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Larry King Remembers Liz Taylor; Bomb Attack In Jerusalem; Radioactive Tap Water in Japan; Opposing Gadhafi; Allies Make Headway in Libya; Health Reform One Year Later; NASA Helps Cancer Patients Beat Chemo Side Effects; Computer of the Future Helps Transform Movie Magic Into Real World Technology

Aired March 23, 2011 - 13:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

RANDI KAYE, CNN ANCHOR: Hi there, Suzanne, thank you.

We're on top of four big stories this hour.

Allies making inroads in Libya, Japan reacting to radioactive tap water in Tokyo, the first terrorist bombing in Jerusalem since 2004, and the passing of a legend.

That word is sadly overused but no one wore it better than Elizabeth Taylor. Her film career made her famous, but it was everything else, her marriages, her activism, her effortless glamour that made her Elizabeth Taylor.

Remarking on her death today at 79, Taylor's friend Elton John said, we've just lost a Hollywood giant. More importantly, we've lost an incredible human being.

Taylor had suffered for years from congestive heart failure and had been hospitalized in Los Angeles for weeks.

A former CNN colleague knew Elizabeth Taylor well and spoke with her many times on the air and off. We're talking about Larry King, and he joins me now from our studios in Los Angeles.

Larry, I know you were a friend to her and you've interviewed her many times. Tell us a little bit about what she was like behind the scenes.

LARRY KING, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: She was a hell of a lady, Randi. They didn't -- they didn't come like Liz Taylor. In fact, I was thinking today, there is no movie star that's her equivalent. You couldn't think of one female star who, god forbid, would pass away today that would be the equivalent of this story.

She was the last -- I was going to say the last of the special crew, breed, but even in her own time there was no one like her. She was larger than life. She was also a great friend, extremely loyal. When aids -- when the aids crisis hit, she was the first one really, of celebrity status, to stand up for it, pleading with the president to get involved, standing up for Michael Jackson, getting friends to be involved in any cause she was attached to. She loved -- she lost the great love of her life was Michael Todd who died in the plane crash in New Mexico.

KAYE: Yes, I was going to -- I was going to ask you about that, because she had many marriages, eight marriages in all, but there was one true love, right? That was Michael Todd.

KING: Yes, it was mike Todd. She told me that the day he died, when she got that news, was the day she never forgot the rest of her life, despite the Richard Burtons and all the rest, and there were loves, but no love like his.

I got to -- I got to just -- they just handed me this. When I did my last Larry King live show here, before getting ready to do specials, first special is going to be May 1st, by the way. Liz sent a letter that day, the night of my last show, and I'll read it to you. I don't like to toot my own horn, but this is the kind of lady she was.

"December 16th. My dearest Larry, I am so sorry not to be able to be there this last historic night to celebrate with you your long and illustrious tenure as king of the airwaves. I am sure I am one of many, many interviewees who exhausted from explaining themselves, their actions, their projects, their loves, heaved a sigh of relief knowing that they were coming to talk to you.

"Talking to you was like talking -- or having a late night chat with a friend. It thrills me to think you're going to have a long and luxurious retirement. Our loss is your family's gain. My good thoughts and love follow you there. Elizabeth Taylor."

KAYE: That is a very sweet --

KING: That's the kind of friend she was.

KAYE: Well, talk about her eyes, if you would. You know, not everyone had the chance to sit across the desk from her and stare into those glowing eyes.

KING: Well, they were violet. I have never seen eyes like them. I probably never will again. They were violet, not blue, violet. She was -- they went right through you. She was a small woman. She was not tall at all. I -- but she was so full of life. See that picture right there, that one?

KAYE: Yes.

KING: Look at that face. And even as she aged and gained a little weight and had to be in a wheelchair and sometimes had some bad days, there she is as Cleopatra, then the most expensive movie ever made, there is that look.

KAYE: What do you think her legacy will be, Larry?

