Rebecca Worby

Doctors are caught in an illicit opioid scheme, Washington State moves toward renewable energy, and a fireball lights up the Mid-Atlantic.

Prisons in Washington State may be blocking book donations, air pollution is shortening lives, and a four-legged whale skeleton provides evolutionary clues.

Puerto Rico deals with cuts to food stamps, LBGT support wanes among young Republicans, and the mystery behind sea-borne Garfield phones is solved.

The marijuana sector is growing, the Texas Senate plans for the next Hurricane Harvey, and some pets still need homes four months after the Camp Fire.

The Trump administration pushed to excise coal deposits from a Utah monument, New York lawmakers want to help minors get vaccinated, and a Navy ship is quarantined at sea.

The FDA writes that failure to immediately cease sales of unapproved versions of mifepristone and misoprostol may result in action.

OxyContin's maker contemplates bankruptcy, anti-abortion bills move forward in Georgia and Tennessee, and women will take a walk in space.

The porpoise is closer to extinction than ever before.

The Chinese telecom company is expected to argue that it has been punished without trial, violating the Constitution.

The Senate confirms a former lobbyist as EPA head, the U.S. is losing solar jobs, and fishy sightings intrigue scientists.

FEMA calls Trump's bluff, a study shows gay dads are excellent parents, and giant creatures are alive and well.

The San Juan County commission voted two-to-one in favor of a resolution that rescinds the county's previous opposition to the monument and condemns its reduction by Donald Trump.

Massachusetts senator and 2020 Democratic hopeful Elizabeth Warren unveiled her plan for universal child care on Tuesday.

Americans are behind on car payments, coastal-access advocates get good news, and NASA says goodbye to an old friend.

A measles outbreak increases vaccination demand, a new bill would address the crisis of missing Native American women, and California's wet weather eases drought conditions.

Democrats and environmental advocacy groups oppose Bernhardt's nomination due to his background as an oil and mining industry lobbyist.

A study shows the shifting winds of climate change, male cheerleaders make history, and elephant seals occupy a tourist beach.

The bill would restore the areas excised from the monument by Trump, and add additional acreage.

The author discusses her latest book and explains why she has hope for the Earth.

A measles outbreak hits the Northwest, Australia breaks heat records, and a fourth state mulls banning the gay panic defense.

Global warming could affect your coffee buzz, Antarctic ice is fast disappearing, and cats in Wyoming are catching the bubonic plague.

A California law eliminating cash bail has been put on hold.

Researchers find high lead levels in an Ohio county, Fiat Chrysler pays the price for its emissions scandal, and the Supreme Court upholds California's foie gras ban.

National parks that remain open during the shutdown have seen a number of issues as a result of understaffing, including litter and vandalism.

Washington state implements new gun purchase restrictions, more border fencing could be constructed, and NASA gets a a good look at a far-off celestial body.

David Bernhardt, who will step in to fill the role, is a lawyer and lobbyist with strong fossil fuel and water industry ties.

The Pacific Standard staff highlights the stories published elsewhere that moved us, made us think, and left us a little envious.

As curated by our editorial staff.

Whether it's a prison strike organizer or a former vice president, there's nothing like reading a person's story in their own words.

Criminal justice reform on Capitol Hill, women take power in the Nevada assembly, and American teens go on vapecation.

Savanna's Act passed the Senate unanimously. If it doesn't pass the House, it will be back to square one next session.

Gun deaths in the U.S. hit a 20-year high, the Supreme Court declines to wade into an abortion debate, and a study offers some hope for coral reefs.

A Park Service Board gets new members, mudflows follow California fires, and a big company commits to clean energy.

Advocacy groups say that's an unprecedented show of public interest.

Amy Irvine, the author of Desert Cabal, discusses what it means to write about public lands in the shadow of Abbey's classic.

Federal employees are warned about taking part in the #Resistance, Californians look to a gun tax after a mass shooting, and transgender caravan members face extra challenges.

Under the Bureau of Land Management's plan, close to 700,000 acres of previously protected land would be open to drilling and mining.

Scientists revise results on a major climate study, Trump supports criminal justice reform, and palm oil production threatens orangutan habitat.

An investigation by Pacific Standard and the Guardian revealed the full extent to which Ryan Zinke's Department of the Interior favored industry over conservation.

The hot, dry winds turn drought-ridden areas of Southern California into a tinderbox in the fall.

The Trump administration announces new immigration rules, more wildfires erupt in California, and Google changes its sexual misconduct policies in response to walkouts.

Air quality is harming children, sea otters get some good news, and a utility company provides a partial mea culpa for a major fire.

When a young Jewish woman was murdered at my university a decade ago, the crime seemed unthinkable. Today, such events can feel almost chillingly unsurprising.

With the mid-term elections looming, some have speculated that Zinke will be among the next spate of cabinet members to leave their posts.

A powerful storm ravages a U.S. commonwealth, Starbucks opens a deaf-friendly store, and a court protects a shy, vulnerable species.

The EPA sidelines science, the Harvard University bias case goes to trial, and the West Coast might get its first offshore wind auction.

The policy would have required that the data for all scientific studies used to justify major regulatory actions be publicly available.

States try to keep the Colorado River flowing, an Ebola outbreak continues, and the U.K.'s highest court says the cake shop customer isn't always right.

The competition, which ended Tuesday, provided flashes of joy during this tumultuous news cycle.

A state of emergency has been declared in 35 counties in Florida.