Community

Akin to a Fitbit for cattle, an ear tag developed by a Fargo-based company is bringing smart technology to the most basic of places – prairie pastures.

The tags have been developed by 701x, a tech startup owned by Kevin Biffert.
 

If “rural electrification” was a buzzword spreading across the nation in the 1930s, “beneficial electrification” might be a buzzword of the 2030s.

Rural electrification in North Dakota held dreams of making life better for every farm family, and eventually, meant serving members in every pocket of this state, from the most remote to urban areas.

A 15-year-old Lansford girl has turned her love of writing into a successful first book.

Lindsey Undlin, a freshman at MLS-Mohall, had her book, “Stolen,” published by W. Brand Publishing last March. Since then, more than 1,000 copies of her book have sold.

“A child care crisis.”

That’s how Gov. Doug Burgum described the state of child care in North Dakota, speaking at a press conference in September 2022 to pitch his child care plan.

“In many cases, parents have to choose between working and paying for child care, or not working at all,” Burgum told the Legislature in his executive budget address in December. “Currently, child care costs account for 15% to 40% of the average household budget in North Dakota, which often isn’t sustainable for young working families.”

It’s a Friday afternoon, and Brooke Hilzendeger plops a heavy bag on the dirt floor of the Lineworker Training Center in Mandan, kicking up a trail of dust. She opens it and pulls out climbing boots, a body belt, a pole strap, gloves and a hard hat. These aren’t the items most people would expect to find in a woman’s bag, but for those who know Hilzendeger, a 29-year-old single mom and self-proclaimed tomboy, it comes as no surprise.

Frostival started in Fargo as a two-day winter festival celebrating the “cool” of winter during the quietest time of the year.

Over the years, the spearheading committee decided to expand the festival into a six-week festival to help encourage placemaking and to bring the residents and visitors outside for some fun.

Technology in 2023 will continue to advance rapidly. In particular, there will be many new and emerging technologies available to the public, including augmented reality, artificial intelligence and autonomous vehicles.
I am excited to see what 2023 brings. Most of these advances in technology will help us live a healthier and better life.

Rhonda Gilbertson-Evans wrote those words in a poem called “Why I Do This Work.” The poem explains her reasons for serving people experiencing homelessness, including a man dear to her heart.

“It’s not that easy for many of our community members who are homeless. Some hills are unsurmountable,” she said.

Going into last winter, with many North Dakota waters lower than they’d been in some time thanks to severe drought, N.D. Game and Fish Department (NDGF) fisheries managers worried that declining water levels and other factors would lead to significant winterkill.
Turns out, it wasn’t nearly as bad as anticipated.

Many of us are so connected to our phones, tablets and laptops we panic when the battery nears the dreaded 0% mark.

We want our device batteries to perform well for as long as possible. But taking care of them can conflict with why we have our electronics in the first place. The point isn’t to fret about battery life; it’s to read and send emails, scroll on social media, take photos and countless other pursuits.