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The ceremonies surrounding the death of Pope John Paul II, his funeral and the election of his successor Benedict XVI have played out according to a script written centuries ago. But the new pontiff strayed from the script Saturday, speaking to reporters before his inaugural mass tomorrow.

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist says he'll try to persuade Democrats to allow a confirmation vote on John Bolton as ambassador to the United Nations. But Democrats say they'll continue to filibuster until the White House provides documents regarding Bolton's days at the State Department.

Jesse Sheidlower, editor the Oxford English Dictionary and a Slate contributing writer, discusses the history of the word "hip." He challenges an assertion made in a new book by author John Leland, Hip: The History, that the word "hip" comes from Africa.

Critic-at-large John Powers comments on the history of roles for offbeat women in Hollywood. Powers recently saw the hit film The 40-Year-Old Virgin and got to thinking about the actress Catherine Keener, who co-stars.

Senate Democrats close ranks to delay a vote on John Bolton's nomination to be U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Democrats say they will allow Bolton to face a vote, but only if the Bush administration provides access to classified documents.

This year's Pulitzer Prizes are announced Monday. Among the winners: Samantha Powers for her book on genocide called A Problem from Hell, Jeffrey Eugenides for his novel Middlesex about a hermaphrodite, and composer John Adams for his Sept. 11th-inspired music On The Transmigration of Souls. NPR's Laura Sydell reports.

Day to Day television critic Andrew Wallenstein reviews the new ABC show Jake in Progress starring John Stamos. Wallenstein takes on those who think the program is the male answer to the ribald HBO hit show Sex and the City.

Critic at large John Powers has been watching the HBO show Entourage -- about a handsome young movie star and his buddies -- and has some thoughts on the way the rich and powerful are often protected from reality.

Fuel cell technology isn't new, but the notion of automobiles running on hydrogen powered fuel cells has always been more wishful thinking than reality. Now, several of the major car companies are spending serious money to develop fuel cell vehicles. NPR's John Ydstie reports in Part Four of All Things Considered's oil series.

A severe drought, coupled with mismanagement by Mexican water authorities, has debilitated the once-mighty Rio Grande. While diplomats fight over the scarce water, downriver farmers in Texas and Mexico grow increasingly desperate. For All Things Considered, John Burnett reports.

Just hours after John Wilkes Booth shot President Lincoln, the actor showed up at the doorstep of Dr. Samuel Mudd, seeking help for his broken leg. Soon after, Dr. Mudd was sentenced to life in jail. To this day, his family is fighting to clear Mudds name. Cindy Johnston reports.

Wilco's new album Yankee Hotel Foxtrot takes the erstwhile alt-country band even further from its roots. Frontman Jeff Tweedy talks with John Ydstie on All Things Considered. And Meredith Ochs reviews a new anthology of music from Tweedy's old band, the legendary Uncle Tupelo. (8:15) The CD is on Nonesuch Records. See http://www.wilcoworld.net/.

In 1924, a star-studded cruise on William Randolph Hearst's private yacht ended with a murder, and became a true Hollywood scandal. Now that scandal is the subject of a new film by Peter Bogdanovich. NPR's Bob Mondello has a review of the film, and Bogdanovich talks with All Things Considered guest host John Ydstie about Tinseltown history.

In the first U.S. combat death, a U.S. Marine is killed in southern Iraq. Earlier, four U.S. Marines and eight British soldiers are killed in the accidental crash of a U.S. helicopter near the Kuwait-Iraq border. Hear NPR's John Burnett.

Former Vermont governor Howard Dean insists he will not drop out of the Democratic presidential race if he loses Tuesday's primary in Wisconsin. But a top Dean campaign aide is planning to offer his help to frontrunner John Kerry, if Dean doesn't win in Wisconsin. Hear NPR's Bob Edwards.

The White House has asserted that most of the terrorism currently undermining U.S. efforts in Iraq is perpetrated by non-Iraqis. Terror analysts and Middle East experts differ in their opinion of the nature of the attacks -- and who is behind them. Hear NPR's Michele Kelemen and Rand Corporation policy analyst John Parachini.

The aerial bombardment of Baghdad increases, including an attack on a telecommunications center that knocks out the phone system. Iraqi officials say seven people died and more than 100 were wounded in the latest barrage. Hear NPR's Bob Edwards and Los Angeles Times reporter John Daniszewski.

NPR's John Burnett is traveling with the U.S. Marines 20 miles south of Baghdad. The closer forces got to the city, the warmer the welcome from civilians, and the less resistance the Marines experienced from Iraqi fighters. There was one scare today, in which a chemical monitor went off and Marines threw on their protective suits, only to find it was a false alarm.

The U.S. First Marine Division moves to seal off roads on the east and north side of the Iraqi capital, and troops fight from skirmish to skirmish, finding huge caches of weapons and ammunition hidden along the sides of Highway 6 along the Tigris River. Hear NPR's John Burnett.

An American soldier is killed and another wounded outside Baghdad when their convoy is hit by rocket-propelled grenades and small-arms fire, U.S. Central Command says. The attack comes a day after Gen. John Abizaid, commander of U.S. forces in Iraq, predicts that resistance to American troops will increase in the coming months. Hear NPR's Guy Raz.