Comic-themed conventions, or cons, have been around since the 1970s. Even the Capital Region has had its own Sac-Con since 1989. In those days, the events were small affairs attended by a hard-core smattering of lonely youth and middle-aged men speaking their own jargon-filled language. But in the past five years, something changed. Cons became cool.

Numerous times a week, I’ll be in a conversation with someone who says, “Sorry it took so long for me to get back to you. I get about eleventy billion emails a day.” I often say the same. Yet if I were to weed out all of the unnecessarily forwarded emails and the eternally sinful replied-to-all responses, my inbox would probably be down to a tidy 36.

Creating a viable housing market in the city’s core is a top priority of the Downtown Sacramento Partnership and the city of Sacramento.

The Sacramento region’s higher education opportunities may get an incredible boost in the next few years should the University of Warwick, England, be successful in building a campus in Placer County. 

Our small company is considering bringing on two or three summer interns. Half of me thinks this is a great way to get some help with projects, tap into the knowledge of a younger generation and give back to our local students. The other half of me thinks this is going to be a management nightmare that will suck my working hours dry. How can we ensure a successful summer for everyone involved?

Old or poorly planned content can render your website ineffective and obsolete. Here’s how to flush it out.

As California’s banker, Treasurer John Chiang has the responsibility of managing the state’s investments and financing. We sat down with him recently to talk about the California economy and his calls for the state to increase affordable housing and for corporate boardroom diversity.  

New Yorkers Jim and Tessa traveled west from New York to California. They met up with friends in the capital who gave them a tour of Old Sac, pointed out Indo Cafe and mentioned casually that the owners were looking to sell. It was kismet.

Jeannine English assumed the office of AARP president in June 2014. Previously, she chaired the AARP National Policy Council and served as president of AARP California. This year, she’ll be directing the organization in advocating on behalf of its 37 million members.

Can people who are cognitively intact today decide to put into place directives stating that, if they ever develop advanced Alzheimer’s disease in the future, they want to go without food and water? Can someone forbid their future caregivers and nursing home aides from extending that spoon, as Don Reynolds puts it, if Alzheimer’s strips them of their selves?

When 32-year-old Californian Brittany Maynard ended her life on Nov. 1 in Oregon under that state’s Death with Dignity laws, she gave the aid-in-dying movement new momentum across the country. California’s Senate Bill 128, recently approved by the California Senate Health Committee is modeled on the Oregon law.

According to Dr. Charles DeCarli, director of UC Davis Alzheimer’s Disease Center, finding the catalyst (or catalysts) could help researchers determine ways to stop Alzheimer’s disease before it even starts. “One of the things we’re pretty sure of right now is that the earlier we intervene, the more likely we are to prevent dementia,” he says.

The impacts of Alzheimer’s disease are taxing, both emotionally and economically, as shown in these stats from the Alzheimer’s Association’s 2014 Alzheimer’s Disease Facts and Figures.

Focusing on four sectors — STEM, justice, development and investment — we rounded up some of the city’s key leaders: a district attorney, a med school dean, the head of an FBI office and enough CEOs to rival “Shark Tank,” to get their take on how women are perceived in their industries, how that perception has changed over time and what it will take to truly reach parity.

The implementation of California’s Proposition 2, which expanded space requirements for hens that produce eggs sold in California, has had ripple effects impacting producers, distributors and consumers throughout the nation. But as animal rights activists and demanding consumers realize the law hasn’t reflected their ideals, and as the price gap between commercial and specialty eggs narrows, will the elite pasture-raised egg enjoy a rise in popularity?

Facing epic drought conditions, Gov. Jerry Brown called this month for mandatory cutbacks on urban water use statewide. But the ag industry, which uses 80 percent of the state’s water, is exempted. This decision has struck a cord with environmentalists and fishermen who fear the drought will compromise aquatic species — and their livelihoods.

Captain Jeff Hedlund manages Brusco Tug & Barge’s Northern California operation in Stockton, where he started as a deckhand in 1973.

Attendance is up, and that’s translating to big bucks for the Capital Region and beyond.