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On the boundary of a West Sacramento industrial strip and some of the most fertile farmland in America, twenty glass flasks sit in rows inside a steel incubator, each plugged with an orange stopper and swirling with a cloudy liquid labeled with blue tape. There are no trees, no humid heat, and no soil, yet something tropical is growing. That
Takeoff in 3, 2, 1 The astronaut’s voice excites me as I float face down in a Stanford swimming pool. My snorkel pokes above the water while a flotation belt strapped around my waist keeps me suspended effortlessly near the surface. Inside the diving mask covering my eyes, I watch as the land – not
In most years, Talya Shragai can devote a few concentrated weeks to securing federal funding that supports a full year of research for Stanford’s Disease Ecology in a Changing World (DECO) program. But as recent federal decisions have snatched funding away from climate and health research, she has spent this year as DECO’s Research and Program Manager chasing nearly a dozen
On the morning of April 25, Collin Wright opened his eyes in his childhood bedroom in Houston, a day he had been waiting for since he first picked up a football, 17 years ago. Before he’d even come downstairs, the house had already told the story. Life-size photos of Wright in his Stanford uniform lined
For the playoffs, Jordan Jurich-Weston stocked her fanny pack with a pocket-sized toolbox and a bottle of Ibuprofen. When not competing on the roller derby track as Eris Jordan, she’s the maestro behind the Bay Area Derby league’s live broadcasting channel. Her production crew can be spotted by their black shirts on which she screen
About 90 minutes south of San Francisco sits the Garlic Capital of America. A city of 61,000, Gilroy hosts a yearly Garlic Festival, is home to the world’s longest garlic braid, and remains one of the only places in the country where visitors can purchase garlic-flavored ice cream (available in both chocolate and vanilla variations).
Recently resettled refugees continue to turn to local organizations for support, despite federal funding cuts.
FERNBRIDGE, Calif. – Last October, Cate Edwards received a text message from a blocked number. “You need to contact this number,” the message read. “He can help. We need the mill here. It’s his personal phone. I can’t tell you who I am.” Cate and her husband Shawn had recently moved from Kentucky to open
HALF MOON BAY, Calif. — The bar had been rowdy all night with people dancing and milling about. Seated 30 feet from the stage, Bruce Jenkins waited. Then the band made room for one more. His daughter Ella, who performs as EllaHarp, began to sing “Crescent City Blues,” a torch song written by her grandfather,
Update July 6, 2026: Since the publication of this story, Laine Higgins has left the Wall Street Journal to pursue an MFA in creative writing with a nonfiction concentration at Columbia University. Whenever Wall Street Journal sportswriter Laine Higgins enters the press box at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, the attendants check credentials before letting sports
