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The latest ad being run by the Republican National Committee accuses the current administration, including Democratic nominee Al Gore, of failing the nation by allowing school test scores to fall dangerously behind. The ad says American school children's math and science scores are now the lowest in the world. NPR's Steve Inskeep takes a look at the information behind the ad.

Second generation flight attendant Rene Foss has had enough of crabby travelers, so she's written a musical comedy starring clueless passengers, and the beleaguered men and women who serve them. Around the World in a Bad Mood is based on Foss' 15 years as a flight attendant - a job she still holds. In fact, her airline supports this "extra-aviational" activity. The musical is on stage in New York on weekends. NPR's Margot Adler reports.

NPR's Martin Kaste reports from Caracas, Venezuela, where high ranking representatives of oil exporting countries are gathering for a summit. OPEC leaders will discuss how to respond to demands for increasing oil production, as a way of lowering petroleum prices. They're not expected to take any action that would drive oil prices below twenty-five dollars a barrel.

NPR's Michele Kelemen reports that although Russian forces continue to lose men in Chechnya nearly every day, the war rarely grabs headlines any more. Soldiers who have fought there complain the war is bogging down, but few Russians are demanding publicly that their government revise its strategy, seek a political settlement, or pull out of Chechnya.

NPR Senior News Analyst Daniel Schorr reasons that the American electorate's lack of interest in foreign affairs emboldens rogue leaders like Slobodan Milosevic and Saddam Hussein.

Host Mike Shuster talks to Daniel Koretz, a senior social scientist at the Rand Corporation about education.

Reviewer Alan Cheuse comments on The Accidental Indies, a book by Robert Finley, about the epochal voyage by Christopher Columbus in 1492. (2:00) The Accidental Indies is published by McGill-Queen's University Press.

NPR's Anthony Brooks reports from St. Petersburg on Democratic Presidential candidate Al Gore's efforts to win voter support in Florida for his Medicare reform plan. Florida is considered a critical state. Both Gore and his Republican opponent, George W. Bush, are offering proposals to add prescription drug coverage to the Medicare program.

David Greenberger reviews a new CD by Dave Alvin, titled Public Domain: Songs from the Wild Land. The tracks are all traditional folk songs, like "Shenandoah,' and "Don't Let Your Deal Go Down."

NPR's Peter Kenyon has a roundup of the legislative activity in Congress, as members try to conclude business, so they can return home and campaign for the election.