Rural residents who use broadband are more likely to vote, belong to a group, trust their neighbors, and do other activities that indicate civic participation. But researchers saw this difference only when residents used broadband, not just when it was theoretically available. That may have implications for how public broadband programs should focus their efforts. [node:read-more:link]
National employment has been on the rise since 2010, but most U.S. counties still have fewer jobs today than they did when the Great Recession started in 2008. Half of all metropolitan counties (580 out of 1,165) had fewer jobs in 2015 than they did in 2008. And a stunning 67 percent of nonmetropolitan counties (1,326 out of 1,969) had fewer jobs last year than they did before the recession. All the job growth has been in metropolitan America. [node:read-more:link]
In order to protect Texas’ endangered population of ocelots, special wildlife corridors are currently being built along a major highway in South Texas to make sure the animals are able to travel to other areas without being hit by vehicles. In South Texas, approximately 95 percent of the habitat has been cleared. [node:read-more:link]
The Rural Broadband Association is applauding the House of Representatives for passing the Communications Act Update Act of 2016, which includes provisions to combat problems of telephone calls failing to complete to rural areas as well as measures to relieve small business network operators from burdensome broadband obligations. NTCA CEO Shirley Bloomfield said the legislation holds great significance for rural Americans and the small hometown businesses committed to providing them with quality voice and broadband services. [node:read-more:link]
Gov. Jerry Brown has signed into law a bill that allows Californians to rescue animals trapped in hot cars without fear of prosecution. The bill signed on Saturday lets citizens smash car windows to set the pets free as long as there is no other way to rescue them. That means rescuers can break into the car if the animal appears to be in peril, the car is locked and law enforcement is not arriving quickly enough. The rescuer must stay at the scene until law enforcement respond to the situation. [node:read-more:link]
This city, where the rate of drug overdose deaths is nearly 10 times the national average, has done more than most to fight the heroin and prescription painkiller epidemic. Local police have been diverting drug users to specialized drug courts for treatment. The city opened a syringe exchange program to reduce the spread of infectious diseases among drug users. [node:read-more:link]
Krista Sizemore's brain was crying out for heroin. But she knew she was pregnant. She knew her baby needed her to stay safe. She knew what could happen if she used again. She thought she'd been through it all, even overdosing once in her father's home. Sizemore, 26, called her mother, Kimberly Wright. "I knew I wasn't going to stop without help," Sizemore said. [node:read-more:link]
Food habits of cougars (Puma concolor) in North America have been documented for western populations in the United States, Canada and Mexico. Most studies assessed diets of cougars occupying typical habitats, and within established populations. We evaluated food habits of cougars in prairie and agricultural landscapes in the Dakotas (regions that had been devoid of the species for roughly a century) located well outside of known resident populations. [node:read-more:link]
w pet stores in Palm Beach County will no longer be able to sell dogs or cats as part of an effort to crack down on substandard breeders known as puppy mills. Commissioners approved the measure despite concerns from animal advocates. They argued it doesn't go far enough to cut off demand for puppies and kittens from commercial breeders who may put profits ahead of animal welfare. Existing stores could continue to sell puppies and kittens provided they are purchased from a licensed breeder that meets U.S. Department of Agriculture standards. [node:read-more:link]
North Dakota continues to see bleaker-than-expected state tax revenue collections from declining slumping oil and crop prices in the state.Office of Management and Budget Director Pam Sharp says revenues for August totaled $139.3 million. That's $9.2 million less than what had been projected. [node:read-more:link]
