Alaska news

• Scientists use ice wedges to chart climate change in the Arctic

  18-03-2016 23:54
  
  For years scientist have known permafrost can act as reliable gauge to chart climate change in the north. A new study in the journal Nature Geoscience reveals the wide extent and speed in which ice wedges are degrading and altering the landscape.
  For years Anna Liljedahl and her colleagues have been charting changes in ice wedges that can form characteristic polygon shapes in the arctic landscape. Liljedahl is assistant professor at the University of Alaska Fairbanks’ Water and Environment
  
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• West High senior to defend Alaska’s national Poetry Out Loud title

  18-03-2016 23:30
  
  West Anchorage High School senior Shannon Croft takes a deep breath, then begins reciting John Keats’ “When I Have Fears That I May Cease to Be.
  West High School student Shannon Croft recites the poem “When I Have Fears That I May Cease to Be.” at the 2016 Alaska State Poetry Out Loud Competition (Photo: YouTube screenshot)
  Her recitation of John Keats’ poem on Tuesday won her the state championship of Poetry Out Loud. It’s a classroom-based poetry progra
  
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• Pet Sounds

  18-03-2016 22:00
  
  Charles’s dog Posey
  On this edition of Hometown Alaska, we’re talking about pets. We’ll have a pet behavior expert in the studio and we’ll share advice and take your questions. What do you want to know about animal health and discipline?
  HOST: Charles Wohlforth
  GUESTS:
  Dr. Mandy Seymour, pet behavior specialist
  PARTICIPATE:
  Call 550-8433 (Anchorage) or 1-888-353-5752  (statewide) during the live broadcast (2:00 – 3:00pm)
  Send email to hometown@al
  
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• Arctic Entries: Talk to the Hand

  18-03-2016 21:30
  
  Arctic Entries this month brings you Talk to the Hand, Stories of Taking a Stand, Getting Scorned, and Doing It Your Way. In the spirit of This American Life, The Moth, and other storytelling events, Arctic Entries brings Alaskans to the stage to share their personal stories: funny, sad and sweet. At every performance, seven people each tell a seven-minute long true story about themselves relating to the show’s theme. Local musicians perform a few songs as well.&n
  
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• Curbing unnecessary ER use

  18-03-2016 21:00
  
  Alaska has some of the highest health care costs in the world. In the state’s Medicaid program- one solution is reducing unnecessary trips to the Emergency Room. We’ll discuss a collaborative plan to help patients get the care they need in a less expensive setting than an emergency room.
  Entrance to Anchorage’s Providence Hospital emergency room. (Photo by Josh Edge, APRN – Anchorage)
  HOST: Annie Feidt
  GUESTS:
  Becky Hultberg, President and CE
  
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• 49 Voices: Patricia Ratcliff of Anchorage

  18-03-2016 20:05
  
  This week we’re hearing from Patricia Ratcliff from Anchorage. Ratcliff moved up here 30 years ago from the Dakotas to get married.
  RATCLIFF: Well the winters are longer. You only have three seasons. Well actually two: winter and spring. Where I grew up, it was all four seasons. It was winter it was cold, colder than it was here because we don’t have any trees. There’s a lot of wind back home. But you had really nice summers in the 90s. You know, you had fall. Right now I proba
  
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• Multiple Sclerosis

  18-03-2016 20:00
  
  Mo Hillstrand, ANP, DNPMultiple sclerosis (MS) is a quite variable, potentially disabling disease of the brain and spinal cord. In this disorder the immune system attacks the protective myelin covering of nerve fibers which perturbs the transmission of information between your brain and the rest of your body. This program will discuss the symptoms, treatment and support services in Alaska for patients withmultiple sclerosis.HOST: Dr. Thad WoodardGUESTS:
  Mo Hillstrand, DNP, ANP, A
  
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• AK: New “marriage” between Iditarod and politics

  18-03-2016 19:26
  
  It’s not rare to see mushers touting various brands and companies as they drive their dog teams down the Iditarod trail. Sponsorship is a major source of financial support. This year a few mushers have gotten involved in touting political candidates as both the congressional and presidential election season heats up.
  Senator Lisa Murkowski and musher DeeDee Jonrowe at the ceremonial Iditarod start (Photo by Patrick Yack, Alaska Public Media)
  Last month, US Senator Lisa Murkowski released a
  
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• Following end of Rubio campaign, delegates reapportioned