KING: Her legacy will be of many things, actress, philanthropist, jewelry collector, husband collector, great talent, and willing to diminish herself. You know, she made a -- she made a film which greatly reduced the way she looked, won her an academy award, yet she was willing to take those risks for performance.

And she worked -- look at this -- with some -- she worked with Brando, Newman, Rock Hudson, Montgomery Cliff was a great friend of hers, she was with Monty when he died. She lived a full life. I don't know anyone who's lived a life of approximating (ph) the life of Elizabeth Taylor.

KAYE: And she was a real fighter considering what she went through. I mean, she had a hip removed, she had a brain tumor removed, she had this congestive heart failure. Did you get that sense when you spoke to her that she was a very determined human being?

KING: Oh, she was, Randi. She was determined to live. I didn't get the news, what was the official cause of death?

KAYE: Congestive heart failure.

KING: Well --

KAYE: What do you think an --

KING: But boy, she battled it a long time, didn't she?

KAYE: Yes, she sure did. In all your interviews with her, and all your time with her, was there one moment, maybe one interview, that you hold on to fondly that really stands out for you?

KING: It was -- it was kind of a funny one. There were a lot of serious ones, they were ones on radio years ago, too. But she was wearing a ring, I've never seen a ring quite that large, and I said, who -- where did that ring come from? We'll probably show it later. I'm going to host Piers Morgan's show tonight at 9:00, and we'll probably show that clip, but she holds the finger up and she goes, Richard, Richard gave me this. And that was a ring that would signal ships. It was a moment I never forgot. She was a broad in the best sense of what that term means.

KAYE: She really gave the Paparazzi -- she brought the Paparazzi to life, right? I mean, was there really any much Paparazzi before Elizabeth Taylor?

KING: I would guess if there is a -- there's her ring. There it is.

KAYE: Yes, that is something.

KING: The paparazzi, she would be -- I would think she would have to go into the paparazzi hall of fame. She made them famous, they got attracted to her, wherever she went, they took pictures of her, no matter how bad she was looking or how older she got in life or if she was going into a hospital, they stalked her house.

She was Elizabeth Taylor. There is no star ever as -- we'll never have a star as big again. In fact, it would be impossible with the way independent films and stars are on their own today and they're not signed to studios. We'll never see Elizabeth Taylor -- and remember this, she was a great child star.

KAYE: Right.

KING: She was 14 at national -- when she did "National Velvet".

KAYE: Yes, that was her -- that was her big film when she really came out.

KING: That blossomed her on to the scene. She was -- she -- we're never going to replace her.

KAYE: No, certainly not. Well, Larry, we'll have to leave it there for now. We really appreciate you coming on today and sharing your thoughts about her. I know she was a dear friend and I'm sure -- I'm sure that you're mourning her today. So, we do appreciate -- we appreciate your time.

KING: Thanks. See you tonight.

KAYE: All right. We will see you then.

I also want to share a -- just a statement now from the office of Nancy Reagan, writing that Elizabeth Taylor was a dear friend, I knew her from our days together at MGM when she was just a teenager, and I watched her grow into one of Hollywood's finest actresses. She was compassionate and compassionate about everything in her life, including her family, her friends and especially the victims of the aids. She was truly a legend and we will miss her.

And as we mentioned, she did a lot of work involving aids and had eventually set up the Elizabeth Taylor Aids Foundation, which is very important for those who are suffering from aids.

And be sure to tune in as Larry mentioned at 9:00 p.m. Eastern for a special edition of "PIERS MORGAN TONIGHT," "REMEMBERING THE LIFE AND LEGACY OF ELIZABETH TAYLOR." Again, that starts at 9:00 p.m. Eastern time, right here on CNN.

And we invite you to share your thoughts and memories of Elizabeth Taylor on our blog. CNN.com/Ali and you can also post on Ali's Facebook and Twitter accounts and also on my Twitter account as well. You can reach me at RandiKayeCNN. And we'll share your comments later in the show.

