Open Spaces

The University of Wyoming is part of two weather modification studies. The first is the Wyoming Weather Modification Pilot Project, and the second, companion project is the Silver Iodide Seeding Cloud Impact Investigation, or ASCII. Both studies are trying to learn more about atmospheric processes and whether people can do anything to eke more moisture out of the skies. Professor Bart Geerts heads the ASCII campaign, which is finishing up its second and last year…

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As the Wyoming legislative session winds down, Governor Matt Mead joins us to give his thoughts on the session. We start with the budget, where the governor vetoed three items.  One area of concern is the lack of funding lawmakers gave the governor for forest fires and another is the legislature’s insistence that agencies propose more budget cuts.  Governor Mead tells Bob Beck that can wait…

For Wyoming’s lawmakers, the short legislative sessions are full of long days and myriad issues. Wyoming Public Radio’s Irina Zhorov reports that newly elected legislators have to learn a lot quickly, but they’re taking their knocks in stride.

The Wyoming State Legislature heard a variety of colorful issues this session—from concealed gun laws, to abortion and gay marriage, to the controversy surrounding the removal of Cindy Hill’s main duties as Superintendent of Education. As the session comes to a close next week, Wyoming Public Radio’s Sara Hossaini talked to people outside of the Albany County Courthouse to see what issues they were following and how their representatives measured up.

Most Wyomingites have long since taken down their Christmas trees and wrapped up their winter holidays… But for people who practice the Bahá'í faith, the Festival of Ayyám-i-Há – where families get together and exchange small gifts, is right around the corner.

The Bahá'í religion is a relatively young one. Founded in Persia in the mid-1800s, it follows the teachings of two prophets – The Báb, and Bahá'u'lláh. They taught about the oneness of God and of religion, and that God continues to reveal truths to humanity throughout time. 

LuLing Osofsky is a graduate of U-W’s graduate program in creative writing. She writes poetry and essays on topics as disparate as Jewish boxers who fought during the Holocaust and being Chinese in mostly white Wyoming. She graduated in 2012. This is poem called The Pines. 

Increased coal exports overseas bring up questions of royalty payments
Coal producers in the U.S. are looking to markets abroad to make up for decreasing demand at home. But a recent investigation by Thomson Reuters news service suggests there might be royalty underpayments on those shipments. Wyoming Public Radio’s Irina Zhorov reports that royalty question is still unresolved.

Coal producers in the U.S. are looking to markets abroad to make up for decreasing demand at home. But a recent investigation by Thomson Reuters news service suggests there might be royalty underpayments on those shipments. Wyoming Public Radio’s Irina Zhorov reports that royalty question is still unresolved.

Frequently during the legislative session you will hear lawmakers refer to Wyoming’s Permanent Mineral Trust fund.  The fund was established in 1974 by then Governor Stan Hathaway and it is funded by a portion of severance taxes or taxes paid by the energy industry and occasional money deposited by the legislature. Income from the fund can be used to pay for government.   It has a market value of roughly 5.6 billion dollars.  It’s viewed as a key part of Wyoming’s funding future. Wyoming Public Radio’s Bob Beck reports.

President Obama laid out a sweeping agenda in his State of the Union address that would have a big impact on Wyoming if enacted. Matt Laslo caught up with Wyoming lawmakers in Washington and reports on their reactions to the controversial plan.

Last summer, the Cheyenne Police Department launched the Homeless Empowerment Action Team, or HEAT. Police officers and the director of Cheyenne’s homeless shelter, the COMEA House, went around town and talked with homeless people.

They made sure homeless individuals knew the rules regarding trespassing, panhandling, and public intoxication, and warned them of the penalties for breaking those laws. They also told homeless individuals about services available to them. The goal was to help the homeless get back on their feet, and make them law abiding citizens.

The Natural Resources Conservation Service is finishing up surveying the soil in Wyoming. They’ve been working on the project for decades, and they’ve completed surveys in most of the counties in the state. We’re joined now by James Bauchert, the acting state soil scientist. He says the survey is part of a national effort to inventory, or map out, all the soils in the U.S.

The Wyoming Department of Health is encouraging Wyomingites to test the concentration of radon in their homes this winter, because it’s the time of year that houses aren’t well-ventilated, and the cancer-causing gas is more likely to rise up to living areas. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that radon kills about 20,000 people per year. Wyoming Public Radio’s Rebecca Martinez spoke with Dr. Wallace Akerley, director of thoracic oncology at the Huntsman Cancer Institute in Utah. She started by asking him what radon is, exactly.

In our occasional series “Upstarts,” we profile Wyoming entrepreneurs. There’s no shortage of self-starters in this state, many of whom build, grow or make things… But until recently, tech start-ups were almost unheard of in the Cowboy State. Wyoming Public Radio’s Rebecca Martinez visited with Jason Kintzler, who founded the Pitch Engine software platform in his native Lander and authored the book, “The New American Start-Up.” She filed this report.