PICKS are stories from many sources, selected by our editors or recommended by our readers because they are important, surprising, troubling, enlightening, inspiring, or amusing. They appear on our site and in our daily newsletter. Please send suggested articles, videos, podcasts, etc. to picks@whowhatwhy.org.
|
Listen To This Story
 |
The Entire State of Illinois Is Going To Be Crawling With Cicadas (Maria)
The author writes, “Brace yourselves, Illinoisans: A truly shocking number of cicadas are about to live, make sweet love, and die in a tree near you. Two broods of periodical cicadas — Brood XIX on a 13-year cycle and Brood XIII on a 17-year cycle — are slated to emerge together in central Illinois this summer for the first time in over two centuries. To most humans, they’re an ephemeral spectacle and an ear-splitting nuisance, and then they’re gone. To many other Midwestern animals, plants and microbes, they’re a rare feast, bringing new life to forests long past their death.”
Georgia Republican Party Official Voted Illegally Nine Times, Judge Rules (Dana)
The author writes, “A judge ruled [last] week that a top Georgia Republican Party official, who has promoted former President Donald Trump’s claims of widespread voter fraud affecting the outcome of the 2020 presidential election, has repeatedly voted illegally. Brian Pritchard, first vice chairman of the Georgia Republican Party and a conservative talk show host, was fined $5,000 for voting illegally and registering to vote while serving a sentence for a felony conviction.”
Voter Fraud Is Rare. Your Ballot Is Protected for Wisconsin Spring Election. (Al)
From the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: “Ironically, at a time when Wisconsin has more safeguards against voter fraud than ever before, confidence in election seems to be at an all-time low.”
Oregon City Can’t Limit Church’s Homeless Meal Services, Federal Judge Rules (Reader Steve)
The author writes, “A federal judge has ruled that a southern Oregon city can’t limit a local church’s homeless meal services. U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark Clarke found that an ordinance passed by the small city of Brookings, on the southern Oregon coast, violated the religious freedom rights of St. Timothy’s Episcopal Church, KGW reported. He issued his opinion on Wednesday. The 2021 ordinance limited the church’s homeless meal services to two days a week, and required a permit to serve free food in residential areas. It was passed in response to resident complaints.”
In Deep Red Utah, Climate Concerns Are Now Motivating Candidates (Laura)
From Capital and Main: “Utah has been impacted by climate change more than most states — over the last 50 years, temperatures in the state have risen at about twice the global average, and it has faced worsening drought, wildfires, flash floods and extreme heat waves. The impact has been devastating on the health and well-being of residents, with decreasing productivity of farms and higher rates of respiratory disease and asthma, along with other heat-related diseases. … The crisis has also increased climate awareness in the state, with half of residents in a recent survey saying that climate change is an extremely or very serious problem and 64% saying they’ve noticed significant effects from climate change over the past 10 years.”
Why the Most Educated People in America Fall for Anti-Semitic Lies (Reader Jim)
From The Atlantic: “The through line of anti-Semitism for thousands of years has been the denial of truth and the promotion of lies. These lies range in scope from conspiracy theories to Holocaust denial to the blood libel to the currently popular claims that Zionism is racism, that Jews are settler colonialists, and that Jewish civilization isn’t indigenous to the land of Israel. These lies are all part of the foundational big lie: that anti-Semitism itself is a righteous act of resistance against evil, because Jews are collectively evil and have no right to exist. Today, the big lie is winning.”
Bees Use Antennae to Decode Hive Mates’ Dances in the Dark (Mili)
The author writes, “Scientists have discovered how honeybees can decipher dances by their hive mates that relay directions to food. The findings reveal how, in the complete darkness of the hive, each bee uses its antennae to help interpret the information communicated through the dances. It has been known for decades that honeybees do so-called waggle dances, in which their movements and orientation on the honeycomb signal the direction and distance to food outside the hive. However, until now, it was unclear how the bees gathered around a waggle dancer make sense of the information.”
