Midway Como Frogtown Monitor

How a costume maker convinced Hersheypark to ‘chocolatize’ their old‑timey theme park

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article A theme park has to have an identity. If you want to know the two things that Hersheypark does especially well, just approach the entrance. There you will meet a friendly candy mascot – perhaps a Hershey bar, Reese’s […]

An engraving of the surrender of British forces to George Washington at the Battle of Yorktown in 1781.
Michael Lee/Moment via Getty Images via The Conversation

What happened at the end of the Revolutionary War? Here’s how Americans set up a brand-new country once the fighting ended

The United States came out of the Revolutionary War victorious. But building a new nation was very different from fighting a war.

Tyner honored with Nancy Latimer Award for advancing early childhood education and literacy justice

Dr. Artika R. Tyner, award-winning author, educator, attorney, and founder of Planting People Growing Justice Leadership Institute (PPGJLI), has been honored with the Nancy Latimer Award at the 2026 …

Alana Kniefel is the YMCA Executive Director of Innovation and Growth for Child and Family Wellbeing.

Aiming for affordable childcare

The need for quality affordable childcare has been expressed loudly and clearly in the Midway community of St. Paul, and the YMCA has responded by building the new Peter J. King Family Foundation …

Simple ways parents can be literacy leaders at home

According to data sourced from the Statewide Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment (MCA), nearly 54 percent of third graders are not proficient in reading. This staggering statistic has dropped for the …

Beyond September: Building a daily culture of literacy for children

Literacy is described as the ability to read, write, speak, and understand information. September is recognized as Literacy Month. This year’s global theme is: “Literacy for people, the planet …

Can we get a little commotion for vanilla? It's having a moment – and Minnesota is here for it

Chocolate may get most of the attention, but vanilla is quietly making a statement — and Minnesota is helping lead the way. A new University of Minnesota College of Food, Agricultural and …

AI may quickly generate ideas, but working with people leads to more creative ones

A recent experiment found that people working with ChatGPT generated fewer unique ideas than those who collaborated with other humans.

Plans with cheaper premiums are risky business for Americans seeking lower healthcare costs

Some options that might look like health insurance actually aren’t – and they may leave you stranded with large, unexpected medical expenses.

The Crossword Puzzle

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‘Shining knights of the ring’

More than a century ago, Frogtown brothers Mike and Tommy Gibbons made headlines for their boxing prowess. They are remembered in the new book, “The St. Paul Phantom: The Gibbons Brothers’ Fight …

‘A Woman’s Place is in the House’

The political views and actions of the first Minnesota women to be elected to the House of Representatives in 1922 were told in a recent Minnesota Fringe play. “A Woman’s Place is in the …

The Glenwood-Inglewood Company in 1910. The Glenwood and Inglewood springs were on adjacent property and ran as separate water companies until about 1896. Minnesota Historical Society.

DO DRINK THE WATER

Before a new house is completed today in the Twin Cities, the utilities (sewer, water, natural gas, electricity, etc.) are already in place. The owners take it for granted that their new home will …

The original home of Holcomb-Henry Boom-Purcell when it was just the A.E.Henry Funeral Home. Note the street car tracks in the foreground.

Dearly departed

A “for sale” sign is up at the Holcomb-Henry-Boom-Purcell funeral home, 536 N. Snelling Ave. If property use changes under a new owner, that brings an end to more than a century of …

Did you know about the old Hippodrome?

Eighty years ago, a center for year-round fun was repurposed for the World War II wartime effort. The original Minnesota State Fair Hippodrome and nearby structures that housed livestock at fair time …

How does Salmonella contaminate everything under the sun?

The Conversation reports that Salmonella contamination is widespread, affecting food, surfaces, pets, and potentially causing over 1.35 million infections annually in the U.S.

The EU Cyber Resilience Act puts product makers on a 24-hour clock

Vanta reports that the EU Cyber Resilience Act mandates product makers to report security vulnerabilities within 24 hours.

The costume maker who convinced Hersheypark to embrace candy mascots and ‘chocolatize’ their old-timey theme park

Hersheypark underwent a total transformation in the 1970s, when candy mascots and thrill rides replaced barn animals and old-timey recreations of Tudor England.

A special Los Angeles preview event for the movie 'Ramayana' on March 30, 2026.

From ‘A Little Princess’ to ‘Black Panther,’ how Hollywood films have reimagined the South Asian epic ‘Ramayana’

There is no single way to tell the story of the ‘Ramayana.’ People from different religious traditions and cultural backgrounds have reimagined the epic in countless ways.

The Declaration of Independence did more than assert the Colonies' independence from Britain.

1776’s Declaration of Independence inspired Washington’s troops to fight against the odds – and also helped bring in powerful allies

The Declaration of Independence isn’t just a philosophical breakup letter. It was a strategic move to secure vital support for America after its first declaration of war.

In this illustration, _Spinosaurus mirabilis_ fight over a carcass some 95 million years ago in what is now the Sahara Desert in Niger. Dani Navarro

Paleontologists uncover a new ‘Spinosaurus’ species by following a clue from a decades-old book into the Sahara Desert

The hunt for a mythicized fossil hot spot took a team of researchers on a journey through the Sahara Desert.

Michelangelo's 16th-century fresco 'The Last Judgment.' Sistine Chapel collection via Wikimedia Commons

Why Michelangelo’s ‘Last Judgment’ endures

The artist used daring imagery that sparked controversy from the moment it was unveiled.

As part of the Artemis II mission, humans will fly around the Moon for the first time in decades.

NASA’s Artemis II crewed mission to the Moon shows how US space strategy has changed since Apollo – and contrasts with China’s closed program

Today, there aren’t just two countries competing to get to the Moon. More countries have space programs, and private industry plays a larger role.

Your shoes might not necessarily free your mind.

Can shoes alter your mind? What neuroscience says about foot sensation and focus

Your feet can send a lot of sensory information to your brain. But whether you believe that your footwear is affecting your cognition may matter more than what shoes you wear.