Quoted: President Obama was never considered a front-runner for this year's Nobel Peace Prize. But the names of the nominees are kept secret, which fuels a vigorous guessing game each year before the announcement.

Quoted: The regime of North Korean leader Kim Jong Il appears to be rolling back reforms and putting succession plans on hold. Speculation has been swirling about whether the ailing Kim has anointed his youngest son as successor. But, as NPR's Louisa Lim reports — after a rare five-day visit to North Korea — Kim Jong Il now is back on center stage.

Quoted: First came the Scouts' band - then goths, smokers and a lament for lost clubs in parade organised by Turner prize winner

Hmmmm ?

Quoted: An article on ForeignPolicy.com compares the conflict between rappers Jay-Z and The Game to the U.S. relationship with states like Iran. Jay-Z is the dominant force in rap music, but could be hurt whether or not he responds to taunts from The Game.

Quoted: People are stopped from traveling all the time — around the globe and in the United States.

Quoted: Seventeen Moments in Soviet History contains a rich archive of texts, images, maps and audio and video materials from the Soviet era (1917-1991). The materials are arranged by year and by subject, are fully searchable, and are translated into English. Students, educators, and scholars will find fascinating materials about Soviet propaganda, politics, economics, society, crime, literature, art, dissidents and hundreds of other topics

A great list with brief reviews of famous Russian films ...

Quoted:
Rwanda is on course to become the only nation in the world with a Parliament dominated by women.

Quoted: Explorers looking for the lost cities in the Amazon have famously come up empty-handed. But now, scientists have found the remains of numerous smaller villages clustered around larger villages. Urban life may have been a part of the ancient Amazon after all.