Think Out Loud

Ann Patchett’s latest novel is set during the pandemic, but it is also set in the past. The main character, a mother of three adult daughters, tells her children the story of her own youthful romance with a man who is now a famous movie star. The story is told over long days picking cherries on their family farm, where everyone has gathered together for the lockdown. Though the central story...

Jan. 26 marks the 324th anniversary of the last Cascadia Subduction Zone earthquake. The 1700 quake caused the coastline to drop by several feet and sent a tsunami crashing into the Pacific Northwest coast. Pressure has been building in the Zone ever since, setting the region up for another potential magnitude-9.0 quake. Researchers estimate this kind of “megathrust” earthquake occurs...

Author David Grann often writes about obsession. His stories feature people doing extraordinary, and often dangerous or morally questionable things, in pursuit of ambitious goals. He’s the author of the books “Lost City of Z,” “Killers of the Flower Moon,” and his newest, “The Wager.” Grann is also obsessive about the research and details he puts into his...

For some downtown Portland business leaders, the new year is a time for optimism. Some say government attention on the area, like an emphasis on the region through the Central City Task Force convened by Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek, could mean positive changes for downtown. Jonathan Bach is a real estate and finance reporter for the Portland Business Journal. He recently wrote about the outlook for dow...

When Sarah and Joel Bond moved into their first house, a home they’d bought in SW Portland Gabriel Park a few years ago, they noticed the two tall Douglas firs on the property - one several times taller than the house and leaning toward it.  Generally, to remove a tree of a certain size in Portland, it must be either dead, diseased or dangerous. The Bonds applied under the dangerous cri...

Water has been drawn down from reservoirs on the Klamath River as the largest dam removal effort in U.S. history continues. It’s a critical step before the removal of three remaining hydroelectric dams on the river. We check in on the process with Barry McCovey Jr., the Fisheries Department director for the Yurok Tribe.

Pale Blue Wave, an Instagram profile with more than 80,000 followers, highlights impromptu photos and video portraits of strangers around Portland, mainly taken in downtown. The photographer who created the Pale Blue Wave account says he appreciates the style of the residents he sees walking around. In the videos, some Portlanders appear surprised and flattered to be noticed on their commutes goin...

Earlier this month, scientists described what they believe to be the world’s first fossil of prehistoric grasshopper eggs. The silver dollar-sized fossil containing more than 50 grasshopper eggs was first found in 2012 at the Sheep Rock Unit at the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument in Eastern Oregon. For several years, the fossil was mistakenly thought to be of ant eggs until Nick Famos...

The Woodland East Mobile Home Park is a community of residents 55-and-older, located in Southwest Washington, roughly 20 miles north of Vancouver. The Columbian recently reported on the plight of the many seniors who live there and struggle to pay $1050 per month to rent a lot, in addition to their mortgages, utilities and other expenses. The tenants claim the landlord has raised their rent by 250...

In November, the Oregon Health Authority began offering all middle and high schools in the state free kits containing naloxone, a medication used to reverse overdoses from opioids, including fentanyl. Fake prescription pills laced with fentanyl have been linked to accidental overdose deaths among multiple teens in Oregon. Amid this backdrop, a new investigative series from The Lund Report, Univers...

Veneta, Oregon in Lane County, bills itself as a “quiet, small-town community” with access to both natural areas and the amenities of the Eugene metro area. It’s the kind of place where neighbors help neighbors, as evidenced by the recent activity on the Veneta Community Network Facebook page. During last week’s winter storms, the message board was full of posts from commun...

Early results show that residents in John Day have voted to recall their mayor just a year after she took office. A group of citizens and city employees moved to begin the recall process after filing a criminal complaint against Mayor Heather Rookstool last fall. Both the complaint and the recall petition allege that Rookstool overstepped the legal role of her office by taking on duties belonging...

Oregon has had the same blue and gold state flag for nearly 100 years. The state’s name, coat of arms and year of statehood are on one side, but it’s the other side that features the golden beaver that makes it unique — it’s the only state flag with two sides and one of the only double-sided flags in the world. The Redmond Spokesman recently ran an editorial pointing out th...

