education Kids who have to crawl under freight trains to get to school Ruben Bolling

maps Amtrak Explorer: online interactive map of the U.S. passenger train system Rob Beschizza

tabloids Putin kills cows in this week's dubious tabloids Peter Sheridan

podcast Listen to a firsthand account of hobo life in new "City of the Rails" podcast Rusty Blazenhoff

music Meet "Spoon Lady" Abby Roach Jennifer Sandlin

trains New rail line construction makes it possible to take a train from Portugal to Singapore (in just 21 days) Mark Frauenfelder

Kids This Iowa bridge trail has a remarkable nighttime lighting effect Andrea James

class war Rail barons and the new gilded age: one-percenters travel in style by hitching private "super-luxe" railcars to Amtrak trains Cory Doctorow

President Obama's tech-centered State of the Union: full text, and digital rights concerns Xeni Jardin