Miracle in the Desert Guest: Greg Bassenian, director of "Miracle in the Desert: The Rise and Fall of the Salton Sea"  The Salton Sea is the result of a failed irrigation project in California’s Imperial Valley. After a long history of boasting resorts, boating, fishing, and farming, the sea is finally starting to shrink. The future environmental consequences could be deadly.  The Invention of Los Angeles Guest: Gary Krist, author of  "The Mirage Factory: Illusion, Imagination, and the Invention of Los Angeles" LA was built against all odds—no water and no people in desiccated country. It took innovation, creativity, and a little deception to persuade people to come and make it thrive.