Turning to a developing story now in Israel, a bomb exploded near Jerusalem's main bus station today, the first attack of its kind in the city in several years. At least one person was killed and 50 wounded, several critically.

Police found a medium-sized explosive device attached to a phone booth near the site of the explosion. Jerusalem's mayor condemned the bombing as a cowardly terrorist attack. The Palestinian prime minister also denounced the attack as a terrorist attack, saying it's detrimental to the Palestinian cause.

A search is under way for at least one suspect. No one has claimed responsibility for that attack. The attack coincided with a surge of violence along the Israel, Gaza border between Israeli forces and Palestinian militants.

In recent days, Israel retaliated against Hamas and other armed groups for firing rockets and mortars into Israel.

To Japan now, where fears are rising along with radiation levels. Nearly two weeks after the tsunami crippled key nuclear power plants, the situation is still dicey day to day. Something happened today at one of the reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi site.

CNN's Paula Hancocks is following the developments for us from Tokyo. Paula, another emergency evacuation at the plant?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Randi, yes. We don't have many details on the evacuation, but we do know that some workers had to leave a certain part of the plant and, at the same time, we also know that there was also more smoke at reactor three.

Now, this has been the problem reactor. We had smoke here on Monday and then it dissipated a bit on Tuesday. Now on Wednesday, it was black, grayish smoke according to the officials at the plant. And they said, at this point, that they don't know where the source of the fire is, they don't know what's burning, and they don't know why it's burning.

So, that's obviously quite concerning for the officials as they're trying to get these reactors back on track, trying to get the cooling systems back online. But certainly the effort will be starting once again when light -- when it becomes daylight as well. And we know that well over 500 workers were actually working on that nuclear plant.

But there has been another development this Wednesday, alarming for residents in Tokyo. Those with infants have been told that they should not give tap water to their infants and shouldn't use tap water when they're mixing baby formulas. That's because officials have found radioactive iodine that's over the recommended safety level for infants themselves.

So, certainly that's worrying for residents here. They've been told to keep calm, they've been asked not it hoard bottled water, but almost inevitably we have seen a rush on bottled water, and at this point many shops have sold out -- Randi.

KAYE: Yesterday, we heard about the crops contaminated by radiation and now this warning. The health ministry apparently said in a statement that it was unlikely that there would be negative consequences for the infants if they did drink this water, but still, they're urging them to avoid it if possible.

Paula Hancocks for us. Thank you, Paula, appreciate that.

No need for any more cruise missiles over Libya. A live report from Tripoli right after the break. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Day five of the allied air and sea campaign to protect civilians in Libya and there are clear signs of headway on two fronts. No more need for cruise missiles since, in the words of one U.S. official, we now have air dominance.

Coalition forces can fly to their targets in jets having little to fear from the bombed out defenses of the regime. If you're counting, the allies fired 162 tomahawk missiles since Saturday. The vast majority, American. They're carried out 175 sorties since yesterday.

Behind the scenes, we may be nearing a breakthrough in the back and forth over command and control. The U.S. and Britain want a leading role for NATO. France and Arab nations don't. Now it seems NATO will coordinate the troops and hardware, while political leaders call the shots. They're due to meet Tuesday in London.

Moammar Gadhafi is vowing to fight on despite the coalition air strikes. So I want to bring in CNN national security analyst Peter Bergen to talk about this.

Peter, good to have you with us. Let's start by talking about the opposition. We've heard so much about the rebels on the ground in Libya. What do you know about them and do you know if they can be trusted?

PETER BERGEN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Well, let's start with the fact that the U.S. government doesn't really know much about them. In fact, some officials I have spoken to say they're getting a lot of their information from CNN.

Recall that for many years we didn't have an embassy in Libya. We recently recalled the American ambassador. So there's sort of a void of information at the official level about who the rebels are.

