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NPR's Neda Ulaby looks into "soft-profanity creep" — and other dynamics informing the state of the, er, art — when it comes to drama series on basic cable.

An analysis of data from the Internal Revenue Service shows that incomes for the very wealthiest Americans have grown by nearly a third in recent years in the same period that those for the bottom 99 percent increased by only a fraction.

America's Cup yachts can gracefully skim above water at better than 40 mph, but Frank Deford says when he looks back at the seven seas in 2013 he'll remember 64-year-old Nyad "plowing, all by herself, freestyle, through 100 miles of surf from Havana to Key West."

Nathan Myhrvold, who made his name with inventions at Microsoft, is focusing these days on a different kind of technological advance: the threat from biological weapons. Myhrvold's in Washington this week to meet with national security leaders. He wants to convince them to spend time and energy on terrorist attacks that could cause the greatest damage.

The University of Wisconsin System will soon offer a new option for working adults who want to complete their bachelor's degree. Under the Flexible Option, students can earn credits and a degree, by proving they've mastered competencies. The Flex Option is aimed at helping more than 700,000 residents who have college credit but no degree, and adults who don't have time to attend classes.

Today marks the 12th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks. Over the last several years, a group of family members have created a movement to turn the anniversary into a national day of service. This year more than 30 million people will be involved, and they claim it's the largest day of service in the country.

The international focus on military action in Syria is further straining Turkey's war-stressed border villages. Syrian mortars continue to kill and wound civilians on the Turkish side. Displaced Syrians are still lining up on the Syrian side, waiting for permission to enter Turkey.

Joseph Sweet and a friend got lost in a cave in Watertown, N.Y., nearly 20 years ago. They grew so desperate for light that Sweet made little torches out of the only fuel he had, taking dollar bills from his wallet and setting them on fire. The good news: he got rescued. The bad news: he lost his wallet.

Jonathan Lethem's Dissident Gardens sketches a history of the American left that is at once intimate and expansive. Out of the lives of a few conflicted characters, reviewer Mohsin Hamid explains, the book lends depth and emotion to events that affected millions.

Also: Jennifer Weiner (kind of) apologizes to The New York Times; Edwidge Danticat on the Haitian earthquake.