favorites

Hard work feels worth it, but only after it’s done – new research on how people value effort

When deciding if something is worth the effort, whether you’ve already exerted yourself or face the prospect of work changes your calculus. That’s...

friday 40

Piotr Winkielman

Being alone has its benefits − a psychologist flips the script on the ‘loneliness epidemic’

Over the past few years, experts have been sounding the alarm over how much time Americans spend alone. Statistics show that we’re choosing to be...

friday 10

Virginia Thomas

More than just chips: Chinese threats and Trump tariffs could disrupt lots of ‘made in Taiwan’ imports − disappointing US builders, cyclists and golfers alike

What would the United States stand to lose economically if its current access to the Taiwanese market were upended or totally restricted? This...

friday 2

Jay L. Zagorsky

Abolition wasn’t fueled by just moral or economic concerns – the booming whaling industry also helped sink slavery

Historians have long debated whether the end of slavery in the United States was primarily driven by moral campaigns or economic changes. But what...

friday 2

Topher L. Mcdougal

Florida is home to about 341,000 immigrants from Venezuela and Haiti who may soon lose residency, work permits

Florida leads the nation in the number of immigrants with Temporary Protected Status, or TPS. Soon after taking office, the Trump administration...

friday 2

Mercedes Vigon

Insects are everywhere in farming and research − but insect welfare is just catching up

Did you know your lipstick might be made from beetles? Or that some cat food may soon be made from flies? People farm insects for all sorts of...

friday 2

Bob Fischer

The Trump administration says Tren de Aragua is a terrorist group – but it’s really a transnational criminal organization. Here’s why the label matters.

The U.S. State Department declared on Feb. 20, 2025, that the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, as well as some Mexican drug cartels, are now...

friday 1

Ernesto Castañeda

The problem with Trump’s takeover of the Kennedy Center isn’t the possibility of ‘Cats’

When President Donald Trump announced that he was assuming control of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, he described the move as a...

friday 2

Joanna Dee Das

The hidden power of marathon Senate speeches: What history tells us about Cory Booker’s 25-hour oration

Democratic U.S. Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey made history on April 1, 2025, when he stood on the Senate floor and spoke for 25 hours and five...

friday 2

Charlie Hunt

Hormone therapy may cut cardiovascular risk in younger menopausal women

Menopause can have profound effects on heart health, yet many people are unaware of this important connection. The hormonal shifts occurring during...

friday 1

Matthew Nudy

Myanmar military’s ‘ceasefire’ follows a pattern of ruling generals exploiting disasters to shore up control

After a 7.7 magnitude earthquake struck Myanmar on March 28. 2025, the country’s military and the myriad resistance groups fighting a yearslong...

03.04.2025 10

Tharaphi Than

Susan Monarez, Trump’s nominee for CDC director, faces an unprecedented and tumultuous era at the agency

The job of director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention carries immense responsibility for shaping health policies, responding to...

03.04.2025 10

Jordan Miller

Vitamin D builds your bones and keeps your gut sealed, among many other essential functions − but many children are deficient

You’ve likely heard about vitamin D’s important role in maintaining strong bones and teeth. But it also plays several other important roles to keep...

03.04.2025 6

Jacqueline Hernandez

Lowering the cost of insurance in Colorado – a new analysis of the Peak Health Alliance

A community-led partnership in Colorado designed to negotiate health care prices lowered health care premiums in 2020 and 2021, we find in our new...

03.04.2025 6

Mark Meiselbach

Lessons from El Salvador for US university leaders facing attacks from Trump

Even before President Donald Trump took office, university presidents expressed concern about the impact of his agenda on higher education. Now...

03.04.2025 2

Annmarie Caño

From business exports to veteran care − here’s what some of the 35,000 federal workers in the Philadelphia region do

Layoffs of federal employees and cutbacks to federal agencies have direct consequences for the Philadelphia area. I am a law professor at Villanova...