But clearly there are some mixture of tribes from the east who have long been opposed to Gadhafi and the central government in the west of Libya, disaffected army generals, probably some Islamists including member of the Libyan Islamic fighting group, which, at one stage, was allied to al Qaeda. A relatively small group it must be said. And, you know, ordinary citizens.

So it's sort of a hodgepodge. And at the end of the day, you know, what they really want beyond getting rid of Gadhafi is not really clear around here, and that's true of any revolution. The easy thing is, you know, getting rid of the hated dictator. It's much harder to decide what kind of society will follow and who will lead.

KAYE: Right. And what about, given who they are, as you describe them, I know there is concern about whether or not these rebel fight could have links or possibly sympathies to al Qaeda. I mean is that a valid concern, do you think, and might al Qaeda see this as an opening? BERGER: Well, I think there are valid concerns in the following way, Randi. Al Qaeda in Iraq, in 2007, the U.S. military recovered a very large cache of documents about al Qaeda in Iraq. And they found somewhat surprisingly that about 20 percent of the recruits to al Qaeda in Iraq at that time, many of whom were going to be suicide bombers, were from Libya. And, in fact, many of them were from eastern Libya where the revolution is centered.

That said, you know, we're not talking about large numbers of folks. We're talking about, you know, dozens, hundreds of fighters. Nothing on the scale of what we're seeing in Benghazi right now, which is clearly a revolution that involves, you know, tens of thousands of fighters.

So it is a valid concern. And if Libya, you know, which is already in the midst of a -- in a civil war, you know, turn into a totally failed state, al Qaeda, historically, has taken advantage of those situations, whether it was under the Taliban in Afghanistan before 9/11, in Somalia today, and to some degree in Yemen.

KAYE: All right, Peter Bergen, appreciate your insight, as always. Thanks so much.

BERGEN: Thank you.

KAYE: Now I want to get straight to CNN's Nic Robertson, who's joining me live from Tripoli.

Nic, I understand you went out on another one of those government-sponsored trips today to see some more bombing damage. What did you see and what happened there?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, the government officials here say that they're going to take us to see some civilian house -- a civilian house that had been damaged in bombing. They said there had been a family there who were injured, who are now in hospital. They said that this civilian house was close to a military installation and they describe the damage to their house as collateral damage.

Well, the government officials took a group of journalists, perhaps about 30 or 40 of us in about seven or 10 vehicles to the east of the city to try and find this house. And we drove around and around and around the neighborhoods there. And the government officials simply could not find this house.

One of the thing about the east of the city, it is a sort of a hotbed of anti-regime sentiment there. And it was noticeable that the government officials weren't getting any help from local people around there to try and locate the house. And eventually we went back to the hotel. We came back to the hotel after an hour because the government officials could not find this house that they claimed had been hit in a coalition strike, where they claimed there had been civilian casualties.

So, yet get, the government has failed to show -- to match their claims that there have been civilian casualties. We can't say definitively that there haven't been any, but certainly the government's been unable to prove it and show it to us, Carol.

KAYE: That also speaks really to what you've been telling us in recent days, that, you know, they tried to show you -- they wouldn't show you the hospital or anywhere elsewhere where they were claiming there were bodies of civilian casualties.

Let's talk about Misrata, if we can. It sounds like the opposition forces there on the ground are desperate for weapons.

ROBERTSON: And it certainly seems that their fortunes are changing a little bit. The latest reports from there, although about six people were shot overnight, or in the last 24 hours, they say, by government snipers.

They also say that coalition air strikes now targeted two groups of pro-Gadhafi forces and that's allowed the city to sort of breathe a little easier there. The level of fighting dropped off today to the point where they said it's the quietest in seven days, where shops have been open and people have been able to get out and about a little bit. And it does seem that now the no-fly zone is in force and residents say there have been no aerial bombardments of the city for days.

