The demand for cacti, which tend to be slow growing, and succulents used in xeriscaping has created a huge uptick in plant poaching. This article from Geographical (UK) looks at what is being described as an "epidemic" of poaching of rare succulents in South Africa, a country that, previously, has been better known for animal poaching: geographical.co.uk/nature/wildlife/item/4287-south-africa-s-new-plant-poaching-epidemic
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Historically, spring has been a busy time for home sale listings. Does the name of your street matter in terms of resale value? A recent study by a finance professor at Emory University analyzed nearly 6,000 home sales across 35 states from 2001-2020, comparing houses sold on streets with Confederate names (e.g., Jefferson Davis, Dixie) with comparable houses sold on streets without the Confederate association. The economic geography was striking in two ways. First, in the 11 states of the former Confederacy, the difference in sales prices was not statistically significant, but in the other 24 states, houses on Confederate-named streets sold for an average of 4% less -- a loss of $10,000 on a $250,000 house, for example. Second, in areas with higher shares of college educated, Democratic-voting, or Black residents, houses on Confederate-named streets sold at a bigger discount and were more likely to be slow to sell. This map shows Confederate street names in New Orleans, for example, where the city council is reconsidering place names with Confederate associations: bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/f/ab/fab4b190-acfc-11ea-b1a5-f38812a04d2a/5ee436e73a7b7.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C1294. (Map from NOLA.com; study data from www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-02-08/confederate-street-names-can-bring-lower-home-prices.)
What happened when three philosophers set up a booth on a street corner in New York City with a banner "Ask a Philosopher"? It turned out a wide range of people were wrestling with questions about giving their life meaning, the nature of reality, finding happiness, and more. theconversation.com/3-philosophers-set-up-a-booth-on-a-street-corner-heres-what-people-asked-110866
This pair of maps, prepared by Statista based on World Bank data, shows the impact of smartphones on internet access in Africa: www.statista.com/chart/26781/internet-penetration-africa-progress/
ST Math has made its visual puzzle-based math program free to home schoolers and other independent learners through June 30, 2023: www.stmath.com/homeschool-math
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