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CNN Live Today

Day Seven of Deliberations for Jackson Jurors; National Park Vacations

Aired June 13, 2005 - 11:30   ET

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

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


DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: We're just a little bit past the half hour. Good morning once again. I'm Daryn Kagan. Here's what's happening "Now in the News."
Moments ago, you saw this live here on CNN. President Bush hosted the presidents of five African nations. The leaders are discussing a range of issuing affecting Africa, including aid, trade and debt relief. Also on the agenda, spreading democracy across the continent. All five African presidents won Democratic elections last year.

41 years after three civil rights workers were killed in Mississippi, a trial for the accused killer begins today. Edgar Ray Killen is a part-time preacher and reputed one-time Ku Klux Klansman. The 1964 killings were depicted in the movie "Mississippi Burning." In 1967, Killen was tried and acquitted in the case.

And just in time for summer travel, gas prices have slipped a bit. Prices dropped more than a penny over the past three weeks, to an average of $2.13 a gallon. Experts predict gas prices could fall further in the short term.

They had the weekend off and now jurors in the Michael Jackson case resume their deliberations in California this hour. It is day seven and still no sign of a decision.

For more, we turn to CNN's Ted Rowlands, who is live in Santa Maria. Ted, hello.

TED ROWLANDS, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, Daryn. The juror vans arrived here within the last half hour, bringing the eight men -- or eight women and four men back to the Santa Maria Courthouse for another day of work. As you mention, it is day seven of their deliberative process. On Friday, sources close to the case tell us that the jurors asked for several readbacks of the accuser's testimony. Now what that means, one could only speculate, but they are working.

Obviously, they have been at it for an extended period of time. There was a lot of speculation that they would come back with a verdict Friday. That was not the case. They are back at it for another day here. Over the weekend, Michael Jackson fired his spokesperson Raymone Bain, so getting updates as to where Michael Jackson is and his condition will be more difficult. There's no one for the 2,000 plus members of the media to call and get updates as to Jackson. We found that over the weekend. A notice was put up on the Michael Jackson Web site. And presumably, that is where we're going to get the bulk of our information from here on out.

Now, the court has not released any information as to the readbacks on Friday. We are waiting for official word from the court as to the daily movement of these jurors. But sources closest to the case tell CNN that, indeed, the jurors not only asked for those readbacks, but also asked several questions of the judge. Whether that means they're getting closer to a decision, we will just have to wait and see, and wait and see we will outside the courthouse.

There are a few fans out here today, but the numbers have really dropped off. In fact, it's quite dramatic, compared to last week. This morning there are just a handful of Jackson supporters outside the courthouse. We'll see if that changes as the day goes on -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Hey, is there other business taking place in this courthouse? People with lawsuits and other criminal matters that have to be settled? They have to deal with all this mess?

ROWLANDS: Indeed. And that has been the problem since this trial began. Folks trying to use this public facility have had to go around the media and all the fences here. They come through the back and it has been a problem for some people. And a lot of locals, as they pass by, they whisper and shout things at us and others here because, of course, they're put out because of all of this. They have to work around it.

KAGAN: All right, well, you be strong with the name calling there.

ROWLANDS: I'll try my best.

KAGAN: OK. Ted Rowlands in Santa Maria. Thank you.

About an hour ago, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on an appeal by Jose Padilla. He is the U.S. citizen held for three years as an enemy combatant. The high court rejected Padilla's request for an immediate decision on his detention. Padilla will now have to wait for a lower court to rule on that.

New York City police questioning a man who was found with various subway maps. That man was taken into custody Sunday after being found by firefighters in a commercial building in Brooklyn. Others who were with him got away after firefighters called police. Fire department officials report the man in custody was also found with fake identification.

And now to a mother's anguish and desperate hope for her missing daughter. It has been two weeks since 18-year-old Natalee Holloway disappeared on the Caribbean island of Aruba. The search goes on and five suspects have been arrested. Holloway's mother tells the Associated Press three of the men in custody know what happened to her daughter.

