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The U.S. trade imbalance with the rest of the world, especially China, is forcing American manufacturers to find ways to boost their exports in order to stay afloat. NPR's Adam Davidson visited two factories in Erie, Pa., that are focusing on niches that cheap labor in China cannot easily fill.

Matt Groening is the creator of the highly acclaimed animated Fox sitcom The Simpsons. He tells us how the show and its characters evolved, and discusses his role in the production of some 300 episodes. Groening also created the TV series Futurama and still draws the weekly comic strip Life in Hell.

In the second of a year-end series of reflections, commentator and philosopher Alain de Botton explains why having an idealized view of the world can be appealing and helpful.

NPR's Robert Siegel talks to Theodore Sizer, a former high school principal and the founder of the Coalition of Essential Schools. Sizer talks about what's wrong with American high schools and how they might be improved. Sizer is also the author of The Red Pencil: Convictions from Experience in Education.

NPR's Daniel Schorr ponders possible changes on the Supreme Court this year.

NPR writers and critics pick the best albums of 2004. Included is music by Modest Mouse, Tinariwen, The Hilliard Ensemble, Brian Wilson, Guy Davis and Wilco.

President Bush is getting a brand new cowboy hat, just in time for his second inauguration. The hat, the second to be made for Bush by Trent Johnson, is a gift from the National Cattleman's Beef Association. Brian Larson of member station KUMC in Greeley, Colo. reports.

Research published in this week's New England Journal of Medicine examines alcohol's effect on memory and mental function in older people, and suggests that moderate drinking may help prevent memory loss and mental decline.

An Atlanta golf club's conflict with two of its gay members over spousal benefits for their partners is pitting a gay-friendly city against a conservative state.

The Senate subpoenas some of the biggest names in Major League Baseball to testify before Congress about alleged steroid use. However, current and former stars including Sammy Sosa, Jason Giambi and Mark McGuire are reluctant, and the league is challenging the invitations.