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American officials have long complained about countries that systematically hack into U.S. computer networks to steal valuable data, but until recently they did not name names. In the last few months, that has changed.

"Peng Liyuan has been touted now as sort of the Carla Bruni of China," says one music critic. She's regularly featured on Chinese television's blockbuster Spring Festival Gala, and she's also a major general in China's People's Liberation Army.

In rare form, Congress approved an extension of the payroll tax cut this week, well ahead of its expiration deadline. Also included were extensions of unemployment insurance benefits and money for doctors who accept Medicare patients. NPR's Tamara Keith reports.

Things are still pretty tough for the people of Ireland, but there is one man who thinks things there will start looking up before too long. In fact, he's prepared to put money on it. Host Scott Simon speaks with investor Michael Hasenstab, who's betting more than $2 billion that Ireland's economy will rebound.

Michigan holds its presidential primary in just 10 days, and the contest there is turning out to be closer than expected. Mitt Romney grew up in Michigan, where his father, George Romney, ran a car company before becoming governor. Rick Santorum has come on strong, however, and is even ahead in several polls. NPR's Don Gonyea joins host Scott Simon to talk about the state of play in Michigan.

Scientists in Britain have been trying to determine whether the shape of a ponytail can be deduced from the properties of a single hair. Host Scott Simon talks with Weekend Edition Math Guy Keith Devlin about a new, soon-to-be-published study that has the answer.

The seemingly accidental death of a troubled starlet is the catalyst for events in a new thriller that takes the reader from Dublin to New York to the Congo. "It's an exploration ... of the power dynamics that go on" between executive boardrooms and warlords, author Alan Glynn says.

If a feat is "quantifiable and breakable" and there is media proof of it, RecordSetter's co-founder says, the website will recognize it as a world record. The website accepts submissions for just about anything.

The U.S. is determined to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons, saying ominously that "all options are on the table." But just what are those options? Are any of them up to the task of stopping Iran from getting the bomb?

The Iranian president also said a European embargo on its oil will not hurt the country.