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The Event Horizon Telescope team, which revealed the first-ever image of a black hole on April 10, recently won the the 2020 Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics. This prize, often called one of the "Oscars of Science" comes with a $3 million prize. That prize money will be split equally among all 347 members of the Event Horizon Telescope team, who co-authored the discovery in six different scientific papers.
Among the Event Horizon Telescope team are 21 University of Arizona researchers, students and telescope staff. The Event Horizon Telescope team managed to capture the first direct visual evidence of a supermassive black hole thanks to collaborations between multiple telescopes and universities across the world. The black hole in question lies at the center of Messier 87, a massive galaxy in the Virgo cluster roughly 55 million light-years from Earth.

When the prize money is divided equally among all 347 team members, each person will receive more than $8,000.

The 21 winners are:
Graduate Students: David Ball, Junhan Kim, Lia Medeiros, Mel Rose, Arash Roshanineshat, Tyler Trent.
Undergraduates: Kyle D. Massingill, Chi H. Nguyen.
Faculty/Astronomers: Chi-kwan Chan, Buell T. Jannuzi, Daniel P. Marrone, Feryal Özel, Dimitrios Psaltis, Lucy Ziurys.
Postdocs/Engineers: Pierre Christian, Thomas W. Folkers, David C. Forbes, Robert Freund, Christopher H. Greer, Martin P. McColl, George Reiland.

Singer-songwriter Nancy McCallion performs original Americana acoustically as part of Plaza Live! Tuesday Night Concert Series in the courtyard at St. Philip's Plaza.

Plugsy is a big, energetic, goofy guy who has spent WAY too long at HSSA waiting for his forever family. HSSA staff know Plugsy quite well and we're proud to say that he is a New Beginnings Canine program graduate. Plugsy is high energy, loves toys, and will play fetch with you from sunrise to sunset. We know he would make the right family very happy. Interested in meeting this boy? Visit him at HSSA Main Campus at 635 W. Roger Rd. or call 520-327-6088, ext 173 to learn more.

Bisbee's historic Copper Queen Library earned the recognition of Best Small Library in America 2019 on Sept. 6 from Library Journal, a library industry publication that's been around since 1876.

The Copper Queen was chosen for the honor due to the staff's "can-do attitude and the ability to combine and capitalize on assets and potential in unusual forms," according to a press release announcing the recognition.

LJ Editorial Director Rebecca T. Miller wrote that they were thrilled to honor Bisbee's library.

"This library, chosen from a competitive field, celebrates community engagement, models creativity, and makes the most of partnerships," she said.

The Copper Queen was founded in 1882 before Arizona was a state and it is the first Arizona library to receive the award.

The LJ article commended the library's attention to the diverse community it serves, which has a high population of low income residents.

Library Manager Jason Macoviak gave a lot of credit to the volunteers who are the heart of the library in LJ's article and encouraged other small libraries to be creative and take risks.

“A lot of our success just comes in trying random things and seeing if they work,” he says, then building on what resonates with the community."

Cooper Queen will receive $5,000 along with the cover of the September 2019 edition of Library Journal.

Read the full article from LJ here.

For more information on the Copper Queen or to see the programs they offer, visit their website. 

Arizona GOP Chair Kelli Ward made national news for her promise that Republicans will "stop gun-grabber Mark Kelly dead in his tracks."

Any Arizonan with a head and a heart remembers the horrific 2011 shooting at a Gabby Giffords "Congress on your corner" event and knows Mark Kelly, who is running for Senate, is Giffords' husband. Ol' Chemtrail Kelli apparently has neither head nor heart. She certainly has no reservations about using gun violence imagery in a fundraising email as a way of rallying the troops voters in the battle against the Democratic enemy, Mark Kelly.

But in Ward's defense, she didn't invent the idea of "targeting" Democrats with gun-laced appeals for money and votes. It's a longstanding Republican family tradition.

Sarah Palin's SARAHPAC posted a graphic in 2010 stating, "20 House Democrats from districts we carried in 2008 voted for the health care bill. IT'S TIME TO TAKE A STAND." Each district is marked with a gunsight's crosshairs.

After the Giffords shooting, Palin was criticized for the graphic. She tried to turn the blame back onto Democrats, claiming she was the victim of a "blood libel," a term that refers to the antisemitic myth during the Middle Ages that Jews killed Christian children and used their blood for ceremonial purposes. Palin's mind-bogglingly stupid and insensitive misuse of the term, compounded with her clownish campaign for vice president, assured the Republican party that absurdities can pay political dividends. Hail to the current Nonsequitur-In-Chief.

A "No Satirist Could Top the Real Thing" Note: In Sarah Palin's 2015 book, "Sweet Freedom: A Devotional," she has a chapter titled, LOCKED AND LOADED FOR BATTLE. After a biblical quote about facing adversity, she writes,

 The Bible promises trials for followers of Christ, so we’re wise to prepare for battle now. A soldier doesn’t begin his training after he’s called into battle; he’s been sacrificing and preparing for months and years before his boots hit the battlefield. So, how do we put on our armor for a spiritual battle? By studying and memorizing God’s Word. It forms a protective shield over our souls, warding off enemy attacks.

Onward Christian soldiers, marching locked and loaded.

