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The end of the court battle between the South African goverment and three dozen of the world's drug companies has dropped prices of HIV and AIDS drugs in many countries. While these drugs are now available to the affected millions who are mostly poor, there are far more basic things yet to be taken care of. NPR'S Brenda Wilson reports.

As dean of Harvard's Kennedy School of Government, commentator Joseph Nye is seeing a steady decline in the number of his graduates going into government. He says federal agencies are poorly equipped to meet the challenges of the 21st century -- and their employeees lack the proper skills in information technology, economics and management. By contracting so much work to companies outside of government, the government has left less challenging work for its own employees. He suggests President Bush raise the salaries and the profile of public service employees.

Film critic Henry Sheehan reviews Enemy at the Gates starring Jude Law and Joseph Finnes.

NPR's Michele Kelemen reports from Moscow that Russia today declared four U.S. diplomats persona non grata and will ask another 46 more to leave the country by summer. This follow's Washington's announcement it is expelling four Russians linked to alleged U.S. spy Robert Hanssen and has ordered out an additional 46 diplomats. Both governments, however, are playing down the long-term impact of the spy dispute on U.S.-Russian relations.

In a rare defection from China, a senior officer of the People's Liberation Army has taken refuge in the United States (as of December). He is said to know a lot about China's strategic plans regarding the United States and Taiwan. Beijing takes defections seriously but this case apparently has NOT disrupted U.S.-China relations too much. Both sides were aware of it this week as President Bush and his aides met with Chinese Vice Premier Qian Qichen. Those talks were regarded as successful.

Noah Adams talks with Ian Fried, staff writer for CNet.com, about Mac OS X, the next generation Macintosh operating system that will go on sale March 24. Mac OS X is considered to be an advanced operating system, combining the power and openess of UNIX with the same ease of use and broad applications base upon which Macintosh has based its reputation.

The high-tech boom that transformed Ireland from one of Europe's poorest countries into the feisty Celtic tiger has begun to show some rough side effects. Dublin residents talk about assaults, congestion and a heightened sense of aggressiveness in the streets. The gap between rich and poor is rising, and heart disease is up. All of this worries public health specialists who see their mission as addressing the social conditions underlying today's chronic diseases. One growing approach in Europe began in the mid-1980s with the support of the World Health Organization. It engages citizens in examining their health concerns and helps them to find their own solutions. In his second report on European Health Promoting Schools, Frank Browning visits a working class school on the edge of Dublin where students identify rape, murder, and mugging as their biggest health worries.

NPR's Lynn Neary reports on e-books and their growing popularity. The first "Independent E-book Awards" will be given this weekend at "The Virginia Festival of the Book."

John T. Edge tells the story of Georgia Gilmore, who sold food to finance the bus boycott -- and whose kitchen was a safe haven and source of good Southern cooking for civil rights leaders. She died March 9, 1990 as she was preparing food to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Selma-Montgomery March; the food was served to her mourners instead.

NPR's Rob Gifford reports that the Chinese government has reported it is investigating the case of a military official who they say "left China and did not return." U.S. officials have acknowledged that the man, a colonel in the People's Liberation Army, has defected from China to the United States.

Nancy Solomon, of member station KLCC in Oregon, reports on an extradition battle for 70-year-old Robert Lee Burns. He's been living in Oregon for 20 years, but now California says it wants him back, so he can complete his sentence for the 1963 murder of a highway patrolman.

Russia today said that it would expel four United States Embassy officials for conduct "incompatible with diplomatic status." Russia also said it would soon expel 46 more U.S. diplomats. The retaliatory move follows Washington's announcement of the expulsion of 50 Russian diplomats from the U.S. suspected of being intelligence agents. Host Bob Edwards talks with NPR's Michelle Kelemen.