When Senator Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin put out the call for observance of the first Earth Day, he did so on the premise that awareness—especially among young people—would lead to action. 

Engineer and land surveyor Rex Bradfield is launching another campaign for the office of Urbana mayor. With three Democrats in the race, that means there will be a competitive general election for the office in April. Bradfield has twice lost to incumbent Laurel Prussing, in 2009 and 2013. He says Urbana city government needs to to more to lure business to the city, and says funds have been wasted on downtown projects like the Boneyard Creek beautification.

Thanks to a friend who’s more observant than me, I recently discovered a new species of reptile in my own backyard, a plains garter snake. Maybe I should clarify by saying I mean the plains garter snake was “new” to me, not new to science or the wider world.