South Carolina Focus

Traffic can be pretty noisy, but one component of the nation’s traffic is growing quietly. The component is the electric car. Sold by Chevrolet, Nissan, Tesla and other makers, Nissan alone has sold a quarter-million electric vehicles since 2011. Mac Martin, who sells the electric Leaf model by Nissan, says it’s so quiet the manufacturer actually installed a speaker to project artificial speed-up and slow-down noises so that pedestrians will be aware of their presence. Martin lists some

With the coming of warm weather, more people are getting outdoors. It’s a great idea – unless you’re bitten by a snake. The number of snakebite calls to the Palmetto Poison Center has increased the past two years, to about 200 per year. It’s probably not because more snakes are out there, but more emergency room doctors are calling the center for advice, because they don’t see that many snakebites, says center Director Dr. Jill Michels. Naturalist Jim Knight says a good way to avoid snakebite is

The state’s primary election is June 12. All executive office positions are up for election as well as all seven seats of the US House of Representatives. The eight candidates vying for the state’s top job recently fielded questions on various topics during two, hour-long debates. Republicans debated June 23 and Democrats on June 24. Democratic candidates Phil Nobel, Marguerite Willis and James Smith answered questions on the failed V.C. Summer Nuclear power station, education, legalizing

It's been three years since Carter and Jack Hanson were featured on CBS news for their rare friendship with a World War II veteran who served aboard the USS Yorktown. That's when the network set up a surprise meeting on the ship just outside of Charleston. They had gotten to know Robert Harding through email. It was quite a moment as the three came face to face, and their bond has grown stronger ever since. Now 13 years-old, the twins recently attended the Yorktown's 75th anniversary with their

Now that summer is approaching, it’s a common occurrence to see turtles crawling across roadways in South Carolina (and many other states). Ever wondered why that is? In honor of World Turtle Day , I spoke with Cris Hagen, Director of Animal Management at the Turtle Survival Center , a program of the Turtle Survival Alliance, in Charleston. “Like most things, turtles have home ranges, and if there are roads in their home range, they’re going to end up crossing them. You see a lot more in the

The aftermath of the October 2015 flood continues to occupy the business of many people and agencies in South Carolina, such as the East Richland County Public Service District (ERCPSD), which operates the sewer system for a section of the county heavily damaged by the flood. ERCPSD Deputy Director Ed Schooler said the flood changed the route of the system’s pipes, knocking many right out of the ground. Two and a half years later, the system has learned it has been awarded a $1.6 million grant

Students from three local Columbia high schools got a rare opportunity Monday—to see real life astronaut and former NASA Administrator Major General Charles F. Bolden, Jr. speak about space, science, and the future. For Bolden, who hosted the talk at the University of South Carolina’s Thomas Cooper Library in honor of the gift of his personal archives to the university, it was also an opportunity—to share his journey with students of his own alma mater, C.A Johnson High School. The students at C

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and there is much that most people are not aware of about mental health. Just more than 43 million Americans experience a mental illness in a given year, including millions of cases of depression, anxiety order and Alzheimer’s disease. USC psychiatrist Dr. Meera Narasimhan says many illnesses are caused by the stresses of everyday life, such as unemployment or divorce, or more jarring experiences such as war. The S.C. Dept. of Mental Health treats about 100

One of the ways the Small Business Administration (SBA) provides assistance to small businesses is through education. SBA provides free individual face-to-face, and internet counseling for small businesses, and low-cost training to nascent entrepreneurs and established small businesses. In South Carolina, a fairly new education program for military spouses teaches how to start a mobile business. South Carolina Public Radio talks with the creator of the class to learn how a successful small

Bluegrass music has always been popular in South Carolina, but Willie Wells thinks it’s about to break out to a new, mass popularity. Every Friday night, Wells holds a bluegrass jam at his store, Bill’s Music Shop and Pickin’ Parlor. Fans and musicians enjoy a performance before getting out their guitars, banjos and fiddles to play country, gospel and bluegrass tunes with each other. Bluegrass scholar and author Pat Ahrens says she’s impressed by the number of young people coming into the music,