Latest news with #CalStateLongBeach
Yahoo
03-07-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Officials uncover rising threat to US groundwater — here's what you need to know
Accelerating sea level rise has also meant a rise in shallow fresh groundwater in California, putting water supplies at risk from exposure to pollution. Scientists employed a new method to assess that risk and recently released their findings in a new report. Researchers from California State University, Long Beach, used deep learning and explainable artificial intelligence (XAI) models to determine California's risk of polluted groundwater exposure from sea level rise along the state's coast. While most advanced AI models make decisions that involve the use of complex math, they don't tell us the reasons they arrived at those decisions. XAI helps to explain the how and why behind those decisions. The team from Cal State Long Beach used this advanced technology to assess groundwater contamination risks from rising seas that could potentially impact half a million Californians by the end of the century. Rising oceans push groundwater closer to the surface, where it can mix with pollutants from old factories, landfills, and sewage plants, contaminating the water. Projections indicate that by 2100, approximately 500,000 people in California may reside in areas where groundwater is likely to become contaminated. A significant number come from communities of color or lower-income areas, who already face more health and safety challenges. The study titled "Assessing risk of groundwater pollution exposure from sea level rise in California" was published in Science of the Total Environment, a peer-reviewed scientific journal. The new methods that scientists have developed to identify which communities are most vulnerable to groundwater pollution and to determine the factors driving this risk can be applied by communities around the world. The latest annual State of the Climate report issued by the American Meteorological Society revealed that sea levels hit a record high in 2023. It was the 12th straight year that sea levels have risen. Glaciers continued to melt in 2024, the warmest year on record globally. Officials in California cited data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that projects a possible sea level rise of one foot in the San Francisco Bay Area by 2025. Marin County officials are urging the residents of Northern California to prepare for the consequences. Our warming world is supercharging extreme weather events as harmful heat-trapping gases are acting like steroids for weather. Several scientists are calling for a new category to be added to the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. Stronger storms coupled with rising sea levels mean storm surges can move further inland to cause more damage. Reducing harmful carbon pollution by ending our reliance on dirty energy and switching to renewable sources is critical. The choices we make at home, like upgrading to LED bulbs, unplugging energy vampires, and opting for an induction stove instead of a conventional range, can make an impact. Rising sea levels increase risks to the health and safety of people who live in coastal communities around the world. Do you worry about air pollution in and around your home? Yes — always Yes — often Yes — sometimes No — never Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. Join our free newsletter for weekly updates on the latest innovations improving our lives and shaping our future, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Los Angeles Times
20-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
Huntington Beach environmental advocate asks ‘What's Going On?' with new podcast
Christine Mulholland can trace her environmentalist roots back to when she was about 5 years old. On rainy days back then, she would put on her boots and grab an umbrella. She'd also round up the other kids on her block. 'I would put this worm-saving committee together,' Mulholland said with a laugh. 'I would make everyone help me rescue the worms out of the gutter, and put them back in the grass and the soil. That's where my passion for animals literally extended to worms, OK?' She was the kid who cried when — spoiler alert — Mufasa died in the movie 'The Lion King.' Other experiences also shaped her along the way, like reading the book 'Ishmael,' by Daniel Quinn, which explores life through the eyes of a gorilla. As an adult, Mulholland sees ecosystems that are more and more out of whack, and animals that have their population numbers dwindling. It's a lot for the Huntington Beach entrepreneur, or anyone really, to digest. But she created a podcast this year to help try to make sense of it all. The 'What's Going On?' podcast dives into global challenges, but also spirituality, health and wellness tips and more. It asks questions of a world that Mulholland sees as chaotic and uncertain. 'The world is talking to us,' said Mulholland, 38, a graduate of Fountain Valley High School and Cal State Long Beach. 'There are so many different events that have happened that are showing that the Earth is talking to us, she's telling us that this is not the way. We've got to change our ways, and quickly, and I don't think that a lot of people understand — or they feel apathetic and they don't know how to help or what to do. Compounded by all of this war stuff going on, the political divide, it all feels like such a distraction from what's really important and really threatening our survival as a species on this planet.' Mulholland in 2012 co-founded an environmental and wildlife conservation nonprofit called Generation Awakening. In 2018, she put on a 5K 'Race Against Extinction' locally that raised more than $40,000 to protect endangered species and their habitats. A bit tired of constantly fundraising, she wanted to earn more income herself to fund her passions. She teamed with Chef Matthew Kenney to launch 'Veg'D,' a vegan drive-through restaurant in Costa Mesa that opened in 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic during the pandemic but closed in February 2024, a victim of what Mulholland said was sky-high rent that made it difficult to turn a profit. 