Arizona's only premier underground cult film festival is returning to for the 12th year in a row! The Arizona Underground Film Festival is on a "sole mission to showcase the work of filmmakers with defiantly independent visions," ranging from documentaries to horror to experimental and more. The fest runs from Friday, Sept. 13 to Sunday, Sept. 22. Ahead of a week of cinematic goodness at The Screening Room, we asked AZUFF founder David Pike to share the 10 films he's most excited about this year. 

Artik
A critically acclaimed action horror film that takes the viewer into a world where a comic book obsessed serial killer clashes with a straight edge purist. The screening includes lead actor Jerry G. Angelo in attendance. (Screening at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 13)

Name
A look at the significance of names, how they affect our lives and shape the world around us. (Screening at 5 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 14)
Man in Camo
Critically acclaimed documentary about what it means to be a modern artist. (Screening at 7 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 15)
Impossible Monsters
A fun and twisted story that has critics calling it a fantastic and unforgettable thriller. A film that is not to be missed. (Screening at 7:30 p.m. Monday, Sept. 16)
Mentally Al
A look at the life of one of the best comedians that no one has heard of, Al Lubel. (Screening at 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 18)
Thursday night Shorts
Some of the best shorts on the festival circuit with many filmmakers in attendance. Shorts with Tom Skerritt, Jason Schwartzman, Jennifer Morrison and others. (Screening at 8 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 19)
Foosballers
A quirky and heartwarming story of a group of professional athletes the world doesn't know exists. Starring Tucson native Robert Mares, and directed by Tucson native and UA alumni Joe Heslinga, who will both be in attendance. (Screening at 8 p.m. Friday, Sept. 20)
Bronko
Ascetic vision about a being who detests the dysfunctional social model that this society proposes and opts for the way of self-destruction. Spanish filmmakers will be in attendance. (Screening at 10 p.m. Friday, Sept. 20)
A Ship of Human Skin
A gothic tale of mysticism told like a true crime story. Filmmaker will be in attendance. (Screening at 6 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 21)
The Duckpond
A wild and funny film that is not be missed from Sweden. (Screening at 7 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 22)

The Arizona Underground Film Festival runs from Friday, Sept. 13 to Sunday, Sept. 22 at The Screening Room, 127 E. Congress Street. For more information, visit azuff.org

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WASHINGTON – Hunting groups are applauding new federal rules creating longer seasons, extended hours and expanded methods for hunting and taking different types of game on national wildlife refuges.

The changes, announced last week by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, affect 1.4 million acres of federal land, more than 800,000 of which are in Arizona where seven of nine national wildlife refuges would be included in the changes.

Zack May, president of Southern Arizona Quail Forever, said the changes reduce contradictions between state and federal hunting rules while making national public land more accessible to sports enthusiasts.

“Anything that improves public access to public land is a good thing,” he said.

While hunters cheered the changes, environmentalists groups greeted them with a shrug. Brett Hartl, government affairs director for the Center for Biological Diversity, called the expansions “relatively minor and somewhat silly,” pointing to Kofa as an example.

“The reality is that there’s not that many hunters that go there,” Hartl said. “It’s hotter than hell 98 percent of the year.”

Kofa, at more than 660,000 acres, is the largest of the wildlife refuges affected by the changes.

The Interior Department said the new rules open hunting and fishing on 77 national wildlife refuges and 15 hatcheries. The rules also remove or revise more than 5,000 hunting regulations “to more closely match state laws,” Interior Secretary David Bernhardt said in a new release announcing the change.

The department says the rules open or expand twice as much land as had been opened in the previous five years, and brings the number of refuges allowing hunting to 381. Affected refuges now have expanded season dates, longer hours or more hunting take methods for several bird and big game species, according to the Fish and Wildlife Service.

The hunting and fishing changes unveiled by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service affect 77 national wildlife refuges and 15 fish hatcheries. (Photo by Bureau of Land Management/Creative Commons)

May, who hunts primarily in Buenos Aires and Cibola national wildlife refuges, said he has experienced “minor issues” with conflicting state and federal regulations and credited the new rules to a good working relationship between the two governments.

The final rule specifies that Fish and Wildlife officials will work with the Arizona Game and Fish Department on opening more opportunities in the next three years, including the two refuges not included in this year’s changes.

Hartl questioned the need for further expansion, characterizing the fanfare in the Interior Department’s announcement as a move to appease President Donald Trump’s political base.

“It’s such a modest thing,” Hartl said. “There’s no pent-up demand. It’s not as if this has been a contentious issue.”

A May Fish and Wildlife Service report estimates that only about 3% of Kofa’s 95,404 visitors visited the refuge for hunting during the 2017 fiscal year.

But others see the rules as a sign the federal government is listening to the real owners of the land: the public.

Hunting groups such as Safari Club International contend that people should be able to utilize public space, regardless of its popularity. Benjamin Cassidy, director of government affairs, said giving hunters the opportunity to hunt in places like Kofa “should be commended.”

“I think it continues in the tradition of listening to the American people and seeing how we can improve the experience on public lands,” he said. “Americans own these public lands.”

National wildlife refuges in the Southwest U.S. saw over 7 million visitors in 2017, according to recent Fish and Wildlife Service reports.

Nick Wiley, chief conservation officer for Ducks Unlimited, called the changes a “fresh look” at access to public lands – Arizona included.

“There’s a strong hunting interest from the people in Arizona and the hunting community,” Wiley said.

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