Talk of the Nation

Retail and fast-food workers protesting for higher pay are creating a new kind of U.S. labor movement. Chicago Tribune columnist Clarence Page argues that the president could "set a good example" by requiring fast-food vendors who have contracts with the federal government to pay minimum wage.

The Supreme Court issued its decision Monday in Fisher v. the University of Texas, which challenged the constitutionality of the use of affirmative action in college admissions. The court sent the case back to the lower court to apply "strict scrutiny" to the University's admissions policy.

The fashion choices we make can say a lot about how we see ourselves, and can affect how others see us. The 2012 Smithsonian Folklife Festival includes a program called "The Will to Adorn," which explores the ways African Americans culture is shaped by fashion.

A shrinking Pentagon budget, a changing role for women in combat, and the planned 2014 exit from Afghanistan are just some of the factors that will shape the future of military life. As part of TOTN's "Looking Ahead" series, guests discuss what's ahead for men and women in uniform.

China's "Tianhe-2" (Milky Way 2) supercomputer took first place in one recent speed test, clocking in at 30 quadrillion calculations per second--about twice as fast as the best American machines. The U.S. still has more supercomputers than any other nation, but some experts say computer speed is a measure of a country's scientific innovation, and worry the U.S. is lagging behind.

In his new book, Letters to a Young Scientist, biologist and two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Edward O. Wilson aims to inspire a new generation of scientists. Among his observations and advice: Geniuses don't make the best scientists, and don't worry if you aren't good at math.

Vegetables plucked from grocery store shelves can be made to respond to patterns of light and darkness, according to a report in the journal Current Biology. Janet Braam and colleagues found that cabbages change their levels of phytonutrients throughout a daily cycle.

Coffee beans are filled with oils that emerge from coffee grounds under high pressure. These oils form the crema - "the frothy stuff" on top of an espresso. In the last installment of Science Friday's series on coffee, food-science writer Harold McGee, author of On Food and Cooking, explains the chemistry of crema.

Should you skip the bedtime stories and do math problems instead? Laura Overdeck, the founder of "Bedtime Math," thinks so. Overdeck discusses her program for tucking kids in with equations, and tells why she thinks it helps kids keep up their math skills over summer vacation.

Researchers say that they've discovered a new subatomic particle - one that appears to contain four quarks bound together. Physicist Sean M. Carroll describes the significance of the find, and talks about the ongoing effort in physics to explain why the universe is the way it is.