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John Lewis, the artistic director of the Modern Jazz Quartet, once said that Charlie Parker was the "only jazz artist whose every single solo was perfect." Confirmation: Best of the Verve Years captures "Bird" at the height of the bebop era when he was still in his twenties.

Across the U.S., the number of homicides in the past decade has declined, but prosecutors say it remains difficult to obtain murder convictions. With witnesses often reluctant to come forward, officials in Maryland are finding new ways to combat the problem. NPR's Jennifer Ludden reports.

The number of new SARS cases in Hong Kong is on the decline. Health workers there were able to identify -- and put a stop to -- specific practices that spread the potentially fatal disease. NPR's Joe Palca reports from the hospital where SARS was first discovered in Hong Kong.

The Bush administration announces on Wednesday that the polar bear will be protected as a threatened species because of the decline in Arctic sea ice from global warming. It's the first time that the Endangered Species Act has been used to protect a species threatened by the impact of climate change.

Zac Unger moved to Churchill, Manitoba, to cover the decline of the polar bear. It was 2008, and the adorable predators had become symbols in the battle over climate change. But the story he ended up writing in his new book was more complicated than he expected.

"I love being on Team USA and representing our country. My teammates were there for me during my events, and now I NEED to be there for them," said Adam Rippon, further endearing himself to a nation.

Fourteen-year-old Doug Swieteck has the weight of the world upon him — no friends, an alcoholic father and a brother who has just been injured in Vietnam. But the protagonist of this NPR Backseat Book Club book finds solace in an unlikely place — the pages of Audubon's Birds of America.

NPR's David Baron reports that wild turkeys, once endangered, are now making a comeback in the nation's forests. Unregulated hunting and the widespread clearing of land for farming had made the turkeys rare...but now, after careful monitoring and preservation efforts, the birds are staging a remarkable recovery.

In West Virginia, wild turkey hunting season is underway. About ten-thousand of the birds are bagged annually in the state. Hunters try to imitate the turkeys' call to attract them. Dan Heyman of West Virginia Public Radio has a report on the art, science and sport of turkey calling.

We've all been in stores and seen birds fluttering around and wondered, how did they get in there? Do they live there 24-7? Commentator Julie Zickefoose remembers a sparrow she met in her local grocery store that became quite popular with the employees there.

There's no new dance like "The Bird," but it's still time for The Time. Morris Day and The Time are out this week with a new CD, It's About Time. Morris speaks with NPR's Tavis Smiley about the record, his band and his time with music legend Prince.

Ken Perenyi made millions painting and selling more than 1,000 forgeries over 30 years. He's imitated the likes of Charles Bird King and James Buttersworth — and confesses it all in his new book, Caveat Emptor: The Secret Life of an American Art Forger.

NPR Senior News Analyst Daniel Schorr says despite stunning Republican victories in last Tuesday's election, President Bush has declined to engage in any chest-thumping and has been very modest in outlining the Republican legislative agenda for the 108th Congress.

The SARS death toll in Toronto reaches 21, but Canadian officials say the outbreak of the deadly respiratory disease is under control. They cite a decline in the number of people in quarantine, a decrease in new cases. But hospitals fear the spread of SARS among employees. Hear NPR's Richard Knox.

President Bush is aggressively touring the country to promote his call for private Social Security accounts. Yet polls show support for the president on this issue has declined in recent weeks. Even backing from some Republicans is in doubt on an issue the president acknowledges is politically risky.

The government says the nation's gross domestic product grew just 0.7 percent during the last quarter of 2002, a steep decline from the 4.2-percent growth during the preceding three months. NPR's Bob Edwards talks to NPR's Jim Zarroli.

New car purchases are at the lowest levels in 10 years. Nearly all major carmakers reported steep sales declines for June. Derek Mattsson, head of Vehix.com, says consumers are still favoring cars like the Honda Civic at the expense of U.S. vehicles.

Former Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, who died last month, is supporting Nicolas Maduro in Sunday's presidential election. How do we know? Maduro says Chavez came to him, as a bird, in a dream. For some Venezuelans, that's enough: Maduro leads the race by a considerable margin.

Commentator Lee Cullum argues against a bill a Congressional committee has already approved concerning an endangered species of bird in Texas. An original plan was to set aside a vast area for the Golden-Cheeked Warbler; the new Republican-backed bill says the warbler should be preserved in zoos, not in the wild.

An article in Audubon Magazine recalls the 19th century effort that ended the feather trade. Until a public outcry stopped the practice, thousands of birds across North America were slaughtered to provide decorations for women's hats. Hear Jennifer Price, author of the article, and NPR's Jennifer Ludden.