But what this should allow the coalition to do is do much more precise aerial surveillance of where opposition forces and where government forces are in the city. Because until now, it's been very difficult for the coalition to determine who is who on the ground and which of the government forces that they should be striking. So we may see this situation change more in the favor of the opposition in Misrata, Randi.

KAYE: All right. Nic Robertson, we'll leave it there. Thank you for joining us from Tripoli.

The Health Care Reform Act turns one year old today. Dr. Sanjay Gupta will break down who has benefited so far and tell you what has possibly gotten worse. That's right after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Today marks the one-year anniversary of President Obama signing the Health Care Reform Act into law. So how have patients been affected so far?

CNN's chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, breaks it all down for us.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, a lot of people wishing a happy birthday to the Affordable Care Act, but you're probably not going to see too many celebrations as of yet, you know, in part because the Affordable Care Act was expected to roll out over four years. So it's really pretty early still in the process, but that's not to say that a lot hasn't happened over the last year.

Legal challenges that were once considered a long shot for this Affordable Care Act are now actually coming to fruition and it's expected that the entire act will be taken up by the Supreme Court even later on this year. So that's obviously something people keeping a big eye on.

But the whole idea of what has seemed to work, what hasn't -- let's take a look at some of the specifics.

For example, kids up to the age of 26, young adults, being able to stay on their parents plan. That has been one of the big things that people have touted as a victory.

Also, the fact that there will be no lifetime limits on overall benefits including -- or annual limits, either, so coverage maxing out should not be a problem as well.

And finally, children under the age of 19 not being able to be denied coverage because of pre-existing conditions. That's also being touted as a victory.

As far as seniors go, one of the big concerns was something known as the doughnut hole. You have a lot of prescription drug costs. You get coverage up to a certain point and then there's a hole that you have to pay on your own before you start getting coverage again.

That was called the doughnut hole. There have been some strategies in place to try and shrink that, including a tax rebate, $250, and also a 50 percent discount on brand name prescription drugs if they hit the doughnut hole this year.

Now, those are some of the things that have gone into effect. The real question, I think, on a lot of people's minds, how well have some of those things worked?

With regard to seniors and the prescription drug benefits, that seems to have made some overall impact. And also, preventive screenings for various diseases, including cancer screenings. That seems to have made some impact as well.

But take a look specifically at this pre-existing condition plan. Looking at, for example, young people who have pre-existing conditions, now being able to get insurance. Well, the numbers may surprise you there. According to HHS, 12,347 people have enrolled in these new pre-existing condition plans. I think a lost people expected that number to be a lot higher.

A part of the problem is that it is cumbersome to join one of these plan. For example, you have to have been denied insurance by an existing private insurer. Well, a lot of the private insurance companies will offer the insurance, it's the premiums that are just exorbitantly high.

Also, you have to have been without insurance for six months before you qualify. Unfortunately, for people who have pre-existing diseases, being without insurance for six months is simply too long, so they're not going to do that simply to qualify for one of these plans. So really the devil's in the details here in terms of how this is playing out, Randi.

But I will tell you this, that overall, it is just one year into this. What happens with the Supreme Court possibly at the end of this year and what happens by the year 2014 is really going to answer a couple of important questions.

First of all, are there more people insured than not by that time period, and what has it done for health care costs, specifically for individuals and how much they're paying for premiums? And we don't have the absolute answer to those questions yet. We may not have them for some time to come.

That's a little bit of a synopsis of what happened with the Affordable Care Act over the last year.

Randi, back to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: Sanjay, thanks.

Well, health care certainly even a year late has a lot of people talking. We'd like to know what you think about the health care reform law one year later. Share your thoughts and join the discussion on our blog. That's CNN.com/Ali. You can also post on Ali's Facebook or Twitter account and on my Twitter account as well. You can reach me at RandiKayeCNN.

We also invite you to share your thoughts and memories of Elizabeth Taylor today as well. And we'll share your comments on the air later on in the show.

