• Lake Tahoe Humane Society is having a bingo fundraiser March 15 at 5:30pm at the South Lake Tahoe Senior Center.

• Evangeline Elston has been hired to be director of the Valhalla Art, Music and Theater Festival.

• Truckee is launching of OpenCounter: Truckee. It is a web-based tool to help entrepreneurs interested in starting a business in Truckee estimate the time, costs and processes necessary to set up shop. For more info, go online.

• There will be a study session with Truckee’s Planning Commission on the Coldstream Specific Plan on March 18 at 6pm in the Council Chambers at Truckee Town Hall. For more information contact Jenna Endres at 530.582.2922 or jendres@townoftruckee.com.

• The Rubicon Trail is open.

By Karen Kaplan, Los Angeles Times

Victims of bullying were more than twice as likely as other kids to contemplate suicide and about 2.5 times as likely to try to kill themselves, according to a study that quantifies the emotional effects of being teased, harassed, beaten up or otherwise harmed by one’s peers.

Children and teens who were taunted by cyberbullies were especially vulnerable — they were about three times as likely than other kids to have suicidal thoughts, the study found.

The findings, published online Monday by the journal JAMA Pediatrics, puts the lie to the old adage about sticks and stones. Cases of kids like 12-year-old Rebecca Ann Sedwick (who jumped to her death in a cement plant after classmates taunted her and asked “Why are you still alive?”) and 15-year-old Jordan Lewis (who shot himself in the chest after being picked on at school) are not just flukes.

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In celebration of David Wise’s gold medal in men’s halfpipe skiing, his dedication to family and being a huge supporter of the Boys & Girls Club, the Wise family and the Village at Northstar on March 15 will host kids from the Boys & Girls Club of Northern Nevada and North Lake Tahoe chapters for lunch; followed by activities for adults and kids on and off the slopes.

Olympic themed events will be happening from 11:30am-7pm, including a group ski and photo with Wise at 2pm and an autograph signing at 4pm.

By Cy Ryan, Las Vegas Sun

CARSON CITY — The state Board of Finance approved the sale of $1 million in bonds to preserve historic buildings in Nevada, with a small share going to Clark County.

There were 15 requests to the commission asking for a combined $2.1 million, but the commission was limited to allocating $1 million.

The commission approved $180,000 to the Nevada Indian Commission and $100,000 each to the White Pine Historical Railroad Foundation and the Thunderbird Lodge Preservation Society at Lake Tahoe.

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By Case Keefer, Las Vegas Sun

The biggest sports betting weekend of the year is so near, it feels like lines are forming already at sports books’ windows while bad beats roll out on the televisions overhead.

Las Vegas casinos annually book more action during the beginning of the NCAA Tournament than any other event. Bettors have 52 games to gamble on before the tournament breaks ahead of the Sweet 16.

With that kind of volume of options, it’s important to come prepared. That’s why we’ve pored over the past five years’ worth of opening-weekend tournament data and spreads to present eight tips and trends worth considering.

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By Kim Minugh and Ed Fletcher, Sacramento Bee

PLACERVILLE — Investigators say it could be days or weeks before they understand exactly what led to the deaths of two women in their Placerville home last week, but they indicated Tuesday that they are not searching for suspects.

“At this time, we know of no threat to the safety of the general public,” El Dorado County sheriff’s Sgt. Dan Johnson said in an email to the Sacramento Bee.

In the meantime, family and friends of the women – Carolyn Hague, 62, and Crystal Ann Ward, 58 – have been left grappling with more questions than answers.

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The Tahoe Keys, once the largest marsh in the basin, has long been a source of degradation of clarity for Lake Tahoe. Photo/Kathryn Reed

By Kathryn Reed

Lake Tahoe’s clarity took a turn for the worse in 2013, with visibility decreasing by 5 feet.

Data released March 13 show the average annual clarity level for 2013 at 70.1 feet. This breaks a two-year gain. The measurements have been taken continuously since 1968, when the Secchi disk could be seen to a depth of 102.4 feet.

UC Davis researchers use what looks like a white dinner plate to measure clarity by dropping it over the side of a boat at various locations throughout the year to record how far down someone on the boat can see it. The highest value recorded in 2013 was 90 feet and the lowest was 49 feet.

“Clarity in Lake Tahoe largely reflected what we saw in the weather in 2013,” Geoff Schladow, director of the UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center, said in a statement. “At the beginning of the year, clarity was lowered by large stream inflows. At the end of the year, the low inflows resulting from the drought conditions helped to improve clarity.”

