All Blog Posts from Couric & Co.

Green roofs have been around at least since the time of the Vikings and are still common on homes in some parts of Scandinavia and other parts of the world. They aren't necessarily new, but they are catching on in the United States and as in most things American, we're doing it bigger.

The benefits
Green roofs can act as a layer of insulation, meaning they keep the surface temperature of the roof cooler in the summer and they can keep the interior of a structure warmer in the winter, thereby decreasing utility costs. The city of Chicago compared the surface of City Hall (which has been a green roof since 2004) and county hall- which is not a green roof there is sometimes up to a 70 degree difference in surface temperature on a hot summer day. See the results here. This is also important in decreasing what is known as the Heat Island Effect- the phenomenon where the air temperature in developed areas, such as cities, is hotter than rural areas.

Preventing storm water runoff is a significant bonus of green roofs. There is a tremendous amount of water that literally goes down the drain after a rainfall which green roofs prevent. Traditionally when a rain drop hits a roof – perhaps it is coated in black tar painted with silver, or maybe it slides across a series of chemically treated shingles, down a rain gutter and out across a driveway or street. That street may have residue from rubber tires or motor oils, before this drops finds its way into the storm drain. Several major cities don’t treat the water that goes into a storm drain, sometimes they flush it all directly or with minimal filtration out to local water ways. Depending on the thickness of the soil and type of plants, green roofs can absorb a whole lot of that water and use it as fuel for the plants.

While most people may worry about the idea of a heavy rain filled, soil heavy roof over their heads causing a roof to leak, the opposite seems to be true. Green roofs actually extend the life of what is known in roofing circles as "the membrane" because they keep out harmful UV rays and moderate the contraction and expansion that roofs do in extreme temperatures.

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Will the city of brotherly love also come to be known as the city of second chances? Shortly after Michael Vick was named an Eagle, fans were already enraged that their favorite team could stand by a man who had exhibited such cruelty to animals in the past. Some are ticked off at the NFL for allowing a person to hold a job after a felony conviction when most other employers would not allow them back on the premises. You don't have to follow football to realize why this story becomes the "water cooler" story of the weekend and perhaps the biggest story of the NFL heading into this season. Do you believe in second chances and that prison sentences wipe the record clean for past crimes or do you think that Michael Vick's actions were so egregious that there is no repentance possible? Do you believe in redemption?

There are a couple of bits of information that didn't make it into our "CBS Evening News" piece on today's story about the mid-air crash over the Hudson river. One is a bit heart wrenching and another is, well, infuriating.

The Associated Press reports that inside the Liberty Tours Helicopter were a group of five friends vacationing from Bologna, Italy. One family had come to New York to celebrate their 25th anniversary. The father and son, made it onto the chopper. The mother was too scared to fly in a chopper. The other three tourists were friends of the family celebrating. The kids were friends and so were the fathers. The website for Liberty Tours still says "for a once in a lifetime experience."

The infuriating factlet or two comes from a report released just last month by the Department of Transportation regarding the safety discrepancies between on-demand aircraft and commercial ones. On-demand flights are an entire category - everything from an organ donor flight, to a sightseeing tour, to a small chartered jet. The most interesting thing to me, besides all the differences in safety requirements, was that many of the report's recommendations in July were echoing ones made in September of 2005 by an FAA subcommittee which studied rulemaking for two years before it came to its recommendations. Also infuriating is that some of the steps the FAA is taking to comply with the recommendations will take another four years.

If Days of Thunder and Talladega Nights are what you think of when you hear the word NASCAR, it might be time to take another look. After covering stories throughout the south over the past couple of years, I learned how pervasive NASCAR was but not until I experienced the ear-splitting and almost ground shaking vibrations of a revving race car, spoke to a few of the drivers and fans did I get why it is as big as it is. Take a dash of competition, a smidge of unparalleled brand loyalty, pour in lots of testosterone and stir with a generous amount of corporate sponsorship and you have one of the largest spectator sports in America.

Walk into the infield of a race track and from motor home, to camper to fifth wheel trailer you'll see families making an entire weekend getaway out of what is usually a three or four hour race. Depending on the race track, they pay a couple of hundred dollars to park there, sometimes another 50 or so dollars to walk in closer to the cars and drivers and sometimes hundreds more to have a full run of the place. The fans buy boldly emblazoned merchandising featuring their favorite driver or car, but the most important thing they buy are the brands.

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This story was nothing to sneeze at...

I'm happy to say that I’ve survived a few days in Mexico City and have none of the symptoms of swine flu. One thing however does feel different; how unconsciously alert I am to my own body and all sorts of warning signs/hazardous behaviors around me. Perhaps it is just a case of biological adaptation to increase your chances of survival in more dangerous environments (if anyone has research on that - please do send my way) or it is a layer of your subconscious that just heightens your peripheral awareness under changing circumstances, but it is oddly cool.

When our producer on the ground welcomed my outstretched hand at the airport with a warning that hand shakes should be avoided, that is when the story started to sink in. Saturday evening when I sneezed at a restaurant and people three tables over turned to look, it sunk in a little deeper.

By the time I woke up on Sunday, my body had gone into this state of being. I noticed a man coughing as he walked into the elevator and instinctively pressed the button with a knuckle instead of a fingertip. I didn’t touch the handrails on the way down to the lobby. I took notice of the doorman who sneezed and oddly I searched for him the next couple of days to make sure he still seemed healthy. I washed my hands far more often, became conscious of otherwise unconscious actions like how many times my fingers touched my eyes to relieve an itch(eight times since landing) or how many times I had coughed (three) or sneezed (seven) over the past few days.

