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Texas this week approved regulations that require training and background checks for people who help consumers navigate the Affordable Care Act. But the federal government already requires this kind of trainign. KUHF's Carrie Feibel reports that Texas officials say the rules protect the consumer, while others say it is yet another way to thwart Obamacare.

The National Transportation Safety Board is calling for the swift enactment of tough new standards on trains carrying crude oil. With the huge increase in oil shipped by rail across North America, safety officials warn another major disaster could be looming.

Welcome to awards season. Between the Golden Globes, the SAG awards, and the upcoming Oscars, it's enough to make anyone question America's fixation on movies. But author Kevin Roose says that Jess Walter's Beautiful Ruins, a novel with a funny take on the movie industry, shows that there's something important going on behind the glitz.

Mexican Artist Pedro Reyes wants to encourage questions about the availability of deadly weapons, so he turns guns into shovels and most recently, unique musical instruments.

Newspapers from the U.K. to the U.S. were reporting a sensational story this week about an abandoned cruise ship drifting across the Atlantic with a crew of cannibal rats aboard. It sounded too outrageous to be true, so we dug into the story and smelled, well, a rat.

The Republican National Committee's annual meetings this week provided an opportunity to see how far Republicans have come in an effort, begun a year ago, to reach out to new voters — especially young people, minorities and women.

It's been a bitterly cold winter in much of the country, but hey, it could be worse: You could have been alive in the 6th century. Starting in 536 A.D., scholars wrote of a cold snap that lasted not days, but years. Journalist Colin Barra speaks with NPR's Jacki Lyden about scientists' quest to determine what caused the epic cold spell.

Bite is a little shop in New York City where you can design your own lipstick. The lipstick is so natural, it's said to be good enough to eat. NPR's Jacki Lyden visits the "lip lab" and hears from Bite's manager, Melissa Colon, about how she picks the perfect color for her clients.

This week, representatives of the Syrian government and opposition met in Geneva, Switzerland, beginning negotiations to end Syria's violent civil war. Guest host Kelly McEvers speaks with NPR's Deborah Amos, who is following developments at the international conference.

Protests and violent clashes erupted throughout Egypt on Saturday, as the country marked the third anniversary of the beginning of the 2011 Egyptian revolution. At least 29 people died in the violence, according to Egyptian officials. Guest host Kelly McEvers speaks with NPR's Leila Fadel, who is in Cairo.