Chad Lampe speaks with Land Between the Lakes Association Volunteer Coordinator Emily Schmadeke about ways you can make a difference at LBL this summer, like volunteering for the Bobcat Island Cleanup or the Bugle Corp and how to adopt a trail. See more volunteer opportunities at the "Friends of LBL" website, or contact Emily at eschmadeke@friendsoflbl.org, or 270-924-2007.

Kentucky's Attorney General has sided with the Hopkinsville's newspaper over open meetings complaints it filed against the city council.

Kentucky New Era reporter Carla Jimenez says she filed the complaints after a closed meeting of an April Compensation Committee where five additional city council members attended.

The committee discussed a proposed contract for Melissa Spurr who was then a candidate for city administrative officer. Jimenez says Spurr removed herself from consideration May 7th.

State Rep. Derrick Graham has been named the new chairman of the state House Education committee, Democratic leaders announced today. 

Graham is a Frankfort native who recently retired as a social studies teacher at Frankfort High School. He is a well-known education advocate and previously chaired a budget subcommittee on education.

The Murray City Council has approved a $44.6 million  budget despite failed attempts to amend the spending plan. Discussions lasted well into the night yesterday because of what Councilman Danny Hudspeth says was his obligation to bring forward the four amendments.

Hudspeth entertained cutting a two-point-five-percent salary increase for all city employees, the hiring of a new storm water and drainage technician, money for building a scenic trail and a $50,000 allocation to Murray State University for an alcohol education program.

Among voters in Iowa — a key primary state — U.S. Sen. Rand Paul is the strongest Republican in the field of prospective 2016  presidential candidates,  says a new poll by Quinnipiac University.

Kentucky's junior senator leads current Vice President Joe Biden by five points among Iowa voters— and he trails former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the presumed Democratic frontrunner, by only four points.

Those totals are better than Sen. Marco Rubio, the Floridian who is also a leading Republican contender for the 2016 presidential election.

Age Range: 12 and up

We continue our occasional series previewing good reads for young adults from Katherine Farmer, Coordinator of the Racers Children's Preview Collection at Murray State University. This week's recommended read is Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, by Benjamin Saenz, winner of the 2013 Stonewall Book Award, Printz Honor, YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults, and Pura Belpre Author Award. It's a lyrical novel about family and friendship that critics and readers have called "tender, thought provoking, and breathtaking."

The United State's Enrichment Corporation is ending uranium enrichment at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant saying that there were not enough taxpayer benefits to extend enrichment.

USEC has operated the DOE's Paducah Gaseous Diffusion plant since July 1993 and will stop enriching uranium at the end of May. USEC expects to begin reducing the plant’s workforce in the coming months. However, the corporation plans to continue managing inventory and meeting customer orders in addition to transitioning the plant back to the DOE into 2014.

Murray Resident Mona Kashani Heern, her mother and sister fled Iran in the early 1980's after unexpected news that prison officials had executed her father. Heern's father had be imprisoned for being a member of the Baha'i faith.

The Brooklyn Bridge is one of the oldest suspension bridges in the United States. When it opened, on this day in 1883, it was the longest suspension bridge in the world spanning 1,595.5 feet. It's considered an icon of New York City, a symbol of optimism, and a technological marvel. I heard it was for sale, too.

It’s Friday, May 24

The Starfish Orphan Ministry 5K/10K Run for the Children & Family Day in the Park is tomorrow morning at Bob Noble Park in Paducah. Race day registration starts at 7, with both races starting at 8. Proceeds benefit the Starfish Orphan Ministry, which helps orphans both locally and internationally. For more information, visit starfishorphanministry.org.

From NPR: Itch can be a useful warning sign, or a maddening symptom with no cure. But the origins of itch have long been a mystery. Scientists think they've come closer to understanding the origins of itch in a molecule that makes mice scratch like mad.