Fire

Sauce Like a Boss with Guy Fieri's NEW Flavortown™ Sauces

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, February 21, 2024

FLAVORTOWN, USA, Feb. 21, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Guy Fieri is bringing more big, bold flavor into every home and to grocery stores across the United States with the launch of his new Flavortown Sauces line. The dynamite line of nine top-notch condiments and BBQ sauces, including Guy's Famous Donkey Sauce, has all taste buds covered regardless of the dish or meal occasion. Each bottle has been masterfully crafted by the Mayor of Flavortown, Guy Fieri, to keep the mouthwatering flavor alive, bite after bite.

Key Points: 
  • The dynamite line of nine top-notch condiments and BBQ sauces, including Guy's Famous Donkey Sauce, has all taste buds covered regardless of the dish or meal occasion.
  • '  So, I'm stoked to be launching my Flavortown Sauces nationwide, nine real deal flavors to help you sauce like a boss," said Guy Fieri.
  • These nine lip-smackin' sauces include:
    Famous Donkey Sauce: Why is it called Donkey Sauce?
  • Honey Mustard Sauce: Real Deal Honey Mustard Sauce has all that tangy mustard and sweet honey creaminess you're gonna wanna dip, spread and drizzle.

Forest Service warns of budget cuts ahead of a risky wildfire season – what that means for safety

Retrieved on: 
Friday, February 16, 2024

A wet winter and spring followed by a hot, dry summer can be a dangerous combination in the Western U.S. The rain fuels bountiful vegetation growth, and when summer heat dries out that vegetation, it can leave grasses and shrubs ready to burn. In years like this, controlled burns and prescribed fire treatments are crucial to help protect communities against wildfires. Well-staffed fire crews ready to respond to blazes are essential, too.Moore told agency employees to expect budget cuts from Congress in 2024.

Key Points: 


A wet winter and spring followed by a hot, dry summer can be a dangerous combination in the Western U.S. The rain fuels bountiful vegetation growth, and when summer heat dries out that vegetation, it can leave grasses and shrubs ready to burn. In years like this, controlled burns and prescribed fire treatments are crucial to help protect communities against wildfires. Well-staffed fire crews ready to respond to blazes are essential, too.

  • Moore told agency employees to expect budget cuts from Congress in 2024.
  • However, taken at face value, budget cuts could be interpreted as a reduction in the firefighting workforce, compounding recruitment and retention challenges that the Forest Service is already facing.
  • We study wildfire policy and fire ecology, and one of us, Camille Stevens-Rumann, has worked as a wildland firefighter.

The fire funding fix

  • The fire funding fix allows federal firefighting agencies to access up to US$2.25 billion in additional disaster funding a year starting in 2020 and increasing to $2.95 billion in 2027.
  • Prior to the fire funding fix, fighting fires – suppression expenditures – consumed nearly 50% of the U.S. Forest Service budget.
  • The fix protects agency budgets, ensuring that a high-cost fire season will not completely consume the budget, and that allows more funding for preventive efforts and all the other programs of the Forest Service.

Prevention is a rising priority

  • The Forest Service has also made fire prevention a higher priority in recent years.
  • That work won’t be completed before the 2024 fire season, but fuel treatments will be underway.


Prescribed burning must be done when conditions are safe to limit the potential for the fire to get out of control, usually in the spring and early summer. However, climate change is expected to shorten the prescribed burning window in the western U.S.

Staffing is still a concern

  • In 2023, over 18,000 people were employed as federal wildland firefighters.
  • The government boosted firefighters’ pay in 2021, but that increase is set to expire unless Congress votes to make it permanent.
  • The agency has started many initiatives to recruit and retain permanent employees, but it is too early to assess the results.

Everyone has a role in fire protection

  • Homeowners can reduce the fire risk to their own properties by following defensible space recommendations.
  • Several states also have programs, such as Colorado’s Forest Restoration and Wildfire Risk Mitigation Grant Program to support community investment in wildfire mitigation.
  • Consistent funding is crucial, and homeowners can help by taking defensive action to reduce wildfire risk on their property.


Camille Stevens-Rumann receives funding from US Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, and the US department of Agriculture. She used to work for the US Forest Service and works closely with Federal, State, and non-profit organizations that help manage forests across the western US Jude Bayham receives funding from the United States Forest Service. He is on the Protect Our Winters Science Alliance.

ICELANDIC ARTIST HILDUR ÁSGEIRSDÓTTIR JÓNSSON FEATURED AT THE BECHTLER MUSEUM OF MODERN ART

Retrieved on: 
Friday, February 16, 2024

CHARLOTTE, N.C., Feb. 16, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Born and raised in Iceland, Hildur Ásgeirsdóttir Jónsson (b.

