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As mountain glaciers melt, risk of catastrophic flash floods rises for millions − World Day for Glaciers carries a reminder

  • Written by Suzanne OConnell, Harold T. Stearns Professor of Earth Science, Wesleyan University
imageImja Lake, a glacial lake in the Mount Everest region of Nepal, began as meltwater ponds in 1962 and now contains 90 million cubic meters of water. Its water level was lowered to protect downstream communities.Alton Byers

In mountain ranges around the world, glaciers are melting as global temperatures rise. Europe’s Alps and Pyrenees lost 40%...

Read more: As mountain glaciers melt, risk of catastrophic flash floods rises for millions − World Day for...

Social media design is key to protecting kids online

  • Written by Abdulmalik Alluhidan, Ph.D. student in Computer Science, Vanderbilt University
imageHow social media apps are designed has a lot to do with whether teens have good or bad experiences.Daniel de la Hoz/Moment via Getty Images

Social media is a complex environment that presents both opportunities and threats for adolescents, with self-expression and emotional support on the one hand and body-shaming, cyberbullying and addictive...

Read more: Social media design is key to protecting kids online

As mountain glaciers melt, risk of catastrophic flash floods rises for millions

  • Written by Suzanne OConnell, Harold T. Stearns Professor of Earth Science, Wesleyan University
imageImja Lake, a glacial lake in the Mount Everest region of Nepal, began as meltwater ponds in 1962 and now contains 90 million cubic meters of water. Its water level was lowered to protect downstream communities.Alton Byers

In mountain ranges around the world, glaciers are melting as global temperatures rise. Europe’s Alps and Pyrenees lost 40%...

Read more: As mountain glaciers melt, risk of catastrophic flash floods rises for millions

High school sports are losing athletes to private clubs, but schools can keep them by focusing on character development

  • Written by Mark Rerick, Assistant Professor of Kinesiology, University of North Dakota
imageHigh school sports programs tend to emphasize character development and good sportsmanship. AP Photo/Mel Evans

Not long ago, high school students who wanted to play football, basketball or another sport had few options other than trying out for their school team. And it was to high school gymnasiums and fields that recruiters flocked to find talent...

Read more: High school sports are losing athletes to private clubs, but schools can keep them by focusing on...

Why history instruction is critical for combating online misinformation

  • Written by Lightning Jay, Assistant Professor of Teaching, Learning and Educational Leadership, Binghamton University, State University of New York
imageStudents ask questions during a social studies class on American politics.AP Photo/John Minchillo

Can you tell fact from fiction online? In a digital world, few questions are more important or more challenging.

For years, some commentators have called for K-12 teachers to take on fake news, media literacy, or online misinformation by doubling downon...

Read more: Why history instruction is critical for combating online misinformation

An artist traces her choices under Putin’s Russia – from resistance to retreat to exile – one mural at a time

  • Written by Stephen Norris, Professor of History; Director of the Havighurst Center for Russian and Post-Soviet Studies, Miami University
image'Atlases,' Victoria Lomasko's mural at Miami UniversityUsed by permission of Victoria Lomasko

Victoria Lomasko, a graphic artist and muralist, has spent her career documenting how authoritarianism took hold in Vladimir Putin’s Russia. What she has illustrated – as well as the personal journey she has taken – affords a chance to...

Read more: An artist traces her choices under Putin’s Russia – from resistance to retreat to exile – one...

A brief history of Medicaid and America’s long struggle to establish a health care safety net

  • Written by Ben Zdencanovic, Postdoctoral Associate in History and Policy, University of California, Los Angeles
imagePresident Lyndon B. Johnson, left, next to former President Harry S. Truman, signs into law the measure creating Medicare and Medicaid in 1965.AP Photo

The Medicaid system has emerged as an early target of the Trump administration’s campaign to slash federal spending. A joint federal and state program, Medicaid provides health insurance...

Read more: A brief history of Medicaid and America’s long struggle to establish a health care safety net

People say they prefer stories written by humans over AI-generated works, yet new study suggests that’s not quite true

  • Written by Martin Abel, Assistant Professor of Economics, Bowdoin College
imageArtificial intelligence is expected to generate a growing share of the world's creative work.karetoria/Moment via Getty Images

People say they prefer a short story written by a human over one composed by artificial intelligence, yet most still invest the same amount of time and money reading both stories regardless of whether it is labeled as...

Read more: People say they prefer stories written by humans over AI-generated works, yet new study suggests...

Plastic pyrolysis − chemists explain a technique attempting to tackle plastic waste by bringing the heat

  • Written by Kevin A. Schug, Professor of Analytical Chemistry, University of Texas at Arlington
imageLarge proportions of plastic waste don't get recycled. Westend61 via Getty Images Plus

In 1950, global plastic production was about 2 million tons. It’s now about 400 million tons – an increase of nearly 20,000%.

As a material, it has seemingly limitless potential. Plastic is inexpensive to produce while being lightweight and sturdy. Its...

Read more: Plastic pyrolysis − chemists explain a technique attempting to tackle plastic waste by bringing...

