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When a chief justice reminded senators in an impeachment trial that they were not jurors

  • Written by Steven Lubet, Williams Memorial Professor of Law, Northwestern University
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., fields questions from reporters about an impeachment trial in the Senate, Dec. 10, 2019. AP/J. Scott Applewhite

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell created a predictable stir when he told Fox News host Sean Hannity that he would structure the impending impeachment trial of President Donald Trump...

Read more: When a chief justice reminded senators in an impeachment trial that they were not jurors

The science of gift wrapping explains why sloppy is better

  • Written by Erick M. Mas, Postdoctoral Fellow in Marketing, Vanderbilt University
Americans spend a lot of money on gift wrapping supplies. ronstik/Shutterstock.com

They say appearances can be deceiving. In the case of gift giving, they might be right.

Consumers in the U.S. spend billions of dollars a year on wrapping gifts, in most cases to make their presents look as good as possible. This includes money spent on paper, boxes,...

Read more: The science of gift wrapping explains why sloppy is better

Planetary confusion -- why astronomers keep changing what it means to be a planet

  • Written by Christopher Palma, Associate Dean for Undergraduate Students and Teaching Professor of Astronomy & Astrophysics, Pennsylvania State University
In 2015, NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft looked back toward the sun and captured this near-sunset view of the rugged, icy mountains and flat ice plains extending to Pluto’s horizon. NASA/JHUAPL/SwRI

As an astronomer, the question I hear the most is why isn’t Pluto a planet anymore? More than 10 years ago, astronomers famously voted...

Read more: Planetary confusion -- why astronomers keep changing what it means to be a planet

How can we make sure that algorithms are fair?

  • Written by Karthik Kannan, Professor of Management and Director of the Krenicki Center for Business Analytics & Machine Learning, Purdue University
When algorithms make decisions with real-world consequences, they need to be fair.R-Type/Shutterstock.com

Using machines to augment human activity is nothing new. Egyptian hieroglyphs show the use of horse-drawn carriages even before 300 B.C. Ancient Indian literature such as “Silapadikaram” has described animals being used for farming....

Read more: How can we make sure that algorithms are fair?

3 lessons for today's teachers and students from coach Vince Lombardi

  • Written by Richard Gunderman, Chancellor's Professor of Medicine, Liberal Arts, and Philanthropy, Indiana University
Green Bay Packers coach Vince Lombardi is carried off the field after his team defeated the Oakland Raiders in Super Bowl II in 1968.AP Photo

This Dec. 21 marks the 50th anniversary of the last football game Vince Lombardi ever coached. Remembered primarily as the helmsman of the Green Bay Packers during the 1960s and namesake of the Super Bowl...

Read more: 3 lessons for today's teachers and students from coach Vince Lombardi

6 charts that illustrate the surprising financial strength of American houses of worship

  • Written by David King, Assistant Professor of Philanthropic Studies, IUPUI
Organized religion is faring better than it may appear.James Kirkikis/Shutterstock.com

Religion accounts for the largest share of the approximately US$425 billion Americans give away every year.

Even so, the charitable dollars channeled to churches and other houses of worship have slowly declined as a percentage of overall giving for decades. In...

Read more: 6 charts that illustrate the surprising financial strength of American houses of worship

Catholic activism, not repentance for sexual abuse, is what forces clergy to resign

  • Written by Brian Clites, Instructor and Associate Director, Case Western Reserve University
Bishop Richard Malone of Buffalo, at a news conference on Nov. 5, 2018, in Cheektowaga, New York. AP Photo/Frank Franklin II

The Roman Catholic bishop of Buffalo, New York, Richard Malone, became the seventh U.S. bishop since 2015 to be forced out of power for his role in covering up clergy sexual abuse cases. Malone resigned on Dec. 4, stating that...

Read more: Catholic activism, not repentance for sexual abuse, is what forces clergy to resign

Evangelical gangs in Rio de Janeiro wage 'holy war' on Afro-Brazilian faiths

  • Written by Robert Muggah, Associate Lecturer, Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (PUC-Rio)
In Rio de Janeiro, practitioners of the Afro-Brazilian faiths Candomble and Umbanda are increasingly under attack by evangelical crusaders. AP Photo/Leo Correa

The expression “evangelical drug trafficker” may sound incongruous, but in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro, it’s widespread.

Charismatic Christianity is on the rise...

