On the one hand, it has the capability to defend itself and also to close the Strait of Hormuz, which is the most important oil passage of the world. And on the other hand, Iranian officials have sent a letter to say that they are ready to resume negotiations over nuclear programs in order to decrease tension. So Iranian officials have adopted a strategy of “carrot and stick” to the West.  

 

[The] BBC’s Mohsen Askari reporting.

 

Also today Iran claimed its scientists have produced a nuclear fuel rod for the first time that could provide fuel for nuclear reactors. 

 

Republican presidential hopeful Rick Santorum says President Obama hasn’t done enough to stop Iran from developing nuclear weapons. He told NBC’s “Meet the Press” that if he were president, he had bombed Iran’s nuclear facilities if that country refused to open them to weapons inspectors. A new poll shows Santorum is now in third place among Republicans in Iowa. The same Des Moines Register poll shows Mitt Romney in first place with 24% and Ron Paul in second place with 22%, meaning they’re statistically even. Paul says he’s happy with how he’s doing. 

 

“It remains to be seen, but I feel very comfortable with the growing number of people that come out to our rallies and the enthusiasm. I’ll tell you what, I think it’s, it’s a mistake if people want to write me off and say that I’m not with the people.” 

 

Paul was interviewed on ABC’s “This Week” just two days before the caucuses’ 21% said they’re still undecided or might change their minds. 

 

Chief Justice John Robert says he’s deeply committed to keeping the Supreme Court fair and impartial. He used his annual report of the judiciary to address calls for the high court to adopt a tougher ethics code. NPR’s Carrie Johnson reports.

 

Lawmakers and interest groups on both sides of the political isle have questioned whether Justice Clarence Thomas and Justice Elena Kagan can be fair when it comes to hearing a case on the Obama administration’s signature health care law. Both justices rejected calls that they step aside because of personal interest or bias. But some law professors still want the Supreme Court to develop its own ethics code. In his report, Chief Justice Robert says his colleagues already consult ethics codes and authorities used by lower court judges. And he says he has complete confidence in his colleagues when it comes to deciding when they should step aside. Carrie Johnson, NPR News, Washington. 

 

Authorities in New York say police arrested 68 protesters during an Occupy Wall Street protest last night. They were taken into custody as they torn down barricades surrounding Zuccotti Park.

 

This is NPR News. 

 

Police in Los Angeles County say they don’t know what they are dealing with—one arsonist, several or copycats. There were four more car fires last night, similar to dozens that broke out early yesterday morning and Friday. A hotline is taking tips, and investigators are looking through video footage for clues. 

 

NASA is celebrating the New Year’s Eve arrival of a space probe now in orbit around the moon. A second probe is expected to arrive today. NPR’s John Hamilton reports that together the twin spacecraft could help solve a big mystery about the moon’s history. 

 

Some researchers think the Earth’s single moon was once two moons. Maria Zuber of MIT says it’s possible that these moons were in the same obit and collided very gently.  

 

“Because the velocity of this second moon was so close to the moon itself, it basically bumped and stuck and it made a mountain instead of a crater.”

 

Zuber, who is the principal investigator of NASA’s current moon mission, says the two spacecraft will test this idea by measuring tiny gravitational changes as they orbit. These measurements should provide hints about events that happened billions of years ago when parts of the moon’s surface was still molten. John Hamilton, NPR News. 

 

Prognosticators say space travel will become more common for everyday people in the near future. 

 

“Commercial space tourism is going to grow really significantly during the coming decade.”

 

That’s Patrick Tucker, the deputy editor of Futures Magazine. He also expects tax books will be obsolete within the next 10 years, and that the nanotechnology used in digital cameras could soon help restore sight to the blind.