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Posts published in “Latest News”

How Chicago’s Murder Totals Compare With Summers Past

This past weekend alone, police say 74 people were shot and 6 people were murdered. June saw some of highest murder totals for the summer in decades. Host: Lisa Labuz; Reporter: Chip Mitchell

Read an Excerpt from “Pilgrimage to Dollywood”

Summer is here, and there is no better time to pack up the car with family or friends, snacks, music, and a sense of adventure and head out on a great American road trip. In Pilgrimage to Dollywood: A Country Music Road Trip through Tennessee, Helen Morales does just that as she sets out to discover Dolly Parton’s Tennessee. Morales’s travels allows her to compare the imaginary Tennessee of Parton’s lyrics with the real Tennessee where the singer grew up, looking at essential connections between country music, the land, and a way of life. Accompanied by her partner, Tony, and their nine-year-old daughter, Athena, Morales, a recent transplant from England, seeks to understand America and American values through the celebrity sites and attractions of Tennessee. Read on for an excerpt from Pilgrimage to Dollywood about Dolly’s birthplace. Perhaps the original house no longer exists. In any case, its mythic status for Dolly Parton fans gives it an imaginary power that is greater than any physical reality. More than one simulation of the house exists. Famously, Dolly has a replica of the house on show at Dollywood that we were to see when we visited the theme park the following day. It […]

The post Read an Excerpt from “Pilgrimage to Dollywood” appeared first on The Chicago Blog.

Boeing Setbacks, FAA Likely To Delay 777X Jet Over Safety

Unpredictable times for the Chicago-based Boeing, as it tries to rebound from two 737 MAX plane crashes that killed more than 300 people. Dominic Gates, of the Seattle Times, earned a Pulitzer Prize last year for the newspaper’s coverage of the plane-m...

What Causing Chicago’s Heavy Rain & Flooding?

In our weekly climate conversation, we’re talking rain, flooding, and the effects of climate change, with atmospheric scientist Doctor Scott Collis, of Argonne National Laboratory. Host: Lisa Labuz; Producer: Lauren Frost

New Illinois Law Eases Restrictions For Home Bakers

The new law lifts a $1,000 monthly sales cap for home bakers and allows them to sell to customers beyond farmers markets. Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Natalie Moore

Set To Close, Harper High School Looks For A Second Chance

The close of this school year marks the end for Harper High School in the South Side neighborhood of West Englewood. Staff and alumni are begging for a second chance. Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Sarah Karp

Chicago Suburbs Evaluate Damage After Tornado

Tornadoes swept through Chicago’s western suburbs on Sunday, damaging homes, knocking down trees and injuring multiple people. Host: Lisa Labuz; Reporter: Michael Puente

Read an Excerpt from “Nature Remade: Engineering Life, Envisioning Worlds”

For well over a century, the Marine Biological Laboratory has been a nexus of scientific discovery, a site where scientists and students from around the world have convened to innovate, guide, and shape our understanding of biology and its evolutionary and ecological dynamics. As work at the MBL continuously radiates over vast temporal and spatial scales, the very practice of science has also been shaped by the MBL community, which continues to have a transformative impact the world over. The Convening Science series highlights the ongoing role MBL plays in the creation and dissemination of science, in its broader historic context as well as current practice and future potential. Books in the series will be broadly conceived and defined, but each will be anchored to MBL, originating in workshops and conferences, inspired by MBL collections and archives, or influenced by conversations and creativity that MBL fosters in every scientist or student who convenes at the Woods Hole campus. Publishing this July, Nature Remade: Engineering Life, Envisioning Worlds is the fourth installment in Convening Science. In it, fourteen original essays trace material practices of the engineering of biology from the development of field sites for experimentation to the new frontiers of […]

The post Read an Excerpt from “Nature Remade: Engineering Life, Envisioning Worlds” appeared first on The Chicago Blog.

Tornado Damages Over 100 Homes In Suburban Chicago

More than 100 homes in Chicago’s western suburbs were damaged during Sunday night's storms. Illinois State Climatologist Trent Ford, explains what made these storms different, and how can people prepare for a similar situation. Host: Lisa Labuz, Mary D...

An Activist’s Reflections On Racial Justice and Juneteenth

Despite setbacks and continued resistance, Robin Rue Simmons, a former Evanston alderman who spearheaded a reparations effort in her city, sees progress in the quest for racial justice. Host: Lisa Labuz; Reporter: Odette Yousef

Chicago Ex-Lifeguards Describe Decades Of Sexual Abuse

Nearly a dozen women told WBEZ that supervisors sexually harassed or assaulted them with impunity: “It happened to all of us,” said one woman. Host: Lisa Labuz; Reporter: Dan Mihalopoulos

1 in 4 CPS Sub Requests Went Unfilled For In-Person Classes

The problem is worse on Chicago's South and West sides, where many schools see more than half their requests for substitute teachers turned down. Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Adriana Cardona Maguigad