Seven out of every 10 adults in the Oregon Department of Corrections have abused drugs or alcohol, and 1 out of 5 are classified as having severe mental health issues. People who are released from custody are 10 times more likely overdose on opioids than the general public. These are among the many challenges facing the new director of the Department of Corrections, Mike Reese, who took over the j...

Most people are familiar with the classic game of telephone where one person whispers a phrase to someone else seated next to them and that person then whispers what they heard to the next person, and so on. The game continues until the last person shares aloud what they heard, often bearing little resemblance to the original message.  Oregon ArtsWatch recently profiled an exhibit that opened...

From humpbacks to orcas, whales and dolphins are renowned for their underwater vocalizations, whether it’s to impress a mate, find prey or strengthen social bonds. But beluga whales are especially vocal, with a complex language of whistles, chirps and rhythmic calls that have led to them being called the “canaries of the sea.”  For the first time, a team of scientists has do...

Lane County was hit particularly hard by the recent winter storms that left many areas of western Oregon without transportation or power. Ice and snow led to downed trees, closed roads and extensive power outages in the county. Gov. Tina Kotek declared a state of emergency on Tuesday to help county officials access “critical federal resources to aid in reconstruction and recovery efforts.&rd...

Doctor Carlos Sanchez has an unusual and challenging caseload of patients. For one thing, they have scales, feathers, horns and fur, and can’t really say where it hurts. But it’s his job to oversee the medical care and treatment of more than a thousand animals (not including fish) as the head veterinarian at Portland’s Oregon Zoo. In our latest installment in our series on profes...

Oregon’s storied craft brewing industry suffered one of its worst years in 2023, with depressed draft beer sales and rising costs creating more pressure than some of the state’s businesses could bear. According to the Oregon Brewers Guild, the state is home to about 400 breweries, brewpubs and taprooms, with 50,000 jobs and generates nearly $9 billion in economic output. But the state...

In a recent state report card, 3.9% of students in Oregon are experiencing homelessness. There are a number of challenges facing these students, including meeting their basic needs. According to the report card, a little more than 80% of Oregon students graduate in four years, for students who are unhoused that number drops down to 58.6%. Mark Osburn is the McKinney-Vento liaison for the Oakridge...

Tens of thousands of Oregon homes and businesses were still without electricity early Tuesday, as the National Weather Service warned of more challenging conditions to come. Portland Public Schools, Salem-Keizer, Eugene 4J and many other districts canceled classes on Tuesday. Portland warned that its sewer system is strained, and the MAX service remains shut down. At least four deaths may be linke...

From the Black Panthers to hip hop, the Shakur family stands out as leaders of Black political thought and activism in this country. Journalist Santi Elijah Holley chronicles the history of this family in his new  book “An Amerikan Family: The Shakurs and the Nation.” Holley describes a group of people committed to resisting the exploitation and persecution of Black people, and cr...

Oregon State University, the University of Oregon and Portland State University have come together to form the Oregon Cybersecurity Center of Excellence. The center was created by the state Legislature last year, as data breaches of the Oregon Health Plan and Department of Motor Vehicles exposed millions of Oregonians’ information, and ransomware attacks shut down the Curry County government...

Throughout Oregon, cities are dealing with budget deficits. And for some, the new year has meant cuts to services. Libraries are facing cuts in multiple cities, including Salem. And officials elsewhere are scrambling to cobble together funds to keep some services afloat. Melanie Kebler is the mayor of Bend, and Chris Hoy is the mayor of Salem. They join us with details on what their cities are fac...

Inclement weather is in the forecast for much of Oregon this weekend, with almost all counties under a winter storm watch or warning. The Oregon Department of Transportation has been clearing roads and responding to closures since late Monday, when the first round of storms hit the state. ODOT received $19 million last month from the Legislature to shore up winter maintenance services in the wake...