Beth Holloway Twitty suggests authorities may be trying to protect the young men. She says, quote, "All three of those boys know what happened to her and they know what they did with her that night." Lawyers for all five suspects say their clients are innocent. Meanwhile, local leaders say they're doing everything they can to find the missing teenager.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RUBEN TRAPENBERG, ARUBA GOVT. SPOKESMAN: Our hearts go out to the family of Natalee. The whole Aruban family, the whole community, feels for this. And we have been searching and we're going to keep on searching. And if these gentlemen had anything to do with it, we're going to get to the bottom of that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: Natalee Holloway's mother says she appreciates everything the authorities have done, but she won't be satisfied until, she says, gets her daughter back.

Turning to medical news now. An experimental drug could help diabetics who also suffer from high cholesterol. The pill controls blood fats as well as blood sugar. Researchers say it could be a better treatment for diabetics with cholesterol trouble, but the side effects may be worse than current drugs.

Americans with diabetes are less likely to spend time in the hospital than they were a decade ago. The CDC says hospitalization rates for serious complications from diabetes are declining. They fell 35 percent between 1994 and 2002. More than 18 million Americans have diabetes. Complications include kidney failure, heart disease, blindness and amputations.

Father's Day, reminder for you, this Sunday. But for a growing number of dads, every day may seem more like Mother's Day. Senior medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta looks at the role of stay at home dads in our "Daily Dose" of health news.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GUPTA (voice-over): Fifteen months ago, salesman Bill Cook got a new job. He traded phone calls, meetings and power lunches for feedings, nap time, and play dates.

BILL COOK, STAY-AT-HOME DAD: Daddy's got his list.

GUPTA: Cook is a stay-at-home dad.

COOK: People look at me like I've got two heads sometimes when I walk in and I've got three babies -- I've got the two babies and I've got my daughter with me, and they look at me, like, where's your wife? Why are you here by yourself?

GUPTA: Sure, they seem to be an anomaly, but two million men, according to the latest census findings, do it. That's four times the number of dads opting to hold down the home fort 20 years ago. A new generation of what some are calling Mr. Mom.

COOK: I get that a lot. Mr. Mom, Mr. Mom. No, it's Mr. Dad. Yes.

GUPTA: And while chaos reigns in movies like Mr. Mom, the scene at the Cook residence most days, placid, organized.

COOK: Where's his eyes?

GUPTA: Cook juggles the kids, while mom works her sales job from home.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Let me look into it and find out and give you a call back.

GUPTA: Far removed from the activity outside.

COOK: We looked at her job and looked at my job, and which one could we do without easier? And it was my job.

GUPTA: The biggest job for moms seems to be nurturing. So are 6-year-old Lauren (ph), and 1-year-old twins Connor (ph) and Sophie getting as much from dad as they would from mom? Studies say yes. Before a baby is born, dad's experience a surge in nurturing hormones, like estrogen and perlactin, which is the hormone coursing through you when you're in live. And the essentially male hormone testosterone dips by a third once baby is born.

COOK: I think you can learn to be nurturing. I think that's something that maybe not everybody, you know, may agree with, but I think for me, I was already, I think, nurturing in a way. And from having the experience at home, and I helped raise brothers and sisters and things like that, it came natural to me.

GUPTA: Dr. Kyle Pruitt has conducted the longest term studies on the children of stay-at-home dads, finding later in life they are better problem solvers, and not surprisingly, less prone to gender stereotyping.

The key, regardless of which parent stays home, says Pruitt, is that kids know they're being cared for by a parent who loves them.

KYLE PRUITT, YALE CHILD STUDY CENTER: When you look at the father's style, the mother's style, it's not that one's right and one's wrong, the child figures out a way to weave a stronger cloth, a fabric together, from these two lessons they are learning.

GUPTA: Cook's learning his lessons every day.

COOK: It's like a constant clean-up thing. Load of laundry.

GUPTA: But even more, he's truly involved with his kids.

COOK: It's very prideful. I mean, you see your kid, and all of a sudden they're crawling or they sat up, and that's really cool. That's a cool thing to see firsthand instead of getting a phone call and saying, hey, you now, your daughter just sat up or rolled over.

GUPTA: Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, Atlanta. (END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: To get your daily dose of health news online, log on to our Web site. You'll find the latest medical news, a help library and information on diet and fitness. The address is CNN.com/health.

