NewsPronto

 
Times Advertising


.

The Conversation

Venezuela's power struggle reaches a tense stalemate, as human suffering deepens

  • Written by David Smilde, Professor of Sociology, Tulane University
Venezuelans have faced food and medicine shortages since late 2015. Now power outages have cut off water supplies, too.AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko

Even in a country where crisis has become the norm, the past month has been eventful for Venezuela.

On April 3 Juan Guaidó, the Venezuelan National Assembly president who is leading an effort to...

Read more: Venezuela's power struggle reaches a tense stalemate, as human suffering deepens

Voter ID laws don't seem to suppress minority votes – despite what many claim

  • Written by Ben L. Pryor, Researcher, Oklahoma State University
An election official checks a voter's photo identification at an early voting polling site in Austin, Texas. AP Photo/Eric Gay

Strict voter ID laws require residents to possess a valid, state-approved identification in order to vote.

Support and opposition to these laws primarily fall along party lines. Proponents – mainly Republicans –...

Read more: Voter ID laws don't seem to suppress minority votes – despite what many claim

What causes greed and how can we deal with it?

  • Written by Laura E. Alexander, Assistant Professor of Religious Studies, Goldstein Family Community Chair in Human Rights, University of Nebraska Omaha
Human beings want more even if it comes at the expense of others.svershinsky/Shutterstock.com

Recent news stories have highlighted unethical and even lawless actions taken by people and corporations that were motivated primarily by greed.

Federal prosecutors, for example, charged 33 wealthy parents, some of whom were celebrities, with paying bribes...

Read more: What causes greed and how can we deal with it?

Want to understand accented speakers better? Practice, practice, practice

  • Written by Melissa Michaud Baese-Berk, Associate Professor of Linguistics, University of Oregon
If the goal is to communicate, why should the speaker bear all the burden?Mimi Thian/Unsplash, CC BY

Conversation is at the heart of people’s lives. We use language to communicate our hopes and dreams to our closest friends, to ask for help from colleagues at work and to describe our ailments to medical professionals. Typically this process...

Read more: Want to understand accented speakers better? Practice, practice, practice

Using computers to crack open centuries-old mathematical puzzles

  • Written by Christopher Rasmussen, Associate Professor of Mathematics, Wesleyan University
A snippet of 'Arithmetica,' from Diophantus.Wikimedia

In mathematics, no researcher works in true isolation. Even those who work alone use the theorems and methods of their colleagues and predecessors to develop new ideas.

But when a known technique is too difficult to use in practice, mathematicians may neglect important – and otherwise...

Read more: Using computers to crack open centuries-old mathematical puzzles

Genes and genealogy and making the most of famous relations

  • Written by Lynn T. Kozlowski, Professor, Department of Community Health and Health Behavior, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York
Genealogy is the second most popular hobby in the United States. Steve Allen/Shutterstock.com

Digging up one’s genealogical roots is second only to gardening in popularity as a hobby and can be much more exciting. I have known the joy of discovery and the pleasure of sharing the news.

Portrait of Sir John Harington (1561-1612).Hieronymus...

Read more: Genes and genealogy and making the most of famous relations

As climate change erodes US coastlines, an invasive plant could become an ally

  • Written by Judith Weis, Professor Emerita of Biological Sciences, Rutgers University Newark
Phragmites, an invasive species, line this marsh at Sachuest Point in Middletown, Rhode island. Tom Sturm/USFWS

Many invasive species are found along U.S. coasts, including fishes, crabs, mollusks and marsh grasses. Since the general opinion is that invasives are harmful, land managers and communities spend a lot of time and resources attempting...

Read more: As climate change erodes US coastlines, an invasive plant could become an ally

The Trump administration's attempts to defund the Special Olympics, explained

  • Written by Derrick L. Cogburn, Professor of International Service and Professor of Information Technology & Analytics at the Kogod School of Business, American University School of International Service
A Special Olympics basketball clinic in Charlotte, N.C. in January 2019AP Photo/Chuck Burton

The federal government has long covered about a tenth of the Special Olympics’ budget. This nonprofit that gives athletes with intellectual disabilities a chance to train and compete in a wide variety of sports gets most of the rest of its funding...

Read more: The Trump administration's attempts to defund the Special Olympics, explained

Pollen is getting worse, but you can make things better with these tips from an allergist

  • Written by Kara Wada, Clinical Assistant Professor, Allergy/Immunology, The Ohio State University
A girl in a field of flowers.Alex Cofaru/Shutterstock.com

Blooming spring flowers signal the beginning of spring, but for millions of people, they also signal the onset of the misery: allergy and asthma season. Itchy, watery eyes; sneezing, runny nose; cough and wheezing are triggered by an overreaction of the body to pollen.

