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Bobby Fischer might have been the greatest chess player who ever lived, but he was a deeply troubled man who descended into paranoia and hatred. Author Frank Brady, who knew Fischer, charts his rise and fall in a new biography.

Political unrest has broken out in Tunisia, Yemen, Egypt and other Arab countries. Social media and governmental policies are getting most of the credit for spurring the turmoil, but there's another factor at play.

The early stages of 2011 have already seen new jazz records inspired by the civil rights movement, scored for a New Orleans trio and rearranging an underrated drummer's music. Hear music from Marcus Shelby, Plunge, Joel Harrison and the Horo label.

It was Chicago's cold winters that gave birth to the futures market, author Emily Lambert says. In the beginning, commodities trading was all about hedging bets against bad weather, spoilage — or an accidental dump in the river.

The British police have launched a new inquiry into claims of illegal phone-hacking by journalists at one of the country's biggest newspapers. Reporters at the News of the World, which is owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp., are alleged to have hacked into the voicemails of members of the royal family, senior politicians and media celebrities, hoping to discover scandalous details of their private lives. Although News Corp. initially denied the allegations, the affair has led to the resignation of the prime minister's head of media, a former News of the World editor, and the sacking of a senior editor at the paper.

Once upon a time, scenery and special effects were crafted entirely by human hands. NPR's Susan Stamberg reveals some of the surprising secrets behind Gone with the Wind, The Wizard of Oz, Dr. Zhivago and other classics.

On Fresh Air, social historian Stephanie Coontz explains how the publication of Betty Friedan's The Feminine Mystique in 1963 helped women view themselves differently. But Coontz, author of A Strange Stirring, also critiques many aspects of Friedan's pioneering book, including its omission of minority women.

J.D Salinger died a year ago this Thursday, and in time for that anniversary, there's a newly published biography called, simply, J.D. Salinger: A Life. Book critic Maureen Corrigan says readers who revere Salinger will find a lot that's surprising in his early background.

O: A Presidential Novel gives a fictionalized portrayal of the 2012 elections, but the decision to publish anonymously raises concerns about the motivations for leaving a name off the title page.

It is possible that there are many other universes that exist parallel to our universe. Theoretical physicist Brian Greene, author of The Elegant Universe, explains how that's possible in the new book, The Hidden Reality.