📈Lombardo sets higher school standards

⛽ Tanks a Lot!

At the time this story was written, average local gas prices were a whopping 33% above the national average. Why? Decreased output from SoCal refineries is driving up prices that were already rising because of crude-oil values. [Review-Journal]

📈 New Standards Set for Schools

The Lombardo administration has announced a new education initiative called (cue the lame-name generator) Acing Accountability: Among other provisions, Nevada schools will face higher performance goals in math and English proficiency, and will be expected to lower rates of unfilled positions. This comes in the wake of increased education funding by the governor and Legislature. [Nevada Independent]

😬 Little Bricks of Larceny

If we’ve learned anything from this item — about a man arrested for stealing $7,000 worth of Legos from a couple of local Target stores — it’s this: There is no emoji for Legos. [Review-Journal]

Last week’s challenge: Kudos to reader Jim Ruland for this week’s most creative answer, “State of Alert,” which was Henry Rollins’ band before Black Flag — something Mr. Ruland would know about. More pertinently, a hat-tip to these readers for knowing that it stands for School of Architecture and is on the UNLV campus:

🏆 Lynn Comella, John Delibos, Chris Race (who additionally informs us that “the metal was fabricated by students at the shop of local metal artist Luis Varela-Rico”).

• Extra: Speaking of architecture, what IS that funky building downtown? [City Cast Las Vegas 🎧]

Now for This Week’s Challenge ⤵️

It’s not irrelevant to the location of this creature that the White Rabbit in “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” is worried that he’s late, he’s late, for a very important date. Figured it out? Email your answer using the button below, and be sure to put Where Is It in the subject line so we don’t lose track of it.

• 📷 Note: By all means, send a photo of your own that we might use in this space!

🖼️ Exhibit Reception for ‘Heart/Land’ | Today | 5-8 p.m.

Sidne Teske’s paintings take viewers to a patch of Northern Nevada they probably aren’t familiar with — the area around Tuscarora. [Nevada Humanities Office; Arts District; free]

📽️ ‘Storming Caesars Palace’ | Tuesday | 6 p.m.

Screening of a documentary about Las Vegas activist Ruby Duncan, who led a 1971 equality march that shut down Caesars Palace. Followed by a conversation between historian Claytee White and director Hazel Gurland-Pooler. [UNLV; free]

📚 Expo: Five Authors, Five Minutes | Tuesday | 7 p.m.

Authors include local favorites Krista Diamond and Andrew Romanelli, as well as New Yorker-certified Sterling HolyWhiteMountain (click and scroll down, trust me, he’s great). [The Writer’s Block, downtown; free]

• Pairs well with: What are the challenges of writing about Las Vegas? [City Cast Las Vegas 🎧]

🎻 Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 | Wednesday | 7:30 p.m.

The UNLV Symphony Orchestra, directed by Taras Krysa, performs the rousing classic. [UNLV; $20]

🌚 ‘Dark Side of the Moon’ | Thursday | 8-10 p.m.

Sounds trippy: an immersive planetarium show whooshing you through time and space to the music of the landmark Pink Floyd album. [College of Southern Nevada; $50]

Tunnel Truths

Books have been written, news segments filmed, and political speeches made about the storm tunnels under Las Vegas and the shifting population that lives there. It makes for titillating urban folklore — a subterranean quasi-community shuffling through the darkness beneath the bright city. But what’s the reality? Nevada Current reporter Michael Lyle joins the podcast to give host Dayvid Figler and lead producer Sonja Cho Swanson the real lowdown.