Every spring, trees and...

Read more: Pollen is getting worse, but you can make things better with these tips from an allergist

What your pet's microchip has to do with the Mark of the Beast

  • Written by Jordan Frith, Associate Professor of Technical Communication, University of North Texas

An almost invisible electronic device used all over the world – best known to much of the public for helping reunite lost pets and their owners, but also found in subway cards, electronic tolling, luggage tags, passports and warehouse inventory systems – has alarmed some evangelical Christian communities, who see in this technology the...

Read more: What your pet's microchip has to do with the Mark of the Beast

More Articles ...

  1. How Twitter and other social media can draw the US into foreign interventions
  2. New York gets serious about traffic with the first citywide US congestion pricing plan
  3. 3 times political conflict reshaped American mathematics
  4. Laws are chipping away at democracy around the world
  5. Kids exposed to flame retardant PBDE are at risk for lifelong liver or cardiovascular problems
  6. Did a censored female writer inspire Hemingway's famous style?
  7. So you want to tax the rich – here's which candidate's plan makes the most sense
  8. Brain scan evidence in criminal sentencing: A blessing and a curse
  9. Anti-vaxxers appear to be losing ground in the online vaccine debate
  10. 7 unexpected things that libraries offer besides books
  11. The unique vulnerabilities and needs of teen survivors of mass shootings
  12. Is it the end of 'statistical significance'? The battle to make science more uncertain
  13. As its ruling dynasty withers, Gabon – a US ally and guardian of French influence in Africa – ponders its future
  14. Atheism has been part of many Asian traditions for millennia
  15. Is doing your taxes making you crazy? Here's why it shouldn't
  16. Citizen science shows that climate change is rapidly reshaping Long Island Sound
  17. How state power regulators are making utilities account for the costs of climate change
  18. Rail travel is cleaner than driving or flying, but will Americans buy in?
  19. Microbes that live in fishes' slimy mucus coating could lead chemists to new antibiotic drugs
  20. Last of the giants: What killed off Madagascar's megafauna a thousand years ago?
  21. Data reveals the value of an assist in basketball
  22. What happens to rural and small-town Trump voters after Trump is gone?
  23. Medicaid work requirements: Is there a path forward that could help the poor, not harm them?
  24. Jessie Simmons: How a schoolteacher became an unsung hero of the civil rights movement
  25. For a flooded Midwest, climate forecasts offer little comfort
  26. Want to fix gerrymandering? Then the Supreme Court needs to listen to mathematicians
  27. What Oklahoma's opioid settlement means for other states, cities and counties suing Purdue Pharma
  28. Why pay transparency alone won't eliminate the persistent wage gap between men and women
  29. How single women are driving gentrification in Hong Kong and elsewhere
  30. Net price calculators were supposed to make it easier to understand the cost of college – instead, many are making it more difficult
  31. Do you have a moral duty to pay taxes?
  32. Nonprofits that scrimp on overhead aren't necessarily better than those spending more
  33. When Ebola and other epidemics strike, a dysfunctional 'outbreak culture' hinders adequate response
  34. What you need to know about the Mueller report: 4 essential reads
  35. When medical workers behave badly during disease outbreaks, everyone suffers
  36. Attacks against elections are inevitable – Estonia shows what can be done
  37. The surprising (and Long) story of the first use of ether in surgery
  38. Fending off new Sackler money is easier for museums and schools than returning old gifts
  39. An unexpected pathway to treating neurodegenerative diseases
  40. How the 1869 Cincinnati Red Stockings turned baseball into a national sensation
  41. Principle behind Google's April Fools' pigeon prank proves more than a joke
  42. Extreme weather news may not change climate change skeptics' minds
  43. You'll hear these 4 arguments in defense of the Electoral College – here's why they're wrong
  44. DOJ efforts to kill Obamacare, the cat with 9 lives, could cause health care havoc for millions
  45. Supreme Court to rule on use of religious symbols in war memorials
  46. The science and politics of genetically engineered salmon: 5 questions answered
  47. How higher ed can earn the public's trust after the admissions scandal
  48. Statistics ruined baseball by perfecting it
  49. Beyond 'Bandersnatch,' the future of interactive TV is bright
  50. How social media is helping Big Tobacco hook a new generation of smokers