03.04.2025 3

Todd Aagaard

Medicare Advantage is covering more and more Americans − some because they don’t get to choose

Since the mid-2000s, the Medicare system has dramatically transformed. Enrollment in Medicare Advantage – the private alternative to the...

03.04.2025 2

Grace Mccormack

Why tattoos are such an unreliable marker of gang membership

The United States deported 238 Venezuelan men on three flights to El Salvador on March 15, 2025, claiming that they were members of the Tren de...

03.04.2025 3

Beth C. Caldwell

Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs are the highest in decades − an economist explains how that could hurt the US

President Donald Trump unveiled a sweeping new tariff plan on April 2, 2025, to reshape U.S. trade and boost domestic industry. Framing the...

03.04.2025 2

Bedassa Tadesse

How a lone judge can block a Trump order nationwide – and why, from DACA to DOGE, this judicial check on presidents’ power is shaping how the government works

When presidents try to make big changes through executive orders, they often hit a roadblock: A single federal judge, whether located in Seattle or...

03.04.2025 8

Cassandra Burke Robertson

Supreme Court considers whether states may prevent people covered by Medicaid from choosing Planned Parenthood as their health care provider

Having the freedom to choose your own health care provider is something many Americans take for granted. But the Supreme Court is weighing whether...

02.04.2025 9

Naomi Cahn

In Israel, calls for genocide have migrated from the margins to the mainstream

Thirty years ago in Israel, advocating for genocide could land you in prison. In April 1994, an Israeli rabbi named Ido Alba published an article...

02.04.2025 9

Tamir Sorek

With its executive order targeting the Smithsonian, the Trump administration opens up a new front in the history wars

I teach history in Connecticut, but I grew up in Oklahoma and Kansas, where my interest in the subject was sparked by visits to local museums. I...

02.04.2025 20

Jennifer Tucker

The never-ending sentence: How parole and probation fuel mass incarceration

The U.S. operates one of the largest and most punitive criminal justice systems in the world. On any given day, 1.9 million people are incarcerated...

02.04.2025 10

Lucius Couloute

23andMe is potentially selling more than just genetic data – the personal survey info it collected is just as much a privacy problem

As soon as the genetic testing company 23andMe filed for bankruptcy on March 23, 2025, concerns about what would happen to the personal information...

02.04.2025 9

Kayte Spector-Bagdady

Schools and communities can help children bounce back after distressing disasters like the LA wildfires

The 2025 Los Angeles wildfires reduced more than 15,000 structures to ash in a matter of days. Among the devastation were 11 public and private...

02.04.2025 2

Rita V. Burke

Christian Zionism hasn’t always been a conservative evangelical creed – churches’ views of Israel have evolved over decades

During confirmation hearings, Mike Huckabee, President Donald Trump’s nominee as ambassador to Israel, told senators that he would “respect and...

02.04.2025 2

Shalom Goldman

Chinese barges and Taiwan Strait drills are about global power projection − not just a potential invasion

Is China intent on a D-Day style invasion of Taiwan? Certainly that has been the tone of some of the reporting following the emergence of photos...

02.04.2025 2

Colin Flint

Feeling FOMO for something that’s not even fun? It’s not the event you’re missing, it’s the bonding

Imagine you’ve planned the trip of a lifetime for your animal-loving family: a cruise to Antarctica with the unique opportunity to view penguins,...

02.04.2025 1

Jacqueline Rifkin

Research shows that a majority of Christian religious leaders accept the reality of climate change but have never mentioned it to their congregations

Nearly 90% of U.S. Christian religious leaders believe humans are driving climate change. When churchgoers learn how widespread this belief is,...

02.04.2025 10

Stylianos Syropoulos

GOP lawmakers eye SNAP cuts, which would scale back benefits that help low-income people buy food at a time of high food prices

Congress may soon consider whether to cut spending on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, the main way the government helps low-income...

01.04.2025 9

Tracy Roof

Land reparations are possible − and over 225 US communities are already working to make amends for slavery and colonization

Ever since the United States government’s unfulfilled promise of giving every newly freed Black American “40 acres and a mule” after the Civil War,...

