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DAVID GREENE, HOST:

It has been just over a week now since Curiosity, the NASA Mars rover, made its successful landing on the Red Planet. Curiosity is by far the most technologically advanced rover to reach the surface of Mars so far, and it's already begun sending back some pretty compelling, high-resolution photographs of the planet's surface. To talk about space and the importance of this mission, we're joined, as we often are, by Neil deGrasse Tyson, astrophysicist and director of the Hayden Planetarium in New York.

Over the past four years, Bruce Marks has been on a traveling road show to help people avoid foreclosure. His nonprofit, the Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America, has held more than 80 events in cities around the country. So far, Marks says, NACA has helped 202,000 people get their payments lowered so they can afford to keep their homes.

The regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad has been stung by a string of prominent defections, from the prime minister to a leading general to a military aviator who was Syria's first man in space.

Ra'ed, a soldier from Syria's most prestigious military unit, the Republican Guard, is among the defectors.

The guard's chief duty is to protect the Syrian leadership. But Ra'ed says he never felt proud to serve after he was drafted in June 2010 at age 19.

Ra'ed, who is now living in Lebanon, asked that NPR use only his first name out of concern for his safety.

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney's running mate, Paul Ryan, has staked out a reputation in Congress as a fiscal conservative. He has spoken out against President Obama's efforts to jump-start the economy with the stimulus law and, after a conversion a few years ago, now opposes earmarks. But when it comes to helping out his district in southern Wisconsin, Ryan's principles have been flexible.

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DAVID GREENE, HOST:

The Twitterverse is blowing up these days with a lot of talk of football, because its fans like me are very happy about the NFL season is getting close.

Here in Washington, D.C., fans are tweeting about Jordan Black. The Washington Redskins signed the offensive tackle during training camp and he has some work to do.

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

Which is why our last word in business is: chowing down.

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DAVID GREENE, HOST:

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RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

Good morning. I'm Renee Montagne. A cold winter, a stifling summer, and your power bill will spike. But Grace Edwards' electric bill had seemed high for 25 years. Connecticut Light and Power first told her it must be an extra TV or her air conditioning. Turns out, Edwards was paying to power two street lights. The Hartford Courant reports she's been issued a refund of $10,491, what she overpaid plus interest, plus an apology. It's MORNING EDITION. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright National Public Radio.