The best way to fight poverty, says Paul Polak, is to talk to and learn from the people who know the most about it-the poor themselves.

Paul Polack detailed his ideas for combatting poverty worldwide in an article in the Smithsonian earlier this year. You can read it here.   Or find out more about his book on the subject, Out of Poverty , by clicking on the cover below.

One important difference between urban poverty in America and the third world, is the presence of government programs to assist the poor. But they can also pose a significant obstacle to climbing out of poverty, as Paul Polack explains.

Claire Hope Cummings, the author of Uncertain Peril, is a Napa County based writer, journalist and environmental attorney.

If humankind were to vanish from the Earth, which of our artifacts would be the first to follow us, and what would endure the longest? Find out here .

The carefully coordinated release of some ready-to-spawn adult coho may mean that three years from now, Salmon Creek will once again contain its namesake.

Fish and Game biologist Bob Cooey carries a net containing two adult Coho salmon down to the water of Salmon Creek.  Cooey says the release site, a quiet bend in the lower part of Salmon Creek, a mile or so upstream from the stream's mouth into the ocean, is ideal habitat for the fish.

The hatchery raised salmon take a moment to orient in their new habitat as they are released from the net (above), then vigorously swim away (below). Thanks to Jim  Jim Coleman, a Research Coordinator at the Occidental Arts and Ecology Center's WATER Institute (jim@oaec.org) for taking and sharing these photos.