Kansas Public Radio

You've heard of an apple core. It's the part most people throw away. Today, we'll hear about a different kind of core - a core sample of the Earth. The University of Kansas is creating more space to store and display rock core samples. Commentator Rex Buchanan tells us why we should care.

The tallgrass prairie is mostly confined to the Kansas Flint Hills in eastern Kansas. But earlier this year, some of that grass - up to 5 feet tall - started sprouting further west, out in the Smoky Hills of central Kansas. What's going on here? Commentator Rex Buchanan explains.

October 14 is the 135th anniversary of the birth of Dwight D. Eisenhower, our nation's 34th president. Eisenhower grew up in Abilene, which is where his presidential library is located. The author of a new book tries to separate fact from fiction in Eisenhower's eventful life story.

Right now is one of the best times of the year for bird watchers. As Commentator Rex Buchanan tells us, as many as 800 million birds will soon be moving through this part of the world as they migrate south.

In the Flint Hills, south of Wamego, an Australian company is drilling deep holes in search of hydrogen. Could this be a new source of energy for the Sunflower State? Commentator Rex Buchanan tells us more.

A new book by the author and historian Caleb Gayle tells the story of Edward McCabe, one of the leaders of Nicodemus, a Kansas town founded by the formerly enslaved.

In the next 15 years, the demand for electricity in the U.S. is expected to increase by 30 to 50%. Data centers are a big part of that. But it's not just industry that will need more power. Commentator Scott Carlberg takes a look at energy use in the U.S. and how we all have a role to play.

Sure, it's hot. But things were a lot worse 151 years ago. Not only was there no air conditioning, but in 1874, Kansas was under attack - from giant swarms of grasshoppers. The swarms were so large they blocked out the sun.

Dozens of rare and historic Civil War battle flags stored at the Kansas Museum of History in Topeka are falling apart and in desperate need of restoration. But repairing just a single flag can cost tens of thousands of dollars.

It's called ABS, or the automatic balls and strikes challenge system, and it creates a 2D adjustable strike zone.