USDA’s MIDAS Computer Program Tarnished; Overdue, Over Budget
Blake Hurst rides ten feet above his soybean field in northern Missouri, looking more like he’s playing a video game than driving a $350,000 high-tech piece of machinery. As he rolls across the land in his John Deere combine, joystick in hand, three computer monitors offer him a host of information. He knows how much…
Where ‘comfort’ gets a twist and ‘local’ is a given
Aaron Salinas pauses as he walks through the building at 429 Walnut Street, his shadow stretching across the dust-covered checkerboard floor toward a door stenciled with word ‘library,’ leaning against the opposite wall. He’s in the midst of an informal tour of the space alongside James Paul – the two chefs who will be cooking…
The Weekender: Holiday Weekend Edition
If you’re dreaming of a White Christmas, you had better keep dreaming. We’re getting unseasonably warm weather in KC this year. All the more reason to get out and about. BAGELING Not everyone celebrates Christmas, of course. Jewish people, or anyone else who loves a good time for a good cause, should check out the…
Sympathetic Vibrations | Holiday jams that get you out of a jam
As we near the end of the holiday season, many of us are also nearing the end of our holiday ropes. Thanksgiving came early and left bloated. Chanukah had its eight-night residency at beginning of the month. Milad un Nabi is either currently in swing or coming up, depending upon which team you play for….
New Grant Helping Jackson County Encourage HPV Vaccinations
It might be a stretch for the United States to achieve an 80 percent vaccination rate against the human papillomavirus (HPV) within the next four years, as envisioned by the Healthy People 2020 plan set out by federal health authorities. Although HPV is a leading cause of certain cancers in both men and women, the…
Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree
Tina Luckett, Entertainment Marketing Director at Hallmark’s Crown Center, always looks forward to a particular business trip. Every other year, Hallmark sends Luckett to Sweethome, Oregon to spend the day walking through the forest in search of a Christmas tree. Well, two Christmas trees to be exact. For the past ten years, Luckett has traveled to the…
No cologne or neckties. Here’s what to get your dude for the holidays
Christmas shopping days are running out, and there’s nobody tougher to shop for than a single man. Mercifully, Flatland has a few last-minute gift ideas. First, though, let’s talk about what not to buy. Don’t get anyone a necktie. That’s just dull. Don’t buy him cologne, either. A bottle of cologne will last most men…
Spotlight on the Spoken Word | Alyssa Bennett Smith
We’re taking a moment to recognize Kansas City’s wordsmiths. Taken from KCPT’s “Arts Upload,” which has amassed an impressive collection of local poets reading their own works, “Spotlight” gives Flatland a chance to catch up with the artists. We find out what they’re up to and get their take on what to watch in the local and national art scene. This week:…
KC Checkup: 5 questions with Dr. Buddhadeb Dawn
Found in most parts of the body, adult stem cells have the potential to grow into any of the body’s more than 200 cell types, offering potential therapies for a number of diseases. Scientists throughout Kansas are working with adult stem cells, but Kansas lawmakers created the Midwest Stem Cell Therapy Center (MSCTC) two years…
Take 5 For Your Health
Kansas Regents Prepare To Implement Gun Law Amid Concerns The chairman of the Kansas Board of Regents says he doesn’t anticipate substantial changes in state gun laws ahead of a deadline for allowing the concealed carry of handguns on university campuses. Shane Bangerter, a Dodge City attorney appointed to the board in 2013 by Gov….
What Child Is This?
This story was updated after publishing to reflect the full name of one of the subjects. When Stacie Brewer, 39, of Blue Springs, lost her job, and then her house, she packed up her few belongings and moved into a nearby motel with her two children. Jobless, homeless, and displaced after moving from California for…
KC Community Shows Support for Muslim Neighbors
U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver held a holiday party and interfaith rally at Union Station Sunday evening to show support for Kansas City’s Muslim community. Several hundred people of all faiths came to the event to mingle, eat and enjoy the holidays together. Since terrorist attacks in Paris left more than 100 dead in November, Cleaver says, Islamophobic rhetoric in America…
A New Approach To Behavioral Problems In School
One of the first graders in Lori Williams’ classroom is clearly restless during the students’ morning community circle. As the children discuss their weekly goals, how to be a good citizen and what integrity means, the young girl is distracted. She wriggles and shifts, pulls both arms through a shirt sleeve and eventually checks out,…
Detective Veterinarian Pursues Mysterious Globe-Trotting Virus
Editor’s Note: This is Part II of a two-part series from KCPT’s partner, Harvest Public Media, tracking the Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea. To catch up on Part I, click here. Veterinarian and researcher Scott Dee doesn’t much look the part of a detective, in his jeans and company polo shirt. But when a virus never before seen…
Deadly pig virus remains a mystery – and a threat
Editor’s Note: This is Part I of a two-part series from KCPT’s partner, Harvest Public Media, tracking the Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea. Look for Part II tomorrow, Sunday, Dec. 20th, here on Flatland. A fast-spreading virus never before seen in the United States hit the pork industry more than two years ago, racking up roughly $1 billion…