Key Points: 
  • CHARLOTTE, N.C., Feb. 16, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Born and raised in Iceland, Hildur Ásgeirsdóttir Jónsson (b.
  • Jónsson's paintings—she prefers this term to "weavings" or "textiles"— are based on photographs she takes of Icelandic landscapes and seascapes on extended trips there twice a year.
  • "This exhibition continues the museum's commitment to highlighting global modernism and its legacies," said Todd D. Smith, Executive Director, Bechtler Museum of Modern Art.
  • On view at the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art from February 17 – June 2, 2024, Hildur Ásgeirsdóttir Jónsson: Infinite Space, Sublime Horizons is the artist's first solo museum exhibition in the U.S. in nearly a decade, and her first monographic show in the Southeast.

Climate change is forcing Australians to weigh up relocating. How do they make that difficult decision?

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, February 15, 2024

Big environmental changes mean ever more Australians will confront the tough choice of whether to move home or risk staying put.

Key Points: 
  • Big environmental changes mean ever more Australians will confront the tough choice of whether to move home or risk staying put.
  • Communities in the tropical north are losing residents as these regions become hotter and more humid.
  • Others face rising bushfire risks that force them to weigh up the difficult decision to move home.

We’ve been slow to adapt to increasing impacts

  • It is increasing the frequency and intensity of disasters and extreme weather events such as heatwaves, fires, storms and floods.
  • It is also accelerating environmental changes such as soil erosion, salinisation of waterways, loss of biodiversity, and land and water degradation.
  • Both sudden disruptions and gradual pervasive decline have impacts on the places where we live, work and play.

What factors affect the decision to stay or go?

  • Systemic inequalities mean some people are more at risk from environmental change and have less capacity to respond than others.
  • This makes it more likely to be owned or rented by people with fewer financial resources, compounding their disadvantage.
  • For First Nations peoples and communities, connections to and responsibilities for places (Country) are intimately intertwined with identity.
  • For them, the impacts of climate change, colonisation and resettlement interact, further complicating the question of relocation.

So who stays and who leaves?

  • They nominated bushland, beaches, fauna and flora, and the climate/weather as characteristics they valued and feared changing or losing as climate change progressed.
  • One study participant wrote:
    It would be hotter and much more unpleasant in summer.
  • I would miss being able to cycle or walk to the local lakes to connect to nature and feel peaceful.
  • We also found place attachment was associated with people acting to protect that place, such as protesting environmentally destructive policies.

Proper planning for adaptation is long overdue

  • It causes significant economic and non-economic losses for both individuals and communities.
  • A changing climate and inappropriately built or located housing interact to create conditions where some people can or should no longer stay.
  • We need co-ordinated, well-governed, long-term planning for people to move in the face of environmental change to ensure equitable and positive transitions for individuals and communities.


Justine Dandy received funding for this work from the Centre for People, Place and Planet, Edith Cowan University. Zoe Leviston received funding for this work from the College of Health and Medicine, Australian National University

Tourism Authorities in Chile Report on the Fires Affecting the Valparaíso Region

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, February 15, 2024

NEW YORK, Feb. 15, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- As a result of the forest fires that have affected the area of the Valparaíso Region, the tourism sector in Chile has implemented restrictions following the tragic events that have the country in national mourning. The Chilean authorities announced that the country's main attractions and the touristic offerings in all regions are operational and prepared to receive international travelers.

Key Points: 
  • NEW YORK, Feb. 15, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- As a result of the forest fires that have affected the area of the Valparaíso Region, the tourism sector in Chile has implemented restrictions following the tragic events that have the country in national mourning.
  • The Chilean authorities announced that the country's main attractions and the touristic offerings in all regions are operational and prepared to receive international travelers.
  • Following the fires and as a preventive measure, the authorities have made a special call to tourists who are specifically in the city of Viña del Mar to be cautious and respect the instructions of the national authority in Chile.
  • The Chilean authorities confirmed that connectivity in Chile is operating normally.

Canadians shatter records with nearly 6 million kilograms of batteries recycled in 2023

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, February 15, 2024

This marks the program's ‘best year yet’, surpassing 45 million kilograms of batteries recycled since its inception in 1997.

Key Points: 
  • This marks the program's ‘best year yet’, surpassing 45 million kilograms of batteries recycled since its inception in 1997.
  • The 2023 collection results set a new benchmark for battery recycling in Canada, reflecting the growing awareness of the importance of proper disposal.
  • Saskatchewan, also in its third year of program operation, increased its results by 18% with over 121,000 kgs collected and recycled.
  • Quebec exceeded provincial collection targets again with over 1.8 million kgs collected and recycled, a 29% year-over-year increase.

