U.S. and Cuban officials have been hashing out details of migration, trade and new diplomatic relations. What will all this mean for the next generation of Cubans? Plus, jury selection is underway in the Aurora theater shooting. A former gang prosecutor-turned-professor tells us about the difficult process. And, boxer Manny Pacquiao talks about his career and new documentary, 'Manny.'
How the political turmoil in Yemen affects the US
An apparent coup in Yemen led its president and his cabinet to resign on Thursday.
Could this mean trouble for the US?
The now-former President Hadi was seen as a partner in combatting terrorist threats from the likes of Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula; that group claimed responsibility for the attack on magazine Charlie Hebdo in France.
Charles Schmitz, scholar with the Middle East Institute, past-president of the American Institute for Yemeni Studies and geography professor at Towson University, explains what the power vacuum means for stability in the Middle East and America's own counterterrorism efforts in the region.
What renewed US-Cuba relations mean for Cuba's youth
Historic talks to revive U.S.-Cuba relations in Havana this week ended in an agreement to meet again soon.
The countries severed diplomatic ties a half-century ago. But now they're talking again about immigration rules, human rights, trade and even the reopening of a U.S. embassy in the Cuban capital.
What does all this mean for the next generation of Cubans -- those who came of age well after the revolution and who will lead most of their lives in a post-Castro era?
Julia Cooke, author of "The Other Side of Paradise: Life in the New Cuba," lived on the island as a young person herself. She says this generation of Cubans have experienced things in a different way than previous generations.
"They're the first generation to come of age in a completely post-Soviet era, and a very economically rocky time when change is a fact that draws ever-closer, but it doesn't arrive in full. For the most part, they're very self-sufficient, they're savvy, they're perhaps a little cynical about government. They're very worldly, they're pretty interconnected with family members abroad, they're very interested in pop culture," she said.
Cooke found out about the renewed talks from a Cuban friend of hers, who left her text messages and voicemails the day President Barack Obama announced a thawing of relations.
"He reflects what I think many young Cubans think, which is that this is a great start. We don't know exactly how it will play out in their lives. Right now, all that is very clear is that tourism will probably increase in Cuba. There's a lot to do diplomatically. So, I think it remains to be seen how much impact it will have on young Cubans' daily lives," Cooke said.
Will images of accused sway potential Aurora jurors? 'You can't un-ring the bell,' says expert
Jury selection began this week in the Aurora, Colorado theater shooting trial of James Holmes.
Holmes faces the death penalty if a jury finds that he was sane when he shot and killed 12 people and injured 70 more inside a movie theater in July 2012. His attorneys do not contest that he committed the crimes, but say that he's not guilty by reason of insanity.
It's a difficult task to find 12 impartial jurors and 12 alternates in such a high-profile case as this, with so many victims.
Hamid Towfigh is a former L.A. gang and murder prosecutor who teaches a course called The Art of Jury Selection at Loyola Law School. He told Take Two that most members of the community are likely to have knowledge of the shooting spree and been exposed to images of Holmes as he sat wide-eyed in court hearings. And those images may stick.
"You can't un-ring the bell, especially with jurors. Those citizens of Aurora have seen the huge eyes with the orange hair . . . and it's going to be hard for them not to think that a person like that is crazy, especially with the amount of victims in this case," Towfigh said.
But Towfigh added that the goal of jury selection is not to find jurors who are completely ignorant of a case.
"Rather, it's to find jurors who can be impartial. That is to say, put whatever knowledge they have or biases about the case outside of the courtroom, come inside, listen to the facts of the case, apply the law to it, and come to a just verdict," he said.
Report finds that requiring kindergarteners to read could be harmful
These days, schools in most states follow the Common Core. The guidelines set the standards for what students should know at the end of each grade, like learning to read in kindergarten.
But some early childhood education experts say this is not not necessarily the right standard to shoot for.
Joan Almon, co-founder of the Alliance for Childhood, a nonprofit research and advocacy organization, joins Take Two to discuss the new report she co-authored titled "Reading Instruction in Kindergarten: Little to Gain and Much to Lose."
The Frame's John Horn gives a preview of the Sundance Film Festival
If Southern California seems a bit quiet this week, there's a reason for that. It's time for Sundance. A vast chunk of Hollywood players have headed for Park City, Utah for the big film festival, now in its 31st year.
John Horn, host of Southern California Public Radio's arts and entertainment show The Frame, joined Take Two for a preview from Park City.
Manny Pacquiao on life, love songs and Mayweather fight
Manny Pacquiao is one of the most well-known names in boxing. He's a ten-time world champion across eight weight divisions, the current WBO Welterweight champion, a congressman in his home country the Philippines, a singer, an actor and now the subject of a new documentary, called "Manny."
Pacquiao and the film's director Ryan Moore joined Take Two host A Martinez in studio to discuss Manny's life and address questions about whether Pacquiao will indeed fight Floyd Mayweather, Jr. this spring.
Recently Pacquiao made headlines by agreeing to the terms of a fight with Mayweather, including Olympics style drug testing. Pacquiao's promoter, Bob Arum, has reportedly also signed on with a tentative date of May 2, 2015 set.
"I believe that this fight has to happen for the sake of the fans," said Pacquiao.
Boxing enthusiasts have been waiting years for a Pacquiao/Mayweather matchup of the two biggest names in the sport but previous deals have always fallen through.
Pacquiao was once ranked the best pound for pound boxer in the world, but he has dropped to third in the wake of two losses in the ring. Currently, the unbeaten Mayweather holds the top spot.
