Author: Fernando Santos

An Alaska fisherman is showing off an unusual catch – a rock greenling.  It might not sound that impressive, but the eye-popping rare fish truly looks too out-of-this-world to be real – but it is. Blue meat and all.  Rock greenlings are part of the common species of greenling fish. Rock greenlings in particular are found along the Pacific Coast, from the Bering Sea in Alaska to Point Conception in California, though the species is fairly uncommon further south.  Rock greenlings aren’t an impressive catch size-wise; they only get up to about 24 inches in length and less than 2 lbs. in weight.  But in trying…

When Brandy Barnes got the first notice that she might be dropped from Medicaid, she was worried. One of her teenage sons is autistic and needs significant care to lead a full life. “My main concern is that my son is disabled,” she said. “He has therapies, medications, doctor appointments that cannot be dropped. I started asking around, and apparently this was happening to everyone.” She said everything from his education to his bus pass are dependent on his Medicaid status. Barnes was proactive during the pandemic and updated her paperwork with the state. But this summer she got a…

North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University’s ascent continues this fall in U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Colleges 2024” issue, which recognized it as one of the 25 “most innovative” universities in America. The widely referenced annual guide to America’s leading higher education institutions, released today, also saw N.C. A&T move significantly higher across a range of categories: Undergraduate Business Programs (up 55 positions), National Universities (up 18), Undergraduate Engineering Programs (up 15), Top Public Universities (up 4) and Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBUs) (up 2). But the Most Innovative ranking, which saw A&T move up by 27 positions to a…

The U.S. secretary of Housing and Urban Development said Thursday that she is open to reviewing changes in how the federal government funds local homelessness efforts in Alaska, but made no specific commitments after a meeting with officials and elected leaders in Anchorage. Secretary Marcia Fudge, the nation’s top housing administrator, attended a Thursday roundtable at Covenant House, a youth homeless shelter in downtown Anchorage, hosted by Alaska Republican U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan. It was the latest in a string of visits by Biden cabinet officials to the state this summer during the August recess. “Every person in that room today … understands…

Coronavirus is on the rise in the U.S., prompting questions about when Americans can roll up their sleeves for the next COVID-19 vaccine. COVID-19 hospitalizations have been increasing for six straight weeks. While levels remain far below previous coronavirus waves in the U.S., it’s still the first increase since winter, and it has even prompted the return of mask mandates for a handful of businesses and schools. The Biden administration estimates that 97% of Americans ages 16 and over have some level of COVID-19 immunity through vaccination, previous infection or both. The number may sound promising – so why do people need another round…

The U.S. weather agency is exploring the ocean around the Aleutian Islands aiming to map the sea floor and make discoveries about undersea life. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) research ship, called Okeanos Explorer, is on a five-month mission. It is a former U.S. Navy ship, which has been changed to meet current needs. Civilians and members of the NOAA Corps are carrying out the mission. The ship has a 48-member crew. It has technology and tools to gather information about the deep ocean and to immediately share it with researchers. The hope is that the data will be…

The former chief of staff was indicted with Trump and 17 others on Monday. Former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows officially filed Tuesday to move the case brought against him by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis into federal court, just a day after he was indicted along with former President Donald Trump and 17 others on charges of attempting to overturn Trump’s election loss in the state. The filing from Meadows’ attorney George Terwilliger and Atlanta-based attorney Joseph Englert is based on a federal law that they argue requires the removal of criminal proceedings brought in state court to…

As Congress pursues the study of mysterious sightings, retired US whistleblower reveals alleged government cover-ups and brutal retaliation tactics. The US Congress has held a public hearing on claims the government was concealing a longstanding programme that retrieves and reverse engineers unidentified flying objects (UFOs). Three retired military veterans testified on Wednesday before a House Oversight Subcommittee that was the Congress’s latest foray into the world of UAPs – unidentified aerial phenomena, the term the US government uses instead of UFOs. The US government has begun taking the issue of UAPs more seriously in recent years, pushing for more research as…

Ukrainian troops will continue offensive operations and destroy Russian depots of equipment, weapons and ammunition in the Melitopol direction. The situation in Kharkiv and Lugansk regions Russian troops carried out ground attacks along the administrative border of the Kharkiv and Luhansk regions and south of Kremennaya. The Ukrainian General Staff reported that Russian troops were trying to advance northwest of Svatovoye near Berestovoye, Novoselovskoye and Stelmakhivka and south of Kremennaya near Berestovoye and Vesely. A Russian military blogger claimed that Russian troops unsuccessfully tried to cross the Zherebets River between Svatov and Kremennaya and attacked from Karmazinovka towards Chereshchina. Russian sources…

Janet Yellen highlighted record bilateral trade between the US and China and also spoke about a “fair set of rules” during her four-day China visit. The US Treasury secretary’s visit is Washington’s latest attempt to repair ties as the two superpowers have faced challenges in their relationship and have frequently been at loggerheads with each other. During her meetings with top Chinese officials on Saturday, Yellen, 76, told vice-premier He Lifeng that a 2022 record in bilateral US-Chinese trade showed there is “ample room for our firms to engage in trade and investment”. Recent trade data accessed by Reuters indicated that two-way trade between the two countries…