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Barbara Plett reports for the BBC that Bashar al-Assad officially becomes president of Syria today. Al-Assad takes the oath before parliament as president of Syria after winning an overwhelming vote in a nationwide referendum to take over the post held by his late father Hafez for 30 years.

NPR's Chris Arnold reports on developing concerns about the pirating of Internet movies. The technology is called DIVX, and it compresses movie files on computers so the movies can be downloaded quickly.

NPR's Elaine Korry reports on the effects of the recent economic downturn in Silicon Valley -- where money that was made fast is money that disappears quickly too. Some of the people who made millions in high-tech start-up companies have watched their fortunes vanish, as stock prices have fallen since March.

Host Bob Edwards talks to Yuli Tamir, Israel's Minister for Immigrant Absorption, about the Israeli negotiating position at the current peace talks at Camp David. She says an agreement is possible, if Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat is as committed to peace as Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak.

NPR's Richard Harris has the story on a forthcoming report which indicates that the wobble in the Earth's rotation might be caused by water.

Karen Brown reports from Holyoke, Massachusetts on car clubs for young men. Members supe up their vehicles with accessories like impressive stereo systems, seventeen inch rims, leather interiors, and high-end performance parts. Clubs often take on extra jobs to pay for these modifications, and they compete in car shows. The clubs help to get some men off the streets, and have gained a certain degree of respectability in the city.

Howie Movshovitz of Colorado Public Radio reports that, despite another record breaking summer at the box office, many theater chains are deeply in debt. One major reason is that they've borrowed heavily to build new, high tech theaters across the country. And as movies spend less time in theatrical release, the profits even from blockbusters aren't offsetting increasing costs.

NPR's Rob Gifford reports on the meeting in Beijing between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Jiang Zemin. Today, both leaders signed a joint statement opposing U.S. plans to build missile shields over North America and Asia.

Linda talks with William G. Gale, a Senior Fellow of Economic Studies at The Brookings Institution about the tax burden on Americans 20 years ago, compared with the tax burden today.

Computers are a central part of most businesses. But doctors still tend to rely on paper records and charts to keep track of patients. NPR's Larry Abramson reports that most physicians are resisting efforts to get them to computerize patient information.

Commentator Lenore Skenazy expresses her thoughts about rodents and their place in Manhattan.

Linda talks with Steve Bowlin, Director of Public Works for the drought-stricken town of Throckmorton, Texas. He joins us by phone from the construction site of a pipeline, which workers began laying today to pump water from the town of Graham, 35 miles away from Throckmorton.

Host Bob Edwards shares letters from listeners.

Commentator Richard Rosenfeld compares the upcoming presidential election to the election of 1800, when Thomas Jefferson and John Adams were running against each other. Rosenfeld says back then, gun control was also a big issue.

Up until a few short weeks ago, Whittier, Alaska - a small town of 300 or so people could only be reached by rail. But now - the tunnel which links it to the rest of the state has been opened to vehicle traffic as well. As Anne Sutton reports, tourists are taking advantage of this and rushing to view the former army post. But what they're finding there isn't quite what they expected.

NPR's Linda Gradstein reports from Jerusalem on yesterday's protests by tens of thousands of Israelis, who oppose Prime Minister Barak's participation at the Camp David Summit. The demonstrators are against making concessions to Palestinians.

NPR Senior News Analyst Daniel Schorr says that the prospect of Congressional opposition to peace's price tag looms over the negotiations at Camp David.

Nancy Greenleese reports on the U.S. Olympic track and field trials in Sacramento, California this weekend.

NPR's Martin Kaste reports from Bogota on the radio program in Colombia that broadcasts messages to people who've been kidnapped. Colombia's National Radio Network airs the program, called Voices of Kidnapping. Family members are allowed to record messages to their loved ones, as long as their words are upbeat and don't criticize either the kidnappers or the government. An estimated two thousand people have been kidnapped in Colombia so far this year.

NPR's Andy Bowers reports on the upcoming Reform Party convention being held in Long Beach. In contrast to the Democratic and Republican convention, the Reform Party has two candidates vying for the party's presidential nomination. Ex-Republican Pat Buchanan is the clear favorite, but many expect John Hagelin, who's already the nominee of the Natural Law Party, to field a substantial challenge.

NPR's Cheryl Corley reports a new study by the group Railwatch says miles and miles of railroad tracks pose potential safety hazards and are not regularly inspected. The report also charges that increased transportation of hazardous materials by rail has raised public health and environmental risks. The railroads strongly dispute the report's allegations.

NPR's Steve Inskeep reports that George W. Bush made a campaign stop in Little Rock Arkansas yesterday. The Texas Governor toured a youth center, and later attended a fund raising dinner.

NPR's Tovia Smith reports on the ruling by a federal appeals court that upholds most of Massachusetts' restrictions on tobacco advertising. The court ruled that the restrictions do not violate the First Amendment.

NPR's Debbie Elliott looks at what comes next in the Florida smokers lawsuit, now that the jury has returned a $145 billion dollar judgement against the tobacco industry. Lawyers for the tobacco companies and the plaintiff's attorney have differing views on how the case should proceed next. Since this case is so unusual, there's no blueprint for how to move forward.

The first all-civilian space mission into orbit is expected to take flight from Kennedy Space Center on Wednesday evening. Private company SpaceX is running the mission — not NASA.