Robotaxis aim to take San Francisco on ride into the future

SAN FRANCISCO — Two trailblazing ride-hailing services are heading toward uncharted territory as they seek regulatory approval to transport passengers around the clock throughout one of the most densely populated U.S. cities in vehicles that will have no one sitting in the driver’s seat.

Let’s Talk Food: Easter Eggs

This Sunday is Easter Sunday and we often think of an Easter egg hunt. But do you know eggs have always been such an integral part of Easter?

Let’s Talk Food: Versatile tomatoes

The tomato is an edible berry in the nightshade family, the plant Solanum lycocopericum and originated from Western South America, Mexico, and Central America. It comes from the Mexican Nahuatl word tomatl.

Let’s Talk Food: The best recipes

My dream job would be working for a newspaper that would allow me to travel the world looking for the “BEST” recipe and write about it. Christopher Kimball of Milk Street magazine does that, traveling around the world to find that perfect recipe and whenever the title says “The world’s best!” it certainly makes me take notice.

Let’s Talk Food: James Beard America’s Classics Award winner

Manago Hotel, in Captain Cook, has been named one of six winners in the prestigious James Beard Classic Award representing the Pacific and Northwest Regions for 2023. The selections are made to restaurants open for 10 years or more. I think being open since 1917 more than qualifies Manago Hotel for such an honor!

Let’s Talk Food: Girl’s Day is this Friday

Girl’s Day or “Hinamatsuri” is on the third day of the third month, or March 3. It is when dolls that were given to the girl at birth and on her first birthday are put up for display. It is put up a week before March 3 and taken down at the end of the day of March 3, as it is believed if you leave the dolls out beyond that day, it is unlucky and may delay the girl’s marriage.

Volcano Watch: The missing slow slip events on Kilauea’s south flank

Over the past two decades, both scientists and members of the public have anticipated the occurrence of slow slip events (SSEs) on Kilauea’s south flank. These events are recorded by the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory’s continuous GPS network, which show as much as 2 cm (0.75 inches) of increased seaward motion of the flank over 2-3 days — equivalent to about an M6 earthquake.

Let’s Talk Food: Today is Mardi Gras

Today is Fat Tuesday, or Mardi Gras. It began as a religious holiday observed before Lent, celebrated on Shrove Tuesday, before Ash Wednesday, following the Christian liturgical calendar. Historically, it was meant to use all the fats in the home before the Lent preparation for abstinence.