  18-03-2016 18:19
  
  The Alaska Republican party has awarded 14 delegates each to Ted Cruz and Donald Trump after Marco Rubio suspended his campaign earlier this week.
  Cruz edged Trump earlier this month to win the Alaska GOP’s presidential preference poll. Rubio placed third.
  Delegates were allocated proportionately to how well the candidates did in the poll. Initially Cruz was awarded 12 delegates, Trump, 11 and Rubio, five.
  Ben Carson and John Kasich also were on the ballot but didn’t garner the level
  
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• State loses bid for easements near Chicken

  18-03-2016 18:14
  
  In court, the state of Alaska lost its bid for easements along historic trails across Native Allotments near Chicken, in Interior Alaska. The Department of Law is now turning to the larger issue of getting easements along historic trails crossing private and federal land.
  Mon. March 14, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the U.S. Department of Interior, Tanana Chiefs Conference and Native allotment owners Agnes and Anne Purdy. Richard Monkman represents the regional nonprofit Tan
  
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• Urban Yeti meets Scared Scriptless

  18-03-2016 18:08
  
  Urban Yeti Improv
  This week, on Stage Talk, we “make it all up” with two of Anchorage’s top improv companies–Urban Yeti Improv and Scared Scriptless. Join Yeti John Hanus, Scriptless Kristen Doogan and Erik Dahl, who performs with both troupes as they yak it up talking about short forms, long forms and all the forms in between. Urban Yeti performs this Saturday, March 19th at the 49th State Brewing Company and Scared Scriptless performs next Saturday, March 26th at t
  
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• Peter Costello: Australia is not Alaska - Sydney Morning Herald

  18-03-2016 14:15
  Sydney Morning Herald
  Peter Costello: Australia is not Alaska
  Sydney Morning Herald
  Last weekend Harold Mitchell explored the Future Fund's investment performance. As Australia's Sovereign Wealth Fund, investing over $133 billion in five different public asset funds on behalf of future generations of Australians, we welcome interest ...
  

• West High senior to defend Alaska's national Poetry Out Loud title - KTOO

  18-03-2016 09:43
  KTOO
  West High senior to defend Alaska's national Poetry Out Loud title
  KTOO
  West Anchorage High School senior Shannon Croft takes a deep breath, then begins reciting John Keats' “When I Have Fears That I May Cease to Be.” An error occurred. Try watching this video on www.youtube.com, or enable JavaScript if it is disabled in ...and more »
  

• Barrow's Kamaka Hepa repeats as Gatorade Alaska Boys Basketball Player of the Year - Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

  18-03-2016 09:06
  Barrow's Kamaka Hepa repeats as Gatorade Alaska Boys Basketball Player of the Year
  Fairbanks Daily News-Miner
  FAIRBANKS—Barrow High School forward Kamaka Hepa garnered his second straight Gatorade Alaska Boys Basketball Player of the Year honor on Thursday. The 6-foot-9, 210-pound sophomore is a finalist for the national edition of the award, which ...
  

• Number of foster children in Alaska highest it's ever been - Juneau Empire (subscription)

  18-03-2016 09:05
  Juneau Empire (subscription)
  Number of foster children in Alaska highest it's ever been
  Juneau Empire (subscription)
  Amanda Metivier, left, and her foster daughter, Rachel Bedsworth, 19, walk to a meeting with a legislator in the Capitol on Thursday. Metivier is director of the nonprofit Facing Foster Care in Alaska. The pair are part of 22 members of foster families ...
  

• Alaska Science Forum: Broken ice causes the worst spring breakup floods - Juneau Empire (subscription)

  18-03-2016 09:05
  Alaska Science Forum: Broken ice causes the worst spring breakup floods
  Juneau Empire (subscription)
  NASA's Terra satellite captured this image of the Yukon River flood from 443 miles overhead on May 28, 2013. Image courtesy of NASA. By NED ROZELL. FOR THE JUNEAU EMPIRE. For half the year, Alaska's big rivers provide a somewhat flat surface, ...
  

• Google seeks car testing in Alaska - Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

  18-03-2016 09:02
  Google seeks car testing in Alaska
  Fairbanks Daily News-Miner
  JUNEAU — Self-driving cars are still years, if not decades, away, but Alaska's legislators think Alaska could be the perfect testing ground for the high-tech vehicles. A joint meeting of the House and Senate transportation committees hosted Google on ...and more »
  

• House prepares to advance Alaska Gov. Bill Walker's oil tax credit package, but contents remain a mystery - Alaska Dispatch News

  18-03-2016 05:26
  KTUU.com
  House prepares to advance Alaska Gov. Bill Walker's oil tax credit package, but contents remain a mystery
  Alaska Dispatch News
  JUNEAU — House Republicans are preparing to unveil their rewrite of Gov. Bill Walker's proposal to scale back the state's $630 million oil-tax credit program. The oil industry is watching closely. Related: Senate passes budget with more for university ...
  Alaska administration looking at how to proceed on cruise billFairbanks Daily News-Minerall 34 news a
  

• Never mind 'overreach,' keep that federal money coming to Alaska - Alaska Dispatch News

  18-03-2016 03:40
  Alaska Dispatch News
  Never mind 'overreach,' keep that federal money coming to Alaska
  Alaska Dispatch News
  OPINION: Sen. Murkowski and company should worry about bringing more federal investment in Alaska to offset the coming recession. Pictured: Sen. Lisa Murkowski and Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz listen to testimony in Bethel during a field hearing on ...
  

