SNOWMACHINE ICE RACING: COOL UNDER PRESSURE (Valley Frontiersman): When you're expecting riders to race 90 mph around a frozen oval hanging halfway off a snowmachine with no suspension, it's important to get the ice just right. With video here

ELECTRIC CARS CATCHING ON IN KODIAK? (Kodiak Konfidential blog): A bright green ZapCar Xebra three-wheeler is the lastest electric vehicle spotted in Kodiak. "I've always thought Kodiak would be a perfect place for electric vehicles, given the high cost of fuel, the relatively low cost of electricity and the limited number of roads," writes "Ishmael." With photo

CYCLIST RELIVES WILDERNESS RACE (Juneau Empire): "When I finally worked the boot open, my foot wouldn't budge. As I worked my wet sock down and wiggled and yanked my foot, nothing happened. My socks were frozen to the inside of my boot. And my foot, I realized with sinking dread, was frozen to the inside of my socks." With photos. Iditarod Trail Invitational homepage here.

FIGHTER PILOTS: SAME SWAGGER IN NEW JETS ("Morning Edition," NPR): "In the F-15, it was easier to separate the men from the boys," says Lt. Col. Charles "Corky" Corcoran, a squadron commander at Elmendorf Air Force Base. "It was easier to tell who was good and who wasn't, because the airplane couldn't hide your mistakes. We have built something [the F-22] that makes them good." ALSO:

> The Last Ace (The Atlantic)

THAT'S ALABAMA, CHEERIOS, NOT ALASKA (Mobile Press-Register): Patrick Peterson - a three-time gold medal winner in weightlifting and wheelchair racing - is featured on 3 million boxes of Cheerios cereal. General Mills, however, got Peterson's home state wrong. The cereal producer listed it as Fairhope, Alaska, not Alabama.

ENDANGERED ALASKA: THE BATTLE OVER THE PEBBLE MINE (Men's Journal): A gold and copper strike bigger than the Klondike is setting up America's toughest environmental battle since the 1950s. Men's Journal visits Southwest Alaska to find out what's at stake if one of the earthen dams that would contain mine waste breaks.

RURAL ALASKANS HOPE STIMULUS WILL BOOST WEB SPEED (Fairbanks Daily News-Miner): Internet access is available to most rural Alaskans, but much of it arrives at less-than-optimal speeds. Many are hoping the federal stimulus plan could help Alaska get faster at its collective keyboards.

CANADA WORKING TO CONTAIN FARMED SALMON, OFFICIALS SAY (KFSK, Petersburg): Southeast fishermen turned in 40 Atlantic salmon last year after a July escape from a British Columbia fish farm. That's many more than in previous years. But fisheries managers say the Canadian aquaculture industry - spurred by complaints from American fishermen -- is doing a better job overall at containing farmed salmon.

NEW SKATE FISHERY ATTRACTS CONTENDERS (ADN Highliner blog): A new commercial fishery for longnose and big skates is set to open March 21 in Prince William Sound. Fish and Game put together the pilot fishery at the request of fishermen and city leaders in Cordova, who see decent commercial potential in skates. With photo

ALASKA IS LEAST "STICKY" STATE (Pew Research): Alaska isn't much good at hanging on to its native sons and daughters. Just 28 percent of adults born in Alaska still live here, placing it last among the 50 states in population "stickiness."

LEVI JOHNSTON TALKS OF NEED TO MATURE BEFORE MARRIAGE ("Good Morning America," ABC): A camera crew found Levi Johnston, father of Bristol Palin's son, Tripp, in his pickup Friday in Wasilla, headed for a workout at a gym. "We were just, we were in a fight," the teen said. "And trying to see if we can make things work. But this is what it kind of ended up turning into. But we'll see what happens." Video link here. ALSO:

> Gov. Palin, selling Girl Scout cookies at Fred Meyer, says Bristol "doing just great" (People magazine; Juneau Empire photo)

THE TRIAL OF SEN. STEVENS (C-SPAN): Cliff Groh, an Alaska lawyer and blogger, was interviewed on C-SPAN on Sunday in the first of a two-part "Q&A" series on the Stevens corruption trial. Transcript here. Daily News reporter Richard Mauer will appear in next Sunday's Part 2.

Return to Alaska Newsreader through the day for new links.

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HIGHLIGHTS FROM RECENT NEWSREADERS:

Mailing box to Nome fails to computer at Microsoft (The Seattle Times)

"Sorry, I'm a rookie," says bumbling sled dog (satire, The Onion)

Finding friendship through an Arctic blizzard (The Arctic Sounder)

"First Dude" in his element (Sports Illustrated)

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