Sometimes you just want to get home By Ellen Donker When it comes to air travel, I have one rule: fly nonstop whenever possible. Splitting up a flight leaves you open to delays on top of other typical travel woes: weather problems, TSA workers not getting paid, airline staffing shortages and more. The less time I spend in an airport the better. Unfortunately, I broke my rule a few weeks ago. I dragged my heels getting tickets to Fort Myers, Florida for spring break. By the ti

New nonprofit All Paws In helps fur babies find their way back home By Cindy Perman Conover and Sandford Fishkind helped rescue Goldie, a goldendoodle, who was left in a crate in the snow in Irvington Park and adopted with the help of PAWS Montclair. Maya was found loose in Irvington. Conover and Sandford Fishkind arranged a foster for her. After the owner agreed to surrender Maya, she was adopted with the help of PAWS Montclair. Sandford Fishkind with Coconut, a Pomeranian

By Kristen di Gennaro Many of us have used AI for various reasons. Google searches use AI to find sources in response to a question. Currently, Google provides an overview instead of sources. This fully formed response uses generative AI, technology widely available since 2022. Generative AI has led to widespread panic, especially among college teachers who see changes in students’ writing. Gone are the sentence fragments, run-ons, subject-verb discrepancies and other signs o

Columbia High School's Science Research Program connects students and mentors By Savannah Martin The Science Research class of 2026. Bottom row, L to R: Isabella Palkhiwala-Sarette, Lola Karp-Foster, Juliet Givoni, Rachael Mayer; Second row, L to R: Susannah Litwin, Julia Freidrich, Emerie Katz, Olivia Traub; Third row, L to R: Theo Boddeker, Christopher Kondak, Joey Kerner, Melia Crain; Top row, L to R: Angelo Lynch, Zachary Brenden, Hudson Ebright Columbia High School

Small business owners keep their work human while taking advantage of the new tech By Amy Lynn-Cramer Left: A back yard installation in progress by Split Rock Design. Right: An AI-generated image to help homeowners visualize new landscaping in the newly-created planting bed. Split Rock Design specified the plants based on their expertise. On any given day, Anthony and Melanie Cortese, the husband-and-wife team behind Split Rock Design, a Maplewood-based landscape design firm,

Love is a Spanish tortilla By Ilysse Rimalovski Estelle Fournier makes this Spanish tortilla that carries her back to her time in Pamplona. The double cheek greeting, customary for the Fournier Lopez-Silvero family, feels especially welcoming these days. As new Maplewood residents by way of Summit, NJ, they already seem at home. Rooted in the arts community, Estelle Fournier has replanted herself along with her husband, Dr. Alberto Lopez-Silvero. Their four grown daughters, A