PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIVERSITY

May 09 2026POLITICS

Pet Store Bans: A Problem, Not a Solution

Pennsylvania lawmakers are debating bills that would stop pet shops from selling dogs and cats sourced from professional breeders. The idea is that this move will shut down puppy mills, but the evidence shows otherwise. When states like New York and California enacted similar bans, they ended up har

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May 06 2026TECHNOLOGY

AI chatbots playing doctor? Pennsylvania draws the line

Pennsylvania just filed a lawsuit against Character. AI, a company that lets users create and chat with AI personalities. The state says some of these characters were pretending to be real doctors—complete with fake credentials and license numbers. One character named Emilie claimed to be a psychiat

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May 05 2026POLITICS

Pennsylvania fights back against abortion pill restrictions

Pennsylvania’s governor recently joined forces with 20 other states to push back against a court ruling that limits how abortion pills can be given out. The federal appeals court in Louisiana decided that mifepristone, a common abortion medication, can only be handed out in person at clinics. This m

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May 03 2026HEALTH

Healthy habits in college: what Spanish students really do in their free time

University life doesn’t just mean late-night study sessions and endless coffee. For many Spanish students, it’s also a time when daily habits start to take shape—some good, some not so great. A fresh study looked at how these young adults actually spend their time outside classes, using a detailed q

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Apr 21 2026POLITICS

Prediction Markets: Who Gets to Tax Them?

States want to raise money from online prediction sites, but they’re not sure what those sites actually are. The debate centers on whether the sites should be treated like sports betting, financial derivatives, or something else entirely. If they’re seen as gambling, states could tax them the sam

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Apr 21 2026WEATHER

Cold Weather and Pollen Alert for Staten Island

Staten Island residents can expect a sharp temperature dip after Monday’s brief showers. The National Weather Service says it will be partly sunny in the morning, with a high around 54°F. At night, the temperature will plunge nearly 20 degrees, settling near 34°F by Tuesday morning. Sunlight

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Apr 20 2026WEATHER

Spring Weather Switch: Rain, Wind, and Allergies Hit Staten Island

Staten Island is about to face a spring mood swing this week. After a taste of warm 80-degree days last week, the upcoming forecast is bringing it back to typical spring unpredictability. Rain showers are expected to roll in starting Sunday, kicking off a stretch of days that feel more like April th

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Apr 15 2026POLITICS

Keeping Great Teachers in Pennsylvania’s Classrooms

Pennsylvania is spending time and money to train new teachers, but too many leave after just a few years. That waste of resources hurts students the most. Two lawmakers—one who became a teacher and another who went into public service—teamed up to propose a solution. They believe the state should in

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Apr 12 2026POLITICS

Why Pennsylvania’s Energy Bills Keep Rising

Pennsylvania sits on a goldmine of energy resources—gas, coal, nuclear, and even strong wind and solar potential. Yet households here pay some of the highest electricity bills in the country, despite sitting on top of so much energy wealth. Between 2018 and 2023, the cost per kilowatt hour jumped ne

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Apr 11 2026LIFESTYLE

Pennsylvania’s barns get a modern makeover on license plates

Pennsylvania’s famous bank barns, those sturdy structures perched on hillsides with one side built into the slope, are now rolling around on license plates. The state has launched a new special fund plate featuring this iconic barn design, letting drivers carry a piece of rural history with them eve

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