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About The nugget. (Sisters, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 21, 2018)
36 Wednesday, November 21, 2018 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon DARK SKIES: BBR is seeking certification for community Continued from page 3 Specifically, Black Butte Ranch is seeking certification from IDA as an International Dark Sky Community. To qualify, a town, city, munici- pality or other legally orga- nized community must show exceptional dedication to the preservation of the night sky through the implementation and enforcement of a qual- ity outdoor lighting ordi- nance, dark sky education and citizen support of dark skies. The dark sky survey is only one of a number of pre- requisites necessary to earn IDA recognition. According to McDermott, the resort is working on developing guidelines that would require fully shielded outdoor lights that produce warmer amber light instead of the greater glare emitted by white and blue light. Black Butte Ranch is also asking for letters of support from other Central Oregon communities, such as Bend, La Pine, Redmond, Sisters and Sunriver. Community outreach has already been offered by the Sisters Astronomy Club, to help conduct on-site star parties and impart knowl- edge about other aspects of astronomy, emphasizing the importance of maintaining dark skies. Such support will likely come from the Pine Mountain Observatory and the Oregon Observatory at Sunriver as well. “We believe IDA’s certi- fication will attract conser- vation-minded vacationers to Black Butte who will tend to appreciate our dark skies,” said McDermott. To further entice such visitors, Head and McDermott are consid- ering pouring concrete pads at several locations through- out the resort from which to view the sky with telescopes or conduct astrophotography. McDermott hopes the resort can earn its certifica- tion sometime during the summer of 2019. If Black Butte Ranch is successful in securing IDA’s endorse- ment, it will become the first community to do so anywhere in Oregon or Washington. Several other Central Oregon communities would do well to follow Black Butte’s lead by establish- ing more stringent lighting guidelines of their own that require outdoor lamps to be fully shielded behind opaque coverings. If this issue isn’t aggressively addressed soon, growing light pollution will cause our precious dark skies to vanish. TICKETS: Early-bird tickets available through lottery Response to stress affects brain health By Michelle Klampe Correspondent CORVALLIS – Taking typical daily annoyances such as a long wait at the doc- tor’s office or a traffic jam on the freeway in stride may help preserve brain health in older adults, while emotional reactions could contribute to declines in cognition, a new study from Oregon State University has found. “These results confirm that people’s daily emotions and how they respond to their stressors play an important role in cognitive health,” said Robert Stawski, an associate professor in OSU’s College of Public Health and Human Sciences and the study’s lead author. “It’s not the stressor itself that contributes to men- tal declines but how a per- son responds that affects the brain.” Brain health and cognition are important as we age. They contribute to one ability to function in day-to-day life and can reflect diseases including dementias and Alzheimer’s. The findings were recently published online in Psychosomatic Medicine, the journal of American Psychosomatic Society. Co-authors include OSU stu- dents Eric Cerino and Dakota Witzel, and Stuart W.S. MacDonald of the University of Victoria. In the overall comparison, those who responded to stress- ful events with more negative emotions and reported a more dour mood in general showed greater fluctuations in their performance, which suggests worse mental focus and cog- nitive health among the more strongly negative and reactive people. But by following each per- son over time, the scientists also could track what hap- pened on an individual basis, and striking age differences emerged. For the oldest par- ticipants — late 70s to mid- 90s — being more reactive to stressors than usual also con- tributed to worse cognitive performance. In contrast, people in their late 60s to mid-70s actually did better on the test if they reported more stressors. CUSTOM HOMES • RESIDENTIAL BUILDING PROJECTS Serving the Sisters Area Since 1976 CCB # 159020 CCB # 16891 Strictly Quality John P. Pierce • 541-549-9764 jpierce@bendbroadband.com Home for the Holidays! PRICE REDUCED! Nestled in the pines, this gorgeous home is situated on 1.25 acres adj. to Forest Service land. 3,523 sq. ft. of living space with wood accents throughout, granite counters, Acacia wood floors, 2 spacious bedrooms & 2 masters, 3.5 baths. Inviting living room has high vaulted ceilings & wood stove. Dream garage w/room for 2 RVs and large shop. New siding, new hardwood floors & carpets. Recently remodeled and much more. $ 610,000. mls#201800421 PRICE REDUCED! Winfield Durham, Broker 541-420-9801 LICENSED BROKER IN THE STATE OF OREGON 330 W. Hood Ave., Sisters Happ y Thanksgiving from th e Kennedy family to yours! Ross Kennedy, 541-408-1343 Principal Broker | Luxury Home Specialist Serving Black Butte Ranch & The Greater Sisters i Area Continued from page 3 one had to sit at their com- puter waiting for the clock to tick down and then relent- lessly pushing a button only to be disappointed,” said Managing Director Ann Richardson. “So we’re stick- ing with that approach again this year and giving people a couple of weeks to enter the lottery before the random drawing.” Patrons have until 8 a.m. on Monday, December 3 to enter the lottery. Winners will be notified by email by 5 p.m. that day and have until the end of December to finalize their pass purchase. Early Bird passes are priced at $145 each, and full- price passes are $170. Full-price passes will be available on December 3, and can be purchased at www. sistersfolkfestival.org/tickets. The 23rd annual festival will feature over 40 acts, 11 stages and three days of world-class music. For more information visit www.sistersfolkfestival.org or call 541-549-4979. GET STUFFED! ng i v i g s k n a h Happy T Marsh and ey From Shel V l an Landuyt Tiana 220 S. Pine St., Ste. 102 | 541-548-9180
