Meet the 'glass-half-full girl' whose brain rewired itself

Beethoven's medical and family secrets decoded from locks of his hair. [View this email online]( [Best of NPR]( Month Day, 2022 This week, we waited to see if former [President Trump would be arrested]( saw [protests in France delayed King Charles III's trip]( and [NPR announced its layoffs](. --------------------------------------------------------------- Scott’s Weekly Weigh-in A good weekend to you. [Richard Blanco]( the great poet, was among a group who received [National Humanities]( medals this week, and we were able to ask him a few questions: Q: You have often said you were made in Cuba, assembled in Spain, and imported to the U.S. Does that give you a unique view of our national life? A: My mother, seven months pregnant with me, left Cuba for Madrid, where I was born. We immigrated once more when I was only 45 days old. Through my eye as the “other,” I am critical of our country’s social and political issues, our flaws, our injustices. But through my eye of the immigrant, I also celebrate our ideals of freedom and unity with an enduring hope that one day we will truly fulfill them for all. Q: You have also been a serious, working engineer. Do you keep the engineer and the poet separate, or let them help each other? A: I see a poem as sort of an emotional design problem that I solve through the math of language. And so I feel I’m a better poet because I am an engineer. But I also feel that I am a better engineer because I am a poet. Poetry helped me think outside the box to solve design problems. I sense similar mental faculties at work whether I’m designing a bridge or a poem. Q: What can poetry put into our lives? A: I think poetry is very close to music. A poem, like a song, says, “Me too, I know how you feel. Sing along with me.” We do. On this week’s show, we had a touching [interview with Eureka O’Hara]( a Tennessee drag queen, who loves her state, but not new laws that restrict her art. And this week’s essay is on [tyrants who can’t take a joke](. [Scott Simon]( Scott Simon is one of NPR's most renowned news anchors. He is the host of [Weekend Edition Saturday]( and one of the hosts of the morning news podcast Up First. Be sure to listen to him every Saturday on your local NPR station, and follow him [on Twitter](. --------------------------------------------------------------- Newsletter continues after sponsor message --------------------------------------------------------------- by [S]( Nuyen Stories you may have missed Seth Leeb Half of Mora Leeb’s brain was removed when she was just 9 months old. But these days, the [self-described "glass-half-full girl" lives the life of a regular 15-year-old]( She plays soccer, tells jokes and gets her nails done. Her incredible case demonstrates the upper bounds of brain plasticity — a process where the brain rewires itself and adapts to new circumstances. By just being herself, Mora is helping scientists figure out how they could help millions of people whose brains are still recovering from traumatic events such as strokes or tumors. A family has been reunited, after nearly two centuries apart. Jørgen Wadum noticed something was off about Cornelis De Vos’ painting, "Double Portrait of a Father and Son," and after [years of sleuthing]( he found the missing mother in the portrait being sold as a separate painting. After reuniting mother, father and son, he’s on to the next mystery: figuring out who exactly they are. South Korea has had the lowest fertility rate in the world for a decade. Although the government has poured billions into programs that aid new mothers, it hasn’t helped much. Things like a lack of affordable housing and long work weeks keep young Koreans from pursuing parenthood, and economists say [changing overall attitudes about family and work life]( is crucial to fixing South Korea’s birth rate. Ludwig van Beethoven proves that beauty is struggle. He gave the world incredible works of music, but his life was filled with pain. Progressive hearing loss ended his performance career in his 40s, and debilitating gastrointestinal issues and liver disease added to his misery. Anthropology Ph.D. student Tristan Begg has been obsessed with Beethoven since he was a teenager, and he recently finished his scientific magnum opus: [sequencing the composer’s genome]( and finding the possible genetic causes of his illnesses. --------------------------------------------------------------- Before you go Tommy Trenchard - How do you capture happiness? We asked photographers to show us their best shots of happiness and gratitude. [These images warmed our hearts]( and we hope they warm yours too. - Five years ago, scientists were baffled by the strange movements of 'Oumuamua, a comet-like object that’s our first known visitor from another solar system. But they’ve finally solved the mystery, and it all has to do with the [changing structure of water ice as it warms](. - The Orange County District Attorney's Office has dismissed all charges against Rick and Morty co-creator and star Justin Roiland, who was [accused of domestic violence](. --------------------------------------------------------------- Listen to your local NPR station. Visit NPR.org to find your local station stream. [Listen Live]( [Facebook]( [Instagram]( [Twitter]( Enjoying this newsletter? Forward to a friend! [They can sign up here.]( Looking for more great content? [Check out all of our newsletter offerings]( — including Daily News, Politics, Health and more! You received this message because you're subscribed to Best of NPR emails. This email was sent by National Public Radio, Inc., 1111 North Capitol Street NE, Washington, DC 20002 [Unsubscribe]( | [Privacy Policy]( [NPR logo]