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As summer heads for fall: Serena Williams is poised to win again; football opens in earnest; and the real Olympic spirit is still on display. Host Scott Simon talks with NPR's Tom Goldman.

A new book analyzes feathers in birds. A reporter says cellphones collect more than we realize. An advocate who entered an assisted living facility at 53 talks about recording residents' final days and how death is handled "very poorly" in facilities.

After two decades of the Dave Matthews Band, the singer-guitarist says working with the same people remains an engaging challenge.

Some black voters in the Youngstown, Ohio, area are expressing reservations about President Obama this year because of his stance on some social issues that offend their religious beliefs. It's unclear, however, how many will sit home or change their votes as a result.

As the NFL regular season opens this weekend, place-kicker Jason Hanson is preparing for his 21st consecutive season with the Detroit Lions. That's a record in the league — no small feat in an industry where a missed kick can cost you your career.

The last time Republicans held the spot was in 1997. Richard Tisei might be their answer for taking it back. The openly gay candidate is getting a boost from a family scandal surrounding the incumbent Democrat, Rep. John Tierney.

Turkish officials recently arrested several suspected Iranian spies. But these cases are but a pale echo of Turkey's heyday as a mecca for spies. During World War II, Istanbul was a crossroads that swarmed with agents. It has inspired authors from Eric Ambler to John le Carre — a tradition that continues today.

Many people were reminded of the synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys when they helped close out the 2012 Olympic Games in London with their biggest hit, "West End Girls." The duo, however, has continued to make new music since forming in 1981, and have just released their 11th studio album, Elysium.

Michael Chabon's eighth novel, Telegraph Avenue, delves deeply into issues of art, race and sexuality. The book started with a "very tiny world," Chabon says, a vinyl record shop not unlike a Berkeley store that inspired him in the late '90s.

The debate over states' rights versus federal power is as old as our country, but this time the subject of controversy is relatively new. As Americans' views on homosexuality change, more states are stepping up to challenge the federal definition of marriage.