Kate Archer Kent

A Northwestern State University student is preparing for a prestigious summer internship at the Lamont Doherty Earth Observatory at Columbia University in New York. Christina Palomo of Los Angeles will travel from Natchitoches to New York later this month to help Columbia scientists study the environmental consequences of the 2010 BP oil spill. The biology major said she’ll work alongside two geochemists.

The Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities has added a new feature to its expanding digital encyclopedia of Louisiana history and culture -- KnowLA. The LEH is distributing downloadable QR codes to museums statewide. The barcode can be printed and mounted alongside artwork. By scanning it with a smartphone, it takes the viewer from the static piece of art into the rich, interconnected encyclopedia entry.  LEH president Michael Sartisky said there are 276 artist entries in KnowLA -- all of them with QR codes – from folk artist Clementine Hunter to Shreveport illustrator Bill Joyce.

Louisiana Rep. Patrick Williams (D-Shreveport) is trying to draw attention to the invasive aquatic weed giant salvinia that continues to clog many waterways in the state. He invited the inventor of the "WaterMower" to address the House Committee on Natural Resources and Environment during a May 8 hearing. Williams said his constituents want to see results that go beyond chemical sprays and weed eating weevils raised in university research labs.

Paintings that are part of the Kasten Art Collection go on display today at the R.W. Norton Art Gallery in Shreveport. The Kasten Family of South Carolina has amassed works by British and European painters completed between the 1860s and 1920s. The Norton’s Emily Young said 32 pieces are on display in two galleries. It’s the second stop of a nationwide tour. She says the works – many impressionistic  – have a common trait: paintings within paintings.

Hundreds of middle and high school students are preparing for regional and state competitions this month in their shooting sports program. In Texarkana, the Arkansas High School Razorbacks trap team will advance 60 students to the regional competition in Lonoke, Ark. Head coach John Wilson started the team six years ago. The 68-year-old is a volunteer and he said the sport is run by people just like him. He said grants keep the program going.