Are you looking for that perfect family vacation? How about cheap and not too far away from home. Sounds good? That's what we have in mind in our "Getaway" segment, just ahead.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Every day, the human body produces enough to fill a quart-sized mayonnaise jar. That's pretty gross, right? At CNN.com/science, learn about grossology, the impolite science of the human body. It's a traveling exhibit for kids based on a series of books using their favorite gross subjects to interest them in science. The hands-on exhibit is a cross between an arcade and a jungle gym, and features different stations that let kids spin, shoot, climb, squeeze and smell all the gross thing the human body does.

Click through this interactive gallery to see kids learn how scabs, zits and blisters form by climbing the skin wall. See how many gross things you know about the body by testing your grossology I.Q. For example, where does the smell of onion and garlic breath come from? The lungs, mouth, stomach or tongue? You can log on and find out. And check the fact box for the grossology tour schedule, to find out when this grosser than gross exhibit is headed to a town near you. Hope I haven't ruined your appetite.

From the dot-com newsdesk, I'm Veronica De La Cruz.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: Still more to come this hour, but first, here's a preview of what's coming in the noon hour on "YOUR WORLD TODAY."

JIM CLANCY, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, I'm Jim Clancy.

ZAIN VERJEE, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Zain Verjee.

CLANCY: Coming up at the top of the hour, debt relief for Africa. Democratically elected Leaders of five African states meeting the U.S. President to talk trade and aid.

VERJEE: Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Another report chronicles abuse of the prison facility. Has it outlived its usefulness?

CLANCY: And justice delayed. A trial more than 40 years in the making. The case that helped turn the tide in the civil rights movement in the U.S.

VERJEE: All that and more just ahead on CNN. CLANCY: Join us.

KAGAN: Well, summer is upon us. A lot of Americans hitting the open road in search of a vacation to remember. If you are one of them, you have a list, actually we have the list, to give to you of lush locales for you to explore. The most popular national parks in the country listed in "National Geographic Adventure" magazine.

Andrew Berg is a senior editor at the magazine. What a cool jobs. He joins us from New York City.

Probably doesn't spend a lot of time in New York City, because he's in the cool places featured in this magazine.

Andrew, good morning.

ANDREW BERG, "NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC ADVENTURE": Good morning, Daryn.

KAGAN: Let's hit the road. You're picking some of my favorite places. Let's start out West in the Sierra Skyway.

BERG: Sierra Skyway is a phenomenal trip. This is a land of giants. You've towering cliffs in Yosemite, some bigger than the Chrysler building. You've got giant sequoia trees in Kings Canyon National Park. And you've got Death Valley as well, which is obviously an iconic lunar landscape worth seeing.

KAGAN: So the idea, you're encouraging people to make a road trip and kind of make a little theme out of it, like you did with the Sierras or the next one we're going to look at, Red Rock Route.

BERG: Yes, that's true. You know, 64 percent of people who visit our national parks don't even get out of their cars.

KAGAN: That's a big mistake.

BERG: It is. They may get out to take a photo or use the bathroom. But they don't take advantage of the activities and options in the park. So we put a few road trips together, seven of them, with each one hitting two national parks, some three, and give you great options.

Red Rock Route, as you mentioned, is a phenomenal one. Desert country.

Zion National Park is a phenomenal place, like running a watery obstacle course. You also can take in Bryce Canyon with these Hoodoo rock formations. They're really quite phenomenal.

And, of course, the Grand Canyon is also on that route.

KAGAN: Let's move a little bit north, Megaphona Mile (ph).

BERG: This is American's answer to the African Savannah, up in Yellowstone and the Grand Keatings (ph), you've got incredible wildlife. It's a fantastic place.

KAGAN: If you're into volcanoes, head to Washington State.

BERG: That's true. Great dormant volcanoes, glaciers towering over beautiful placid lakes. This is a really wile -- the wild child of the northwest.

KAGAN: And let's not forget about New England and Maine. Yankee Way, you call it.

BERG: That's true. We've got Baxter State Park, which is primeval forest. You know, the thing about Maine is you've got this incredible wild back country, but you're never too far from an inn or a restaurant to get your cup of chowder. It's a great trip as well.