Clarity continues to improve in the winter (December-March) and decline in the summer (June-September).

Lake Tahoe Clarity Readings

• 2013: 70.1 feet
• 2012: 75.3 feet
• 2011: 68.9 feet
• 2010: 64.4 feet
• 2009: 68.1 feet
• 2008: 69.6 feet
• 2007: 70.1 feet
• 2006: 67.7 feet
• 2005: 72.4 feet
• 2004: 73.6 feet
• 2003: 71.0 feet
• 2002: 78.0 feet
• 2001: 73.6 feet
• 2000: 67.3 feet
– Source: UC Davis

Researchers said the large stream inflows in winter 2012-13 were mainly responsible for the lower values. At 63.8 feet, summer clarity nearly mirrored 2012’s 64.4 feet. Still, summer clarity is trending downward.

Through various programs agencies around the lake are trying to restore clarity to 97.4 feet. Reducing fine sediment from reaching Lake Tahoe is one of the major goals.

Even though the 1997 inaugural environmental summit created the environmental improvement program and more than a billion dollars have flowed to the basin for water quality projects, it wasn’t until 2013 that a regional monitoring program for urban stormwater was initiated in the basin. Urban stormwater runoff is believed to be the major contributor to reduced clarity at the lake.

All of the programs and money spent, though, have nothing to do with the shoreline where most people recreate. It wasn’t until last year that the powers that be decided to make a concerted effort to study the muck that is making swimming at some beaches resemble any lake in the U.S. because of the algae and murkiness.

By Jon Hurdle, New York Times

PHILADELPHIA — More Americans used buses, trains and subways in 2013 than in any year since 1956 as service improved, local economies grew and travelers increasingly sought alternatives to the automobile for trips within metropolitan areas, the American Public Transportation Association said in a report released Monday.

The trade group said in its annual report that 10.65 billion passenger trips were taken on transit systems during the year, surpassing the post-1950s peak of 10.59 billion in 2008, when gas prices rose to $4 to $5 a gallon.

The ridership in 2013, when gas prices were lower than in 2008, undermines the conventional wisdom that transit use rises when those prices exceed a certain threshold, and suggests that other forces are bolstering enthusiasm for public transportation, said Michael Melaniphy, the president of the association.

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BY USSA

LENZERHEIDE, Switzerland -– Julia Mancuso (Squaw Valley) skied into the top 10 Thursday at the Audi FIS Alpine World Cup super G final, leading the U.S. women during the final speed event of the 2014 season.

All three U.S. women finished in the points during the sunny super G finale, with Stacey Cook (Mammoth Mountain) finishing 11 and Leanne Smith (North Conway, N.H.) 14 behind race winner and World Cup super G champion Lara Gut of Switzerland. The race is set to air on Universal Sports at 1:00 p.m. EST.

Thursday concluded the best-ever super G season for Cook, who tied with Mancuso for 15 in the super G standings. Smith finished 19 in super G for the season.

Lara Gut of Switzerland took the victory and secured the World Cup super G title, while Austrian Anna Fenninger locked the overall title with her second place finish. Slovenian superstar Tina Maze took third.

The blue skies and warm temperatures were ideal for racing Thursday, but the challenging course and bumpy snow got the best of four of the discipline’s top 20 athletes.

A nations team event is scheduled for Friday, when Bode Miller (Franconia, N.H.), Tim Jitloff (Reno), David Chodounsky (Crested Butte, Colo.), Mikaela Shiffrin (Eagle-Vail) and Mancuso will race in a bracket-style parallel giant slalom.

The women will return to the hill again on Saturday for the final World Cup slalom race of the season.

By USSA

LENZERHEIDE, Switzerland -– Bode Miller (Franconia, N.H.) rallied to an impressive third in the Audi FIS Alpine World Cup super G final Thursday, closing the men’s speed events for the 2014 season.

Crystal clear skies and hard snow enabled the athletes to lay down a final statement on the season, with Ted Ligety (Park City) gunning into fifth and Travis Ganong (Squaw Valley) ninth behind winner Alexis Pinturault of France.  Thomas Mermillod Blondin of France took the second spot.

The result put Ligety in fourth overall with 869 points, just 50 points behind Pinturault of France, with two races to go. Miller climbed to fifth in the overall super G standings.