'The numbers didn't work,' she said. 'Then, I realized I had nothing left. I lost all of my savings and everything, and all I had left was my voice. It just all came back full circle. I started Veg'D to help causes that I care about, but I could just do that using my voice, which is free. That's how the podcast was kind of born.' She has released a few episodes of 'What's Going On?' already on Spotify and YouTube, featuring Mulholland interviewing guests passionate about the environment and other issues. She has already recorded about 20 episodes, and those released so far include talks with renowned photojournalist and conservationist Paul Hilton, personal development leader Kute Blackson and Hongxiang Huang of 'Agent C,' who goes undercover to expose illegal wildlife poaching in black markets worldwide. Mulholland's younger sister Tracy, a writer and science teacher, has served as her sounding board as the podcast has gotten off the ground. 'I think it's great that she's trying to bring awareness to all of these wildlife situations,' Tracy Mulholland said. 'I actually left publishing research because I was like, it's falling on deaf ears. So, I think she's got a good platform in that she's relatable and young and fun and this cute girl, but she also cares deeply about animals and wildlife and our planet. It's a good combination, and I'm hoping that people will actually listen.' Christine Mulholland resists the use of a loaded word like 'activist' in describing herself, adding that she rejects the two-party political system that too often is funded by billionaires pulling the strings. 'This is very common sense, just someone who loves our planet and animals and wildlife and wants a thriving ecosystem for our children and grandchildren,' she said. 'To be like, oh I'm a radical environmentalist for not wanting to cut down the trees that give us oxygen, for wanting a healthy ocean, that's crazy … Our planet needs more people speaking about the atrocities going on, and trying to change the way that we operate.' Upcoming guests on the 'What's Going On?' podcast, which will release episodes once or twice a week, include anti-whaling activist Capt. Paul Watson, breathwork and somatic therapist Alyssa Stefanson and more. She said she doesn't want the environmental conversations to be overly depressing, so she seeks to balance them out with other voices and topics. Mulholland has recorded podcast episodes both at her home in Huntington Beach and at Dream X Studios in Newport Beach. Her goal is to become a wide-reaching, top 1% podcast with millions of listeners worldwide. She appreciates a well-known quote attributed to the late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs praising the misfits and troublemakers, the round pegs in a square hole who see things differently. Nowadays Mulholland no longer rounds up worm rescue committees, but she tries to use the air conditioning sparingly in her home — thinking of the Arctic ice pack when she does — and always recycles. According to the World Wildlife Fund's Living Planet Report 2024, there was a 73% decline in the average size of monitored wildlife populations from 1970 to 2020. 'I want to start a global conversation with all of the good people of the world,' Mulholland said. 'We need to band together, you know? There's more good people than bad. It seems so bleak, but if we all came together, [the bad people] would be outnumbered. Let's come together, make better, sane decisions and have better global conversations than the ones we're having right now.'
Los Angeles Times
06-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
Miss Huntington Beach queen's rose garden celebrates 60th anniversary
The rose garden at Huntington Beach Civic Center has a new addition. Nicole Allyson Vogt, the 2025 Miss Huntington Beach Queen, chose a 'Mellow Yellow' rose to be planted on Friday morning. 'As Miss Huntington Beach 2025, I've had the honor of representing a city full of vibrant spirit, continuous warmth and community pride,' said Vogt, a recent graduate of Cal State Long Beach, the 112th queen in Huntington Beach history. 'Through this journey, I've learned that kindness is not a gesture, it's a way of life, just has Huntington Beach loves to represent.' Vogt said the yellow rose signified that spirit, as a symbol of joy, friendship and new beginnings. 'It embodies the kind of light I strive to bring into every space I enter,' she said, adding that her mother and grandmother taught her what it meant to shine for others. The 60th anniversary Queen's Rose Garden ceremony was put on by the Sand Dollars of Huntington Beach. The nonprofit Sand Dollars and president Love Ghione organize the Miss Huntington Beach scholarship and pageant program each year; Vogt was crowed queen last October. 'Our mission here is to support young women in their quest to achieve their dreams,' Ghione said, giving a special shout out to Sand Dollars treasurer April Gentry and member Andrea Roberson for nursing the rose bushes back to health. Marlena Guadarrama, the director of Miss Huntington Beach, introduced the queen and court to the audience. Vogt was joined at Friday's ceremony by her court princess, Huntington Beach High graduate Catherine Dosier, who sang the national anthem. Dosier now attends UC Irvine. Other former Miss Huntington Beach Queens at the event included Laura Sholar Roberts (1976), Elaine Bauer Keeley (1979), Stacey Jue (1995), Jena Jean Faris (2017) and Ruby Brown-Bilyeu (2024). Each queen since 1963 has been honored by planting a rose bush in a public location, which became City Hall when the new building was constructed in the 1970s. Mayor Pat Burns, City Council members Don Kennedy and Butch Twining and City Clerk Lisa Lane Barnes also attended. 'I love the tradition,' Burns said. 'Believe it or not, I'm kind of a goofy guy because I love roses. I used to grow them myself when I'd give them to my girlfriends and stuff when I was young. Now I've been married 37 years, so the roses don't come as often, but they still come. 'Now I know a source of them,' he added, as the audience laughed. Former Mayor Lyn Semeta emceed the event, which was followed by a catered reception at City Hall.
