It's Monday and that means its time for us to gaze into our crystal ball for a look at the week ahead. We’ve got predictions on some key foreign and domestic policy issues and the latest on President Obama’s globetrotting. And we’ll tell you which economic numbers you’ll need to keep your eyes on. The Takeaway is talking to Marcus Mabry, international business editor at our partner the New York Times, and Cynthia Gordy, Washington correspondent for Essence.

As the last stop on his first Presidential tour of Europe, President Obama heads to Turkey. This visit is seen as another step towards engagement of the Muslim world. Turkey was once a strong strategic ally of the U.S., but the relationship has drifted in the last few years. This trip to Ankara is seen as a move to renew the partnership. For more, we turn to Dr. Gulnur Aybet, a specialist on Turkey at the University of Kent in England to discuss the President's visit and his efforts to reach out to Muslims in Turkey and around the world.

Today is Major League Baseball's opening day and the players are ready. Whether it be the Rays or the Diamondbacks the game is on and the fans are excited. But in this economy, the competition isn't just on the field. Baseball teams are competing for your buck and it's way past peanuts and cracker jack as they angle for those precious season ticket sales. Takeaway Tailgater Jeff Beresford-Howe joins us to talk about the wacky ways ($4 beer?!) some teams are trying to bring fans back to the park.

And, take a look ahead at the '09 season, with a list of predictions for the finish of each team, a quick summary of the team's prospects, and a round-up of what they're doing to entice cash-strapped fans to spend at the ballpark.

Suppose that scientists could erase certain memories by tinkering with a single substance in your brain. They could make you forget a chronic fear, a traumatic loss, even a bad habit. Benedict Carey, science writer for The New York Times, joins The Takeaway with a report on researchers in Brooklyn who have created an experimental drug that helps you forget.

For more on this fascinating process, read Benedict Carey's article, Brain Researchers Open Door to Editing Memory, in today's New York Times.

You may remember (or not!) that Lacuna Inc. has been promoting a similar process for some time:


From the film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

The North Koreans have launched what they say is a “communications satellite’ into orbit. America and its allies suspect the state’s “satellite” is in fact a long-range ballistic missile, which North Korea was testing. North Korea and their leader Kim Jong-Il remain defiant in the face of global protest and strong warnings from North Korea's neighbors. After the launch, the U.S. and its allies denounced the move and called an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council to . The BBC's John Sudworth and Brian Myers of Dongseo University join The Takeaway to discuss the implications of this launch.


Our partners at the New York Times are reporting that the North Korean Missile Launch Was a Failure, Experts Say.

Iowans spent the weekend reacting to the Varnum v. Brien court decision that made same-sex marriage legal in their state. On Friday, Iowa's Supreme Court unanimously ruled in a case brought by gay rights group Lambda Legal and threw out a law that said marriage could only be between a man and a woman. The Hawkeye State now joins Massachusetts and Connecticut as the only places in the nation where same-sex marriages are legal. While some Iowans plan their weddings, others plan to launch a campaign to amend the state's constitution to ban same-sex marriage. Iowa Public Radio Statehouse Reporter Joyce Russell joins us with the details.

Read the full opinion of the Iowa Supreme Court.
Read a summary of the decision here.

Everyone anticipated that the NCAA finals would bring an economic boost to Detroit. But the surprise victory of the Michigan State Spartans over UConn on Saturday has brought the troubled city more than money, and excitement about tonight's final against the North Carolina Tar Heels is intense. The Wall Street Journal's Tim Alberta will join John with a look at the benefits—economic and otherwise—of the Final Four for Detroit.

Michigan State Coach Tom Izzo hopes the Final Four and the success of the Spartans can give Detroit and Michigan a much-needed assist.

As residents of the central Italian city L'Aquila slept, a deadly earthquake hit the surrounding region, killing at least 50 people. Entire blocks of buildings were destroyed, displacing around 10,000 people. According to the U.S. Geological Survey the quake registered a 6.3 magnitude, while Italy's National Institute of Geophysics recorded it as a 5.8. For more we turn to the BBC's Rome Correspondent David Willey.

Watch CNN's footage of the devastating earthquake in the clip below.

This week marks the start of the 15th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide in which an estimated 800,000 ethnic Rwandan Tutsis were killed by ethnic Rwandan Hutus. The genocide destroyed Rwanda’s economy and infrastructure. Today, the Rwandan capital of Kigali is a place of cafes with wi-fi and gourmet coffee even a shopping mall. The Takeaway talks to Jeff Chu, Senior Editor at Fast Company magazine. His story Rwanda Rising, in this month’s issue explores Rwanda President Paul Kagame's aggressive attempts to bust traditional aid models, court western investors, and to turn Rwanda from an impoverished nation into a powerful, popular brand.

After you read his article, be sure to read Jeff Chu's interview with Rwanda's President in Fast Company.

Just after 3:30 this morning local time, central Italy was rocked by an earthquake measuring at least 5.8 on the Richter scale – though the U.S. Geological Survey measured it at 6.3. It's a significant tremor by any measure. At least 50 people have died, and tens of thousands of people are homeless. For more, we go to Rachel Donadio. She's the Rome bureau chief for our partners The New York Times, but right now she's walking the streets of L'Aquila, Italy, which is near the center of the quake and 60 miles northeast of Rome.

A series of six car bombs exploded in or near Baghdad on Monday, killing more than 30 people and wounding scores more. While three of the bombs struck markets in predominantly Shiite neighborhoods, no one has claimed responsibility for the attacks and no obvious pattern to the bombings has emerged. For the latest, The Takeaway is joined by the New York Times' Baghdad correspondent Steven Lee Myers.

For more, read Steven Lee Myers' article, Six Car Bombs Kill 30 in Iraq in the New York Times.