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Lisa talks to Professor Andrew Levy of Butler University about a little-known early American named Robert Carter, who freed his slaves at a time when George Washington and Thomas Jefferson didn't. Levy's article on Carter appeared in the Spring issue of The American Scholar.

Since the 1800s, Montana has been mandolin country. Ten musicians from Bozeman together produce a dramatic sound - they call it the "Montana Sound" - inspired by the freedom and open spaces of their home state.

One of the Bush administration's earliest pledges was to review and modernize the U.S. military. Now, with money short, Pentagon officials face the difficult job of deciding just what changes the Military can actually afford. NPR's Tom Gjelten explores the story of the much anticipated Navy ship, the DD-21: the Destroyer for "the Navy After Next."

Host Bob Edwards has the story of Holland Island, and the man who is trying to save it. Like many Chesapeake Bay islands, Holland is slowly being lost to rising tides and erosion. The island was once home to more than three hundred people, but now most of its buildings are underwater, and the rest will probably follow. But its 71-year-old owner Stephen White is fighting that fate.

Children with severe mental disabilities often need expensive treatment or round-the-clock supervision. NPR's Joanne Silberner profiles one family that had to give up custody of their child because they could not afford the care he needed.

Noah Adams travels to Southwestern Virginia to talk to people there about the pain-relief drug OxyContin. Now is the best selling narcotic pain medication in America, the drug has proven to be highly-effective for many users, but OxyContin is also being abused for fun and profit, and reports of overdoses and addiction to the drug have been steadily increasing.

As part of the Changing Face of America Series, NPR's Wendy Kaufman reports on the way the power to sue has changed both companies and consumers. The number of lawsuits filed hasn't really gone up, but more people are becoming comfortable with them as a way to attack the companies they see as irresponsible or dangerous. And the threat of litigation has businesses on the defensive.

Robert Siegel speaks with Bill and Miriam Brownwell, who founded WeTip, a non-profit organziation where citizens can anonymously report information regarding a crime. The Bromwells says that citizens fear reprisal from criminals if they report crimes to the police, so they act as the neutral third party.

During World War II, the British government built a gun platform in the North Sea to defend against German attacks. Twenty-five years later, a British businessman declared that platform the sovereign Principality of Sealand. Today, Sealand is used for secure computer data storage. Scott Simon visits the platform.

Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews Del and the Boys by the Del McCoury Band.