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.
If you've been out and about and you've noticed a group of ladies wearing bright red and purple hats, good. They wanted to be noticed. They're most likely members of the Red Hat Society. This Thursday, the group will celebrate the day 15 years ago when five women got together just to have fun. The group has since then morphed into an international organization.
Here are the 11 clips heard during today’s hat montage;
Joe Cocker’s version of "You Can Leave Your Hat On."
The greatest Bond villain of the them all, Oddjob, throws his lethal bowler.
"Leopard Skin Pillbox Hat" by Bob Dylan.
From the late 1950’s, a commercial for Mattel’s beanie copter.
Fred Astaire sings "Top Hat, White Tie and Tails." From the movie Top Hat.
Woody Woodpecker and Wally Walrus debate just what is a top hat.
Gene Watson gives birth to a great phrase in his song "All Hat No Cattle."
Maggie Smith gets the sorting hat ready in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.
Carmen Miranda (who else?) and the song "The Lady in the Tutti Frutti Hat." From the movie The Gang’s All Here.
Woody, voiced by Tom Hanks, needs his hat in Toy Story.
The Men Without Hats sing "The Safety Dance."
Apologies to: Prince and his Raspberry Beret, the men Waiting for Godot, the Mad Hatter, Davy Crockett, Laurel and Hardy, and every character from Miller’s Crossing. Maybe next time.
Governor Mike Beebe says that a package of tax cuts approved yesterday by the Arkansas Senate is acceptable, though he worries about the cuts' impact in the years to come after he leaves office. A proposed constitutional amendment that would move ethics reform forward in the state moves closer to the ballot after receiving final approval by the legislature. The latest on cleanup efforts on the Mayflower oil spill, in spite of the potential for severe weather. Plans for the Sebastian County aquatics park move forward, and a group at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville plans to take back the night with an annual event aimed at raising awareness about sexual violence.
"Zodiac" by God is an Astronaut
Michael Tilley of The City Wire says that a lower jobless rate doesn't necessarily mean a healthy overall workforce, and the latest on this week's economic developments in the Arkansas River Valley.
Lori Boatright of the Fayetteville Farmers' Market says that the sporatic Arkansas Spring weather can neither dampen nor put a chill on the five markets throughout the week.
"Chi Youm" Abaji