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Although many Alaskan students are familiar with salmon fishing, raising them gives them a new perspective on writing, science, math and art.

UNESCO World Heritage Sites are considered "outstanding works of human genius." There are now 25 in the U.S., including the Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks, the Statue of Liberty and the Grand Canyon.

State and federal governments have made hundreds of millions of dollars available to pay for Grow Your Own teacher programs. But researchers say it's unclear whether they actually work.

“Biophilic Harmonies” A Solo Fine Art Exhibition by Artist Rachel Berkowitz San Diego’s Pacific Beach/Taylor Branch Library Gallery has selected international artist Rachel Berkowitz’s large-scale mixed-media paintings for a 2 month show, beginning February 1, 2023 until March 31, 2023. There will be an opening reception on February 4 with musical performances at the gallery from 6 p.m.-9 p.m. The gallery will be open daily Monday- Saturday, with hours as Monday - Tuesday: 11:30 a.m. - 8 p.m. and Wednesday - Saturday: 9:30 a.m. - 6 p.m. The Biophilic Harmonies series explores how human interactions with the natural world are expressed as desires and emotional constructs. The artwork serves as an escape from an anxious reality, allowing the viewer to get lost into a contemplative mindset, similar to that found in natural environments. Through painting and mixed media installations, the work combines abstract organic forms with physical natural elements to represent the human affinity for nature - or biophilia. The interplay between the conceptual and the formal elements in each piece creates a visual garden. Light as an energy source plays a strong role in the aesthetic and spiritual nature of the work, as the contrasting techniques lead into meditations for the viewer. Berkowitz’s recent travels across US National Parks have been a strong source of inspiration, placing a need on the heightened concern for conservation and preservation. Emotional experiences are the premise of the work, and the mark-making process serves to deepen mental awareness of one’s place in the natural world. In response to lengthy spells of indoor isolation, societal anxiety and loss during the pandemic, Berkowitz began to incorporate plants and natural elements into her artwork to recreate a fusion between human spiritual experience and nature. The artwork engages the viewer through textured techniques and intricate abstract painting methods, using various materials such as wax, copper oxides, glass particulates and real plants themselves. By using a mix of both dried and alive plant matter, the work itself is alive and will change as time progresses. The cyclical nature of the work highlights the idea of rebirth and renewal, reminding the viewer to breathe and slow down. Heightened desires to be released from enclosures are expressed through the structural compositions. There are references to man-made architectural structures hidden within the paintings, depicting the space that the work has been made in and to time-stamp the art-making process. Pacific Beach/ Taylor Library - 4275 Cass St., San Diego, CA 92109 https://www.sandiego.gov/public-library/locations/pacific-beach-taylor-library About the Artist: Rachel Berkowitz Rachel Berkowitz lives and works in Los Angeles, (b. Ohio, USA 1993), grew up in London, England and received a BA from UCLA’s School of Art and Architecture, graduating in 2016. Rachel has previously exhibited her paintings and photography at solo and group shows across the US and internationally including the UK, Italy, France and Japan. Rachel’s art practice has developed through artist residencies and community experiences, including the La Napoule Artist Foundation in France (2020) and the Slade School of Art London Summer Intensive in England (2019). Rachel has been awarded first place in various International Fine Art competitions, and is constantly working on public and private commissions from staging paintings for Palm Springs Modernism Week, to painting a mural for Bill Nye, The Science Guy’s new videos at The Planetary Society in Pasadena. Rachel is also engaged in community arts programming where she teaches art to children in schools that cannot afford arts education, and at children’s hospitals and neighborhood LA events. For competitions sponsored by the City of Los Angeles, she has painted many public murals incorporating natural forms and flora. SOCIAL MEDIA: Facebook & Instagram

New research puts stark numbers on a well-known disparity: poor and vulnerable communities suffer over 90% of deaths associated with major storms.

Andrea Barajas was emotional when she learned she'd received the award. "I just started crying," she said.

Patients who have digestive symptoms only after eating red meat may have developed an allergy caused by ticks. The CDC says hundreds of thousands of people may have been affected over the past decade.