01.04.2025 4

Sara Safransky

Planned blackouts are becoming more common − and not having cash on hand could cost you

Are you prepared for when the power goes out? To prevent massive wildfires in drought-prone, high-wind areas, electrical companies have begun...

01.04.2025 3

Jay L. Zagorsky

America the secular? What a changing religious landscape means for US politics

After climbing for decades, the percentage of Americans with no religion has leveled off. For the past few years, the share of adults who identify...

01.04.2025 6

David Campbell

Why a presidential term limit got written into the Constitution – the story of the 22nd Amendment

Only one person, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, has ever served more than two terms as president of the United States. This is for two reasons. First,...

01.04.2025 1

Mark Satta

Doctor shortages have hobbled health care for decades − and the trend could be worsening

Americans are increasingly waiting weeks or even months to get an appointment to see a health care specialist. This delay comes at a time when the...

31.03.2025 10

Rochelle Walensky

Measles can ravage the immune system and brain, causing long-term damage – a virologist explains

The measles outbreak that began in west Texas in late January 2025 continues to grow, with 400 confirmed cases in Texas and more than 50 in New...

31.03.2025 10

Peter Kasson

Bird flu could be on the cusp of transmitting between humans − but there are ways to slow down viral evolution

Disease forecasts are like weather forecasts: We cannot predict the finer details of a particular outbreak or a particular storm, but we can often...

31.03.2025 6

Ron Barrett

Massive cuts to Health and Human Services’ workforce signal a dramatic shift in US health policy

On March 27, 2025, Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. announced plans to dramatically transform the...

31.03.2025 3

Simon F. Haeder

Why do dogs love to play with trash?

Curious Kids is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to...

31.03.2025 2

Nancy Dreschel

Jets from powerful black holes can point astronomers toward where − and where not − to look for life in the universe

One of the most powerful objects in the universe is a radio quasar – a spinning black hole spraying out highly energetic particles. Come too close...

31.03.2025 3

David Garofalo

The Panama Canal’s other conflict: Water security for the population and the global economy

The Panama Canal is one of the most important waterways in the world, with about 7% of global trade passing through. It also relies heavily on...

31.03.2025 3

Karina Garcia

As ‘right to die’ gains more acceptance, a scholar of Catholicism explains the position of the Catholic Church

An individual’s “right to die” is becoming more accepted across the globe. Polls show that most Americans support allowing doctors to end a...

31.03.2025 2

Mathew Schmalz

What is a ‘revisionist’ state, and what are they trying to revise?

Once upon a time, “revisionist power” was a term reserved for nations trying to overturn the postwar liberal order – the usual suspects being...

31.03.2025 1

Andrew Latham

Trump’s use of the Alien Enemies Act to deport Venezuelans to El Salvador sparks legal questions likely to reach the Supreme Court

A federal appeals court on March 26, 2025, upheld a temporary block on President Donald Trump’s deportation of hundreds of Venezuelan immigrants,...

31.03.2025 1

Jennifer Selin

Stone tool discovery in China shows people in East Asia were innovating during the Middle Paleolithic, like in Europe and Middle East

New technologies today often involve electronic devices that are smaller and smarter than before. During the Middle Paleolithic, when Neanderthals...

31.03.2025 1

Ben Marwick

US earthquake safety relies on federal employees’ expertise

Earthquakes and the damage they cause are apolitical. Collectively, we either prepare for future earthquakes or the population eventually pays the...

