Top Stories

  • NC Museum of Natural Sciences opens mini branch in Whiteville

    The NC Museum of Natural Sciences will open a mini version of itself Saturday in Whiteville, a town of less than 6,000 residents two hours from the museum's Raleigh home. It's a test of whether the museum in Raleigh can reach out through branch facilities...

  • NC State wilts at Boston College during 79-63 loss

    NC State failed again to follow up an emotional win against North Carolina with another ACC victory as Boston College handed the Wolfpack a sobering 79-63 defeat. 1 hour ago

Sports

Miami’s Angel Rodriguez, right, move the ball past North Carolina’s Joel Berry II (2) and Joel James (42) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Saturday, Feb. 28, 2015, in Coral Gables, Fla.

UNC finishes strong in 73-64 victory at Miami

North Carolina, which has faltered down the stretch in recent losses, finished strong against Miami, the Tar Heels topping the Hurricanes 73-64 in Coral Gables. 6 minutes ago

Local/State News

Joyce Todd-Jones plays with her youngest son, Josiah-Evan Jones, in the kitchen of her home in Raleigh on Friday..

Snow days lead to hunger pangs for some Triangle families

Thousands of children in the region rely on school for at least one meal a day, and losing eight days of school meals put a strain on many families. Local food pantries expect the repercussions to linger for weeks. 2 hours ago

Business

Coon Rock Farm farm manager Lisbeth Rasmussen walks last week between racks of hydroponic trays containing bib lettuce in the farm’s new CropBox.

NC entrepreneurs look to reinvent farming with the CropBox

Williamson Greenhouses of Clinton is hoping to change the economics of farming with the CropBox, a shipping container equipped with a hydroponic growing and software monitoring system. 1 hour ago

Politics

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky walks to the Senate chamber from his office on Capitol Hill in Washington, Friday, Feb. 27, 2015, as Congress closed in on approving a short-term spending bill for the Homeland Security Department that would avert a partial agency shutdown hours before it was to begin. The legislation also leaves intact Obama administration executive actions on immigration that Republicans have vowed to overturn.

Congress passes temporary funding fix for Homeland Security, averts shutdown

A night of political brinkmanship ended late Friday when the House and Senate approved a one-week temporary spending bill to avert the partial shutdown at midnight of the Department of Homeland Security. 4 minutes ago

Nation/World News

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker waves while speaking during the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in National Harbor, Md., Thursday, Feb. 26, 2015. Thirteen potential candidates each got 20 minutes before the Conservative Political Action Conference. Walker got the loudest applause. In another sign of his potential appeal, Walker came in a strong second in a straw poll of activists at the conference.

Walker scores with conservatives, Bush still has work to do

In the conservative conference’s search for a rising star, Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin comes closest. He has momentum with conservatives. Ted Cruz and Rand Paul have the passion. And Jeb Bush still faces widespread skepticism that’... 1 hour ago

Living

Nandina contain a form of cyanide that is toxic to animals, especially birds.

Backyard Wildlife: Your choices may hurt, not help animals' diets

Your garden contains numerous threats to animals and birds, from toxic plants to everyday junk you overlook.

Entertainment

(L-R) Catherine Bell as Cassie Nightingale, Rhys Matthew Bond as Nick Radford and James Denton as Dr. Sam Radford.

What to Watch on Saturday: ‘Good Witch’ series on Hallmark

Hallmark transforms their popular “Good Witch” movie franchise into a ten-episode TV series starring Catherine Bell and James Denton.

Opinion

Raleigh should keep free parking at night

The city of Raleigh should not institute new downtown parking fees at night to pay for cleaning up trash and parking decks. Other revenue sources can meet that cost without discouraging downtown visits.

Financial