The Christian Science Monitor Daily Podcast

How the search for the perfect Christmas tree is changing. More and more Americans now want trees to arrive – at the doorstep, in a box. No more worries about negotiating rain, cold, or children who suddenly decide this isn’t fun, even if that’s usually the stuff of fond memories. Also: our five stories, which look at the challenge of protest and outrage in France, the UK, and the US – as well as a quiet answer to it in Germany. Join the Monitor's Amelia Newcomb and Ken Kaplan for today's news. For more information, visit csmonitor.com/daily.

Religion and politics are the no-gos of polite dinner parties. Church and state are meant in most regards to be American democracy’s oil and water. Overlaps are inevitable, and interesting. Also: our five stories, including a look at the global energy transition, the future of the Nobel literature award, and valuable perspectives from two Monitor reporters. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins and Samantha Laine Perfas for today's news. For more information, visit csmonitor.com/daily.

Call it snowball diplomacy. In a combination of civics and winter sports that has charmed the country, a 9-year-old Colorado boy went before his town council this week to argue for the right to bean his little brother with a snowball. Also: our five stories for the day, including three different takes on the complexity of crossing cultures and borders. Join the Monitor's Yvonne Zipp and Mark Sappenfield for today's news. For more information, visit csmonitor.com/daily.

For the world, today was the day for the state funeral of George H.W. Bush, the 41st president of the United States. For Torkel Patterson, who worked under Mr. Bush on the National Security Council and knew him as a man of “decency and genuine caring for all,” today was something more intimate. Also: a different perspective on China’s ambitions, a look at a major impediment to economic growth in the US, and a glimpse of how tolerance grows. Join the Monitor's Mark Sappenfield and Noelle Swan for today's news. For more information, visit csmonitor.com/daily.

France may be the first western country to face an uprising without a leader to negotiate with. It won’t be the last. Also: we put scientific terms like “consensus” and “uncertainty” under a microscope, explore what it means to be a good neighbor in a North Dakota land dispute, and take you to asylum seekers volunteering to keep order on the US-Mexico border. Join the Monitor's Peter Ford and Kendra Nordin Beato for today's news. For more information, visit csmonitor.com/daily.

A retired Monitor staffer recalls the time former President George H.W. Bush called the reporter’s mother. Also: an appreciation of President Bush’s long career, an editorial about public service, and a perception gap bridging podcast episode on the opioid crisis. Join the Monitor's Amelia Newcomb and Ken Kaplan for today's news. For more information, visit csmonitor.com/daily.

Two years ago, Patricia Hall made a remarkable discovery while visiting the Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum: musical manuscripts handwritten and performed by prisoners in the Nazi death camp. Also: a fork in the American auto industry road, why its hard for a black man to be a ‘good guy with a gun’ and leftist leadership returns to Mexico. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins and Eva Botkin-Kowacki for today's news. For more information, visit csmonitor.com/daily.

When was the last time you sat alone in silence? Some South Koreans are trading in their cellphones for a chance to spend a day or two in a 54-square-foot prison cell, with nothing but with a tea set, a yoga mat, a notebook, and the promise of silence. Also we have three distinct examinations of leadership – in global politics, in the US Congress, and in British Parliament. Join the Monitor's Noelle Swan and Eoin O’Carroll for today's news. For more information, visit csmonitor.com/daily.

Sabine Hossenfelder, a physicist, asks why there aren’t any Albert Einsteins or Max Plancks today. In other words, after the advances of general relativity and quantum mechanics, why is physics now spinning its wheels? Also: The story behind a Russia-Ukraine flare-up, the ethics of art collection, and how one Canadian theater is promoting tough conversations. Join the Monitor's Mark Sappenfield and Kendra Nordin Beato for today's news. For more information, visit csmonitor.com/daily.

Yes, the latest Mars probe deserves all the accolades heaped upon NASA for its successful landing Monday (only 40 percent of all Mars missions are a success). But spare a round of applause for two tiny spacecraft escorting InSight along the 301-million-mile journey. Also: our five selected stories, including the transforming nature of generosity, the enduring power of Canadian goodness, and the role of leadership on climate change. Join the Monitor's Dave Scott and Samantha Laine Perfas for today's news. For more information, visit csmonitor.com/daily.