President Obama hasn’t been in office long enough to give a state of the union address. But on Tuesday he'll go for a test drive, when he addresses Congress in a state-of-the-union-like speech. For more on that, and what else is on the President’s agenda this week, The Takeaway talks to April Ryan, White House correspondent for American Urban Radio Networks and Todd Spangler, Washington correspondent for the Detroit Free Press.

In case you missed it, here is President Obama's weekly radio address from February 21, 2009.

It doesn't sound nonsensical to say that what happens when we are younger stays with us the rest of our lives. But today, for the first time ever, scientists reveal that childhood abuse can affect our genes by altering the biology of our brains. Luckily these markers can be wiped clean in the next generation and the cycle can end. In this segment, John Hockenberry goes knee-deep into the brain with guest Michael Meaney, one of the lead researchers on the work, which appears online in the journal Nature Neuroscience.

For more, read the very scientifically written and deeply wonky article abstract, Epigenetic regulation of the glucocorticoid receptor in human brain associates with childhood abuse.

Have more questions? Michael Meaney is happy to answer your questions. Post here and he'll respond.

The Takeaway is back with David Carr, who writes the Carpetbagger blog for the New York Times. Carr was on the red carpet at last night’s Academy Awards with questions from his readers and Takeaway listeners. We’re going to hear how these questions went over.

Want to see how your question fared in the poll? Click here.

Former British resident Binyam Mohamed is being released from Guantanamo today and returning to the UK. His case is controversial because he alleges that he was tortured while in CIA custody, and a British court says that classified documents support his claim. BBC Security Correspondent Rob Watson joins John with a look at Mohamed’s story, and what it says about how the Obama Administration is handling detainees and the alleged abuses of the Bush Administration.

The Eurovision songwriting competition pits songsmiths across the entire European continent against each other in a fierce competition to represent the EU in song. This year, one song by Stephane and 3G, the disco-inspired Georgian group, is raising eyebrows in Russia for their purported subtle dig at the Russian President. For more on Vladimir Putin's dislike for this song (and Abba) we turn to the BBC's Tom Esslemont in Tblisi, Georgia.

Want to judge the song for yourself? Here you go, Dancing Queen:

Our partner, the New York Times, has an exclusive story today on a secret American unit training the Pakistani military to fight al Qaida and the Taliban. To discuss the story and its implications, we are joined by Ahmed Rashid, a Pakistani journalist and author of Decent into Chaos: The U.S. and the Disaster in Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Central Asia and Eric Schmitt, the New York Times reporter who wrote the article.

For more, read Eric Schmitt's article, U.S. Unit Secretly in Pakistan Lends Ally Support , in today's New York Times.

Here is Special Envoy Richard Holbrooke's interview on Charlie Rose clarifying the Obama administration's position on Pakistan and Afghanistan:

When Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier at second base with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947, it was one of the defining moments in professional sports. But in the past decade, pro and college baseball have been losing black players at an astonishing rate. Sports contributor Jeff Beresford-Howe has been doing some investigating into why baseball can't seem to attract black players.

Contributor's notes: Jeff Beresford-Howe

With the resounding "Ping!" of the aluminum bat, the North American baseball season commenced on Friday at colleges and universities all across the United States... Click through for the rest!

Winter, spring, summer, fall. It seems like no matter the season, it’s always time to get the newest version of the flu shot. Well, times may be achangin'. Scientists who were looking for a way to annihilate the Avian flu have stumbled upon a protein that halts both the Avian and seasonal flu. Are the consequent rumors of a universal flu vaccine justified? The Takeaway is joined by Wayne Marasco, M.D., one of the lead authors on the research article that appeared online just yesterday.

If you're in the mood for some dense reading (or if you want to get in touch with your inner molecular biologist), read the article abstract, Structural and functional bases for broad-spectrum neutralization of avian and human influenza A viruses

During World War II, thousands of Filipinos fought for the US military. They were promised benefits from the US, but denied them after the war. But finally, after decades of fighting for their pay, Filipino vets are finally getting what they are owed from a provision in the new stimulus bill. World War II veteran Amadeo Urbano and Eric Lachica, an advisor to the advocacy group American Coalition for Filipino Veterans, joins John to talk about their decades-long struggle for compensation.

What else is in the stimulus bill? Follow the dollars online and tell us how the stimulus plan is playing out in your community. We're sharing your stories online and on air, and we'll continue the investigation with your help.

ShovelWatch is a joint project of the non-profit investigative outfit ProPublica, the morning news program The Takeaway and WNYC, New York's flagship public radio station. With investigative reporting, interactive features and help from you.

President Obama is making a priority of slashing the national debt in the coming years and he says some of the greatest savings come from pulling troops out of Iraq. But just how much money can be saved by a troop withdrawal? To answer that question, we turn to Linda Bilmes, Harvard professor of public finance and co-author with Joseph Stiglitz of the book The 3 Trillion Dollar War: The True Cost of the Iraq Conflict and a new book The People Factor: Strengthening America by Investing in Public Service.

Russia last week marked the 20th anniversary of the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan with avowals from its leaders that they really, truly do not want the American military mission there to suffer the same humiliating fate. But what do the Russians really want in Afghanistan and what does it say about American-Russian relations? To help answer that question, we are joined by the New York Times' Moscow Bureau Chief Clifford J. Levy, who has been following this story closely.

For more, read Clifford J. Levy's article, Poker-Faced, Russia Flaunts Its Afghan Card in the New York Times.

Slumdog Millionaire took home the Oscar for Best Picture, but not everybody in India is celebrating. There's a mixture of pride and resentment over this movie— a film made by a Westerner that tells the story of a so-called slumdog from Mumbai. For an on-the-ground report we turn to Linda Blake, a freelance reporter in Delhi, India.

For more, here's a report on the cast and crew at the Mumbai premiere of the film: