Minnesota Sen. Al Franken, expressing concern about extreme medical expenses at Tuesday's Senate Judiciary Subcommittee hearing on medical debt and bankruptcies, asks questions (and answers them himself) about comparisons between U.S. medical bankruptcy rates and those in other countries.

Franken is addressing a scholar from the Hudson Institute, a think tank that forecasts trends for governments and businesses.

You can decide for yourself whether Franken actually "humbles the scholar," as the poster claims in the title of this clip, which was taken from the 100-minute hearing that can be viewed on C-SPAN.

Gov. Tim Pawlenty was a guest Tuesday on CNBC's "The Kudlow Report," where he talked about how America can revive the U.S. dollar and American prestige oversees. Pawlenty said the No. 1 way to strengthen the dollar is to stop printing money. Pawlenty mentions that if the recession is officialy declared as ending late last summer, then almost none of the stimulus money was spent before the economy recovered by itself — therefore it grew the deficit irresponsibly.

Host Larry Kudlow got a chuckle out of Pawlenty aftter introducing him as a GOP presidential contender for 2012. Pawlenty, still mum as ever about his bid, responded that Kudlow was jumping to conclusions.

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) has created an interactive map system where anyone can find out what type of environmental activities are happening in their community or anywhere else in the state. Called, "What's in My Neighborhood," the web map can display environmental permits, hazardous waste sites, watershed directs and other points deemed of interest by the MPCA or its partners. The map also includes historical listings, such as formerly contaminated sites.

Below is a short tutorial on how to use the web map and find out what's in your neighborhood.

A team of University of Minnesota students got the chance to design, construct and engineer an entire home powered completely by the sun. The solar decathon took place in Washington, D.C., and hosted teams from around the world. Take a video tour inside the construction of the home below.

Read more about how the U team took first place in lighting design.

An amendment proposed by Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., caught the attention of "The Daily Show's" Jon Stewart. The amendment would protect defense contractor employees' right to sue their employers.

The amendment was created following the case of Jamie Leigh Jones, who was raped by a group of coworkers at Halliburton/KBR, a government contractor. She was then locked in a crate to prevent her from seeking help. Since her contract with the company required her to take her case to arbitration she was not allowed to sue her employer.

Yet, this Franken amendment wasn't as much of an obvious "slam dunk" as it seemed to Stewart. The amendment passed with 30 votes against it, causing Stewart to ask, "I understand we're a divided country, some disagreements on health care. How is anyone against this?"

In today's technology-centered world, what used to be an all paper trail documenting state law and other legislative records is now being recorded straight to digital form. Yet, all that information still needs to be documented and preserved, creating challenges for paper-centered libraries and repositories.

Minnesota Speaker of the House Margaret Anderson Kelliher, along with the Minnesota Historical Society, describe how new methods to preserve and provide access to the growing amount of digital records of state legislatures are being paid for though a grant from the Library of Congress' National Digital Information Infrastructure and Preservation Program. The Minnesota Historical Society was charged with preserving the legislative records of Minnesota even before it became a state.

Rep. Erik Paulsen, R-Minn., took a moment on the House floor to congratulate the Minnesota National Guard Honor Guard team for its  victory in the honor guard competition in Fort Myer, Va., last month. The competition was first narrowed down by DVD submissions to eight four-person teams. Then teams were tested in skills and knowledge,  such as funeral honors and uniform presentation. The Minnesota Guard team was finally able to unseat the two-year Oregon champions, which means Minnesota will automatically be able to return for next year's competition.

Here is a 2007 Honor Guard competition video highlighting the type of skills on which teams are tested.