KAGAN: And in the Midwest, Michigan and Minnesota, you call it the "superior path." Is that for Lake Superior?

BERG: It is. And this is my personal favorite.

KAGAN: I was going to ask you what your favorite was. Why is this one your favorite?

BERG: Well, this is water world. If you're a paddler, if you like canoeing or kayaking, there is a lot of great opportunities out there, in Voyagers National Park, phenomenal hiking trails. Most of which you paddle up to. So this is a great place to go if you're a hardcore enthusiast or if you're a beginner and you want to rent some kayaks and go for a trip with your family.

KAGAN: And finally, let's take it south to North Carolina and Tennessee. Blue Ridge Run.

BERG: Yes, the great Smoky Mountains, Pisgah National Forest. This I like to equate to the U.S.'s Amazon. You know, it's not a rain forest, but really great dense jungle canopy, lush, great wildlife. Pisgah National Forest, incredible mountain biking. If you're a mountain biker, that's the place to be going this summer.

Well, how they got you to sit indoors in New York City, I'm really not quite sure, but I'm glad they did. Great ideas for some summer road trips from Andrew Berg from "National Geographic Adventure" magazine.

Thank you.

BERG: Thank you, Daryn.

KAGAN: A check of your weather forecast. Business coming up in just a moment. We're back after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

KAGAN: To Germany now. The Berlin Zoo celebrating a special delivery. Actually, four of them. Aww. These frisky little wolves are quadruplets that are just about a month old and already they're fighting with the grown-ups over wanting to stay up late and howl to the moon. Very cute.

And Australia, a woolly win. The Aussie team outclipped the world in the 17 nations sheep shearing competition. Competitors were judged on speed and lack of nicks, even around the heavy neck wrinkles. We are told top shearers can handle more than 200 sheep a day. That is a lot of wool.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: That's going to do it for me. I'm Daryn Kagan. International news is up next. Stay tuned for "YOUR WORLD TODAY." Jim Clancy and Zain Verjee are with you after a quick break. I'll see you tomorrow morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com


Aired June 13, 2005 - 11:30   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: We're just a little bit past the half hour. Good morning once again. I'm Daryn Kagan. Here's what's happening "Now in the News."
Moments ago, you saw this live here on CNN. President Bush hosted the presidents of five African nations. The leaders are discussing a range of issuing affecting Africa, including aid, trade and debt relief. Also on the agenda, spreading democracy across the continent. All five African presidents won Democratic elections last year.

41 years after three civil rights workers were killed in Mississippi, a trial for the accused killer begins today. Edgar Ray Killen is a part-time preacher and reputed one-time Ku Klux Klansman. The 1964 killings were depicted in the movie "Mississippi Burning." In 1967, Killen was tried and acquitted in the case.

And just in time for summer travel, gas prices have slipped a bit. Prices dropped more than a penny over the past three weeks, to an average of $2.13 a gallon. Experts predict gas prices could fall further in the short term.

They had the weekend off and now jurors in the Michael Jackson case resume their deliberations in California this hour. It is day seven and still no sign of a decision.

For more, we turn to CNN's Ted Rowlands, who is live in Santa Maria. Ted, hello.

TED ROWLANDS, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, Daryn. The juror vans arrived here within the last half hour, bringing the eight men -- or eight women and four men back to the Santa Maria Courthouse for another day of work. As you mention, it is day seven of their deliberative process. On Friday, sources close to the case tell us that the jurors asked for several readbacks of the accuser's testimony. Now what that means, one could only speculate, but they are working.

Obviously, they have been at it for an extended period of time. There was a lot of speculation that they would come back with a verdict Friday. That was not the case. They are back at it for another day here. Over the weekend, Michael Jackson fired his spokesperson Raymone Bain, so getting updates as to where Michael Jackson is and his condition will be more difficult. There's no one for the 2,000 plus members of the media to call and get updates as to Jackson. We found that over the weekend. A notice was put up on the Michael Jackson Web site. And presumably, that is where we're going to get the bulk of our information from here on out.

