In Other News ...
The top news stories from Laramie and Albany County as of March 9, 2021.
Welcome to the Laramie Reporter’s “In Other News” segment. Once a week, I plan to curate the top news stories from Laramie and Albany County reported in local, state and regional media, gathering them here in a convenient list. Subscribe to my newsletter to get this list in your inbox every Tuesday.
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The single-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine has started to be administered in Albany County, according to the Laramie Boomerang. The J&J vaccine has had a lower reported efficacy rate than the earlier Moderna and Pfizer vaccines, but these cannot be directly compared because the J&J vaccine was tested later than the others, after variants of the original coronavirus had started to spread.
Reading status:Laramie Boomerang paywall
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Three UW students died in a two-car collision on Highway 287, the Laramie Boomerang reports. Two other people, one of whom was also a UW student, were injured during the crash. “Words fail us, as they simply can’t express our sadness. Our hearts are broken for the families, their friends and our entire community,” UW President Ed Seidel wrote in a news release from the university. The university hosted a candlelight vigil for the student on Monday.
Reading status:Laramie Boomerang paywall
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Albany County updated its wind regulations last week, requiring more of energy companies seeking to develop wind farms in the county. The commission meeting during which the new regulations were approved drew public comments from nearly 40 individuals. Some argued that the new regulations did not go far enough in restricting what wind companies can do. Others argued that the county should do all it can to allow eager companies such as ConnectGen to bring jobs and tax revenue to Albany. Still others, mainly young people, argued that Albany County ought to encourage wind development as part of a greater effort to combat climate change.
Reading status: Open access
https://laramiereporter.substack.com/p/albany-county-updates-wind-regulations
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Albany County’s Rep. Karlee Provenza (HD-45) introduced a bill to raise the minimum wage in Wyoming from $5.15 to $15, the Casper Star-Tribune reports. The bill, though unlikely to pass in Wyoming’s legislature, echoes a national conversation about raising the federal minimum wage. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office recently found that raising the minimum wage would lead to a net increase in federal revenue and lift some 900,000 people out of poverty. While the increase would push 1.4 million into unemployment, there is separate research suggesting that even temporarily unemployed workers are themselves better off in a country with a higher minimum wage, giving the naturally cyclical nature of low-wage work.
Reading status:Casper Star-Tribune paywall
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The University of Wyoming’s Interactive Realities Lab is working to improve virtual reality technology, Wyoming Public Radio reports. Virtual reality can be used to train individuals like doctors and nurses, who must learn to safely perform dangerous tasks.
Reading status: Open access
https://www.wyomingpublicmedia.org/post/university-wyoming-lab-improves-virtual-reality-simulations
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