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Yahoo
Asian American professor who teaches history of racism attacked in possible hate crime
A Japanese American professor and Vietnam veteran was struck by a vehicle and called a racial slur while riding his bike last month in Montebello in an incident that police are investigating as a possible hate crime. Aki Maehara, a 71-year-old Asian American history professor, suffered serious injuries to his elbow, neck, cheekbones, jaw, hips and lower back, he told The Times in an interview on Monday. Maehara was riding his electric bicycle on Merle Drive in Montebello, not far from his home, around 10 p.m. on April 29 when headlights from a car approaching him from behind illuminated his path. He turned to check his surroundings and saw a sedan speeding toward him, he said. "I tried to turn toward the curb to see if there was a driveway when I got hit," he said. Before he was struck, he heard someone yell an expletive followed by a racial slur targeting people of Chinese descent, he said. He skidded across a yard and was stopped by a brick wall. Maehara said he heard a man's voice: "Go back to..." using an expletive and a racial slur, before the car drove off. "It sounded suspicious to me because I wear a full-face helmet ... a helmet with a visor," Maehara said. "No one can see my face. So how the hell did he know I'm Asian?" Maehara said he couldn't afford to incur the cost of an ambulance ride, so he called friends who took him to the VA hospital in Long Beach. Montebello police said they have contacted residents in the neighborhood for security camera footage, but have been unable to find video that captured the incident. Though no arrests have been made, Maehara said he has a suspect in mind and shared their name with police. He said he's been targeted for harassment before because of his job at East Los Angeles Community College teaching the history of racism and racist beliefs in U.S. history. "There's a long history," he said. "They've picketed my classroom at East L.A. College. Chicano Republicans came after me and picketed me at Cal State Long Beach. The KKK came to my classroom at Cal State Long Beach when I was teaching a course on the U.S. Vietnam War. This is not the first time I've been targeted." One of his friends, Glorya Cabrera, created a GoFundMe page to raise money for his recovery, writing that Maehara urgently needs in-home care for his injuries. The VA hospital has provided him with in-home care for a few hours two days a week, but Maehara is hoping the donations will help him get additional care as he heals. "Hate crimes are on the rise due to the vile rhetoric being used by those in Washington and in the so-called MAGA Extreme Christian Right who feel justified in their violence directed towards non-white citizens," Cabrera wrote. Police are continuing to search for the driver. Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Yahoo
Burglar targeted unattended elementary school classrooms in search of credit cards, police say
He hung out in hallways and loitered on Northern California elementary school campuses, apparently unafraid of being noticed. When an administrator would question him, the man would say he was looking for a teacher or student to throw off the inquisitor. But, authorities allege, he was really in search of unattended purses and wallets belonging to unsuspecting staff members. The Marin County Sheriff's Office alleges Christopher Britton, of Fairfield, burglarized classrooms at several schools in February, making off with credit cards and running up thousands of dollars in unauthorized purchases. Britton, 34, was arrested Friday morning at a Fairfield residence by a multi-county task force that included the Vacaville, Lafayette and Danville police departments, Dublin Police Services and the sheriff's office. Britton was charged with burglary, second-degree burglary, and using a credit card and information without consent, all felonies, and a pair of misdemeanors for obtaining credit using someone else's identification, according to court records. Read more: Cal State Long Beach athletics staffers stole thousands from school, D.A. says "His MO was to target elementary schools in the late afternoon at the time students and staff are on campus, but in meetings or after-school programs,' said Deputy Stephanie Ware, a spokesperson for the Marin County Sheriff's Office. Ware said three public elementary schools in the upscale suburb of San Rafael were burglarized: Lucas Valley, Mary Silveira and Venetia Valley. From those schools, 10 teachers were bilked out of roughly $7,000 in credit card charges, Ware said. Authorities are not certain about the total number of schools that Britton may have hit, Ware said, adding that investigators suspect there are victims in Marin, Contra Costa and Alameda counties. The first incident was reported Feb. 12 at Mary Silveira. All three schools were hit in February. It is not clear how authorities connected Britton to the burglaries. Ware described Lucas Valley and Mary Silveira as 'pretty open campuses' that lacked gates that might discourage outsiders from wandering onto the premises. Read more: Burglars, vandals hit LAUSD 171 times since August, 'reprehensible' acts against poor schools Sheriff's officials allege that Britton would wait for assemblies or other activities to sneak into unlocked classrooms where teachers left personal items. He would limit the pilfering to one to two cards, authorities said, leaving cash and other valuables undisturbed to not arouse suspicion. Once away from campus, he would use the cards to purchase goods, authorities allege. Ware said some victims didn't realize they had been ripped off, in some cases for weeks, until they reached for a specific credit card or checked bank statements. 'People keep multiple credit cards, so it's not surprising,' Ware said. Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