Read more: Evangelical gangs in Rio de Janeiro wage 'holy war' on Afro-Brazilian faiths

Transgender homeless Americans find few protections in the law

  • Written by Jonah DeChants, Postdoctoral Fellow in Social Work, Colorado State University
About 12% of transgender Americans have experienced homelessness in the last year.PLotulitStocker/Shutterstock.com

Ben Carson, secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, made news earlier this year for his statements about transgender people.

In a September meeting with HUD staff, Carson remarked that he was concerned about...

Read more: Transgender homeless Americans find few protections in the law

Why Congress would keep working during a government shutdown

  • Written by Zachary Price, Associate Professor of Law, University of California, Hastings
Congress holds the power to propose and approve the federal budget.Patsy Lynch/ MediaPunch /IPX

Unless Congress passes new spending legislation by December 20, at least some federal agencies may need to cease operations and shut down, just as several agencies did for a month around this time last year.

But if current budget negotiations to avoid a...

Read more: Why Congress would keep working during a government shutdown

More Articles ...

  1. US-China trade deal: 3 fundamental issues remain unresolved
  2. In impeachment spotlight, dueling views of professionalism appear
  3. Impeachment is better than exile
  4. Kids aren't getting enough exercise, even in sporty Seattle
  5. Memo from a historian: White ladies cooking in plantation museums are a denial of history
  6. When Trump calls someone a dog, he's tapping into ugly history
  7. Margaret Morse Nice thought like a song sparrow and changed how scientists understand animal behavior
  8. Butterfly lovers become citizen scientists by logging sightings on eButterfly
  9. Uber's data revealed nearly 6,000 sexual assaults. Does that mean it's not safe?
  10. Asking people with memory loss about past holidays can help them recall happy times
  11. As rural Americans struggle for health care access, insurers may be making things worse
  12. The Earth needs multiple methods for removing CO2 from the air to avert worst of climate change
  13. 'Organic' label doesn't guarantee that holiday ham was a happy pig
  14. The dangers of depicting Greta Thunberg as a prophet
  15. Why are whales big, but not bigger?
  16. How old should kids be to get phones?
  17. ‘Richard Jewell’ is only the latest film to depict a female journalist trading sex for scoops
  18. Supermassive black hole at the center of our galaxy may have a friend
  19. Winter is coming: 5 essential reads about snow and ice
  20. Myths around mental illness cause high rates of unemployment
  21. Slave life's harsh realities are erased in Christmas tours of Southern plantations
  22. School resource officers aren't arrested often – but when they are, it's usually for sexual misconduct
  23. Myanmar charged with genocide of Rohingya Muslims: 5 essential reads
  24. Examining how primates make vowel sounds pushes timeline for speech evolution back by 27 million years
  25. USMCA: The 3 most important changes in the new NAFTA and why they matter
  26. Mexican Mennonites combat fears of violence with a new Christmas tradition
  27. Like 'Little Women,' books by Zitkála-Šá and Taha Hussein are classics
  28. We calculated emissions due to electricity loss on the power grid – globally, it's a lot
  29. Not every campus is a political battlefield
  30. 5 new ways for schools to work with families
  31. What happens when black Americans leave their segregated hometowns
  32. 'Robotic blacksmithing': A technology that could revive US manufacturing
  33. Paul Volcker helped shape an independent Federal Reserve – a vital legacy that's under threat
  34. What can drones do to protect civilians in armed conflict?
  35. Fat-shaming pregnant women isn't just mean, it's harmful
  36. Millions of burnt trees and rusted cars: Post-disaster cleanup is expensive, time-consuming and wasteful
  37. Taliban negotiations resume, feeding hope of a peaceful, more prosperous Afghanistan
  38. Super rats or sickly rodents? Our war against urban rats could be leading to swift evolutionary changes
  39. How the 'extreme abstinence' of the purity movement created a sense of shame in evangelical women
  40. In its anti-'Medicare for All' push, the health insurance industry pulls from an old playbook
  41. A brief guide to how the China-US trade war will affect your holiday shopping
  42. What the Roman senate's grovelling before emperors explains about GOP senators' support for Trump
  43. New studies show discrimination widely reported by women, people of color and LGBTQ adults
  44. Risk rooted in colonial era weighs on Bahamas' efforts to rebuild after Hurricane Dorian
  45. What makes wine dry? It's easy to taste, but much harder to measure
  46. Why the holidays are a prime time for elder abuse, and what you can do to thwart it
  47. Payday lenders have embraced installment loans to evade regulations – but they may be even worse
  48. Why are kids today less patriotic?
  49. Nicolas Bourbaki: The greatest mathematician who never was
  50. Courts have avoided refereeing between Congress and the president, but Trump may force them to wade in