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Owen Bennett-Jones reports Floods in Vietnam over the past few weeks have killed more than one hundred people and caused millions of dollars in damage to property and farmland.

Commentator David Weinberger realizes the current vogue in business to "multitask," but argues that few do it, and no one does it well. Slicing your attention, he says, is like slicing a plum -- you lose some of the juice.

In two of the most anticipated races of the Olympics, Michael Johnson and Cathy Freeman triumphed in the men's and women's 400 meters, fulfilling historic expectations. Freeman, the Australian who lit the Olympic cauldron, became the first Aboriginal athlete to win an individual medal. Johnson succeeded in defending his 400 meter title, the first male sprinter to do so. The win places him among the top runners in Olympic history. NPR's Howard Berkes reports.

The latest ad being run by the Republican National Committee accuses the current administration, including Democratic nominee Al Gore, of failing the nation by allowing school test scores to fall dangerously behind. The ad says American school children's math and science scores are now the lowest in the world. NPR's Steve Inskeep takes a look at the information behind the ad.

NPR's Michele Kelemen reports that although Russian forces continue to lose men in Chechnya nearly every day, the war rarely grabs headlines any more. Soldiers who have fought there complain the war is bogging down, but few Russians are demanding publicly that their government revise its strategy, seek a political settlement, or pull out of Chechnya.

Second generation flight attendant Rene Foss has had enough of crabby travelers, so she's written a musical comedy starring clueless passengers, and the beleaguered men and women who serve them. Around the World in a Bad Mood is based on Foss' 15 years as a flight attendant - a job she still holds. In fact, her airline supports this "extra-aviational" activity. The musical is on stage in New York on weekends. NPR's Margot Adler reports.

Host Mike Shuster talks to Stephen Quinn of CBC Radio News in Vancouver about the trial of former NHL player Marty McSorley. He is charged with assaulting Donald Brashear, another Hockey player during a nationally televised game in February. The attack left Brashear bleeding and unconscious on the ice with a severe concussion.

NPR's Jennifer Ludden reports from Jerusalem that two months after the Camp David summit broke down without an agreement, Israel Prime Minister Ehud Barak and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat have met again to talk about peace. The meeting comes as the public debate is both camps has centered on formulas about how authority in East Beirut could be divided, something that was a taboo subject only weeks ago.

Commentator Diana Nyad says with the media and fan demand on high-profile sports superstars, staying at the Olympic Village isn't quite what it was intended to be.

N-P-R's Ted Clark previews the upcoming Israeli-Palestinian peace talks in Washington. The Camp David talks broke down last July over control of Jerusalem. U.S. mediators are expected to stress to both sides that time for negotiations are limited due to the November elections: the change in administrations could cause a stall in peace talks if agreements are not reached soon.