What do Canon, Texas Instruments and Nikon have in common? They're three more of the companies who have had to halt production in Japan. I'll tell you what it could cost consumers next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

KAYE: Be sure to join Christine Romans for "YOUR BOTTOM LINE" each Saturday morning at 9:30 Eastern and don't miss "YOUR MONEY" with Ali Velshi Saturdays at 1:00 p.m. Eastern and Sundays at 3:00.

Well, it may officially be spring but that doesn't mean you should necessarily go surfing, especially in Minnesota. Yes, in Minnesota. These guys decided to take on the waves near Duluth. Look at that. By the way, there is a blizzard warning there today, as much as a foot of snow is expected in that part of the state.

(CROSSTALK)

(WEATHER REPORT) KAYE: Well, first it was spinach and milk, as we've told you. Now Japanese officials are putting out warnings about radioactive tap water. We're going to tell you who is at risk next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Elizabeth Taylor was never one to need an introduction.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "BUTTERFIELD 8")

ELIZABETH TAYLOR, ACTRESS: One call I wouldn't to take personally and immediately. OK. Bye-bye.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: The Oscar-winning actress died this morning from congestive heart failure, surrounded by her children. Her son characterized Taylor as an extraordinary woman who lived life to the fullest with great passion, humor and love. By all accounts, her dramatic personal life filled with romance and heartbreak matched the drama of her poignant roles on screen.

Some other big stories and news you might have missed.

In Jerusalem, a bomb left at a phone booth exploded near a busy bus station during evening rush hour. A woman was killed and at least 50 people were injured, including two pregnant women. This is the first major bombing to rock the city in several years.

The Palestinian prime minister just issued a statement strongly condemning the terrorist acts. No one has claimed responsibility for that attack.

There's some signs of normalcy in the western Libyan town of Misrata after days of attacks by government forces. Last night, coalition airplanes attacked key pro-Gadhafi sites around Misrata, Tripoli and Ajdabiya. An opposition spokesman say the town is relatively quiet, with many grocery stores and shops opening for the first time in weeks.

In eastern Libya, the U.S. naval forces commander says allies have successfully established a no-fly zone over Benghazi. Air strikes have taken out most of Gadhafi's Air Forces and its long range air defense.

In Japan, Tokyo government workers say the tap water now has levels of radioactive material that could be harmful for babies. In fact they say the water contains twice the limit considered safe. Parents are being advised to not use tap water to make baby formula and bottled water has now, as a result, become scarce.

Japan has also expanded food shipment restrictions to 11 types of vegetables grown near the Fukushima plant because of that radiation contamination. The U.S. and Hong Kong are banning dairy products and various produce from the region. The U.S. Census numbers paints a troubling picture of Detroit, Michigan. Its population has plunged to a 100 year low. The Census Bureau says a max exodus to the suburbs and the decline of the auto industry cut the city's population by 25 percent, to just over 713,000 people. That's the lowest population level since the 1910 Census and the fastest drop in Detroit's history.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: In Syria, more deadly clashes between anti-government protesters and security forces. Eyewitnesses say government forces opened fire on protesters who had sought safety in a mosque in the southern city of Daraa, killing at least 15.

Syrian television described a very different scene saying armed gangs attacked an ambulance killing three people. Syrian TV also reported that the head of Daraa's government was removed today.

The unprecedented demonstrations against President Bashar Al Assad have escalated in recent days despite emergency laws that have banned such gatherings for nearly 50 years. A day of mass protests is planned now for Friday.

More now on the deadly bomb attack in Jerusalem today. At least one person was killed and 50 wounded, several critically. It happened near the main bus station, the first such attack in years.

CNN's Jerusalem bureau chief Kevin Flower joins us live now from Israel.

Kevin, any word at this hour who might have carried this out?

KEVIN FLOWER, CNN JERUSALEM BUREAU CHIEF: Well, Randi, no. No formal claims of responsibility at this time. So Israeli police investigators are continuing to follow any leads that they might have.

