence Nightingale, Gandhi, and Cher. Abbott reveals what caused and still causes people to give up sex . Although required by some religions, celibacy was undertaken as a choice primarily throughout history for social and economic reasons. (Scribner ISBN 0-684-84943-7)

Chadwick/Rovner: Host Alex Chadwick speaks with NPR's Julie Rovner about health care happenings on Capitol Hill this week.

There's a new target for protests in Cuba: a 34 year old US immigration law. NPR's Tom Gjelten reports.

Alex talks about next weekend's hula dance at the Berkeley Pit in Butte, Montana. The Pit is the hole left after an incredible amount of copper ore had been extracted by the Anaconda Company and ARCO.

NPR's Corey Flintoff reports on a new study that found that the monuments and memorials around Washington DC are vulnerable to terrorist threats. The report states that because of an understaffed and underfunded police force, nine sites, including the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial, are at risk.

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.)

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.

Commentator Beth Brophy talks about attending this weekend's annual Race for The Cure, sponsored by the Komen Foundation in Washington, D.C. Most cancer survivors who participate wear a pink t-shirt to signify their status, but Brophy -- who has breast cancer herself -- says she doesn't like calling herself a "survivor."

Relief payments moved 11.7 million people from poverty in 2020, according to new Census Bureau data.