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When CBS News caught up with Lisa Kelly, she was nearing the end of an almost 100-day treatment which included taking 21 pills a day, an intravenous drip in the afternoon, and multiple trips to the hospital every week. It was a life I couldn't imagine, and one that all sorts of cancer survivors could probably relate to. The reason we profiled her is because she is at the confluence of some significant shifts in American healthcare.

First, she is part of a population of 25 million who are underinsured. According to the Commonwealth Fund, that number is up a staggering 60 percent since 2003. These are people who have "health coverage" but still pay more than 10 percent for their income for medical expenses. It isn't just the poor we're talking about; the middle class is hit especially hard. For adults with incomes above 200 percent of the federal poverty level (about $40,000 per year for a family), the underinsured rates nearly tripled since 2003.

When Lisa was healthy and purchased the most affordable plan to her at the time, like most of us, she didn't think she was going to be diagnosed with cancer. She knew she had purchased a limited benefit liability plan and has always admitted that she had no false hopes that this would be "Cadillac coverage". However when she was told by M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston that her coverage was unacceptable even to get her an appointment, she was shocked.

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Read M.D. Anderson's response.

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Lisa Kelly had purchased a plan marketed by the AARP, an organization which has a tremendous amount of credibility with Senior Citizens, and a brand those consumers have come to trust. The plan was far below any expectation she had. When she had to cash in part of her husband's inheritance to get an appointment at M.D. Anderson, and was asked for even more money to be admitted, it got the attention of Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa. As soon as there was an investigation and a hearing on Capitol Hill, the AARP stopped marketing the plan.

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Read Grassley's letter to AARP.

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The AARP's response?

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Hari Sreenivasan is a CBS News correspondent based in Dallas.

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Johnathan Goodwin is a tinkerer through-and-through. He doesn't look at problems like most of us do. Perhaps it's his lack of formal schooling that allows him to be unconstrained, but it's amazing what he has been able to teach himself – and in the process, teach a lot of other grease monkeys and engineers – about cars. What he has been able to inspire in many others is remarkable.

The LincVolt is more than just a car. It has become a project that is inspiring an entire platform of change for the type of work that Goodwin does. Besides this amazing battery and rotary powered engine (a measely 1.3 liter one from an old Mazda) that can throw you back into your seat when he steps on the gas, it has enough power keep the lights on in your house. Working with the folks in Greensburg, Kansas (the town rebuilding completely green from the ground up after a catastrophic tornado wiped it off the map), this car will generates up to 75KW of power and can take a house completely off the electricity grid.

Imagine ...

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Hari Sreenivasan is a CBS News correspondent based in Dallas.

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I became a U.S. Citizen today. There were 507 others with me this morning at a convention center in Dallas, Texas. They came from 66 different countries; each with their own stories, here's a slice of mine.

I immigrated here in 1981 – and have had the right to become a citizen for more than 20 years, but I've struggled with the concepts of citizenship and identity; cultural and political, so taking today's oath was a long time coming.

Even through the application process I was unsure whether or not shifting allegiances from my country of birth was right for me. I downloaded the forms this January, stared at them all of February, filled them out in March, and after a long 20 minutes outside a mailbox in April, I finally dropped them in.

India has given me ...

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Hari Sreenivasan is a CBS News correspondent based in Dallas.

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When you are walking down the street and an officer approaches you, asks for your identification and purpose for being at that place at that time … how do you respond? Do you automatically comply because you have nothing to hide? Do you feel like your personal freedoms are being infringed upon?

In the small town of Helena-West Helena, Ark., last week the mayor imposed of a curfew on a 10-block area that had been recently filled with gunfire. Apparently fists flew after a fight over $6 from a dice game, and soon fists were replaced by bullets for the next three weeks.

Large plastic barrels with curfew signs adorn all the roadways leading into that section of town. Thanks to unanimous City Council support, the police action in one section is spreading citywide. On random nights now, authorities including criminal investigators, county sheriffs and police work 12- to 16-hour shifts making everyone very aware that there is a curfew and they should not be out without reason.

To be clear, this is not a curfew in which the streets are empty of people and cars. Adults are given far more leeway, and minors must be accompanied by an adult after 9 or 10 p.m. On the night we rode along ...

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Hari Sreenivasan is a CBS News correspondent based in Dallas.

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Who is winning with high corn prices? Perhaps a few smart corn speculators on La Salle Street in Chicago are laughing in their new Bentleys, and maybe there are some newly wealthy corn farmers who might enjoy the high prices a bushel fetches these days, but when you look at how crucial corn is in the supply stream of food we consume, your wallet is going to feel anything but happy.

The connection between corn and meat is simple; most of the meat you eat is fed corn. (I say "you" because I was born a vegetarian and have stayed that way. No judgments, though!) The scene of bucolic beef cattle grazing grass their entire lives is a rarity. There are still small organic farm operations that do that, but the majority of beef cattle end up in a feed lot for the last leg of their lives, where they are fed a diet high in corn. Lack of mobility and constant feeding helps the cows "beef up" and reach your dinner table sooner.

Farmers like Steve Foglesong at the Black Gold Ranch can try to keep his cattle on grass feed longer, he can try to "take more cows to market" and consequently have less mouths to feed but at some point his input costs will have to get passed onto consumers. No cattle farmer likes to have to get rid of their herd until it’s time because it takes two-to-three years to develop a single animal.

You'll actually feel the pinch faster if you are shopping for chicken or pork because the life cycles of these animals is shorter. When we caught up with David Hale, who helps run his tiny family farm in Campbell, Texas, he told us that the cycle of a chicken is somewhere around nine weeks and every time he has gone to buy feed for the past year, it has been higher. He even showed us his feed bills that were 50 percent higher than the year before – and they now included a fuel surcharge which wasn't there before.

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