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When the swirling, howling winds of the 1930s Dust Bowl gobbled up farmland from Texas to the Dakotas, the federal government planted 100 million trees to act like a giant windbreak. It worked. But now, after years of drought, those old trees are dying.

Norman Rush's newest novel takes a geographic hiatus from Botswana, his usual literary location. Instead, reviewer Drew Toal says the book is instead full of irritating intellectuals, postmortem scandal, and a group of collegiate clowns who come together after the death of an old friend.

A exhibit at L.A's Architecture and Design Museum focuses on eye-popping buildings and structures that were imagined for the City of Angels — but never actually built.

One word: oversupply. Too many ships were built before the 2008 global economic crisis. This drove down shipping rates, forcing the industry to scale back. The effects are still being felt. This week, a Finnish shipbuilder said it would close a yard that employed 700 workers.

Many members of Congress had been clamoring for President Obama to come to Capitol Hill for permission before striking Syria, but some Republicans say he should have acted without waiting for approval. Guest host Wade Goodwyn talks with NPR's Ailsa Chang on how Congress may vote.

Serena Williams will take on Victoria Azarenka in the U.S. Open final. Host Scott Simon talks to NPR's Tom Goldman about tennis, as well as the season opener of the NFL.

In what's thought to have been a gang-related incident, someone opened fire on a group of people in a park. The 3-year-old is in critical condition after a bullet struck his head.

With the city's parking meter lease making voters leery of new privatization deals, Mayor Rahm Emanuel called for too many public interest protections in the Midway Airport lease, and too few investors saw it as worth the risk. Increasingly, though, governments turn to private investors to run public assets like roads and prisons.

The America's Cup is winding down and many in San Francisco say it has fallen short of expectation — on and off the water. The defending champions Oracle Team USA, the hometown favorites, are close to defeat by Emirates Team New Zealand. The regatta will likely be remembered for failing to live up to its hype.

The search and rescue effort in Colorado is slowing down. While many are still listed as missing, officials are scaling back on the effort to find those trapped in areas severely affected by recent flooding. They say most people who wanted to get out have been able to do so.