Now, the court has not released any information as to the readbacks on Friday. We are waiting for official word from the court as to the daily movement of these jurors. But sources closest to the case tell CNN that, indeed, the jurors not only asked for those readbacks, but also asked several questions of the judge. Whether that means they're getting closer to a decision, we will just have to wait and see, and wait and see we will outside the courthouse.

There are a few fans out here today, but the numbers have really dropped off. In fact, it's quite dramatic, compared to last week. This morning there are just a handful of Jackson supporters outside the courthouse. We'll see if that changes as the day goes on -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Hey, is there other business taking place in this courthouse? People with lawsuits and other criminal matters that have to be settled? They have to deal with all this mess?

ROWLANDS: Indeed. And that has been the problem since this trial began. Folks trying to use this public facility have had to go around the media and all the fences here. They come through the back and it has been a problem for some people. And a lot of locals, as they pass by, they whisper and shout things at us and others here because, of course, they're put out because of all of this. They have to work around it.

KAGAN: All right, well, you be strong with the name calling there.

ROWLANDS: I'll try my best.

KAGAN: OK. Ted Rowlands in Santa Maria. Thank you.

About an hour ago, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on an appeal by Jose Padilla. He is the U.S. citizen held for three years as an enemy combatant. The high court rejected Padilla's request for an immediate decision on his detention. Padilla will now have to wait for a lower court to rule on that.

New York City police questioning a man who was found with various subway maps. That man was taken into custody Sunday after being found by firefighters in a commercial building in Brooklyn. Others who were with him got away after firefighters called police. Fire department officials report the man in custody was also found with fake identification.

And now to a mother's anguish and desperate hope for her missing daughter. It has been two weeks since 18-year-old Natalee Holloway disappeared on the Caribbean island of Aruba. The search goes on and five suspects have been arrested. Holloway's mother tells the Associated Press three of the men in custody know what happened to her daughter.

Beth Holloway Twitty suggests authorities may be trying to protect the young men. She says, quote, "All three of those boys know what happened to her and they know what they did with her that night." Lawyers for all five suspects say their clients are innocent. Meanwhile, local leaders say they're doing everything they can to find the missing teenager.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RUBEN TRAPENBERG, ARUBA GOVT. SPOKESMAN: Our hearts go out to the family of Natalee. The whole Aruban family, the whole community, feels for this. And we have been searching and we're going to keep on searching. And if these gentlemen had anything to do with it, we're going to get to the bottom of that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: Natalee Holloway's mother says she appreciates everything the authorities have done, but she won't be satisfied until, she says, gets her daughter back.

Turning to medical news now. An experimental drug could help diabetics who also suffer from high cholesterol. The pill controls blood fats as well as blood sugar. Researchers say it could be a better treatment for diabetics with cholesterol trouble, but the side effects may be worse than current drugs.

Americans with diabetes are less likely to spend time in the hospital than they were a decade ago. The CDC says hospitalization rates for serious complications from diabetes are declining. They fell 35 percent between 1994 and 2002. More than 18 million Americans have diabetes. Complications include kidney failure, heart disease, blindness and amputations.

Father's Day, reminder for you, this Sunday. But for a growing number of dads, every day may seem more like Mother's Day. Senior medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta looks at the role of stay at home dads in our "Daily Dose" of health news.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GUPTA (voice-over): Fifteen months ago, salesman Bill Cook got a new job. He traded phone calls, meetings and power lunches for feedings, nap time, and play dates.

BILL COOK, STAY-AT-HOME DAD: Daddy's got his list.

GUPTA: Cook is a stay-at-home dad.

COOK: People look at me like I've got two heads sometimes when I walk in and I've got three babies -- I've got the two babies and I've got my daughter with me, and they look at me, like, where's your wife? Why are you here by yourself?

GUPTA: Sure, they seem to be an anomaly, but two million men, according to the latest census findings, do it. That's four times the number of dads opting to hold down the home fort 20 years ago. A new generation of what some are calling Mr. Mom.

COOK: I get that a lot. Mr. Mom, Mr. Mom. No, it's Mr. Dad. Yes.

GUPTA: And while chaos reigns in movies like Mr. Mom, the scene at the Cook residence most days, placid, organized.

