Though Arkansas is still 30% above the rest of the nation, the state is finally seeing declining rates when it comes to new lung cancer diagnoses and moralities due to lung cancer. We hear from Dr. Gary Wheeler with the Arkansas Department of Health.
Ozarks At Large
State legislators are beginning to make plans for how to use a revenue surplus in the coming fiscal session of the Arkansas General Assembly. A special election today could affect the state's Private Option expansion of Medicaid. Gubernatorial hopeful Asa Hutchinson calls for more computer science courses to be taught at the high school level. The Arkansas Department of Health urges people between the ages of 25 and 50 to get flu shots this year. And Fayetteville will look for a new superintendent after the current one announced her resignation.


Sabrina Billings, an Assistant Professor with the department of African and African American Studies at the University of Arkansas, has spent years researching her new book Language and Globalization in the Making of a Tanzanian beauty Queen.

The Arkansas Department of Health says that rates of lung cancer are decreasing in the state, due in part to higher anti-smoking awareness campaigns. Governor Beebe calls for more Arkansans to get a higher education. The Greenland School District is set to spend nearly a million dollars on a new football field. And Lieutenant Governor Mark Darr formally gives his resignation from office amid a string of ethics violations.


To celebrate the 175th anniversary of the first photograph of the moon, here are the clips we included in our montage devoted to earth's favorite satellite:
1. Nick Drake sings Pink Moon.
2. A classic scene with Tom Hanks from Apollo 13.
3. Ella Fitzgerald's take on It's Only a Paper Moon.
4. Excerpt from a promotional film about the 1964 World's Fair.
5. REM's tribute to Andy Kaufman, Man in the Moon.
6. Jimmy Stewart and Donna Reed dream about the future in It's a Wonderful Life.
7. Elvis (happy belated 79th) and Blue Moon.
8. Lon Chaney, Jr. worries about the next full moon in Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman.
9. Creedence Clearwater Revival also worries about a Bad Moon Rising.
10. Neil Armstrong lands.
11. Frank Sinatra takes off.
Apologies to: Jules Verne, William Shakespeare, Henry Mancini, Bill Monroe, G. Melies and those little green guys on Rocky and Bullwinkle. Maybe next time.
1. Nick Drake sings Pink Moon.
2. A classic scene with Tom Hanks from Apollo 13.
3. Ella Fitzgerald's take on It's Only a Paper Moon.
4. Excerpt from a promotional film about the 1964 World's Fair.
5. REM's tribute to Andy Kaufman, Man in the Moon.
6. Jimmy Stewart and Donna Reed dream about the future in It's a Wonderful Life.
7. Elvis (happy belated 79th) and Blue Moon.
8. Lon Chaney, Jr. worries about the next full moon in Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman.
9. Creedence Clearwater Revival also worries about a Bad Moon Rising.
10. Neil Armstrong lands.
11. Frank Sinatra takes off.
Apologies to: Jules Verne, William Shakespeare, Henry Mancini, Bill Monroe, G. Melies and those little green guys on Rocky and Bullwinkle. Maybe next time.
Winter classes are just about to begin for young thespians, those wanting to learn more about art, and more. Becca Martin Brown gives us the details.

Latest Edition of Ozarks at Large
Thursday, April 24, 2014
Ahead on this edition of Ozarks, golf is a sport, but it's also a vehicle for life lessons about honesty and perseverance. We visit the green as First Tee of Northwest Arkansas spends an afternoon teaching values to area youth. Plus, a look at the senate race in Arkansas.
Music fans eagerly await the annual Oxford American Music Issue. The latest, devoted to Lousiana, arrives December 1st. This year’s guest editor, Alex Rawls, has plenty of material to work with over the next four months. More information can be found at the Oxford American website here.
Senators Mark Pryor and John Boozman of Arkansas have initiated a new trade agreement with Panama to increase trading with Arkansas companies, a former Razorback earns a medal in London, and more.
“Running Up That Hill” by: Track and Field
Meredith Martin-Moats has this report on how some Little Rock residents have found new ways to continue gardening in the midst of a drought. You can read more of Meredith's work at her blog: The Boiled Down Juice.
Roby Brock from our content partner Talk Business gives us the latest business and political headlines from last week.
In a new series on some of the lesser-known Olympic sports, we shine the spotlight on table tennis. For more information on the Northwest Arkansas Table Tennis Club, click here.
“Dimelo (The Ping Pong Song)” by: Enrique Iglesias