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Allen Young: Insects are essential to the everyday fabric of life, yet many species face extinction

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 18:31:12 GMT

As spring gives way to summer, nature’s treasure chest awakens. Earth’s biological wealth sprouts, blooms and clamors. These contents once blanketed the landscape with a thin, life-sustaining fabric, the biosphere. But human activity has contributed to the shrinking of the chest.A major slice of the treasure is insects and the roles they play in structuring food chains, communities and ecosystems linking them to plants, fungi, microorganisms and other animals. Insects are key to transferring energy from plants in terrestrial food chains, shaping much of Earth’s biological wealth. Their small body size, prolific reproduction, life cycles, diverse forms and habits mold their ecological prowess.The ecological significance of insects is reflected in their long history, which spans an estimated 400 million years. A major bounce to this success began with flowering plants some 145 million years ago, coinciding with pollinators, including butterflies and moths, beetles, w...

Clive Crook: Banking is stable? It’s an illusion

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 18:31:12 GMT

On taking over the distressed First Republic Bank last week, Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase, said: “No crystal ball is perfect, but yes, I think the banking system is very stable.” Well, what else was the boss of America’s biggest bank going to say?The determination to declare that things are under control is widely shared by industry leaders, regulators and policymakers alike. It’s understandable. Nobody wants to start a panic. But that’s also the root of the problem.Banking is a fundamentally unstable business. Depositors might have no good reason to think their particular bank is in danger, but if they run, they’ll turn out to be right. Making banks safer through regulation, desirable as that might be, doesn’t always solve this conundrum; depositors also need to believe they’re safe. Making banks safer and making people believe it are often at odds.Hence a recurring pattern in financial crises: Regulators hesitate to act pre-emp...

Lisa Jarvis: We know so little about how social media affects kids’ brains

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 18:31:12 GMT

The American Psychological Association has issued its first advisory on social media use in adolescence. What’s most striking in its data-based recommendations is how little we really know about how these apps affect our kids.The relative newness of platforms like Snapchat and TikTok means little research is available about their long-term effects on teen and tween brains. Getting better data will require significant funding — and much more transparency from tech companies.Perhaps a lack of clear data is one reason that so much of the conversation around social media and kids leans on our personal experiences and attitudes. And so much of the available data is murky: There’s plenty of correlative evidence that platforms like TikTok, Snapchat and Instagram can have a negative effect on kids’ development, but very little causal data.That doesn’t mean that our assumptions about social media’s deleterious effects on kids aren’t true, or that par...

More security on St. Louis riverfront following weekend of chaos  

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 18:31:12 GMT

ST. LOUIS - Ahead of Mother's Day weekend, there will be a heavy police presence in downtown St. Louis due to violence and large, unruly crowds.Bi-State Development, which owns the Gateway Arch Riverboats that sail along the riverfront, will be adding extra security measures to try and deter crime.The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department will add extra officers across the city after roughly 15 shootings and no arrests over the weekend, where five people died and 18 were injured. The department took 639 911 calls. Crime ring based in St. Charles targeted small towns FOX 2 obtained video of people openly carrying what appear to be assault-style rifles Monday in downtown St. Louis. Passengers on a Gateway Arch Riverboat Cruise were stranded on the boat Saturday night as large crowds blocked Lenore K. Sullivan Boulevard and people fired guns. Visitors said more security is good news.“We can't be bound by fear. Security is needed and warranted. It’s good for the city,” said Mary Gr...

Last-place St. Louis Cardinals trying to find their way

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 18:31:12 GMT

CHICAGO (AP) — When Dylan Carlson looks at his St. Louis teammates, he sees a long list of accomplishments. There is reigning NL MVP Paul Goldschmidt and seven-time All-Star Nolan Arenado. And Adam Wainwright, a World Series winner closing in on 200 career victories.All that past success is one reason why the team's lackluster start has been so frustrating for the Cardinals. It's also why they remain hopeful for the rest of the year.“That helps. That kind of eliminates some of that panic, that worry,” Carlson said, “having guys who've experienced winning at the highest level.”They just aren't experiencing much winning at the moment, and rare moments of dysfunction seem to be leaking into the franchise's foundational “Cardinal Way.” After taking two of three at the Chicago Cubs this week, St. Louis remained in last place in the NL Central with a 13-25 record.It's the worst 38-game start for the club since it was 13-25 in 1925, according to Sportradar. The Cardinals haven't ...

