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Suspending federal gas tax wouldn’t save drivers as much as they might hope – here’s what goes into the price of a gallon of gas

  • Written by Robert I. Harris, Assistant Professor of Economics, Georgia Institute of Technology
imageGas taxes – federal and state – make up only a small piece of the price of a gallon of gas.AP Photo/Jenny Kane

With gasoline prices still high – averaging over US$4.50 a gallon in mid-May 2026 – President Donald Trump said he wanted Congress to suspend the federal gas tax, which is 18.4 cents a gallon for gasoline and 24.3...

Read more: Suspending federal gas tax wouldn’t save drivers as much as they might hope – here’s what goes...

Many of the Caribbean’s most important reefs are going unprotected

  • Written by Sara M. Melo Merino, Postdoctoral Fellow in Marine Science, Smithsonian Institution
imageA researcher checks on corals in Banco Chinchorro, off Quintana Roo, Mexico.Lorenzo Alvarez-Filip

Living by the sea in the tropics means being exposed to some of nature’s most powerful forces. Hurricanes can bring storm surges, flooding and destructive waves that threaten homes, infrastructure and livelihoods.

For many communities, coral...

Read more: Many of the Caribbean’s most important reefs are going unprotected

You can change your emotions – but it’s a 2-step process that takes some effort

  • Written by Christian Waugh, Professor of Psychology, Wake Forest University
imageYou don't need to be stuck on a negative feeling.RealPeopleGroup/E+ via Getty Images

Picture Gigi, having a chat with her boss, when the meeting takes a sharp turn. Gigi’s boss tells her that her work has been lacking recently and that maybe she needs to stay late a couple of evenings to make it up. Surprised by her boss’s remarks, she...

Read more: You can change your emotions – but it’s a 2-step process that takes some effort

How America’s independence from England revolutionized US philanthropy

  • Written by Amanda Moniz, David M. Rubenstein Curator of Philanthropy, Smithsonian Institution
imageJohn Hancock, like many American men and women of his generation, transformed the new nation's charitable activities.Universal History Archive/UIG via Getty images

John Hancock did something revolutionary 250 years ago when the Massachusetts merchant signed the Declaration of Independence, announcing to the world that 13 English colonies were...

Read more: How America’s independence from England revolutionized US philanthropy

Why Kevin Warsh might still prove to be an independent Federal Reserve chair

  • Written by Cristina Bodea, Professor of Political Science, Michigan State University
imageThe nomination of Kevin Warsh as Federal Reserve chair is reviving a debate about Fed independence.AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana

Kevin Warsh is now likely to secure Senate approval on May 13, 2026, as the next Federal Reserve chair – and become arguably the most powerful central banker in the world. But when Warsh appeared before the Senate...

Read more: Why Kevin Warsh might still prove to be an independent Federal Reserve chair

A deep-ocean climate plan wins rare EPA approval, but is sinking plants in the sea the answer?

  • Written by Wil Burns, Professor of Research in Environmental Policy, American University School of International Service

Innovators who are working on ways to pull carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere to fight climate change are having a tough time lately.

Their biggest supporter, Microsoft, recently began telling partners that it is pausing its carbon removal purchases. To get a sense of how big of a deal this is, look at the numbers: The tech company alone has...

Read more: A deep-ocean climate plan wins rare EPA approval, but is sinking plants in the sea the answer?

The Cherokee Bible, one of the language’s first books, is a window between worldviews

  • Written by Margaret Bender, Professor of Anthropology, Wake Forest University
imageSequoyah's invention of a Cherokee syllabary helped translate the Bible soon after missionaries' arrival.Wesley Fryer/Cherokee Heritage Center via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY

If you wanted to learn the Cherokee language in the 1990s, there weren’t many written resources: three dissertations from the 1970s and ’80s, one textbook and a...

Read more: The Cherokee Bible, one of the language’s first books, is a window between worldviews

Genome sequencing is rewriting the history of disease outbreaks – but without social context, it can tell only part of the story

  • Written by Marc Zimmer, Professor of Chemistry, Connecticut College
imageA pathogen's genome acts as a biological record of where it came from and how it spread.Westend61/Getty Images

Fingerprinting transformed police investigations by making it possible to place a suspect at a crime scene with physical evidence. Similarly, genome sequencing has changed how disease detectives study outbreaks by allowing them to read a...

Read more: Genome sequencing is rewriting the history of disease outbreaks – but without social context, it...

Button-pushing explorers: How to grasp that AI agents can do amazing things while knowing nothing

  • Written by Ji Y. Son, Professor of Psychology, California State University, Los Angeles
imageThe simple process of taking an action, assessing what happens and adjusting can lead to smart-seeming behavior.Westend61 via Getty Images

The nonprofit ARC Prize Foundation on May 1, 2026, released the results of a new benchmark: a test of an AI system’s ability to solve a game. The results were striking – humans scored 100%, while the...

Read more: Button-pushing explorers: How to grasp that AI agents can do amazing things while knowing nothing

Trump-Xi summit will be no ‘Nixon in China’ moment – that they are talking is enough for now

  • Written by Rana Mitter, Professor of U.S.-Asia Relations, Harvard Kennedy School
imageXi and Trump: A plastic friendship at best?Pedro Pardo/AFP via Getty Images

Meetings between Chinese and American leaders are not exactly routine, but few are historically groundbreaking.

