KSMU

Yes, the Powerball is getting high - very high - $550 million. And NPR says your chances of being killed by a vending machine are higher than your chances of winning.

But could buying a ticket in the "Show-Me" state give you a leg up? 

If you believe that a state's track record of winning tickets has something to do with it, then maybe - though the odds, in fact, favor no one.

KSMU's Jennifer Davidson reported for this story.

The only mosque in Joplin, Mo. has burned to the ground.  The cause of the fire is still unknown.  The loss of property leaves the Islamic community there without a place of worship in its most sacred time of the year, Ramadan.

The imam of the mosque, Imam Lahmuddin, had only  finished leading the special “Taraweeh” night prayers a few hours before he was awakened by a phone call from the Jasper County Sheriff’s Department.  That prayer takes place every night around 10:00 during the month of Ramadan.

Nixon announces emergency assistance for farmers

Missouri Governor Jay Nixon was in Springfield Tuesday to announce emergency assistance to farmers who need access to water. At the Springfield Livestock Market, Nixon outlined a plan to make more state dollars available faster to farmers. An existing cost-share program is expanding. The state will pay 90 percent of the cost of deepening or drilling wells; previously, the state had covered 75 percent of the cost.

Reporting from KSMU's Jennifer Moore used in this report.

As we mentioned this morning, Missouri Governor Jay Nixon will travel to Brazil this month on a trade mission. The trip comes on the heels of the news that Missouri saw its strongest year ever for exports in 2011.