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April 15 is the day tobacco companies pay $9 billion for tobacco illnesses, but is it enough?

  • Written by Charles Betley, Senior Policy Analyst, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
Cigarettes have been known for years to cause many diseases. Tobacco companies now have to pay $9 billion each year to help states pay for the costs of treatment to people they sickened.Protosav-AN/Shutterstock.com

April 15 is Tax Day in the U.S., and it is a bitter pill for many.

For state Medicaid plans, though, which pay a heavy price for...

Read more: April 15 is the day tobacco companies pay $9 billion for tobacco illnesses, but is it enough?

Retailers like Walmart are embracing robots – here's how workers can tell if they'll be replaced

  • Written by Beth Humberd, Assistant Professor of Management, University of Massachusetts Lowell
Who needs a worker checking shelves when you have a robot?AP Photo/David J. Phillip

Walmart recently said it plans to deploy robots to scan shelves, scrub floors and perform other mundane tasks in its stores as the retail giant seeks to lower labor costs.

While the retail giant did not say which jobs, if any, might be lost as a result, the...

Read more: Retailers like Walmart are embracing robots – here's how workers can tell if they'll be replaced

Mapping the US counties where traffic air pollution hurts children the most

  • Written by Haneen Khreis, Assistant Research Professor, Texas A&M University
Pollutants not shown.bibiphoto/shutterstock.com

In the U.S., over 6 million children had ongoing asthma in 2016. Globally, asthma kills around 1,000 people every day – and its prevalence is rising.

This condition has a high economic cost. Each year in the U.S., more than US$80 billion is lost because of asthma. This is mainly due to premature...

Read more: Mapping the US counties where traffic air pollution hurts children the most

Leonardo joined art with engineering

  • Written by Ben Shneiderman, Professor of Computer Science, University of Maryland
'Design for a giant crossbow.'Leonardo da Vinci

Leonardo da Vinci’s remarkable capacity for careful observation made him an astonishing artist and a brilliant scientist. He was able to compare the speed of a bird’s wing movement downwards and upwards. He noticed the differences between arteries carrying blood from the heart and the...

Read more: Leonardo joined art with engineering

How the alt-right corrupts the Constitution

  • Written by John E. Finn, Professor Emeritus of Government, Wesleyan University
The Constitution is interpreted differently by the alt-right.Shutterstock/Joseph Sohm

About 10 years ago, I spent a sabbatical on the Maine coast writing a book about the Constitution.

One afternoon, an eager reference librarian who knew about my interests invited me to a talk at the library. The featured speaker was a woman who proudly called...

Read more: How the alt-right corrupts the Constitution

Is 75 the new 65? Wealthy countries need to rethink what it means to be old

  • Written by Warren Sanderson, Professor of Economics, Stony Brook University (The State University of New York)
Living longer and loving it.oneinchpunch/shutterstock.com

In 1950, men and women at age 65 could expect to live about 11 years more on average.

Today, that number has gone up to 17, and the United Nations forecasts that it will increase by about five more years by the end of the century.

One consequence of the increase in life expectancy is that...

Read more: Is 75 the new 65? Wealthy countries need to rethink what it means to be old

Why LeBron James' I Promise School should be more like LeBron and not shy away from issues of race

  • Written by Nolan Krueger, Doctoral Student Researcher in the Department of Educational Psychology, University of Texas at Austin
LeBron James speaks at the opening ceremony for the I Promise School in Akron, Ohio.Phil Long/AP

When it comes to dealing with issues of race and social justice, LeBron James has never been shy to speak his mind.

For instance, in a recent HBO series, “The Shop,” LeBron laments how in the NFL, “they got a bunch of old white men...

Read more: Why LeBron James' I Promise School should be more like LeBron and not shy away from issues of race

This small Mexican border town prizes its human and environmental links with the US

  • Written by Matthew D. Moran, Professor of Biology, Hendrix College
Lucia Orosco holding her daughter, Arely, in Boquillas. Much of the embroidery created here reads 'no el muro' (no wall).Matthew Moran, CC BY-ND

The tiny Mexican town of Boquillas del Carmen sits nestled between the Sierra del Carmen Mountains and the Rio Grande. Its Chihuahuan Desert location is strikingly beautiful, with green vegetation along...

Read more: This small Mexican border town prizes its human and environmental links with the US

The Mormon Church still doesn't accept same-sex couples – even if it no longer bars their children

  • Written by Taylor Petrey, Associate Professor of Religion, Kalamazoo College
President Russell M. Nelson, center, during the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints conference on April 6, 2019.AP Photo/Rick Bowmer

Top leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have reversed a policy that prevented minor children of same-sex married couples from joining the church and participating in its sacred...

