May 12, 1998 - Last month, three massive mergers shook the banking and financial services industries, not only because of their size .... but because of the rapid fire pace of announcements. None of the companies involved is a major player in consumer banking in this state, but the situation has many observers wondering if Minnesota companies will be next. Experts say the merger fervor affects a financial services industry that is an important and large part of the region's economy. Bill Catlin has this report. SFX cars on highway. As you approach downtown Minneapolis the city's skyline is literally defined by the financial services industry. The do
May 13, 1998 - Tony Dierckens, co-author of The Mosquito Book, and Jim Stark, Public Affairs Coordinator for the Metropolitan Mosquito Control District, discuss mosquitoes. Topics on the mosquito include how many, how destructive, how useful, and what to do about them. Dierckens and Stark also answer listener questions.
May 13, 1998 - It's an old argument with a new twist. Which is more important: economics or the environment? As new technologies have emerged, some people criticize the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency for favoring the economics of new ventures, and ignoring the serious environmental questions posed by evolving industries. Fishing enthusiasts with the state chapter of Trout Unlimited are monitoring construction of an ethanol plant in the southeast Minnesota town of Preston. In the second story of our weeklong series, Minnesota Public Radio's Art Hughes reports officials with the volunteer recreation group Trout Unlimited worry about possible damage to the nearby Root River--one of the state's premier trout streams. They charge the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency with lax permit enforcement and failure to recognize the Root as a valuable resource.
May 13, 1998 - The director of the Mayo Clinic Nicotine Dependence Center says Minnesota's tobacco trial will prove to be one of the most significant public health developments of the latter part of the 20th century. Dr. Richard Hurt was the state's first witness in the case. He testified nicotine is a drug and said tobacco companies conspired to hide its addictiveness. Dr. Hurt told Minnesota Public Radio's Brent Wolfe the trial is as important as any warning issued by the surgeon general.
May 14, 1998 - Dwight Silverman, computer columnist for the Houston Chronicle; and MPR's Jon Gordon talk about the pending anti-trust lawsuit against Microsoft. Silverman and Gordon also answer listener questions. Programs begins with report on if traditional industrial anti-trust standards apply to high-tech.
May 14, 1998 - Midday presents a broadcast of Donna Lopiano, executive director of the Women's Sports Foundation, speaking at College of St. Catherine Forum on Women in Leadership. Lopiano’s speech is titled The Changing World of Women and Sport.
May 14, 1998 - MPR’s Tim Pugmire reports on the testing challenges of public schools in Minneapolis and St. Paul see more immigrants and refugees each year…with few speaking English. That makes passing exams, including the 8th grade basic skills tests in reading and math, extremely difficult. The state provides money to educate these students, but in many cases the immigration is outpacing the funding.
May 14, 1998 - MPR’s Perry Finelli looks at Minnesota cropland. While not an endangered commodity, some contend it's being lost too quickly in places where farming has been a way of life. The United States Agriculture Department says even though urban areas are growing, Minnesota's cropland has not been reduced. That's because the urban landscape is still only a tiny fraction of the state's total amount of land.
May 14, 1998 - Law enforcement officials say despite some recent high-profile homicides, they're beginning to see improvements in some of Minneapolis' toughest neighborhoods. Some neighborhood leaders say they agree, but argue that's no reason to lift the pressure on drug dealers and city officials. Minnesota Public Radio's Eric Jansen reports.
May 14, 1998 - An award winning, controversial play is coming to Minneapolis, after dominating the off-broadway scene in New York for the last year. Paula Vogel's, "How I Learned to Drive," which was awarded the Pulitzer Prize last month, explores a disturbingly erotic relationship between a girl and her uncle. The "Eye of the Storm Theater" scored a coup when it won the rights to stage the play, in part because of its relationship with the playwright. Minnesota Public Radio's Chris Roberts reports.