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| MATR Newsletter - Tue May 17, 2016 |
"I think women are foolish to believe they are equal to men, they are far superior and always have been." William Golding
Early Edge Montana
Montana Governor's Office of Economic Development
- Early education funding lacking in Montana
In 2015 Gov. Steve Bullock asked the state legislature for $37 million. Legislators shot down that request, saying the one-time round of funding would create more problems than good, after which taxpayers would have to pay more to keep that $37 million afloat.
Northwestern Energy
- Register Now! Main Street Montana Project Peer-to-Peer Symposium Series July 13 and 14.
The Innovate Montana Symposium will focus on highlighting change and innovation in Montana's small business climate, enabling them to grow and expand, create more good-paying jobs for Montanans, and strengthen our economy.
Visit Montana - Montana Dept. of Tourism
- Ribbon Cutting and Public Tours Set for New Northwestern Energy Butte General Office on May 21
NorthWestern Energy has announced that it will hold a ribbon-cutting ceremony and provide public tours of its new Butte General Office at 11 E. Park St. on Saturday, May 21.
Energy and Climate Change
- Voices of Montana Tourism - May 2016 - Monthly News & Views
The Institute of Tourism & Recreation recently published the final report on the 2015 Nonresident Visitation Expenditures showing tourism contributed over $5 billion in economic impact for Montana attracting 11.7 million visitors in 2015.
- Finding the beating heart of Big Sky Country By Anthony Bourdain - CNN Host of Parts Unknown
You will be stunned, stunned and silenced by the breathtaking, magnificent beauty of Montana's wide open spaces. "Damn! I had no idea the sky was so big!"
Come Home Montana
- Nestlé Just Gained Control Over This Town's Water for the Next 45 Years
Tea Party Republican Governor Paul LePage of Maine helped Nestlé secure a contract that gives Poland Springs, a Nestlé subsidiary, permission to take the small town of Fryeburg's groundwater for the next 25 years for their own profit.
- Try not to jiggle while watching these amazing bladeless wind turbines.
So how does the bladeless turbine generate power?
- Specialists say Bozeman may exceed available water supply in 15 - 20 years
"We are a headwaters community. Which means there is no upstream for us."
- Earth just recorded its warmest April on record, and it wasn't even close
The record all but assures that 2016 will set another milestone for the warmest calendar year in NASA's database, regardless of whether the rest of this year sees comparatively cooler global temperatures.
- Indian scientists are breeding small cows that fart less
Scientists at Kerala University are breeding miniature cows that produce less methane, with the aim of reducing its impact on climate change.
Developing Funding Opportunities in Montana
- 12th Annual Montana Testy Fest in Washington D.C. this weekend - Video
- Montana Career Opportunities - IT Engineer, Customer Service Representative, Senior Manager/Director/AVP of IT Engineering and Infrastructure , Product Support Analyst and more... - Education Logistics, Inc.
Education Logistics offers the best school bus routing software solutions, school bus GPS tracking systems, student ridership, fleet and driver management solutions, and more.
- Anthony Bourdain Parts Unknown Montana full episode video
"Damn! I had no idea the sky was so big!"
Montana Business
- So You Want to Fund a Startup? Here's What You Need to Know
Don't just throw your hard-earned savings at any ol' idea.
Government
- Montana tourists play big role in state economy
Last year, travelers spent more than $3.6 billion during their visit. Those expenses had an impact of about $5.1 billion on the state's economy.
- Missoula software firm Education Logistics, Inc. adds jobs, eyes new education market in Saudi Arabia
Edulog has added eight senior managers to its staff and is looking to hire 30 new employees to continue growing the company's presence in both domestic and international markets.
- Butte, Montana's Headframe Spirits wins Small Business Majority's 2016 Community Development Award
The organization's Community Development Award is for small-business owners who go above and beyond to give back to their community by using business as a tool for community development.
- Las Vegas operator: Big opportunities in Montana to grow gaming
Golden has spent $45 million this year to enter the Montana gaming market and become the state's second-largest provider of gaming machines.
- Missoula tech company EduLog is expanding rapidly - looks to hire up to 30 new employees
The firm has been on a hiring spree lately.
- Montana Made: Research confirms link between local products, economic development
New research by the Institute for Tourism and Recreation Research at the University of Montana shows that many travelers are seeking out Montana-made products that provide an authentic reminder of their visit.
Idaho Business
- Book: Dark Money: The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical Right
After 450 pages, my cynicism had evolved from significant to profound.
- San Francisco's Superpublic: Cross-Discipline Working Space to Target City Challenges
Collaboration has a new home in San Francisco.
Incubators and R&D
- Claim: Idaho treasurer Crane fired worker for exposing 'waste of public funds'
Idaho State Treasurer Ron Crane, battered in recent years by charges of padding expenses, excessive state-funded travel and mismanagement of state investments, now faces a wrongful-termination claim that alleges a former deputy was fired for trying to stop some of the office's excesses.
- New Idaho commerce chief Megan Ronk targets improving exports, training
New Idaho commerce chief Megan Ronk targets improving exports, training.
- Idaho equity investment soars to nearly $16 billion a year
The great John Wooden used to say, "Never confuse activity with accomplishment." This phrase in particular seems appropriate when evaluating the data from this year's Idaho Deal Flow Report.
