(NPR's Larry Abramson is among the correspondents traveling with Defense Secretary Leon Panetta in Asia this week. Monday, he told us about a poignant exchange of artifacts. Today, he gives us a glimpse of what it's like to be in the secretary's motorcade.)

Here's a nightmare come true: a group of Indian villagers were gathered for a festival last month when they were attacked by a swarm of large, biting spiders. They're hairy, have fangs, and apparently latch on when they sink their teeth into their prey.

Calling Peter Parker.

Calling them "persona non grata," Syria today told 17 diplomats — including the U.S. ambassador — that they are no longer welcome in the country.

Jury selection starts today in the trial of former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky, who faces allegations that he sexually abused at least 10 boys over 15 years, sometimes on the school's campus. Sandusky has pleaded innocent.

"A torrential downpour and strong winds prevented emergency crews from returning Tuesday morning to a devastated neighborhood where a commercial airliner crashed, killing all 153 people aboard the plane and an undetermined number of people on the ground," The Associated Press reports from Lagos.

The wire service adds that:

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DAVID GREENE, HOST:

Polls open at 7 a.m. local time (8 a.m. ET) in Wisconsin, where the bitter battle over whether to recall Republican Gov. Scott Walker is finally coming to a conclusion.