Durham · Chapel Hill · Raleigh · August 10, 2026

A New Chief, an AI First, and Wednesday Night's Meteor Show

⚡ Quick Hits

  • 👮 Durham named Greensboro assistant chief Stephanie Mardis its next police chief.
  • 🤖 NCCU opened the first dedicated AI research center at any HBCU in the country.
  • ☄️ The Perseid meteor shower peaks Wednesday night.

First Up

North Carolina Central opened its Institute for Artificial Intelligence and Emerging Research on Monday, making it the first HBCU in the country with a dedicated AI research center. The university's pitch, in the words of its own launch coverage, is that "AI is for everyone." The building is meant to push the technology into how the whole campus teaches — not just computer science. (ABC11) (WUNC)

📰 Around the Triangle

  • Durham has a new police chief: Stephanie Mardis, an assistant chief in the Greensboro Police Department, was named Monday. (ABC11)
  • A new study says Durham County Memorial Stadium is being underused: the pitch is a multi-use venue for festivals and events, not just sports. (ABC11)
  • University Place in Chapel Hill is adding an entertainment district: shoppers will be able to carry alcoholic drinks around the mall as the redevelopment fills in. (Chapelboro)
  • UNC's Lineberger Cancer Center received a $20 million donation;**** the funds will go toward expanding its research. (Chapelboro)
  • Duke Energy's rate hike is back before state regulators: the hearing landed in the middle of another mid-90s week, with the utility asking customers across the state to cut back on power. (WRAL)
  • The Perseid meteor shower peaks Wednesday: circle August 12, find a yard away from streetlights, and look up. (ABC11)
  • Vic's in City Market wants Raleigh to know it's open: the owner posted after construction outside started keeping people away. (ABC11)

📅 Plan Your Week

🍄 Tuesday, August 11

  • Fabulous Felted Fungi Workshop: Future Hooman, Durham. Needle-felt your own whimsical mushroom, materials provided, no experience required. (Details)
  • Weekday Carillon Recital: Duke Chapel, Durham, 5 p.m. Fifteen minutes of bells from the tower, free, every weekday. (Details)

♟️ Wednesday, August 12

  • Durham Chess Club: Durham Food Hall, Durham. Free, non-competitive, and beginners and kids are the point. 👨‍👩‍👧 (Details)
  • AI Unfiltered: Coffee and Conversation: Innovate Carolina Junction, Chapel Hill. A monthly open table for students, staff, and anybody in town with questions. (Details)
  • Math Makers: Dorothea Dix Park, Raleigh. Free drop-in math play for kids, one Wednesday a month through November. 👨‍👩‍👧 (Details)

🥬 Thursday, August 13

  • Duke Farmers Market: Duke Medicine Pavilion Greenway, Durham. Produce and local goods, open to anybody who walks up. (Details)
  • Latinos & Latinas Run Club: The Glass Jug Downtown, Durham, 6:30 p.m. A three-to-four-mile loop through downtown, all paces welcome. (Details)

💃 Friday, August 14

  • Live Music at ATC: American Tobacco Campus, Durham. Bay 7's summer Friday series, rotating through jazz, bluegrass, and rock. (Details)
  • 2nd Friday ArtWalk: galleries, studios, and shops across Chapel Hill and Carrboro, 6 to 9 p.m. The Ackland stays open until 9 for it. (Details)
  • Salsa at the Park: Knightdale Station Park, 810 N First Avenue, 6 to 8:30 p.m. Free live music and dancing with Oak City Music Collective. 👨‍👩‍👧 (Details)

🎬 Saturday, August 15

  • Whistle Down Wind world premiere: The Carolina Theatre, Durham. Durham-born writer/director Andie Morgenlander brings her debut feature home after shooting it in western North Carolina. (Details)
  • Free fencing class: Research Triangle Fencing, 3742 Durham Chapel Hill Blvd, Durham, 3 to 4:30 p.m. Ages 8 to 14, registration required, older teens and adults welcome too. 👨‍👩‍👧 (Details)
  • Black N STEM Conference: Sonja Haynes Stone Center, Chapel Hill. A day of hands-on science and engineering for K-8 students. 👨‍👩‍👧 (Details)
  • JC Raulston Arboretum 50th Anniversary Bash: 4415 Beryl Road, Raleigh, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Hands-on activities and fifty years of one of the state's best gardens. 👨‍👩‍👧 (Details)
  • Retro Video Game Expo: the old Macy's at Triangle Town Center, Raleigh, Saturday and Sunday. Free entry, free parking, decades of consoles. 👨‍👩‍👧 (Details)

🍐 Sunday, August 16

  • Piedmont Pear Party: The Plant, 220 Lorax Lane, Pittsboro, 12 to 6 p.m. Admission is free, food and drink are for sale. 👨‍👩‍👧 (Details)

💬 Heard Around Town

  • A Durham musician got his stolen saxophone back, and r/bullcity got the happy ending. (Thread)
  • Move-in week is here, and neighbors are warning each other off Target, Home Goods, and anywhere else that sells dorm supplies. Duke freshmen land on East Campus Saturday. (Thread) (Thread)
  • A hot pot place called Flaming Hills has opened on Ninth Street in the old Bali Hai space, announced by somebody who works there before anybody else caught it. (Thread)
  • A Triangle-area Amazon labor organizer is on a hunger strike, pushing the company to negotiate with the union, and r/triangle spent the weekend on it. (Thread)

🏡 Triangle Pulse

📊 Stat of the week: Durham County homes took a median of 59 days to sell in July, up 21.9% from a year ago. (Realtor.com research data, July 2026)

That's about ten days longer than last summer — ten more days to think before you write an offer.

Before You Go

A Duke lab collected wastewater from across the state to study how diet tracks with income, and now wants to narrow the work to Durham neighborhoods so local advocates can use it to argue for better food access. (INDY Week)

Also this week: somebody thrifted an old menu from Breakfast House, the spot that sat on Hillsborough Street across from the NC State bell tower, and posted the prices for everyone to grieve over. (Thread)

🧠 Brain break: today's Daily Fury is live. Five questions, the same five for everyone. Defend the Triangle's honor.

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