Nepal Earthquake: The Basics

Where is Nepal? Here (link to Google map; click for large map in new window). North of India, south of China (Tibet). Government less than stable.

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Quake basics from AP via TPM, reported by Gregory Katz, April 25, 2015, 10:53 AM EDT:

• Magnitude: 7.8
• Location: here. Location includes capital Kathmandu (heavily populated) and Mt. Everest. Worst quake in Nepal in 8 decades
• Time of quake: 2015-04-25 06:11:26 (UTC)
• Deaths: 906 reported early; likely 1,000 to 100,000 expected

I'd suggest checking your usual disaster response charities to see what they're doing, but at this point, information is probably sparse.

Deepwater Horizon — Five Years Later

Oiled pelican - Deepwater Horizon

Here's a podcast by Susanne Bard featuring Science Editor-in-Chief Marcia McNutt and other Science staff assessing many aspects of the current state of the Gulf, the coast and their ecosystems five years after the worst oil spill in US history (at least). The 'cast is about 34 minutes long and there's very little fluff... I learned as much in those minutes as I have in the same period spent reading one or another article on the disaster over the last few years. I may have to revise my earlier opinion of the information density of podcasts!

(Thanks to NTodd for alerting me to the availability of much of the Science web site via free registration. You'll probably have to register to hear this podcast.)