Researchers have discovered an ancient forest of bald cypress trees along a North Carolina river, documenting some trees older than than 2,000 years old.One of the bald cypress trees along the Black River was documented to be at least 2,624 years old. [node:read-more:link]
The rate of death from diabetes is decreasing in metropolitan America while the rate remains relatively unchanged in rural areas. Researchers aren’t sure of the cause. [node:read-more:link]
Much of the debate concerning the ESA surrounds the role of economics, which plays an obvious role in determining the congressional budget allocations used to administer and implement the ESA. The ESA faces well-documented funding shortfalls (Miller et al., 2002; Stokstad, 2005), which may undermine the effectiveness of ESA recovery efforts (Ferraro, McIntosh, and Ospino, 2007) and have caused the number of species proposed for listing to outpace listing decisions, leading to backlogs (Stokstad, 2005). [node:read-more:link]
Humans are transforming Earth’s natural landscapes so dramatically that as many as one million plant and animal species are now at risk of extinction, posing a dire threat to ecosystems that people all over the world depend on for their survival, a sweeping new United Nations assessment has concluded. [node:read-more:link]
Over the next two years, Washington plans to lend $14.44 million and give another $7.11 million to public agencies, tribes and businesses to bring high-speed internet to rural areas and Indian reservations. [node:read-more:link]
At a roundtable meeting April 24, CEOs of rural North Carolina hospitals explained to Gov. Roy Cooper and state Health and Human Services Sec. Mandy Cohen that expanding Medicaid would help their institutions keep the doors open. There were some common elements to all their stories. [node:read-more:link]
Last week I saw a news story that the West Virginia state auditor had recently completed a report that concluded: Richwood “appears to be in more need of finance recovery than before the flood,” because, as the news report stated: “The report … concludes city leaders spent precious federal dollars to hire themselves, friends and family for flood relief jobs. Much of the money was not spent for its stated purposes. “ As a result, the mayor, the former mayor and the city recorder are charged with embezzlement. [node:read-more:link]
Rural communities are aging more rapidly than are other areas, in Wisconsin and across the country. Nearly everyone wants to stay in their community as they age. Increasingly, rural leaders are asking how they can help older residents to thrive. Some are pioneering age-friendly approaches that other communities can learn from.In Wisconsin, three coalitions—in Iowa County, Langlade County, and the city of Waupun—are working with the Center for Aging Research and Education (CARE) at the University of Wisconsin–Madison School of Nursing to support rural aging-in-place. [node:read-more:link]
Cases of an infectious disease that kills deer, elk, and moose are on the rise in Alberta. Similar to mad cow disease (BSE) in cattle, chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a prion disease of members of the deer family. Infected animals lose weight drastically (wasting), and suffer other symptoms like stumbling, lack of co-ordination, and drooling. CWD is fatal in all cases. There is no cure, treatment, or way to prevent it.But the study of a vaccine against CWD has made researchers in the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine (UCVM) hopeful. [node:read-more:link]
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals just launched a new campaign aimed at an unlikely audience of one. The organization wants President Trump to slash funding for the National Institutes of Health. PETA claims the agency wastes money funding “experiments on animals that fail to produce cures or treatments for humans.” So it paid a mobile billboard to drive around the president’s Mar-a-Lago resort urging him to “Cut $15 Billion!” from the NIH budget.PETA’s publicity stunts may garner attention, but they’re utterly divorced from reality. [node:read-more:link]
