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A case in the Supreme Court today may determine the fate of millions of inventors' patents. A law says that an invention can't be patented if it is "obvious," but the definition of "obvious" isn't clear after decades of litigation. Now, many companies have filed briefs calling for a change to the rule.

The Pentagon transcript of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed's wide-ranging confession to plotting terrorist attacks has led many to question whether Mohammed could have been involved in all the plots mentioned.

Among the thousands of wildfire evacuees at San Diego's Qualcomm Stadium are about 100 elderly nursing-home residents. Many have spent the past three days in wheelchairs, waiting for a time when it's safe for them to return to the nursing home.

Georgia-based ChoicePoint Inc. is sending out 145,000 letters to warn consumers their personal information has been stolen. But law enforcement officials say many more people need to be on guard for possible identity theft, after crooks got unauthorized access to information in ChoicePoint's databases.

Many groups of immigrants made their first steps toward economic success in America by focusing on one type of business: think Korean groceries or Chinese laundries. When people from Gujarat, India, began arriving in California in the 1940s, some families found a niche running small cheap hotels. NPR's Laura Sydell reports.

A controversy over religion in public schools is raging in Cupertino, Calif. A fifth-grade teacher there claims school officials have muzzled him when he tries to teach his students about the role Christianity played in the American Revolution. Many parents in the community feel he's overstepped his bounds. NPR's Elaine Korry reports.

Observers say many French feel that as president, Sen. John Kerry would have much better relations with French President Jacques Chirac than President Bush. Hear NPR's Renee Montagne and Christian Malard of France Three Television.

The pacifist constitution imposed on Japan after World War II restricted its military forces to self-defense so the nation could never again be an aggressor. The result has been a truncated role in geopolitics for the world's second largest economy. Many Japanese, especially younger people, want their country to assume a bigger role now. NPR's Rob Gifford reports.

For many who watched the Super Bowl, the game was just a distraction from the clever ads. But, as Bernice Kranner, author of The Super Bowl of Advertising, explains, this year's commercials were a bit flat. Concern over decency took some of the spark out the normally creative sales pitches.

U.S. Marine Corporal Binh Le parents have come from Vietnam for their son's funeral. They'll be joined by the many families who adopted Le during his time in the United States. Friends and family remember him as a musician, full of energy, and active in his church. Hear NPR's Luke Burbank.