Author: wildgreenquest@gmail.com

The mountaineer, REI visionary, and environmental advocate was the defining figure of 20th-century American climbing.Robert Kennedy and Whittaker pull on a tow line to help free a stuck ski plane at the base site at Mount Kennedy in Yukon Territory 150 miles west of Whitehorse, Canada, in 1965Published April 8, 2026 03:54PMMountaineer Jim Whittaker, the first American to summit Mount Everest, died on April 7, 2026, at the age of 97. Whittaker reached the top of the world alongside Sherpa Nawang Gombu in 1963 and was one of the defining figures of 20th-century American mountaineering.Whittaker and his twin brother, Lou,…

If you bought Tom’s of Maine toothpaste in the last six years, you could be eligible for a cash payout stemming from a recent $2.9 million settlement.The class-action lawsuit filed against Tom’s parent company, Colgate-Palmolive Company, “alleged deceptive and misleading business practices with respect to the manufacturing, marketing, and sale” of certain toothpaste products.”Tom’s is best known for its natural products. The toothpaste products were produced at its manufacturing facility in Sanford, Maine, where the company also makes deodorant and bar soap, and sold to consumers through third-party retailers.What’s the issue in the class-action lawsuit?During a May 2024 inspection of…

Elon Musk hosted Intel executives over the weekend, and on Tuesday the chipmaker announced it’s joining Terafab — a massive AI chip project with factories designed for space. Intel announced on X that it will partner with SpaceX, Tesla and xAI to build two advanced chip factories in Austin, Texas. Intel is proud to join the Terafab project with @SpaceX, @xAI, and @Tesla to help refactor silicon fab technology.Our ability to design, fabricate, and package ultra-high-performance chips at scale will help accelerate Terafab’s aim to produce 1 TW/year of compute to power… pic.twitter.com/2vUmXn0YhH— Intel (@intel) April 7, 2026 One factory…

Published April 8, 2026 03:05PMIt’s easy to forget that not too long ago, walking through many U.S. cities was a hazy, smoggy affair. Once the Clean Air Act of 1970 tightened industrial regulations, dramatic air quality improvements followed, with pollutant levels dropping by nearly 80 percent in just a few decades. However, the recent rise in wildfires as a result of  extreme fire weather (extremely dry and windy conditions) and increased pollutants in the air from wildfire smoke is reversing some of this hard-earned progress.As we gear up for another wildfire season, the following tips for monitoring air pollution should…

The spring bloom of cherry blossoms are known to be a stunning sight. Across Japan, Korea, and places like Washington, D.C., the trees burst with dense, pink flowers for just one or two weeks, bringing millions of tourists. But climate change is threatening these blooms.As the planet warms, our winters are getting milder. And those mild winters can delay the flowering of cherry blossom trees by up to 32 days, according to a new study from researchers at the Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute in Kyushu, Japan, and at Boston University. Without enough cold weather, the trees don’t know that…

Key Takeaways Lowe’s is committing $250 million over several years to expand training for electricians, plumbers, carpenters, and other skilled trades. The funds flow into programs like tuition-free training. CEO Marvin Ellison frames the trades as “even more important… in the near future,” arguing that hands-on roles are resilient to AI and automation. As AI shakes up white-collar work, skilled trades are starting to look like the smarter bet for steady, high-paying work — and Lowe’s is leaning into that future.  The home improvement company recently told Fortune that its foundation plans to invest $250 million over the next decade…

A bit of cleaning, care, and repair can keep your footwear in rotation for years. Clean your boots after each trip to keep them in good shape (Photo: Andrew Peacock / Moment via Getty)Published April 8, 2026 01:50PMHiking boots are meant to be worn—not kept in a display case like a pair of Nike Dunks. That means, out on the trail, they’re bound to get dirty. Dust finds its way into every crevasse, mud cakes onto the tread, and creek crossings soak the lining. With every mile, your boots take on the terrain and, almost invisibly, begin to break down.…

Some Buc-ee’s customers are complaining of pain at the pump—and it’s not the surge in gas prices that’s to blame, but rather the chain’s pay-at-the-pump policy.While it’s common practice for gas stations to require customers paying for gas with cash to prepay with a cashier, Buc-ee’s instituted a new policy in March that affects customers paying with credit or debit cards. Customers paying with credit or debit cards are now required to pay at the pump, and can no longer pay at the register, as reported by the Austin American-Statesman. The new policy is intended to speed up transactions and…

After years of building a traditional business centered on helping people get out of the house and find fun stuff to do, John Peterson, the CEO of The Nudge, just launched an agentic AI version of its “planner friend.” This new AI agent, which is now live across dozens of U.S. markets, proactively plans, recommends, and books things to do in your city, informed by your likes and dislikes, plans others are making locally and chats from other users. “Once you sign up, you start receiving texts directly on your phone a couple of times per week – each ‘nudge’ includes…

Published April 8, 2026 12:30PMPortable power stations have come a long way in the past several years. Since I started using power stations for camping nearly a decade ago, the technology has advanced so much. Now, I’m convinced that anyone building a camper van or overland rig is better off with one of these all-in-one units than a traditional camper van or RV electrical setup—a complicated system of standalone batteries, inverters, converter chargers, solar charge controllers, breakers, and wiring. A modern portable power station combines all of that into one unit, and is a much simpler solution for most people.Over…