COOK: Where's his eyes?

GUPTA: Cook juggles the kids, while mom works her sales job from home.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Let me look into it and find out and give you a call back.

GUPTA: Far removed from the activity outside.

COOK: We looked at her job and looked at my job, and which one could we do without easier? And it was my job.

GUPTA: The biggest job for moms seems to be nurturing. So are 6-year-old Lauren (ph), and 1-year-old twins Connor (ph) and Sophie getting as much from dad as they would from mom? Studies say yes. Before a baby is born, dad's experience a surge in nurturing hormones, like estrogen and perlactin, which is the hormone coursing through you when you're in live. And the essentially male hormone testosterone dips by a third once baby is born.

COOK: I think you can learn to be nurturing. I think that's something that maybe not everybody, you know, may agree with, but I think for me, I was already, I think, nurturing in a way. And from having the experience at home, and I helped raise brothers and sisters and things like that, it came natural to me.

GUPTA: Dr. Kyle Pruitt has conducted the longest term studies on the children of stay-at-home dads, finding later in life they are better problem solvers, and not surprisingly, less prone to gender stereotyping.

The key, regardless of which parent stays home, says Pruitt, is that kids know they're being cared for by a parent who loves them.

KYLE PRUITT, YALE CHILD STUDY CENTER: When you look at the father's style, the mother's style, it's not that one's right and one's wrong, the child figures out a way to weave a stronger cloth, a fabric together, from these two lessons they are learning.

GUPTA: Cook's learning his lessons every day.

COOK: It's like a constant clean-up thing. Load of laundry.

GUPTA: But even more, he's truly involved with his kids.

COOK: It's very prideful. I mean, you see your kid, and all of a sudden they're crawling or they sat up, and that's really cool. That's a cool thing to see firsthand instead of getting a phone call and saying, hey, you now, your daughter just sat up or rolled over.

GUPTA: Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, Atlanta. (END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: To get your daily dose of health news online, log on to our Web site. You'll find the latest medical news, a help library and information on diet and fitness. The address is CNN.com/health.

Are you looking for that perfect family vacation? How about cheap and not too far away from home. Sounds good? That's what we have in mind in our "Getaway" segment, just ahead.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Every day, the human body produces enough to fill a quart-sized mayonnaise jar. That's pretty gross, right? At CNN.com/science, learn about grossology, the impolite science of the human body. It's a traveling exhibit for kids based on a series of books using their favorite gross subjects to interest them in science. The hands-on exhibit is a cross between an arcade and a jungle gym, and features different stations that let kids spin, shoot, climb, squeeze and smell all the gross thing the human body does.

Click through this interactive gallery to see kids learn how scabs, zits and blisters form by climbing the skin wall. See how many gross things you know about the body by testing your grossology I.Q. For example, where does the smell of onion and garlic breath come from? The lungs, mouth, stomach or tongue? You can log on and find out. And check the fact box for the grossology tour schedule, to find out when this grosser than gross exhibit is headed to a town near you. Hope I haven't ruined your appetite.

From the dot-com newsdesk, I'm Veronica De La Cruz.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: Still more to come this hour, but first, here's a preview of what's coming in the noon hour on "YOUR WORLD TODAY."

JIM CLANCY, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, I'm Jim Clancy.

ZAIN VERJEE, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Zain Verjee.

CLANCY: Coming up at the top of the hour, debt relief for Africa. Democratically elected Leaders of five African states meeting the U.S. President to talk trade and aid.

VERJEE: Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Another report chronicles abuse of the prison facility. Has it outlived its usefulness?

CLANCY: And justice delayed. A trial more than 40 years in the making. The case that helped turn the tide in the civil rights movement in the U.S.

VERJEE: All that and more just ahead on CNN. CLANCY: Join us.

KAGAN: Well, summer is upon us. A lot of Americans hitting the open road in search of a vacation to remember. If you are one of them, you have a list, actually we have the list, to give to you of lush locales for you to explore. The most popular national parks in the country listed in "National Geographic Adventure" magazine.

Andrew Berg is a senior editor at the magazine. What a cool jobs. He joins us from New York City.

