The Life of Sandra Day O’Connor
Sandra Day O’Connor, who made history as the first woman to serve as a U.S. Supreme Court justice, died on December 1, 2023. She was 93 years old. O’Connor’s Professional Beginnings Before she became a Supreme Court justice, Sandra Day grew up on a 250-square-mile cattle ranch on the border of Arizona and New Mexico. […]
The Pima Canals: A Solution for Modern Water Problems in the Southwest
As early as the 1600s, Spanish missionaries considered the Pima people in southern Arizona as the gardeners of the dry American Southwest. The Pima used canals dug by their ancestors to water their fields of wheat, corn, beans, and fruit trees. That is, until American settlers upstream diverted the water of the Gila River, which […]
Stuff YOU Should Know
A Festival of . . . Camels? Now that summer is approaching, festival season is upon us. Across the United States, you can find festivals celebrating nearly everything, from hot air balloons to sauerkraut, from corn to walleye. But here’s one festival you’ll need to travel a bit further for: the Thousand Camel Festival. Held […]
Midterm Election Update
This week’s story update on the Election Central Web site provides an update on the close midterm election races that were not resolved after the events of Election Day on November 6. Imagine that you’re running for political office. It’s a close race, and as the numbers roll in on Election Night, you’re not sure […]
Teachers Walk Out for Education
Last month, btw brought you the story of a statewide teachers’ walkout in Oklahoma that lasted for nine days. During that time, the striking teachers filled the statehouse, protesting the legislature which has been steadily taking away funding from public education. Despite not getting everything they had hoped for, the Oklahoma teachers did make some […]
Stuff YOU Should Know
John McCain Diagnosed with Cancer Senator John McCain has recently been diagnosed with glioblastoma, a very aggressive form of cancer that forms in the tissue of the brain and spinal cord. Last Friday, McCain underwent surgery to remove a blood clot at the Mayo Clinic Hospital in Phoenix. During surgery, doctors confirmed the presence of […]
Stuff YOU Should Know
Oscar Night! Even if you didn’t watch the 86th Annual Academy Awards, you likely saw this picture by host Ellen Degeneres as it made its rounds across the Internet’s social media. Gravity, a science fiction drama about two astronauts stranded in space, won the most awards (many of them technical) with seven. The historical drama 12 […]