• Alaska News Nightly: Thursday, March 17, 2016 - Alaska Public Radio Network

  18-03-2016 02:46
  Alaska News Nightly: Thursday, March 17, 2016
  Alaska Public Radio Network
  Now even the Secretary of Defense says he would reverse the plan to cut nearly three thousand troops from Joint Base Elmendorf- Richardson. This further increases the likelihood the 4-2-5 Brigade Combat Team will stay in Anchorage, at least for another ...
  

• Alaska News Nightly: Thursday, March 17, 2016

  18-03-2016 02:45
  
  
  Stories are posted on the APRN news page. You can subscribe to APRN’s newsfeeds via email, podcast and RSS. Follow us on Facebook at alaskapublic.org and on Twitter @aprn
  Download Audio
  Defense secretary on board with keeping JBER unit
  Liz Ruskin, APRN-Washington, DCNow even the Secretary of Defense says he would reverse the plan to cut nearly three thousand troops from Joint Base Elmendorf- Richardson. This further increases the likel
  
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• Traveling Music 3-20-16

  18-03-2016 02:27
  
  Traveling Music
  Shonti Elder
  3-20-16
   
  Format:
  Song TitleArtist / Composer
  CD Title
  Label
  Duration
   
  Are You Tired of Me My Darling? (instrumental)
  Darol Anger / Carter family
  Heritage
  Six Degrees Records
  4:50
   
  Dear Companion
  Lissa Schneckenburger / Traditional
  Lissa Schneckenburger
  Footprint Records
  2:42
   
  In My Final Hour
  Darrell Scott / Darrell Scott
  The Invisible Man
  Full Light Records
  3:12
   
  Easy Silence
  Dixie Chicks / Dan Wilson, Natalie Maines, Emily Robison, Mar
  
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• State, feds pursuing better coordination after wolf kill in national preserve

  18-03-2016 02:02
  
  This photo was published in an ADFG pamphlet “Understanding Intensive Predator Management in Alaska,” part of the Department’s efforts in 2012 to educate the public about practices that have been controversial, especially to observers outside Alaska. (Credit Steve Dubois/ADF&G)
  State wolf control in the vicinity of Yukon Charley Rivers National Preserve has prompted agencies to pursue better cooperation. A wolf was killed by the state inside the Preserve earlier this month.
  
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• Lawmakers examine Power Cost Equalization Endowment Fund

  18-03-2016 01:51
  
  The Kwigillingok Power Plant. Photo: Rachel Waldholz/APRN
  Rural Alaskans can pay three to five times as much for electricity than those in urban areas. That’s why the state launched the Power Cost Equalization Endowment Fund in 2000. It’s paid roughly $40 million annually to subsidize rural energy bills.
  But some are questioning whether the fund, which now is worth $900 million, should be committed to benefit only about one in nine Alaskans.
  Senate Finance Committee Co-Chairwoman Ann
  
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• PERF report recommends 67 more APD patrol positions

  18-03-2016 01:43
  
  A new report on policing in Anchorage says the city needs dramatically more officers to meet its public safety goals.
  “This bolsters what we’ve been saying,” Anchorage Mayor Ethan Berkowitz said.
  Berkowitz campaigned on building up the Anchorage Police Department’s staffing levels after declines during the Sullivan Administration.
  The new report by the non-partisan policy group the Police Executive Research Forum—or PERF as it’s more commonly known—is an
  
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• Seabird die-off takes twist with carcasses in Alaska lake

  18-03-2016 01:31
  
  Dead murres on the beach in Haines on Jan. 12, 2016. (Tim Ackerman)
  The massive die-off of a widely distributed North Pacific seabird continues to surprise federal scientists.
  The latest twist was the discovery of thousands of carcasses of common murres along a freshwater Alaska lake.
  U.S. Geological Survey research wildlife biologist John Piatt says an estimated 6,000 to 8,000 carcasses were counted last month on the shore of Lake Iliamna in southwest Alaska.
  Common murres spend winters at
  
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• Alaska GOP reallocates delegates with Rubio out