Probably doesn't spend a lot of time in New York City, because he's in the cool places featured in this magazine.

Andrew, good morning.

ANDREW BERG, "NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC ADVENTURE": Good morning, Daryn.

KAGAN: Let's hit the road. You're picking some of my favorite places. Let's start out West in the Sierra Skyway.

BERG: Sierra Skyway is a phenomenal trip. This is a land of giants. You've towering cliffs in Yosemite, some bigger than the Chrysler building. You've got giant sequoia trees in Kings Canyon National Park. And you've got Death Valley as well, which is obviously an iconic lunar landscape worth seeing.

KAGAN: So the idea, you're encouraging people to make a road trip and kind of make a little theme out of it, like you did with the Sierras or the next one we're going to look at, Red Rock Route.

BERG: Yes, that's true. You know, 64 percent of people who visit our national parks don't even get out of their cars.

KAGAN: That's a big mistake.

BERG: It is. They may get out to take a photo or use the bathroom. But they don't take advantage of the activities and options in the park. So we put a few road trips together, seven of them, with each one hitting two national parks, some three, and give you great options.

Red Rock Route, as you mentioned, is a phenomenal one. Desert country.

Zion National Park is a phenomenal place, like running a watery obstacle course. You also can take in Bryce Canyon with these Hoodoo rock formations. They're really quite phenomenal.

And, of course, the Grand Canyon is also on that route.

KAGAN: Let's move a little bit north, Megaphona Mile (ph).

BERG: This is American's answer to the African Savannah, up in Yellowstone and the Grand Keatings (ph), you've got incredible wildlife. It's a fantastic place.

KAGAN: If you're into volcanoes, head to Washington State.

BERG: That's true. Great dormant volcanoes, glaciers towering over beautiful placid lakes. This is a really wile -- the wild child of the northwest.

KAGAN: And let's not forget about New England and Maine. Yankee Way, you call it.

BERG: That's true. We've got Baxter State Park, which is primeval forest. You know, the thing about Maine is you've got this incredible wild back country, but you're never too far from an inn or a restaurant to get your cup of chowder. It's a great trip as well.

KAGAN: And in the Midwest, Michigan and Minnesota, you call it the "superior path." Is that for Lake Superior?

BERG: It is. And this is my personal favorite.

KAGAN: I was going to ask you what your favorite was. Why is this one your favorite?

BERG: Well, this is water world. If you're a paddler, if you like canoeing or kayaking, there is a lot of great opportunities out there, in Voyagers National Park, phenomenal hiking trails. Most of which you paddle up to. So this is a great place to go if you're a hardcore enthusiast or if you're a beginner and you want to rent some kayaks and go for a trip with your family.

KAGAN: And finally, let's take it south to North Carolina and Tennessee. Blue Ridge Run.

BERG: Yes, the great Smoky Mountains, Pisgah National Forest. This I like to equate to the U.S.'s Amazon. You know, it's not a rain forest, but really great dense jungle canopy, lush, great wildlife. Pisgah National Forest, incredible mountain biking. If you're a mountain biker, that's the place to be going this summer.

Well, how they got you to sit indoors in New York City, I'm really not quite sure, but I'm glad they did. Great ideas for some summer road trips from Andrew Berg from "National Geographic Adventure" magazine.

Thank you.

BERG: Thank you, Daryn.

KAGAN: A check of your weather forecast. Business coming up in just a moment. We're back after this.

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KAGAN: To Germany now. The Berlin Zoo celebrating a special delivery. Actually, four of them. Aww. These frisky little wolves are quadruplets that are just about a month old and already they're fighting with the grown-ups over wanting to stay up late and howl to the moon. Very cute.

And Australia, a woolly win. The Aussie team outclipped the world in the 17 nations sheep shearing competition. Competitors were judged on speed and lack of nicks, even around the heavy neck wrinkles. We are told top shearers can handle more than 200 sheep a day. That is a lot of wool.

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KAGAN: That's going to do it for me. I'm Daryn Kagan. International news is up next. Stay tuned for "YOUR WORLD TODAY." Jim Clancy and Zain Verjee are with you after a quick break. I'll see you tomorrow morning.

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