Oscar Pistorius, the lightning-fast South African sprinter, isn't the only blade runner in the Olympics. Journalist and torch bearer Stuart Hughes, who lost his right leg, carried the Olympic torch through West London wearing his carbon fiber blade prosthesis.

The London Olympics Opening Ceremonies is called 'Isles of Wonder' and draws inspiration from Shakespeare's The Tempest and is expected to be watched by a global audience of one billion.

In the aftermath of the Colorado massacre, the debate about gun control is once again taking the forefront in national politics. How are our perceptions about guns actually shaped by our individual experiences?

It's no secret that voter turnout in America is low, hovering around 50 percent. But Norman Ornstein is trying to change that. He's a columnist for Roll Call and wrote “The U.S. should require all citizens to vote” for The Atlantic.

In the wake of the terrorist attacks on September 11th, 2001, Congress passed the Patriot Act, a law that expanded the government's powers of surveillance and intelligence-gathering. While Sen. Ron Wyden voted for the Act in 2001, he has since changed his mind.

Have you ever wondered why there’s a trampoline competition in the Summer Olympics, but no mixed martial arts? Do you ever wish the International Olympic Committee would bring back croquet and speedboating? And why, oh why, did we have to get rid of tandem bicycling?

Few Americans have ever heard of Rodriguez, a protest rock musician who, after making two albums in the early '70s, quit the music business. Rodriguez returned to his native Detroit and began working in construction. His music played on for decades, just not in the United States.

When President Obama traveled to Aurora earlier this week, he agreed to not use the name of the shooter in any of his public speeches. John Cassidy, staff writer for The New Yorker, thinks that gesture comes at a cost.

The Reverend Tony Lee, the pastor of a predominantly African-American church, is doing something unique to combat the AIDS. Four times a year, on the pulpit, he has himself tested for HIV in front of his entire congregation. 

When Sally Ride took off for the stars in 1983, everyone thought we were entering the Age of the Female Scientist, but 25 years after her first mission women comprised only 20 percent of computer science, engineering, and physics students in Bachelor's programs.

When it comes to the Olympic games, it’s hard not to be captivated by the human body and what it can accomplish. But looking at uniform changes over the years, it's clear that some people think those bodies — if they belong to females — are best shown half-naked.

For nearly 30 years, Oprah Winfrey has been one of the most influential voices in American culture, overseeing a multi-billion dollar empire that includes publishing, radio, motion pictures, and, television. But this past weekend, millions of viewers in India believe they witnessed Oprah at her worst.

Over the past few months, the Spanish economy has been in critical condition. Now, a full bailout could be closer than expected. 

Do the penalties put upon the Penn State football program in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky scandal amount to a “death penalty”? That’s what many are reporting one day after NCAA president Mark Emmert imposed a $60 million dollar fine and barred the team from bowl games for four years.

Bob Costas won’t tell you, but watching the Olympics on NBC this year cost the network more than a billion dollars, a price tag that nearly covers the security bill for the 2012 Games. With a projected cost of around $17 billion, is hosting the Olympics worth it?

As AIDS activism has taken a global turn, it is important to ask: What is the current status of AIDS in America?

Clashes continued across Syria over the weekend. As the conflict drags on, the toll of war is increasingly carried by Syria’s youngest citizens.

In the new book "How to Get Away with Murder in America," author and journalist Evan Wright profiles the man who ran a top-secret CIA assassination program.

The gun control debate has featured prominently in news and political agendas in the wake of both disasters, but questions of mental health resources are just as pressing. What has Colorado learned since Columbine?

In the days since the Colorado shootings, commentators and politicians have started to liken James Holmes, the suspected killer, to a terrorist. So what makes a domestic terrorist?