Can we be inoculated against climate misinformation? Yes – if we prebunk rather than debunk

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, February 15, 2024

The link between extreme events and climate change is clearer than ever.

Key Points: 
  • The link between extreme events and climate change is clearer than ever.
  • Misleading or incorrect information on climate still spreads like wildfire, even during the angry northern summer of 2023.
  • People producing misinformation have shifted tactics, too, often moving from the old denial (claiming climate change isn’t happening) to the new denial (questioning climate solutions).
  • Prebunking often has a better chance of success, according to recent research from co-author Sander van Linden.

How does prebunking work?

  • Psychological inoculation via prebunking acts like a vaccine and reduces the probability of infection.
  • (We focus on misinformation here, which is shared accidentally, not disinformation, which is where people deliberately spread information they know to be false).
  • You can now find prebunking efforts on Meta sites such as Facebook and Instagram intended to protect people against common misinformation techniques, such as cherry-picking isolated data.
  • Read more:
    YouTube: how a team of scientists worked to inoculate a million users against misinformation

Prebunking in practice

  • As an example, let’s prebunk claims likely to circulate after the next big fire.
  • A devastating fire 100 years ago does not disprove the trend towards more fires and larger fires.
  • Media can give information on the most common causes of bushfires, from lightning (about 50%) to accidental fires to arson.
  • Show how government agencies can and do communicate openly about why climate regulations are necessary and how they are intended to stave off the worst damage.

Misinformation isn’t going away

  • It’s no wonder it’s a golden age for misinformation.
  • Misinformation actors have found effective ways to cast scepticism on established science and then sell a false alternative.
  • As the world gets hotter, prebunking offers a way to anticipate new variants of lies and misinformation and counter them – before they take root.
  • Chris Turney receives funding from the Australian Research Council.
  • He is a scientific adviser and holds shares in cleantech biographite company, CarbonScape.

American Canadian School of Medicine Partners with Community to Train Fire Department

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, February 14, 2024

PORTSMOUTH, Dominica, Feb. 14, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- The American Canadian School of Medicine (ACSOM) is pleased to announce a new partnership with the Dominica Fire and Ambulance Services Portsmouth Unit conducting a training initiative with 12 fire officers.

Key Points: 
  • The American Canadian School of Medicine (ACSOM) is pleased to announce a new partnership with the Dominica Fire and Ambulance Services Portsmouth Unit conducting a training initiative with 12 fire officers.
  • PORTSMOUTH, Dominica, Feb. 14, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- The American Canadian School of Medicine (ACSOM) is pleased to announce a new partnership with the Dominica Fire and Ambulance Services Portsmouth Unit conducting a training initiative with 12 fire officers.
  • "We are proud to collaborate with the local fire department in this important training endeavor," said Dr. Bauman.
  • The partnership underscores ACSOM's commitment to community health, safety and education as well as our commitment to supporting local emergency responders.

Four ways AI could help us respond to climate change – despite how much energy it uses

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, February 13, 2024

But it’s important to remember that AI could also contribute in various ways to our response to climate change.

Key Points: 
  • But it’s important to remember that AI could also contribute in various ways to our response to climate change.
  • These include identifying sources of emissions, enhancing the production and use of renewable energy and predicting calamities like floods and fires.
  • Here are four different areas where AI has already managed to master some of the smaller tasks necessary for a wider confrontation with the climate crisis.
  • Electricity
    AI could help reduce energy-related emissions by more accurately forecasting energy supply and demand.

K-12 Broadline Distribution Sales Soar, Circana Reports 11.6% Year-Over-Year Growth

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, February 13, 2024

The increase in the number of schools offering breakfast has been a driving force behind the growth, leading to boosted sales of breakfast classics such as ready-to-eat cereal (+14.7%), pancakes/waffles (+15.8%), and syrup (+14%) year-over-year.

Key Points: 
  • The increase in the number of schools offering breakfast has been a driving force behind the growth, leading to boosted sales of breakfast classics such as ready-to-eat cereal (+14.7%), pancakes/waffles (+15.8%), and syrup (+14%) year-over-year.
  • Plant-based dairy alternatives, particularly soy, almond, and oat, have also seen significant growth, with oat milk registering the fastest growth rate at 50%.
  • The influence of students’ preferences outside of school also contributed to the growth of Mexican handheld foods like taquitos and quesadillas.
  • *Source: Circana SupplyTrack®, broadline case sales, 2023 vs. 2019 fall semester
    Source for all other data: Circana SupplyTrack, Sept.-Dec. 2023 vs. year ago