"He's claiming that he's No. 1 pound for pound," said Pacquiao. "I want to prove if he's really pound for pound. If he beats me then I agree that he's pound for pound, but if I win the fight, then I disagree."
Pacquiao said they are simply waiting on Mayweather to sign the deal, but there have been no solid signals that his rival will do so.
"The problem is from them. I'm not judging, but if you don't want to fight maybe you're scared."
Pacquiao also answered to speculation that he could become the president of his home country the Philippines.
"It's not in my mind right now. What I have in my mind is to focus as a congressman in the Philippines and how I can help my people. I don't want to enter into a position that I cannot fulfill. If that's God's will, it will be done."
Pacquiao also spoke about how he unwinds from his busy schedule by going to a secluded island in the Philippines.
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Turning trash into electricity: Irvine landfill could power thousands of homes
When our trash is hauled away each week, we usually don't give it a second thought.
But as it turns out, instead of rotting away in a landfill, our trash can be used to generate electricity.
According to the Associated Press, 20 megawatts of this kind of electricity will be generated from a landfill in Irvine, where ground broke Thursday. That's enough to power more than 14,000 homes.
Professor Jack Brouwer, associate director of the Advanced Power and Energy Program at UC Irvine, has more about the process of turning trash into electricity.
A deeper look at music's role in child development, learning
There's nothing better than rocking out to your favorite tunes, but music can also be instrumental (yes, pun intended!) in a child's development and learning.
Mary Plummer, SCPR's arts education reporter, will be delving into the effect of music on the brain at the Crawford Family Forum this weekend. She joined Take Two with more.
The event has reached capacity. Click here for more information on how you can still watch the event, Music and your brain -- the science of change, live from the Crawford Family Forum.
The Nicholas Bros wowed audiences for decades with their 'liquid dynamite' dance moves
Fayard and Harold Nicholas may not be household names, but they wowed audiences for decades with their amazing talents. Fellow dancers like Gene Kelly, Fred Astaire and Mikhail Baryshnikov marveled at their unique, acrobatic dance techniques, calling them the best of the best.
The Nicholas Brothers are widely considered the greatest dancers in US dance history, and yet they received no formal training. The children of orchestra pit musicians, they observed the performers on stage with their parents, and created a flamboyant, yet extraordinarily technical tap-dancing style all their own.
The brothers began as children, but went on to break through the color barrier in the 1930s and '40s, appearing in numerous films. But they very often appeared in dance numbers, but were left out of the plot of the film so that they could easily be cut out for Southern or potentially hostile audiences.
Here they are in arguably their most brilliant performance, in 1943's "Stormy Weather":
The Nicholas Brothers went on to perform for decades on the stage, in film, and in television. They performed for nine US Presidents, won numerous award, and had successful careers well into the 1990s.
The Alex Theatre in Glendale, CA will host a tribute to the duo on Sunday, January 25. The event will feature Q&As, rare and never-before-seen home movie footage, movie trailers and clips, and amazing tap numbers performed by the very best dancers in the country, including by the grandchildren and great-grandchildren of the Nicholas Brothers themselves.
For more on the legacy of the Nicholas Brothers and the event to honor them, Tegan Summer and Stan Taffel joined Take Two. Summer is the director of the event, "'In Person' - The Nicholas Brothers Tribute," presented by Prospect House Entertainment with Glendale Arts. Taffel is a three-time Emmy-award winning actor and the host of the event.
Click here for more information and to order tickets.
'Godfather' score comes to life at Nokia Theatre this weekend
Fans of "The Godfather" can watch Francis Ford Coppola's epic on the big screen this weekend as the Hollywood Studio Symphony performs live the score by Nino Rota.
The event is hitting Los Angeles' Nokia Theatre on Saturday after appearances in London and San Francisco. It comes to audiences from composer/conductor Justin Freer. Freer is the founder and president of CineConcerts, which, as the name suggests, turns films into concert experiences.
This is Freer's second time scoring a movie live, with the first being "Gladiator." He says he got into bringing film scores to life out of pure passion.
"My whole life I've loved film music. I think it's one of the great art forms in music history and I'm incredibly passionate about it, and I think that there's a yearning for it now in the public for being able to experience these great masterpieces," he said.
He chose "The Godfather" for its notoriety.
"Other than it being 'The Godfather,' the film is one of the best ever made. The score for me is one of the most quality, refined, operatic scores for a film I've ever heard, or had the chance to listen to, or now perform as the conductor for the show," Freer said. "So these things married together are truly magical."
To paint a picture, the orchestra will perform live on stage in sync with the film, which will play on a 40-foot wide screen in HD, Freer says.
"At Nokia, it's a 5,000-seat movie theater, basically," he said. "It helps that Coppola made a masterpiece. He did our job for us."
Weekend on the cheap: DineLA, Color Vibe, and Selfie Selfie photo studio
It's Friday! And it's time for DineLA restaurant week. That's right, delicious and affordable prefix meals from the Westside to the East. Oh, and after you fill up on LA's best, maybe you can head to Arcadia to take a Selfie at Selfie Selfie studio.
Every Friday, Southern California Public Media's Social Media Producer Kristen Lepore brings in her list of things to do in SoCal on the cheap! She joined Take Two to help plan your your weekend.
For the full list of things to do this weekend, you can click on this link.
Did we miss anything? Let us know in the comments, on Facebook or on Twitter (@KPCC, @TakeTwo).