Morning Edition

The University of South Florida told students to think about "the dignity of the ceremony" before attempting a selfie with the university president as she hands them their diplomas.

A court in the Netherlands has upheld the mayor's efforts to ban marijuana cafes in an area that permits prostitution.

SuperShoes are squishy insoles that fit inside your shoes. Inside those insoles are "vibrotactile ticklers" linked to your mobile device. Enter a destination and the ticklers guide your way.

The U.S. is increasing both arms and training assistance to the Syrian rebels. Advocates of the program say they hope to change the situation on the ground, others doubt it will help much.

President Obama is in Japan for the start of his four-nation Asia visit. The trip aims to assure U.S. allies that they're not forgotten, even as China gets more bullish with its neighbors.

As online and mega stores take up more of the retail landscape, small mom-and-pop shops are getting more specific. We examine one of the ways small stores are looking to survive and possibly thrive.

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STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Good morning. I'm Steve Inskeep. Some stores post a warning: Disobedient children will be given and a puppy and an espresso. Maybe that's not so bad. Kids at a Melbourne, Florida elementary school were given caffeine. Each kid was offered trail mix and Mountain Dew on the morning of standardized tests. A grandmother got the school to stop, but the principal says she read a study on keeping kids' energy levels stable. By the way, Creole Elementary is rated an A+ school. It's MORNING EDITION. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

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RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

Good morning. I'm Renee Montagne.

Winnie the Pooh is often found head-first in a jar of honey. For a bear in Canada, birdseed was too much to resist. Residents in Sudbury, Ontario spotted a bear stumbling down the street, unable to see where it was going, because a large jar of birdseed was stuck on its head. It even bumped into a police car. The cops, you will be happy to know, got experts there to sedate the bear and cut the jar off its head.

It's MORNING EDITION. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

At preschools in Tulsa, Okla., teachers are well-educated and well-paid, and classrooms are focused on play, but are still challenging. One nonprofit in Tulsa, the Community Action Project, has flipped the script on preschool. The idea behind its Career Advance program is simple: To help kids, the group believes, you often have to help their parents.

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Whether they like it or not, libraries in some cities serve as homeless shelters. People come off the streets to find quiet and warmth. If libraries want to do something about this, they have some choices: They can put homeless visitors back out on the street. San Francisco libraries want to get them back on their feet.

Scott Shafer reports from member station KQED.

Research finds when hospitals initiate rapid response programs to treat stroke victims, response time is cut and fewer patients die. The stroke patients also have fewer significant disabilities.

Steve Inskeep talks to Lee Bollinger, a former president at the University of Michigan, about Tuesday's ruling. Bollinger was president during two earlier landmark affirmative action cases.

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Our last word in business is: Veggie Ice Cream.

Japanese parents trying to get their kids to eat vegetables can skip to desert.

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

Haagen-Dazs is testing vegetable-flavored ice cream in Japan. Flavors include tomato cherry and carrot orange.

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STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

It's MORNING EDITION from NPR News. I'm Steve Inskeep.

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

And I'm Renee Montagne.

The Supreme Court this morning, upheld a ban on using racial preferences in admissions to the public universities of Michigan. The ban was enacted by referendum as an amendment to the state constitution in 2006 and struck down by a lower court. Today, the justices voted 6-to-2 to say the federal courts could not do that and the ban had to stand.

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RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

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STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Good morning, I'm Steve Inskeep.

Stop the presses, as they used to say before news was spread by Twitter. You will not be making drinks with powdered alcohol yet. We reported yesterday on plans to sell Palcohol mixed drinks to which, like lemonade, you just add water. Now federal regulators say stop, they were wrong to say Palcohol was ready for market. A federal approval for the label was given in error. The company must have a drink and start again.

It's MORNING EDITION. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

The federal government spends almost $8 billion on preschool programs across the country, mostly on low income 4-year-olds. States spend billions more. But with at least 30 states planning to expand access to pre-K and President Obama promoting "preschool for all," what constitutes a quality preschool program?

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RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

It's MORNING EDITION from NPR News. Good morning. I'm Renee Montagne.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

And I'm Steve Inskeep. Sometimes in the evening in Cairo, Egypt, people take a sailboat ride on the Nile. I got to do this once, Renee. It's amazing. The river cuts through the center of the city and you can see the lights of Cairo spreading along each bank. Except, of course, when the lights are out.

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RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

Since the mass shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, more than 70 measures have gone into effect around the U.S. actually loosening restrictions on guns. And tomorrow the governor of Georgia is expected to sign a bill that will allow gung to be carried in more places. Among those against the gun bill are cities in Georgia concerned about having to spend more on security. Susanna Capelouto has this report.

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Millions of people know the singer Kelis for "Milkshake" - that's her hit from a decade ago. It's the sort of song that nobody really thought was about a milkshake.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "MILKSHAKE")

KELIS ROGERS: (Singing) My milkshake brings all the boys to the yard and their like, it's better than yours, damn right, it's better than yours. I could teach you, but I'd have to charge. My milkshake...

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STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

And our last word in business today is: Meow.

(LAUGHTER)

INSKEEP: Actually, it's cat cafe. There's been a bit of a cat fight over which city would host the nation's first cat cafe, meaning a place where patrons can cozy up with a latte and also a feline in need of a good home and hopefully adopt that cat.

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

A state commission proposed a ban on selling stuffed baby alligators in "unnatural positions." It's designed to discourage baby gator hunting. If passed, no more little gators waving on a surfboard.

When Miss America visited Patrick Farves high school, he asked her to the prom. She can't go, and the school punished him for asking. But she reportedly asked the school to rethink the suspension.

Asimo is Honda's latest humanoid robot. This one, the third version, is more life-like than previous models.

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Hurricane Carter has died. He was 76 years old, a former boxer, a figure of controversy and, for some, a cause. Rubin Carter was his given name. He fought his first professional boxing match the day after he was released from prison in 1961. Later and more famously, he was in trouble with the law again, including on the night in 1966, when a triple murder was committed in Patterson, New Jersey.

Transcendence is an ambitious and provocative film about the perils and pleasures of artificial intelligence that is intriguingly balanced between being a warning and a celebration.

On Tuesday, Stephen Colbert stops by the CBS Late Show to greet the man he'll replace next year, David Letterman. It also spotlights a reality in late-night TV --almost every host is a white man.

Palchohol is powdered alcohol — just mix with water to create an instant cocktail. The creators of Palcohol pitched their idea as a solution to the soaring price of alcohol.

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RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

NPR's business news starts with wiring from Wal-Mart.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

MONTAGNE: The giant retailer is taking another step into banking. The company says it's launching a money transfer service next week. It'll go head-to-head with Western Union and MoneyGram in a market worth about $900 billion. But Wal-Mart says it will offer lower fees. Western Union and MoneyGram's stock both dropped on the news. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

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KELLY MCEVERS, HOST:

Good morning. I'm Kelly McEvers with the story of not one, but two, good Samaritans in Boonville, Indiana. A Chrysler belonging to Derk West was stolen last week. The thief then sold the car to a 72-year-old man for 300 bucks. That buyer started feeling like the deal was too good to be true.

So he looked up the car's rightful owner, Mr. West, gave him a call. Derk West decided the older man needed the car more than he did so he let him keep it. It's MORNING EDITION. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.