At the time of the blast there were concerns there might have been a second device planted. Police fanned out at that time, looking for other devices. We've not heard anything back from the police about any progress in the investigation thus far.

But what they have told us is that it was an explosive device that was left right near a bus stop, an open air bus stop on a crowded Jerusalem highway almost, near the central bus station. And so this device exploded, just as a bus was pulling up and letting out and letting in passengers, and hence the very high toll of casualties that we saw. As you mentioned, one woman was killed in that blast and scores more were injured.

Now, the Israeli government has condemned this attack. In fact, the Israeli U.N. representative wrote a letter to the security council in which he said this was a serious escalation of Palestinian terrorism. Now, of course, the police have not arrested anybody at this time and the Palestinian authority prime minister has come out strongly condemning this attack, Randi. KAYE: And, how are the people there dealing with this? I mean, I would imagine there say lot of unease and a lot of unrest among Israelis right now. Just very briefly.

FLOWER: Well, Randi, this is a nightmare scenario for Israelis, and specifically Jerusalemites. The image of a blown-out window in a bus, an explosion near a bus brings back lots of memories of the suicide bombing attacks that took place a number of years ago during the course of the second Palestinian Intifada.

So a lot of Israelis are looking at these pictures today and being reminded of that and hoping that this is not the start of a new wave of attacks.

KAYE: Kevin Flower in Jerusalem for us. Thank you, Kevin.

When we think NASA, we think space, right? Of course. Well, now they have developed a light to help cancer patients with chemo side effects. NASA joins us live in our studio with a demonstration of this technology right after a very quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Cancer is a devastating disease in this country. According to the CDC, more than 18 million people have been diagnosed with cancer.

One of the main treatments for cancer is, of course, chemotherapy. About 40 percent of those who go through chemo suffer from a horrible complication called oral mucositis, and that's caused by the radiation. According to the Oral Cancer Foundation, that can cause inflammation or severe ulcers in the mouth, which really makes it difficult for cancer patients to actually eat.

This is a major problem and of all people, NASA has come up with a possible solution. NASA is here live in our studio for today's "Big I" segment. We have Robin Schumacher from Quantum Devices who is going to tell us about a light used to treat the side effect, Dr. William Vaughn from the University of Alabama-Birmingham, and Andrew Keys who is the chief technologist with NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center.

Robin, let's start with you. Tell us how this chemo light works.

ROBIN SCHUMACHER, RESEARCH COORDINATOR, QUANTUM DEVICES: Sure.

KAYE: And you can turn it on as well.

SCHUMACHER: OK. This is the light that was developed for the mucositis study. What we're looking at is light in the far red visible spectrum, it's 670 nanometers. That wavelength was chosen because it's preferred, if you will, to stimulate cytochrome oxidase, which is a molecule in every single cell of your body, it's within the mitochondria, and we like to refer to them as our little energizer rabbits.

KAYE: So this helps prevent this condition?

SCHUMACHER: It helps it by stimulating cellular energy, and then there is this whole cascade of events like a photochemical reaction that takes place increasing the body's ability to fend things like that off.

KAYE: There's a little bit of backstory here, though. How did this all come to be?

SCHUMACHER: Well, Mr. Ignatius, the founder of our company and the inventor of this, in working with WCSAR --

KAYE: I mean, how is it originally used by NASA?

SCHUMACHER: Originally used as a wound healing instrument. Was developed for space missions. The first thing we started to look for was astronauts in space lose bone density and muscle mass. So we were looking at ways to possibly stimulate that.

KAYE: And, Doctor Vaughn, this is really used to help with this mucositis, is that right?

DR. WILLIAM VAUGHN, PROF. OF INTERNAL MEDICINE, UNIV. OF ALABAMA- BIRMINGHAM: Yes. Near infrared light creates a healing environment in the damaged mucus member brains which results in lower pain scores and lower visible damage to the mucus membrane so the patient can recover faster.