31.03.2025 1

Categories

Sources

Newspaper Columnists

Hard work feels worth it, but only after it’s done – new research on how people value effort

Piotr Winkielman

Being alone has its benefits − a psychologist flips the script on the ‘loneliness epidemic’

Virginia Thomas

More than just chips: Chinese threats and Trump tariffs could disrupt lots of ‘made in Taiwan’ imports − disappointing US builders, cyclists and golfers alike

Jay L. Zagorsky

Abolition wasn’t fueled by just moral or economic concerns – the booming whaling industry also helped sink slavery

Topher L. Mcdougal

Florida is home to about 341,000 immigrants from Venezuela and Haiti who may soon lose residency, work permits

Mercedes Vigon

Insects are everywhere in farming and research − but insect welfare is just catching up

Bob Fischer

The Trump administration says Tren de Aragua is a terrorist group – but it’s really a transnational criminal organization. Here’s why the label matters.

Ernesto Castañeda

The problem with Trump’s takeover of the Kennedy Center isn’t the possibility of ‘Cats’

Joanna Dee Das

The hidden power of marathon Senate speeches: What history tells us about Cory Booker’s 25-hour oration

Charlie Hunt

Hormone therapy may cut cardiovascular risk in younger menopausal women

Matthew Nudy

Myanmar military’s ‘ceasefire’ follows a pattern of ruling generals exploiting disasters to shore up control

Tharaphi Than

Susan Monarez, Trump’s nominee for CDC director, faces an unprecedented and tumultuous era at the agency

Jordan Miller

Vitamin D builds your bones and keeps your gut sealed, among many other essential functions − but many children are deficient

Jacqueline Hernandez

Lowering the cost of insurance in Colorado – a new analysis of the Peak Health Alliance

Mark Meiselbach

Lessons from El Salvador for US university leaders facing attacks from Trump

Annmarie Caño

From business exports to veteran care − here’s what some of the 35,000 federal workers in the Philadelphia region do

Todd Aagaard

Medicare Advantage is covering more and more Americans − some because they don’t get to choose

Grace Mccormack

Why tattoos are such an unreliable marker of gang membership

Beth C. Caldwell

Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs are the highest in decades − an economist explains how that could hurt the US

Bedassa Tadesse

How a lone judge can block a Trump order nationwide – and why, from DACA to DOGE, this judicial check on presidents’ power is shaping how the government works

Cassandra Burke Robertson

Supreme Court considers whether states may prevent people covered by Medicaid from choosing Planned Parenthood as their health care provider

Naomi Cahn

In Israel, calls for genocide have migrated from the margins to the mainstream

Tamir Sorek

With its executive order targeting the Smithsonian, the Trump administration opens up a new front in the history wars

Jennifer Tucker

The never-ending sentence: How parole and probation fuel mass incarceration

Lucius Couloute

23andMe is potentially selling more than just genetic data – the personal survey info it collected is just as much a privacy problem

Kayte Spector-Bagdady

Schools and communities can help children bounce back after distressing disasters like the LA wildfires

Rita V. Burke

Christian Zionism hasn’t always been a conservative evangelical creed – churches’ views of Israel have evolved over decades

Shalom Goldman

Chinese barges and Taiwan Strait drills are about global power projection − not just a potential invasion

Colin Flint

Feeling FOMO for something that’s not even fun? It’s not the event you’re missing, it’s the bonding

Jacqueline Rifkin

Research shows that a majority of Christian religious leaders accept the reality of climate change but have never mentioned it to their congregations

Stylianos Syropoulos

GOP lawmakers eye SNAP cuts, which would scale back benefits that help low-income people buy food at a time of high food prices

Tracy Roof

Land reparations are possible − and over 225 US communities are already working to make amends for slavery and colonization

Sara Safransky

Planned blackouts are becoming more common − and not having cash on hand could cost you

Jay L. Zagorsky

America the secular? What a changing religious landscape means for US politics

David Campbell

Why a presidential term limit got written into the Constitution – the story of the 22nd Amendment

Mark Satta

Doctor shortages have hobbled health care for decades − and the trend could be worsening

Rochelle Walensky

Measles can ravage the immune system and brain, causing long-term damage – a virologist explains

Peter Kasson

Bird flu could be on the cusp of transmitting between humans − but there are ways to slow down viral evolution

Ron Barrett

Massive cuts to Health and Human Services’ workforce signal a dramatic shift in US health policy