If you've recently spied a startlingly low-flying beast in the sky, don't worry--it's not Google trying to get a more recent photo of your back yard, and it's not a search party looking for bad guys in your neighborhood. It's just trying to get a read on how much radiation you might exposed to. more ›

The State Department of Health has detected some low-levels of radiation in Washington State from Japan's damaged nuclear reactors, but the level of radioactive iodine that has reached us is "millions of times lower than levels that would be a health concern." Because Japan is a whole Pacific Ocean away, the radiation is so diluted that the Department of Health actually advises against taking protective action, so those of you clamoring to buy potassium iodide (KI) might want to hold off: the Health Department advises that "only people who work in or around nuclear power plants during an emergency, or who live near such a plant and can't get away" should take KI. more ›

Thanks to dramatic state budget deficits, the Washington state Department of Health has decided to discontinue three of its programs: colorectal screenings (poor people don't get cancer), water-contaminant testing, and the state's prescription drug monitoring system. The colorectal screening program--targeted towards low-income communities--and the prescription drug monitoring system were not yet in full swing, and by axing them both, the department will save $14,000. If there's one department we don't want to see make any more cuts, it's this one. Bill and Melinda Gates, have you considered donating to the state of Washington this year? more ›

Okay, the good news is, we didn't have sunstroke and don't have to hand in our secret, California-native Golden Bear flag lapel pin. Whew. The bad news is, there's a pretty contagious, extra-strength bug going around town. We don't see anything on the Department of Health website yet, so we must, as usual, be trendsetters. more ›