Help document California's incredible coastal biodiversity and take part in this year's Snapshot Cal Coast with a BioBlitz! Library staff will teach you how to use iNaturalist to make observations of the plants and animals you see at the beach. Snapshot Cal Coast is an annual California statewide community science effort that encourages people to make and share observations of plants, animals, and seaweeds along the California coast using the iNaturalist app. Led by the California Academy of Sciences with support from the California Ocean Protection Council, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the MPA (Marine Protected Area) Collaborative Network, and an array of other partners, we are creating a valuable snapshot in time of where species are located along our coast. Make sure to download the free iNaturalist app and bring your device to participate! Look for the Library's green pop-up near the main lifeguard tower. We will have specimens from the San Diego Natural History Museum for folks to view!

Environmental journalist Ben Goldfarb says cars are killing animals, while highways cut off them off from their food sources and migration paths. His new book is Crossings.

This is a ticketed, in-store event that will also be broadcasted live through Crowdcast for those unable to attend in person. This event will consist of a 30 minute discussion with the authors followed by the book signing. If you're joining us virtually, Mysterious Galaxy's virtual events are hosted on Crowdcast. Visit here to register for the event. Accessibility: Real-time captioning for all Crowdcast events is available via Google Chrome. About the Authors Sofia Lapuente is an author, screenwriter, and avid world traveler who immigrated from Spain to the United States to realize her dream of storytelling. Since then, she has received a master’s degree in fine arts at UCLA, worked as a producer and casting director on an Emmy nominated show, and received coauthor credits in GLEANINGS, the fourth installment of the bestselling Arc of a Scythe series, with her partner, Jarrod Shusterman. Together, the couple writes and produces film and television under their production company Dos Lobos Entertainment. Jarrod Shusterman is the New York Times bestselling coauthor of novel "Dry", which he is adapting for a major Hollywood film studio with Neal Shusterman. He is also the coauthor of the accoladed novel "Roxy". His books have all received critical acclaim and multiple starred reviews. Sofí Lapuente and Jarrod are partners in every sense of the word, with love and multiculturalism as an ethos—living between Madrid, Spain, and Los Angeles, California. If they are not working, it means they’re eating. For behind-the-scenes author content and stupidly funny videos, follow them on Instagram and TikTok @SofiandJarrod. Gina Chen tells stories about fantastic worlds featuring heroines, antiheroines, and the kind of cleverness that brings trouble in its wake. A self-taught artist with a degree in computer science, she generates creative nonsense in all forms of media and always has a project stewing. "Violet Made of Thorns" is her debut fantasy novel. For more info, visit actualgina.com and follow @actualgina on Twitter and Instagram. Adalyn Grace is a New York Times bestselling author of "All The Stars and Teeth", which was named “2020’s biggest YA fantasy” by Entertainment Weekly. Prior to becoming an author, Adalyn spent four years working in live theatre, acted as the managing editor of a nonprofit newspaper, and studied storytelling as an intern on Nickelodeon Animation’s popular series "The Legend f Korra". Local to San Diego, Adalyn spends her non-writing days by watching too much anime, and by playing video games with her dorky dog. About "Retro" After a cyberbullying incident at her school goes viral, Luna Iglesias finds herself at the heart of a brewing controversy. When the social media company Limbo—who are also implicated in the scandal—sweeps in with an offer that sounds like an opportunity to turn over a new leaf, she’s happy to jump on the new trend. It’s called the Retro Challenge, where contestants live without modern technology, wear vintage clothes, party as if the future wasn’t already written, and fall in love as if they were living in a movie. And the winners get a scholarship to the college of their dreams. At first, the challenge is fun. But then things get dangerous. Kids start disappearing, including Luna’s friends. There are voices in the woods. Bloodred markings on the trees. And Luna increasingly begins to wonder if all these strange happenings are connected with the Retro Challenge. Secrets. Lies. Betrayal. The weight of her family on her shoulders. There’s so much on the line for Luna – not to mention she’s falling for the last guy she expected. Unless she can figure out the truth behind who is really sabotaging the challenge, the next person to disappear may be Luna herself.