Gainesville Local News

Newberry Elementary School       At only 10 years old these Newberry Elementary school students are already learning architecture principles. A group of University of Florida students are offering workshops to public schools across Alachua County. Architecture Workshop Organizer, Carla Brisotti says they bring in diverse volunteers to show children that regardless of their background, dreams can be achieved. She says one of her main goals is to inspire the students by providing a positive role model.  "So they can see they can make it"      Volunteers like Sean Lawaer are teaching children how to be environmentally conscious. He says the future is green and that employers are looking for candidates who think in sustainable ways. Lawaer says these workshops should be of great help to the students.       Students used traditional materials like crayons and glue sticks, but volunteers made sure to even provide stick...

Puerto Rico Disaster Relief Six months after Hurricane Maria, University of Florida architecture students fly to Puerto Rico to provide disaster relief in a 10 day UNESCO project. In one city, abandoned buildings led to ideas for restoring street life. Architecture student Valerie Pretto says they focused on the street known as Ponce De Leon. "Our proposal was actually based on the cultural aspect and that was analyzing the existing murals around the area.."      Environmental concerns are an ongoing priority in some areas. Research associate Maria Barrios says there is a lot of pollution in the water so they plan to create a green buffer to start cleaning the water. She says this can help with future flooding. Communities near mountains experienced landslides from severe runoff. Architecture student Andrew Benavides witnessed this first hand.  "Their houses would literally just fall on the side of the mountains because poor structural const...

Evening News in 90  As Syria continues to face chaos, University of Florida students are assisting the children who made it to the U.S. as refugees. That and more in 90 seconds. gators for medical relief is a student organization that is helping ease their transition to the American lifestyle. They meet the group of young refugees every other Sunday in Jacksonville. During that time children are taught English by tutors who make sure to incorporate playtime as well. An international investigation will take place in Syria after dozens were reportedly found dead from poison gas last week. Watchdog group inspectors are looking for evidence of chemical weapons used in the attack near the capital. Russia denies the chemical attack even occurred in Syria. Despite the claims the U.S. says it already found proof. The presidents personal attorney wants to keep items seized during a raid at his office private. Michael Cohen also wants to prevent the government...

Child Abuse Prevention Month

Local News in 90 A family is forced to adjust to a new life in North Central Florida, 6 months after a hurricane devastated their island home. Thousands of Puerto Ricans were forced to flee the U.S. territory after the hurricane destroyed their homes. Loudres Montanez saw their home fall apart. it took them four days for Loudres to find signal to connect with her family in Florida. She now lives with her family in Ocala where they attend school. The wife of the pulse nightclub shooter is found not guilty in federal court. after three days of deliberation, Salman was acquitted on charges of lying to the FBI and helping her husband plan the attack on the Pulse nightclub two years ago.   Pope Francis celebrated holy week celebration and prepared for Easter weekend. He held a mass in honor of good Friday in Rome's Colosseum. He was seen washing the feet of prisoners and thousands gathered for the way of the cross.

After State of Emergency, Michigan Governor Says Water Is Safe      A free water bottled program in Flint Michigan has ended after Governor Rick Snyder announced the water quality has been restored.      After four years of contaminated water in the city, residents are reportedly hesitant to start using tap water again. Lead had reportedly been found in the water and was resulting in illness among the population residing in the area. Snyder says the levels of lead now falls under the federal limit, according to CNN.     Despite the governor's efforts to convince residents that the water is safe, medical experts are speaking out. According to the article, pediatricians who first spotted the lead in children's blood is urging the governor to continue the free water bottle program. Just four months ago, former U.S. President Barack Obama had declared a state of emergency for Michigan, according to NBC News.     ...

Several Million Dollar Hotel in Space     If you've often found your mind drifting into space, this might just be for you.           A new luxury hotel may be launched into Earth's orbit in just the next three years. A space tech startup, Orion Span, located in Houston is reportedly taking on the task of sending vacationers to relax among the stars in 2022.      Just a simple payment of $9.5 million will reportedly let you have a 12-day stay. If the excitement is too much, prospective flyers can already start putting down a refundable deposit of $80,000 for future travels, according to National Geographic.             Orion Span's CEO, Frank Bunger, is reportedly working towards a lower cost to make space travel more accessible to everyone. "Upon launch, Aurora Station goes into service immediately, bringing travelers into space quicker and at a lower price point than ever s...

Love Your Body Day    Self love and body positivity is spread among UF students who are invited to participate in the fifth annual "Love Your Body" day held by online magazine HerCampus. A mirror was propped against a wall and students were encouraged to look at their reflection and write their favorite feature about themselves. Editor in chief of the magazine, Darcy Schild, said her originality is something she values. "I wrote my creativity.  My creativity is something important of who I am." To learn more about HerCampus at UF follow the link:  http://www.hercampus.com/school/ufl

Nasca Lines: New Puzzling Drawings Discovered       Ancient geoglyphs in Southern Peru have been unmasked from a desert by researchers surveying the area.      More than 50 new drawings have been discovered adding to the already famous monuments known as Nasca lines. A single geoglyph sprawls miles across the Nasca province. Adding to the mystery, these drawings are only visible from an aerial view. This puzzles researchers who wonder how the ancient cultures were able to etch perfectly measured lines into the sandy soil.            Although these drawings were reportedly created more than a millennium ago, they are still intact. Despite the use of powerful satellites and drones to capture the images, researchers still can’t see all of them, according to National Geographic. “Of the estimated 100,000 archaeological sites in Peru, Isla's colleague Castillo says only about 5,000 have been properly doc...

Opioid Crisis: Surgeon Pushes for Accessible Anti-overdose Drug        With increases in opioid deaths in America, medical experts say carrying an anti-overdose drug can be the difference between life or death.        Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams is reportedly working with manufacturers to allow more people to carry the anti-overdose drug, naloxone, if they know someone at risk. Although the budget for opioid addiction research has nearly doubled, experts reportedly say it may not be enough to combat the crisis. According to Adams in the NBC News article, “ With over half of overdoses occurring at home and three quarters of overdoses occurring in a nonmedical setting, we know we can't rely solely on first responders to save lives.”        Despite the high price for the anti-overdoes drug, some states are allowing people with commercial health insurance to receive the drug for free, according to t...

University of Florida students sit at the Plaza of the Americas lawn Monday morning. The lawn was designed by landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted in 1925. Just last year, the lawn was renovated with new tables and seats as seen in the picture above. Students often gather at this location to enjoy from Krishna lunch. The lunch is provided to the student body by ISKCON devotees and volunteers. With just a five dollar donation, a warm vegetarian meal is served!