Ships Rerouted to Save Whales in San Francisco Bay

Federal maritime officials have approved a plan to protect whales in and around San Francisco Bay. Shipping industry representatives joined with whale researchers to establish new cargo lanes that will protect blue whales, the largest marine mammal, in their feeding grounds outside one of the busiest ports in the world.

By Jeanne Goddard

16 July 38 Views

Former Polluted Nuclear Weapons Site Now Bursts With Life

The Fernald Preserve was closed as a contaminated nuclear weapons plant in the 1990s, but now it is a place where birders and photographers and casual hikers roam among thick wildlife.

By Jeanne Goddard

26 April 49 Views

Feds to Allow States to Pay to Reopen Some National Parks

With the threat of so many tourist dollars being lost in the wake of National Park closures during the government shut down, governors have been given permission to reopen attractions like Mount Rushmore in South Dakota and Zion or Arches in Utah using their own money.

By Jeanne Goddard

10 October 47 Views

Statue Of Liberty Opens To Disabled Visitors for First Time

126 years to the day since the copper lady was first unveiled in New York City's harbor, and after a year-long renovation, the Statue Of Liberty is set to receive visitors once again inside her crown. A Sunday ceremony marked the reopening of the statue's crown and new access to a lower observation deck for the first time to visitors with disabilities.

By Jeanne Goddard

28 October 35 Views

FDA Connects Desperate Patients With Experimental Drugs

A little-known FDA program called compassionate use is giving seriously ill people a path to obtaining drugs that are still in testing.

By Jeanne Goddard

23 October 40 Views

High Court Says US Can Challenge Deals That Keep Generic Drugs Off Market

Handing down a 5-3 decision today, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Federal Trade Commission can challenge closed-door deals that the big pharmaceutical companies make with smaller generic rivals to keep cheaper products off the market and out of drug stores.

By Jeanne Goddard

17 June 32 Views

Frozen In Time: Chalkboard Drawings From 1917 Discovered During School Remodeling

While renovating an Oklahoma City school, construction workers uncovered chalkboards covered in sketches and lessons from nearly one hundred years ago.

By Jim Stout

28 July 33 Views

Stranger Pays Unpaid Court Fines to Break Cycle of Jail for Ex-Con

A stranger read about an ex-offender unable to cope with a cycle of court costs that kept sending him back to jail. So he wanted to give the man a new start.

By Jim Stout

11 August 32 Views

President Obama Wrote Checks to Struggling Americans, Says New Book

An inspiring new book by Washington Post reporter Eli Saslow reveals a few instances when President Obama personally helped struggling Americans whose stories reached him as part of a daily ritual to read ten letters from average citizens every day.

By Jeanne Goddard

22 October 36 Views

King's Legacy Honored At Memorial: A Symbol of the Best in America

Thousands attended the formal dedication Sunday of the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial on the National Mall – an emotional day for those, including President Obama, who came to honor the slain civil rights leader, calling him a man who stirred our conscience and thereby helped make our union more perfect.

By Jeanne Goddard

16 October 44 Views

Butterfly Boon as Mexico Stops Logging in Monarch Reserve

Illegal logging has practically been eliminated in the western Mexico wintering grounds of the monarch butterfly, according to a report released in August. The successful anti-logging patrols and payments to rural residents may help solve other forestry conflicts throughout the country.

By Jeanne Goddard

26 August 46 Views

(CORRECTION) First Native American Woman Federal Judge

A member of the Hopi tribe has become the first Native American woman confirmed as a federal judge, and, significantly, she will serve in Arizona.

By Jim Stout

17 February 37 Views

"One Tough Bison" Survives Lightning Strike to Thrive on the Range

A bison nicknamed Sparky by US wildlife rangers has not only survived, but thrived, since being struck by lightning while roaming an Iowa prairie.

By Jim Stout

12 January 37 Views

A Fiscal Hero, Rhode Island Treasurer Balances Interests to Reform State Pension Fund

Instead of getting abuse from state teachers whose pensions were cut, Gina Raimondo, Rhode Island's treasurer, who had quarterbacked the major reform, is receiving praise for saving the system from certain calamity. She is being called a fiscal Hero.

By Jeanne Goddard

24 September 39 Views

Boston Reduces Veteran Homelessness by 85%, Housing 533 Vets in 18 Months

Boston, Massachusetts has delivered permanent housing for 533 homeless veterans in just the past 18 months.

By Jim Stout

07 January 41 Views