With jobs on everyone's minds these days, NPR's Tamara Keith launches a year-long occasional series on unemployment, tracking six St. Louis residents who started 2011 without a job.

The six people followed in the series are from different walks of life, all trying to find work in an economy where the unemployment rate is stuck above nine percent and there are dozens of applicants for every available opening. They will chronicle their ups and downs by keeping an audio diary as they search, wait and hope for some good news. The series will run on All Things Considered throughout 2011. Listen to the series introduction at NPR.org.

Because KGOU operates as a non-profit organization, donations to the station are usually tax-deductible. This week we've put donors' tax receipts in the mail for your convenience in filing tax returns. Please note that contributions for membership and capital campaigns will come separately, and of course you'll want to consult with your tax advisor about the deductibility of your individual donation. If you find a discrepancy between the statement and your own records, please call Membership Director Laura Knoll at 325-0022.

World Views hosts Zach Messitte and Joshua Landis will talk with Graham Fuller, a former CIA station chief in Kabul, former U.S. State Department official and expert on Islamic extremism. Tune to KGOU Monday, Feb. 7 at 11:30 a.m. to hear his insights into U.S. dealings with Afghanistan.

Approximately 7,000 people die in the U.S. every day. When these deaths happen suddenly or under suspicious circumstances, it's assumed there will be a thorough investigation -- but the reality can be very different.

A year-long investigation by NPR, PBS's FRONTLINE and ProPublica finds a dysfunctional system, short of qualified people, squeezed for resources, with no national standards and little oversight. NPR reports on the crisis in death investigations with a multi-part series on Morning Edition, All Things Considered and NPR.org, set to begin Tuesday, February 1.

Once upon a time, horse-drawn buggies, top hats and corsets were everywhere -- and now they're not. After all, who needs a new buggy? But NPR science correspondent Robert Krulwich explains that human inventions don't disappear like you'd think. Tune in to Morning Edition on Tuesday, Feb. 1 for this Krulwich on Science report.

Not quite a soup or a stew, a true chowder features good stock, salt, starch -- and chunks. Cookbook author Domenica Marchetti is "obsessed" with chowder; she shares award-winning recipes in this NPR Kitchen Window Web exclusive. Who's hungry?