Daily Briefing: Thurs.

Thu, Mar 26 2009 at 9:50 AM EST

INTO THE WILD: Congress has approved the biggest expansion of the U.S. wilderness system in 15 years, which now awaits President Obama's likely signature before it becomes law. The House voted 285-140 Wednesday to grant 2 million acres in nine states the highest possible level of federal protection, including parts of California's Sierra Nevadas, Oregon's Mount Hood, Colorado's Rocky Mountain National Park and Virginia's Jefferson National Forest. The bill, which is actually a collection of more than 160 individual measures, had already come before the House two weeks ago but was derailed by partisan arguments over a gun-rights provision. A rule blocking amendments helped push it through this time around. Some Republican opponents criticized the bill as a "land grab" that will hamper energy exploration and other development, but supporters called it a long-overdue investment in America's natural environments. (Sources: Los Angeles Times, Associated Press)

DAKOTA PLANNING: Parts of North Dakota's capital city are already underwater as rivers rise throughout the state, and Bismarck officials haven't yet ruled out a citywide evacuation. Volunteers are frantically piling sandbags near the surging Red and Missouri rivers — one describes driving through town as "warlike" — as forecasters predict historic flooding within days if waters keep rising. The recent high for the Red River was its crest of 39.6 feet during the flood of 1997, but its record was 40.1 feet in 1897. Experts say it could reach 41 feet by Saturday. (Source: CNN)

REDOUBT: Erupted at least two more times last night, sending up ash clouds of 15,000 and 12,000 feet, both of which again were carried past Anchorage by northerly winds. Chevron is considering whether it should move 6.2 million gallons of oil that are stored in two tanks nearby the 10,200-foot volcano, which has been erupting intermittently since Sunday. The company says it won't be able to transport anything by air until debris is cleared from the nearest airport's runway. For images of conditions around Mount Redoubt, see Scientific American's photo gallery. (Sources: AP, Scientific American)

HYBRID WARS: Toyota will keep selling its current model of the Prius even after it introduces its more efficient "third generation" Prius in May, the company's president announced today. The unusual move will likely help Toyota handle the threat posed by Honda's "Prius killer," the 2010 Insight, which will be the United States' cheapest hybrid when it goes on sale for $19,800 in a few weeks. The Insight will get about 41 miles per gallon, while the current Prius gets 46 mpg and the 2010 Prius will get 50. The Prius now costs $22,000, and Toyota has yet to announce the price for its upcoming model. For more on the most and the least fuel-efficient cars, see Translating Uncle Sam. (Source: AP)

HOOT GIVEN: A father from Gary, Ind., is suing 11 northwest Indiana industries for their contribution to the smoke and smog looming over the shores of Lake Michigan, which he says endangers his and other children growing up in the area. He's seeking class-action status in the suit, which is based partly on research done by USA Today in a recent report on industrial pollution near schools. "A child, running and playing can take in as much as 50 percent more air through their lungs than an adult doing the same activity," the man's lead attorney tells the AP. "We have no way of knowing the long-term effects of these contaminants." (Source: AP)

THIN GREEN LINE: The New York Times' Mireya Navarro follows around some of New York state's environmental police officers who have been given the unwelcome New York City beat, which pits them against the city's polluters and other urban environmental violators. Navarro deftly conveys the contempt many New Yorkers show for officers in olive-green uniforms and Smokey the Bear-esque Stetson hats, many of whom themselves didn't expect to end up raiding Chinatown fish markets or investigating leaky, abandoned cars when they became state environmental officers. (Source: NY Times)

INFOTAINMENT: USA Today's Dan Vergano examines the blossoming relationship between science and Hollywood, noting that movies and TV shows are increasingly taking a serious interest in portraying science accurately. Whereas producers used to cold-call universities for advice on fixing already-written scripts, many are now working with scientists from the beginning to make sure there's a "logical consistency" throughout. Even when dealing with the impossible, scientists can help suspend audiences' disbelief — Watchmen's Dr. Manhattan, for example, benefitted from University of Minnesota physicist James Kakalios concocting a quasi-scientific explanation. And since movies and TV are generally seen as a reflection of society at large, experts say this indicates a greater public interest in science than in the past. (Sources: USA Today, Metacafe)

— Russell McLendon

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