Preventing the leading cause of pregnancy-related deaths

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 18:31:12 GMT

ST. LOUIS - New mothers can have a difficult time after giving birth. About one in five go through perinatal mental health disorders. This may include postpartum depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder. They can have severe consequences for both the mother and child if left untreated.LaCresha Cree Cunningham, LCSW of Healing Sacred Scars Holistic Wellness, is dedicated to shifting the fatal outcomes of perinatal mental health. She talks with KPLR's Mike Colombo about mental health and preventing the leading cause of pregnancy-related deaths.More information: www.healingsacredscars.com

Man accused of sex crimes in North Carolina arrested in Glenwood Springs, 3 children rescued

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 18:31:12 GMT

GLENWOOD SPRINGS, Colo. — A man accused of sex crimes against children in North Carolina allegedly fled to Glenwood Springs with a woman and three children and was arrested this week.According to conversations with the juveniles, authorities said they believe that multiple other sex crimes against children occurred between the east coast and Glenwood Springs, where the man was taken into custody.On Tuesday, officers with the Glenwood Springs Police Department checked the registered owner information for a Dodge Durango with North Carolina plates that was in the city’s vicinity near a commercial center. They learned the vehicle was connected to a wanted and violent felon, identified as James Gillis, 31, of Stanly County and Montgomery County in North Carolina.The officers kept an eye on the vehicle while they contacted detectives in North Carolina. They learned that Gillis had multiple felony warrants for sex crimes and was known to flee and resist law enforcement. The No...

In home-court, hold-serve series with Suns, Nuggets coach Michael Malone reflects on earning “transient” Denver fanbase

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 18:31:12 GMT

After his first season in Denver, Nuggets coach Michael Malone learned the locals’ relationship with his team might not always be one of unconditional love.“Met with some of the business folks talking about how we could get more people in the building,” Malone reflected after the fifth game of a home-court, hold-serve playoff series with the Phoenix Suns. “They were saying, ‘Coach, the people that live in Denver, most of them are not native to this area. It’s a transient city with people from all over. So you’ve gotta earn their fandom and you’ve gotta build a winner.'”That meeting has been on Malone’s mind recently because he and the Nuggets have witnessed the message getting stretched to fruition in these playoffs. Denver is 6-0 at Ball Arena and 1-3 away from home entering Thursday night’s Game 6 in Phoenix. The only NBA team left standing with home-court advantage over the Nuggets is the winner of the Boston-Phila...

Mother of Club Q shooting suspect ejected from court over profane outbursts

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 18:31:12 GMT

The mother of Colorado Springs mass shooting suspect Anderson Aldrich was briefly ejected from a court hearing Thursday after a profanity-laden outburst directed at the judge.Laura Voepel, 45, was ejected from her virtual court appearance in El Paso County Court — where she was appearing on charges of disorderly conduct and resisting arrest — after she called Judge Yolanda Fennick an “(expletive) dumb (expletive)” in what her attorney said was an outburst driven by a mental health condition.Voepel was arrested hours after the Club Q shooting in Colorado Springs after police showed up to search the apartment she shared with 22-year-old Aldrich, who is accused of carrying out the Nov 19 attack at the LGBTQ nightclub that killed five people.Voepel was arrested for making unreasonable noise after she wailed in distress when officers told her that Aldrich had murdered someone, Voepel’s attorney, Carrie Thompson, said in court Thursday. Thompson successfully ...

Rain totals for Denver, the Front Range and Eastern Plains

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 18:31:12 GMT

The Community Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow Network (CoCoRaHS) is “a grassroots volunteer network of backyard weather observers” who report precipitation totals. The table shows rain totals for May 10-11 as the data is shown at 3 p.m. The location is the CoCoRaHS station number — in cases where there are multiple stations for a municipality, the highest total was used.LocationInches of rainAdena 3.9 SW1.64Arapahoe 8.4 NNE1.4Arvada 0.7 NNE1.03Aurora 12.4 SSE1.56Bennett 10.8 SSW1.74Berthoud 1.1 ESE2.1Black Forest 5.4 SW2.63Boulder 5.4 ESE.88Brighton 4.0 WNW.95Broomfield 1.8 SE.98Brush 0.3 E2.52Byers 0.1 N1.55Castle Pines 2.8 ENE1.87Castle Rock 6.5 NNW2.25Centennial 3.9 W1.37Cherry Creek Reservoir 1.9 N1.49Cheyenne Wells 0.2 E1.4Colorado Springs 10.1 NNE2.65Conifer 2.9 S1.38Cripple Creek 5.1 NW1.54Deermont 1.2 ENE1.98Denver 4.3 WNW1.46Eads 12 ESE1.8Eaton 1.8 SE1.6Elbert 3.7 W1.87Elizabeth 10.5 NNE1.89Englewood 1.4 N.99Erie 1.1 NNW1.62Evans 0.6 W1.48Evergreen 5.3 S...