KAYE: This is great news for cancer patients who go through this. Is this FDA approved? I mean, when might we see this on the market?

VAUGHN: Well, I was talking to Robin about that earlier, and there are ways that it can be made available, now that the FDA has seen the data. And so, it is it possible on ad hoc basis or investigators who want to do additional trials can obtain it.

SCHUMACHER: These are actually FDA cleared right now for use of pain.

KAYE: Andrew, I have to ask you, I mean, how is it that NASA and not the medical world came up with this? This is such a big innovation, I'm sure you're working on other big ones, too. But how remarkable this is.

ANDREW KEYS, CHIEF TECHNOLOGIST, NASA MARSHALL SPACE FLIGHT CENTER: That's true. NASA has a program of space technology investment. And we didn't initially go after this technology as a medical advice. It was initially developed as a plant growth light source for plant growth experiments in space. But we are able to take technologies like this that benefit space applications and look at their terrestrial use and see how they can benefit the medical community and society at large.

KAYE: It's amazing. So maybe there will be more discoveries that will help from NASA. KEYS: We certainly hope so.

KAYE: That really is wonderful. We really appreciate all of you coming in and bringing us your red light to show us how this works, and it's fascinating.

VAUGHN: Thank you for having us.

SCHUMACHER: Thank you.

KEYS: Thanks.

KAYE: Hope to see it soon. Really appreciate it.

It may look like the movies, but it's real. Coming up next in "Edge of Discovery," we go to an MIT lab for a glimpse into what the future of computers might look like one day.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Movies like "Minority Report" gave us a glimpse into what the future of computers might look like, but it wasn't all just movie magic in turns out. Reynolds Wolf gives us a first-hand look at the MIT lab that Steven Spielberg worked with in this "Edge of Discovery."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST/CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This isn't your typical computer lab. This is MIT's Tangible Media Group where they're envisioning the future of computer use by thinking outside the cubicle.

XIAO XIAO, MIT STUDENT: We're imagining a world where we're not limited by just the keyboard and the screen.

WOLF: You've probably seen the group's work in the movie "Minority Report."

(VIDEO CLIP COURTESY OF DREAMWORKS, "MINORITY REPORT")

WOLF: But that's just one of the many projects the group is working on that combines real movement with virtual information. You can find students with 3-D pens that seemingly reach into the screen, and interactive models that could help people like architects create design.

DANIEL LEITHINGER, MIT STUDENT: We think that using real materials allows you to be more creative.

WOLF: Even the games we play are getting more interactive. It's ideas like this the group hopes will change the way we work, think and live.

XIAO: If you combine the different things that we're doing here and apply it to all the different surfaces that's available in your home and your office and your building, you suddenly have a whole environment that you can interact with.

WOLF: Technology with a human touch that could bring big changes.

Reynolds Wolf, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: And this week's CNN special correspondent and environmentalist Philippe Cousteau is an on expedition to one of the coldest places on Earth, the Catlin Arctic Survey Ice Base. Next, we're bringing up amazing pictures and details of his journey where temperatures -- get this -- they dip to 40 below zero.

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KAYE: Whether you believe that global warming is a natural cycle of the planet or manmade, it's proving to be a problem for this planet of ours. Well, this week our special correspondent and environmentalist Philippe Cousteau and a team from CNN are in one of the coldest places on Earth as part of a vital expedition called the Catlin Arctic Survey.

Today is day two of their scientific adventure. This is the team's last full day at Resolute Bay in the northern Canadian arctic before heading to the Catlin Arctic Survey Ice Base where a third year of global warming research is going to be undertaken.

The ice base is about 675 nautical miles from the North Pole and temperatures dip to 40 degrees below zero. Yikes.

To read Philippe Cousteau's complete day two blog, head to Ali's blog, CNN.com/Ali. We'll also link to a great video of Philippe showing the equipment that he takes with him on a journey to the arctic. Yes, you don't pack light for that one.