Read more: The Mormon Church still doesn't accept same-sex couples – even if it no longer bars their children

Civic crowdfunding reduces the risk of 'bikelash'

  • Written by Kate Gasparro, Graduate Research Fellow of Sustainable Design and Construction, Stanford University
Downtown Seattle's busy, protected bike lanesSeattle Department of Transportation, CC BY-SA

Bike-sharing and dockless bike ventures are spreading as more people get around on two wheels. Cyclists, planners, environmentalists and others are excited to see these initiatives thrive.

At the same time, there are reasons for concern. Nearly 800 American...

Read more: Civic crowdfunding reduces the risk of 'bikelash'

More Articles ...

  1. Leonardo da Vinci saw in animals the ‘image of the world’
  2. Venezuela's crisis is a tragedy - but comedy gold for satire, cartoons and memes
  3. Why the Great Plains has such epic weather
  4. America and the world still need the WTO to keep trade and the global economy humming
  5. People who win big prizes shouldn’t get taxed when they give their windfalls away
  6. Tax returns waste everyone's time – but there's an easy solution the tax preparation industry and some lawmakers don't like
  7. Does a year in space make you older or younger?
  8. How US tax laws discriminate against women, gays and people of color
  9. Why giant statues of Hindu gods and leaders are making Muslims in India nervous
  10. Are America's teachers really underpaid?
  11. Can changing the microbiome reverse lactose intolerance?
  12. Don't shoot! That drone overhead probably isn't invading your privacy
  13. A happy ending for 'Game of Thrones'? No thanks
  14. Muslims arrived in America 400 years ago as part of the slave trade and today are vastly diverse
  15. From ‘40 acres and a mule’ to LBJ to the 2020 election, a brief history of slavery reparation promises
  16. Measles outbreaks show legal challenges of balancing personal rights and public good
  17. Brexit is a rejection of the Good Friday Agreement for peace in Northern Ireland
  18. A thousand years ago, the Catholic Church paid little attention to homosexuality
  19. When people downsize to tiny houses, they adopt more environmentally friendly lifestyles
  20. How a 'missing' movement made gun control a winning issue
  21. Michelle Obama is a surprise textbook example of how women thrive and grow through adulthood
  22. Data show how American mothers balance work and family
  23. 8 things you may not know about Leonardo da Vinci, on the 500th anniversary of his death
  24. 74 screens of legalese don't protect your data – here's a blueprint for new laws that could make a difference
  25. The generals who challenged Netanyahu ran a campaign largely devoid of substance
  26. Empathy is the secret ingredient that makes cooperation – and civilization – possible
  27. A country can never be too rich, too beautiful or too full of people
  28. How a 'hard' Brexit would harm US banks, carmakers and drug companies
  29. A defeat on offshore drilling extends the Trump administration's losing streak in court
  30. Fox News isn’t the problem, it’s the media’s obsession with Fox News
  31. Campus free speech laws being enacted in many states, but some may do more harm than good
  32. The pitfalls of the narcissistic NBA player
  33. Why Americans appear more likely to support Christian refugees
  34. What makes the Impossible Burger look and taste like real beef?
  35. Why it's hard to remove, or even diagnose, mentally ill or unstable presidents
  36. Migrants' stories: Why they flee
  37. Does legalizing marijuana help or harm Americans? Weighing the statistical evidence
  38. An analysis of nearly 4 million pitches shows just how many mistakes umpires make
  39. For the 'political-infotainment-media complex,' the Mueller investigation was a gold mine
  40. The replication crisis is good for science
  41. Don't blame Sharia for Islamic extremism -- blame colonialism
  42. Catholic missionaries are evangelizing on college campuses and trying to bring back the 'nones'
  43. Too many airplane systems rely on too few sensors
  44. In the name of 'amateurism,' college athletes make money for everyone except themselves
  45. Nixon and Reagan tried closing the border to pressure Mexico – here's what happened
  46. Climate research needs to change to help communities plan for the future
  47. Putin's plagiarism, fake Ukrainian degrees and other tales of world leaders accused of academic fraud
  48. It can take a village to feed hungry kids in schools
  49. Female astronauts: How performance products like space suits and bras are designed to pave the way for women's accomplishments
  50. An industrialized global food supply chain threatens human health – here's how to improve it