By Rebekah Kebede/The Thomson Reuters Foundation

KINGSTON, Jamaica – An unwelcome visitor sailed onto Caribbean beaches this year: huge rafts of seaweed.
The seaweed, called sargassum, has swept into the region in part as a result of changing weather conditions, turning many once-postcard-perfect beaches a dull pond-scum brown as it decomposes and releases a rotten egg stench.
“It’s a dirty horrible brown lace that just washes ashore,” said Noorani Azeez, CEO of the Saint Lucia Hotel and Tourism Association. “The foul stench of the seaweed is really an inhibitor to going (to the beach) with your family.”

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Posted on November 30, 2015

By Helene Smith

Begin learning.
(ENLARGE FOR PROPER VIEWING)

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Posted on November 27, 2015

By Chris Prentice/Reuters

A mountain of peanuts is piling up in the U.S. south, threatening to hand American taxpayers a near $2-billion bailout bill over the next three years, and leaving the government with a big chunk of the crop on its books.
Peanut growers in states including Georgia and Alabama boosted sowing acreage by a fifth this spring and now are wrapping up harvesting their 3.1-million-ton crop, the second-largest ever, even as prices plumb seven-year lows.
There is a debate over why it is happening and how long the supplies and costs will build. Farmers and peanut groups blame the glut on poorer market conditions for alternative crops, such as cotton and corn, and improving yields as a result of crop rotation and new varieties.

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Posted on November 26, 2015

By The Forest Preserves Of Cook County

Wintertime brings numerous family-friendly ways to get outdoors to enjoy the Forest Preserves of Cook County. Forest Preserves visitors can experience fun activities including sledding, snowshoeing, snowmobiling and more.
Throughout the winter, visitors can enjoy cross-country skiing in all parts of the Forest Preserves, except for golf courses and nature centers, from sunrise to sunset. Sagawau Environmental Learning Center, 12545 W. 111th St. in Lemont, offers a complete Nordic Ski Program, including groomed trails, equipment rentals and beginner lessons.
For those looking to try something new, snowshoeing events will be offered at many Forest Preserves locations. Visitors can enjoy snowshoeing lessons, hikes and more. For a calendar of snowshoeing events, visit http://fpdcc.com/events/category/activity/snow-shoeing/.
The Forest Preserves offers nine different sledding and coasting hills for the 2015-2016 season. Dan Ryan Woods, Caldwell Woods, Deer Grove Picnic Grove #5, Westchester Woods and Pioneer Woods offer sledding with lighting from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.; and Indian Hill Woods, Indian Road Woods, Schiller Woods and Deer Grove Picnic Grove #4 offer sledding without lighting from 10 a.m. to sunset. To learn more, visit fpdcc.com/recreation/sledding-coasting.

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Posted on November 24, 2015

By The Energy Education Council

SPRINGFELD, Ill. – Thanksgiving weekend for millions is when the boxes of lights come out and the holiday decorating begins. Unfortunately, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission reports that more than 12,500 people are sent to the emergency room every holiday season because of injuries sustained from lighting and decorating. To keep the holiday season merry and bright, learn from the tragic experience of Shawn Miller who encourages people to educate themselves about electrical safety to avoid tragedy.
“I was just hanging Christmas lights at my mom’s house like I do every year,” explains Miller. “Only this time, I was decorating a new area – the trees that lined the front of the yard.” As he tossed lights up into the trees, 7,200 volts of electricity entered his body, traveling from the overhead power lines through his strand of lights. He suffered 27 exit wounds as well as the loss of his left hand and a finger on his right hand.

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Posted on November 23, 2015

By Helene Smith

River North.
(ENLARGE – TWICE! – FOR PROPER VIEWING)

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Posted on November 20, 2015

By CHIRP Radio

CHIRP Radio produced this report in September.
“The civil war in Syria drove the Adris family from their home. The war claimed three family members. After a three-year wait, they were able to resettle in Chicago thanks to the Syrian Community Network, and Suzanne Akhras Sahloul, who runs that organization as a volunteer.”

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Posted on November 19, 2015

By Free Spirit Media

“In this newscast, FSM News South details the experience of high school students, focusing especially on seniors. Montell Moore and Desiree Williams anchor this show with topics ranging from senioritis to financial aid. Produced by teen journalists at the Gary Comer Youth Center in Chicago.”
Also: Sophomores are irrelevant.

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Posted on November 18, 2015

By The Forest Preserves Of Cook County and the Brookfield Zoo

A century after near-extinction from the State of Illinois and decades after reintroduction, an urban river otter has found its way into the southern region of the Forest Preserves of Cook County, calling an isolated pond within the preserves home.
The Forest Preserves of Cook County and the Chicago Zoological Society (CZS), which operates Brookfield Zoo, have since collaborated to study the otter’s behavior. CZS veterinarians surgically implanted a transmitter in the otter, allowing wildlife biologists to track how the animal moves and learn how far the otter travels from its home base, while hopefully leading researchers to other otters in the area.
Dr. Mike explains:

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Posted on November 17, 2015

By J.J. Tindall

Every Cloud a Sphinx
They stray across the white-blue sky
In pieces, like classical statues
Of old gods and bitter generals, or
Streamlined griffins and soft sphinx.
I infer the nearly-unmediated sublime,
Mediated only by mind.
Then suddenly, an anomaly
In the blue, suburban sky:
Every cloud a sphinx!

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Posted on November 16, 2015