- Idaho's little-known Power Engineers an engineering heavyweight
Short of engineers, Power Engineers must fill many jobs with new college grads
Regional Business
- Scientists Talk Privately About Creating a Synthetic Human Genome
The prospect is spurring both intrigue and concern in the life sciences community because it might be possible, such as through cloning, to use a synthetic genome to create human beings without biological parents.
- Drugs stop seizures by shutting down estrogen
"This shows that clinically available drugs could be effective therapies for suppressing seizures in humans."
Workforce Development
- Law center seeks to bar banks from ending snail-mail billing
The Better Business Bureau reviewed a recently published report called "Paper Statements: An Important Consumer Protection," which urges companies not to move to electronic-only billing.
21st Century Education Initiative - "You Should Care..."
- Montana Code School Expands to Bozeman, Welcomes New Lead Instructor
The code school's mission is to address the acute and immediate need for computer programmers to serve Montana's booming tech sector by training the next generation of talent.
Education
- Northeastern University's workforce training could be a roadmap for improving internships
Instead of squeezing internships into their schedules, students alternate semesters of academic study with semesters of full-time employment.
Montana Education Excellence
- Girls outscore boys on inaugural national test of technology, engineering skills
The test was designed to measure students' abilities in areas such as understanding technological principles, designing solutions and communicating and collaborating. Girls were particularly strong in the latter.
Community
- University of Montana - Energy Technology State of the Program - Video Update
Last week, Matt Byrne stopped by and inquired about the current state of the Energy Technology Program.
- Registration open for Montana Farm to School Summit: Sprouting Success
The summit will include information about how Montana schools and programs are successfully integrating core elements of the farm to school movement, including serving local foods, cultivating school gardens and providing nutrition, agriculture and food education.
- University of Montana's School Psychology Ph.D. Program Earns First Accreditation
"We are so fortunate to have the dedicated and highly qualified school psychology faculty who shepherded this effort along," said Christine Fiore, chair of the Department of Psychology.
Funding and Building your Business
- Nonprofit Launches $100k Smart City Tech Competition
As a huge national competition from the U.S. Department of Transportation pits cities against each other to develop "smart" transportation concepts, a smaller organization is launching its own competition with a bent toward seed money for businesses.
- New Idaho Falls signs will show the way to 50 attractions
"This really creates an identity for our city that we haven't had,"
- VOTE TODAY! - Billings advances to Final 4 of best towns in Outside Magazine contest
Readers, enthusiasts and locals have until Thursday to cast their votes on the final four towns. Vote here: http://www.outsideonline.com/2056761/best-towns-2016
Connectivity & Communications
- Starting a business? Great software options for HR, payroll management.
Human resources work takes up a huge chunk of a business owner's time.
- Two costless ways to reduce Montana's gender pay gap
In Montana, women earn only 67 percent of what men earn. In response, Gov. Bullock created the Equal Pay for Equal Work Task Force to "identify the causes of the gender pay gap in Montana and mobilize solutions."
The Creative and Cultural Economy
- Why a staggering number of Americans have stopped using the Internet the way they used to
his chilling effect, pulled out of a survey of 41,000 U.S. households who use the Internet, show the insecurity of the Web is beginning to have consequences that stretch beyond the direct fall-out of an individual losing personal data in breach.
- Broadband service tends to stop at the poverty line in the US
More than 30 million Americans, mostly rural and lower income residents (those with median household incomes under $47,000 a year) lack broadband in their area.
Miscellaneous Ramblings
- Entire Lineup Of The Free Montana Folk Festival In Butte, Montana Announced: 3-day Music Festival Starts July 8
With just under two months to go before the music starts at the Montana Folk Festival http://montanafolkfestival.com/ in Butte, organizers have the entire line up ready to go.
- A story in every brick: festival to bring films from around the world to Butte, Montana
Don Andrews maintains that Butte is a place ripe with opportunity for those who want to build a business.
Cool Stuff That's Coming
- 7 great Google features you probably don't use
There's more you can do with Google than merely finding an article, products for sale or websites. Here are seven Google tricks you'll use time and time again.
- Yellowstone National Park tourists pick up bison calf, put it in backseat of car, worried it was cold
We've heard a lot about tourists trying to touch wildlife at Yellowstone National Park but this story takes personal encounters with animals a bit further.
Transportation
- A World Without Language Barriers
Be the first to experience a new kind of wearable technology. Reserve a place in line for our limited pre-sale.
- Soon We Won't Program Computers. We'll Train Them Like Dogs
Our machines are starting to speak a different language now, one that even the best coders can't fully understand.
- The main reason Apple just invested $1 billion in the Uber of China
"This sends a message to the Chinese government that Apple is willing to commit."
- Will robot cars drive traffic congestion off a cliff?
The problem, say transportation researchers, is that people will use them too much
- Portland Finds a Cheap Way to Protect Bike Lanes
It's the little things that count--especially when it comes to building safety infrastructure onto streets so that they better serve all modes of transportation.
- $30K Retrofit Turns Dumb Semis Into Self-Driving Robots
Within years, they could make the roads safer, the air cleaner, and deliveries cheaper.
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