  18-03-2016 01:25
  
  Voters in Sitka during the August 2014 state primary election. Photo: Rachel Waldholz/KCAW
  The Alaska Republican party has awarded 14 delegates each to Ted Cruz and Donald Trump after Marco Rubio suspended his campaign earlier this week.
  Cruz edged Trump earlier this month to win the Alaska GOP’s presidential preference poll. Rubio placed third.
  Delegates were allocated proportionately to how well the candidates did in the poll. Initially Cruz was awarded 12 delegates, Trump, 11 and Rubio,
  
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• It’s herring season! Sitka sac roe fishery opens on short notice

  18-03-2016 01:23
  
  Herring fishing opened about 10 miles NW of Sitka. Early test fishing wasn’t very productive, leaving many to believe that fishing wouldn’t happen today (Thu 3-17-16). But then a large school was found near Kruzof, and seiners opened their season. (KCAW graphic)
  The commercial herring season opened Thursday, more abruptly than in past years. Herring seiners had about 2-days’ notice to get to Sitka. And then about another 4 hours’ notice to prep their gear.
  Although winter
  
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• Sitka Sound Science center hatches new experiment

  18-03-2016 01:18
  
  A view of the squid eggs from the top of the tank. (Brielle Schaeffer, KCAW photo)
  The Sitka Sound Science Center raises millions of salmon at the Sheldon Jackson Hatchery every year but recently the organization started nurturing another type of sea creature.
  A few weeks ago, Roger Vallion was diving on the anchor near the center’s salmon net pens when he found a curious, white egg mass.
  He brought this to the attention of Angie Bowers, the center’s aquaculture director.
  “And
  
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• Tribal council wants pre-mine ecosystem study - Alaska Public Radio Network

  18-03-2016 01:17
  Alaska Public Radio Network
  Tribal council wants pre-mine ecosystem study
  Alaska Public Radio Network
  Barbara Blake, special assistant to Lt. Gov. Byron Mallott, answers a question about transboundary mining while Tlingit-Haida Central Council's Rob Sanderson Jr. listens at a Native Issues Form on March 9, 2016, in Juneau. (Photo by Ed ...
  

• Tribal council wants pre-mine ecosystem study

  18-03-2016 01:16
  
  Barbara Blake, special assistant to Lt. Gov. Byron Mallott, answers a question about transboundary mining while Tlingit-Haida Central Council’s Rob Sanderson Jr. listens at a Native Issues Form on March 9, 2016, in Juneau. (Photo by Ed Schoenfeld/CoastAlaska News)
  Southeast Alaska’s largest tribal government is pressing for an intensive environmental analysis of the region’s health. It’s part of a larger push for protection of transboundary rivers, which flow from British
  
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• Freeride athletes excited to take on ‘famous mountains’ of Haines

  18-03-2016 01:10
  
  Snowboarder Flo Orley competing in Haines in 2015. (Photographer: David Carlier/Freeride World Tour)
  An international big mountain ski and snowboard competition is back in Haines. The Freeride World Tour tests the skills of alpine athletes from around the world, with stops in five countries. The athletes say the slopes in France, Austria and Andorra don’t compare with the mountains in Haines.
  Residents in Haines might be surprised to find out, the peaks that make up our daily backdrop have
  
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• Municipality updating Anchorage’s dated land use plan

  18-03-2016 01:03
  
  Data is driving the formation of the newest Anchorage Bowl Land Use Plan Map. (Photo by Josh Edge/APRN)
  The Municipality of Anchorage is well on its way to producing an updated land use plan for the Anchorage Bowl.
  The map currently in use has not been updated since 1982.
  The most-recent projections – which have been adjusted since the price of oil has declined – anticipate Anchorage’s population will grow between 15,000 and 45,000 people within the next 25 years.
  That means ci
  
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• Warm temperatures likely to continue across Alaska, according to spring forecast - KTUU.com

  18-03-2016 00:54
  KTUU.com
  Warm temperatures likely to continue across Alaska, according to spring forecast
  KTUU.com
  The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released its spring forecast for Alaska today, predicting continued warmer-than-average temperatures across the state for the next few months. The southern areas of Alaska in particular can expect ...and more »
  

• Carter: Infantry Brigade to Stay in Alaska - Military.com

  18-03-2016 00:41
  Military.com
  Carter: Infantry Brigade to Stay in Alaska
  Military.com
  The 4-25 Brigade Combat Team was all but guaranteed to stay in Alaska for at least another year, according to Ash Carter. Secretary of State John Kerry speaks to reporters at the State Department in Washington, Thursday · Kerry Determines ISIS ...and more »
  

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