The exceptions include the very first visit by a sitting U.S. president to China, when Richard Nixon met with Chairman Mao Zedong in Beijing in February 1972...

Read more: Trump-Xi summit will be no ‘Nixon in China’ moment – that they are talking is enough for now

More Articles ...

  1. Why political gerrymandering in the South will likely continue to consider voters’ race despite Supreme Court ruling
  2. Racial gerrymandering may be here to stay
  3. What makes a good teacher? Ask a Republican and a Democrat, and they are likely to agree
  4. We studied what happened when financially struggling artists received $1,000 a month, no strings attached, for 18 months
  5. When you don’t have the facts, argue the law: How Trump’s EPA is limiting its own ability to protect public health far into the future
  6. The missing link in America’s critical minerals push isn’t mining – it’s processing expertise
  7. ‘Devil Wears Prada 2’ shows how Christian imagery circulates in unusual ways through the fashion industry
  8. What to do if someone you know in Philadelphia or elsewhere is detained by ICE
  9. Why did ‘Tyrannosaurus rex’ have such short arms?
  10. Delta-8, delta-9, THCA? What sets the different THC forms available in regulated cannabis products apart
  11. How AI can lead to false arrests and wrongful convictions
  12. How does your brain decide between the road not taken or the same old route? Resolving conflicting memories is key to navigation
  13. Why a landmark Supreme Court ruling has failed to keep racial bias out of jury selection
  14. How Pennsylvania’s new paid leave bill leaves the sandwich generation behind
  15. Black, Hispanic, female and low-income elementary students are less likely to be identified with autism
  16. Teens aren’t as disengaged as you may think: What adults get wrong about adolescents’ civic contributions
  17. Thoreau the scientist – how environmental research informed ‘Walden’ and later works
  18. People with premenstrual dysphoric disorder have higher rates of suicidal thinking, planning and attempts
  19. Conspiracy theorists are building AI interfaces to the Epstein files – and presenting their views as data analysis
  20. Why Trump’s $2 billion buyoff to cancel offshore wind farms is a bad deal for American taxpayers and the US energy supply
  21. Health authorities work to contain cruise ship hantavirus outbreak
  22. Ted Turner didn’t just revolutionize television − he changed the way we see our world
  23. Russia’s pared-down Victory Day parade tells a story: Away from the pomp, war in Ukraine is not going to Putin’s plan
  24. Canada is kicking its US booze habit as trade tensions persist
  25. Lower East Side street named for ‘King of Comics’ Jack Kirby, a nod to one of the countless kids of immigrants who shaped the genre
  26. Dogs display many traits of great leaders − here are 5 breeds that can be your leadership role models
  27. Trump’s new ‘Coalie’ mascot and myth of ‘clean, beautiful coal’ have a long history in advertising
  28. Online hate groups sustain their messages by repeating powerful stories or routinely adding new allegations
  29. You know exercise is good for you – so why is it so hard to put it into practice?
  30. The American Revolution’s triumphant story of democracy and freedom overlooks loyalists who paid a steep price for allegiance to Britain
  31. Motown’s Black women songwriters and producers were the invisible architects behind the pop music juggernaut
  32. Can peptide injections help people recover from injuries? Here’s what you need to know
  33. Federal investigation into Smith College probes whether transgender students can attend women’s schools – challenging the evolving mission of women’s education
  34. Recreational fishing in the US catches far more fish than previously estimated
  35. Protestant leaders once championed birth control – not to liberate women, but as part of ‘responsible parenthood’
  36. Fire is transforming the US West’s public lands – research shows overlooked cost to recreation
  37. Using diesel generators to power the AI revolution would kill hundreds of Americans a year
  38. US violent crime is at its lowest in more than a century – but the funding that helped reduce it is disappearing
  39. After the execution of James G. Broadnax in Texas, questions persist over use of rap lyrics as evidence
  40. So your new ‘co-worker’ is an AI agent – here’s how to make the best of your human-machine relationship 
  41. Sleep apnea compromises far more than a good night’s rest – 2 neuroscientists outline the risks and the need for better diagnosis
  42. Clinical trials that are actually marketing ploys targeting doctors – how seeding trials put profit over patients
  43. Alaska’s near-record landslide tsunami sent a wave 1,580 feet up the fjord walls – and left clues for building a warning system
  44. From ancient goddesses to modern peace activists − Mother’s Day celebrates women’s political power
  45. The method in Iran’s madness? Closure of Strait of Hormuz echoes a centuries-old Danish play − and is a tragedy for the world order
  46. White House wants to vet powerful AI models for risks − a computer scientist explains why AI safety is so difficult
  47. Muslim women-led nonprofits are engaging in advocacy despite facing a surge in Islamophobia
  48. The lasting appeal of homeschooling: What motivated families to continue after schools reopened post-pandemic
  49. AI is showing up in court cases – but only a human jury can grapple with the moral weight of assessing guilt
  50. Foreign aid’s hidden benefit: Recipients are more likely to pay the generosity forward