Social movements constrained Trump in his first term – more than people realize

  • Written by Kevin A. Young, Associate Professor of History, UMass Amherst

Donald Trump’s first term as president saw some of the largest mass protests seen in the U.S. in over 50 years, from the 2017 Women’s March to the 2020 protests after George Floyd’s murder.

Things feel different this time around. Critics seem quieter. Some point to fear of retribution. But there’s also a sense that the...

Read more: Social movements constrained Trump in his first term – more than people realize

More Articles ...

  1. Water cooperation is essential when countries share lakes and rivers – yet it’s been deteriorating in many places, with serious consequences
  2. Spanish speakers in Philadelphia break traditional rules of formal and informal speech in signs around town
  3. Beatings, overcrowding and food deprivation: US deportees face distressing human rights conditions in El Salvador’s mega-prison
  4. Trump is using the Alien Enemies Act to deport immigrants – but the 18th-century law has been invoked only during times of war
  5. Cells lining your skin and organs can generate electricity when injured − potentially opening new doors to treating wounds
  6. Researchers created sound that can bend itself through space, reaching only your ear in a crowd
  7. Washington Post’s turnaround on its opinion pages is returning journalism to its partisan roots − but without the principles
  8. What is the rules-based order? How this global system has shifted from ‘liberal’ origins − and where it could be heading next
  9. Colorado and other states have expanded access to abortion, but not for adolescents
  10. Fewer deaths, new substances and evolving treatments in Philly’s opioid epidemic − 4 essential reads
  11. Remembering China’s Empress Dowager Ling, a Buddhist who paved the way for future female rulers
  12. From pulpits to protest, the surprising history of the phrase ‘pride and prejudice’
  13. The US military has cared about climate change since the dawn of the Cold War – for good reason
  14. Museums have tons of data, and AI could make it more accessible − but standardizing and organizing it across fields won’t be easy
  15. What was the first thing scientists discovered? A historian makes the case for Babylonian astronomy
  16. Trump’s first term polarized teens’ views on racism and inequality
  17. Why was it hard for the GOP – which controls Congress – to pass its spending bill?
  18. Saudi Arabia’s role as Ukraine war mediator advances Gulf nation’s diplomatic rehabilitation − and boosts its chances of a seat at the table should Iran-US talks resume
  19. See you in the funny papers: How superhero comics tell the story of Jewish America
  20. Radioisotope generators − inside the ‘nuclear batteries’ that power faraway spacecraft
  21. The psychology behind anti-trans legislation: How cognitive biases shape thoughts and policy
  22. Big cuts at the Education Department’s civil rights office will affect vulnerable students for years to come
  23. When algorithms take the field – inside MLB’s robo-umping experiment
  24. Simple strategies can boost vaccination rates for adults over 65 − new study
  25. The push to restore semiconductor manufacturing faces a labor crisis − can the US train enough workers in time?
  26. When humans use AI to earn patents, who is doing the inventing?
  27. Why parents of ‘twice-exceptional’ children choose homeschooling over public school
  28. Environmental protection laws still apply even under Trump’s national energy emergency − here’s why
  29. Are Ukrainians ready for ceasefire and concessions? Here’s what the polls say
  30. Philly Roller Derby league turns 20 - here’s how the sport skated its way to feminism, anti-racism and queer liberation
  31. How an unexpected observation, a 10th-century recipe and an explorer’s encounter with a cabbage thief upend what we know about collard greens’ journey to the American South
  32. I study refugees, and here are the facts on the history and impact of refugee resettlement in the US
  33. You’ve likely heard the Serenity Prayer − but not its backstory
  34. 3D printing will help space pioneers make homes, tools and other stuff they need to colonize the Moon and Mars
  35. Can the Trump administration legally deport Palestinian rights advocate Mahmoud Khalil? 3 things to know about green card holders’ rights
  36. America’s clean air rules have boosted health and the economy − here’s what EPA’s deregulation spree ignores
  37. America’s clean air rules boost health and the economy − here’s what EPA’s new deregulation plans ignore
  38. Mass layoffs at Education Department signal Trump’s plan to gut the agency
  39. Is the US heading for a government shutdown? 5 essential reads to occupy the mind while we wait to find out
  40. How do researchers determine how toxic a chemical is? A toxicologist explains alternatives to animal testing
  41. The fediverse promises social media without Big Tech – if it can avoid familiar pitfalls
  42. For superfans, comic-con culture is more than fun – it’s sacred, a sociologist explains
  43. Alien and Sedition Acts were reviled in their time, and John Adams was not sorry to see them go
  44. Pennsylvania’s mushroom industry faces urgent labor shortage − and latest immigration policies will likely make it worse
  45. US workers with remote-friendly jobs are still working from home nearly half the time, 5 years after the pandemic began
  46. How Jesse Jackson embodied Southern politics − and changed American elections
  47. The parallels between Kash Patel and William J. Burns, a scandal-mongering 1920s FBI director — an FBI historian explains
  48. Middle age is a time when women are vulnerable to eating disorders
  49. Arrest of ex-president Duterte will shake up dynastic politics in the Philippines – and hand initiative to rival Marcos family
  50. US-Ukraine deal highlights Ukraine’s wealth of critical minerals, but extracting them isn’t so simple