November 21, 2000 - Dava Sobel came across the subject for her book "Galileo's Daughter" when researching what became her best-seller "Longtitude." She uncovered a letter to the 16th-century astronomer written by his daughter, a cloistered nun. Sobel discovered it was just one of a hundred letters written during one of the biggest battles between science and theology...the debate over whether Galileo's book proving Copernican theory that the earth revolves round the sun was heretical. She told Minnesota Public Radio's Euan Kerr the letters reveal Galileo, far from being an enemy of the church, was a devout Catholic who was trying to protect his religion.
November 21, 2000 - Duluth's Great Lakes Aquarium, open since August, has lost its education director and two board members in a controversy involving a major funder. The flap started with a newspaper opinion piece by the education director opposing a power line proposed by Aquarium backer Minnesota Power. The controversy is heating up, just as public hearings on the line get underway in Wisconsin. Minnesota Public Radio's Stephanie Hemphill reports. Andrew Slade had been with the Great Lakes Aquarium for eight years during its planning and development. He designed and ran its educational programs. He's also a guest columnist on environmental issues in the Duluth News-Tribune. His September column criticized the proposed powerline, saying the environment would be better off if consumers reduced their electricity use, and power companies would develop solar and wind energy.
November 21, 2000 - It looks like a good winter for people who want to look at snowy owls, but a tough year for the owls themselves. Unusually large numbers of northern owl are showing up in Minnesota this fall. The birds aren't finding enough to eat in their home range, so they're moving south, in what's called an owl "irruption." Minnesota Public Radio's Chris Julin reports.
November 22, 2000 - Representatives at a climate conference at the Hague this week are trying to agree on how to cut down on pollutants that are believed to cause global warming. One of the main pollutants is carbon dioxide. The United States supports what its calls a flexible plan. In part, that means forests that absorb carbon would count toward meeting reduction targets. There has even been talk of paying farmers here in the United States to plant trees rather than crops. The European Union rejected the United States' plan yesterday. John Pastor is a biology professor and part of the University of Minnesota's Natural Resources Research Institute in Duluth. He's on the line now. John Pastor is a biology professor at the University of Minnesota-Duluth
November 23, 2000 - Barge shipping on the Mississippi River is winding down for the season. Typically 400 or so towboats ply the upper Mississippi River moving barges loaded with grain and other products headed to markets around the world. Minnesota Public Radio's Patty Marsicano spent some time aboard a towboat earlier this fall and found, there's no such thing as "stopping for the night."
November 24, 2000 - At a time where farmers are being urged to diversify their income one Minnesota dairy farmer is doing just that by making celebrities of his cows. David Lill recently published a book of whimsical photos featuring his cows in human poses, and there are plans for a calendar, t-shirts, coffee mugs and posters. Minnesota Public Radios Dan Gunderson reports.
December 4, 2000 - Bird-watching is the fastest growing outdoor activity in the United States, according to Minnesota tourism officials. They say bird watchers outnumber hunters in Minnesota -- and outspend them too. The Office of Toursim and the Department of Natural Resources are urging resort owners to cash in, saying a little bit of preparation could fill hundreds of cabins and hotel rooms. Minnesota Public Radio's Chris Julin reports.
December 4, 2000 - A public hearing in Superior Wisconsin today (Mon Dec 4) will give people a chance to sound off on a controversial powerline proposed between Duluth and Wausau. Its the latest in a series of hearings begun last week along the line's proposed route. Opponents of the project say they're encouraged by a Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources report saying no one has shown a need for the line. Minnesota Public Radio's Stephanie Hemphill reports. { The two companies proposing the line - Minnesota Power and Wisconsin Public Service - say Wisconsin's power grid desperately needs new high voltage lines to bring power into the state. Right now, only four lines import power, three of them from the south. When demand is high, or when a storm knocks out one of the lines, the system could fail and the entire region could be blacked out. Minnesota Power's Jim Roberts says it's part of a nationwide problem.
December 7, 2000 - American chestnut trees, once wide-spread and widely used for food and timber, are all but gone due to a devastating fungus brought to this country in the late 1800s on mail-ordered Japanese chestnut trees. But scientists believe in another year or two they may begin reversing that trend, when they complete the final hybrid crosses of disease-resistant chestnuts. Agricultural scientist Sandra Anagnostakis (Ahnahg-nose-tahKEES) is with the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station where the chestnut breeding program has been underway since 1930.
December 7, 2000 - L-T-V Corporation is closing a Minnesota iron mining operation earlier than expected. The Cleveland-based company says its L-T-V Steel Mining Company located in Hoyt Lakes, Minnesota will close February 24th. L-T-V had planned to keep it open through the middle of next year. L-T-V says the mine can no longer provide it with taconite pellets of competitive quality and cost. This is the latest in a series of recent setbacks to Minnesota's iron mining industry. Ann Glumac is the President of the Minnesota Iron Mining Association. She says the health of the industry in Minnesota is directly tied to the health of the U-S steel industry.