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From public confession to private penance: How Catholic confession has evolved over centuries

  • Written by Timothy Gabrielli, Gudorf Chair in Catholic Intellectual Traditions, University of Dayton
imageA priest blesses a person giving confession in Aguililla, Mexico, on Oct. 29, 2021.AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo

The 1953 Alfred Hitchcock film “I Confess,” based on an earlier play, features a priest suspected of murder. He’s innocent, and has even heard the murderer’s confession – but cannot clear his own name.

The...

Read more: From public confession to private penance: How Catholic confession has evolved over centuries

Monsoon flooding has killed hundreds in Pakistan – climate change is pushing the rainy season from blessing to looming catastrophe

  • Written by Pintu Kumar Mahla, Research Associate at the Water Resources Research Institute, University of Arizona
imageRescuers search for survivors on Aug. 18, 2025, after a flash flood submerged homes, killing at least 18 people in a village near Swabi, Pakistan.Hussain Ali/Anadolu via Getty Images

Farmers in South Asia rely on the summer monsoon’s rainfall, but extreme monsoon rains in recent years have been destructive and deadly.

Since July, flooding...

Read more: Monsoon flooding has killed hundreds in Pakistan – climate change is pushing the rainy season from...

How federal officials talk about health is shifting in troubling ways – and that change makes me worried for my autistic child

  • Written by Megan Donelson, Lecturer in Health Rhetorics, University of Dayton
imageBlaming poor health outcomes on lifestyle choices can obscure public health issues.Anadolu via Getty Images

The Make America Healthy Again movement has generated a lot of discussion about public health. But the language MAHA proponents use to describe health and disease has also raised concerns among the disability and chronic illness communities.

I...

Read more: How federal officials talk about health is shifting in troubling ways – and that change makes me...

Netanyahu remains unmoved by Israel’s lurch toward pariah status − but at home and abroad, Israelis are suffering the consequences

  • Written by Asher Kaufman, Professor of History and Peace Studies, University of Notre Dame

Israel’s conduct in Gaza increasingly risks turning the state into a pariah.

Whereas world leaders initially rallied around Israel after the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre by Hamas militants, the resulting destruction inside the Palestinian enclave has seen the country ever more isolated on the international stage.

In recent weeks, even long-standing...

Read more: Netanyahu remains unmoved by Israel’s lurch toward pariah status − but at home and abroad,...

Misunderstood Malthus: The English thinker whose name is synonymous with doom and gloom has lessons for today

  • Written by Roy Scranton, Associate Professor of English, University of Notre Dame
imageA portrait of Thomas Malthus by John Linnell.Wellcome Collection via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY

No one uses “Malthusian” as a compliment. Since 1798, when the economist and cleric Thomas Malthus first published “An Essay on the Principles of Population,” the “Malthusian” position – the idea that humans are...

Read more: Misunderstood Malthus: The English thinker whose name is synonymous with doom and gloom has...

The ‘security guarantee’ paradox: Too weak and it won’t protect Ukraine; too robust and Russia won’t accept it

  • Written by Peter Rutland, Professor of Government, Wesleyan University
imageUkraine is seeking security guarantees to protect itself from Russian attacks.Yuriy Dyachyshyn/AFP via Getty Images

Back-to-back summits in Alaska and Washington with the Russian and Ukrainian leaders, respectively, have done little to clarify how U.S. President Donald Trump intends to engineer an end to the conflict in Ukraine.

Beyond vague...

Read more: The ‘security guarantee’ paradox: Too weak and it won’t protect Ukraine; too robust and Russia...

A straight face, with a wink – the subtle humor of deadpan photography

  • Written by Emilia Mickevicius, Norton Family Assistant Curator of Photography, University of Arizona
imageInstallation view of 'Funny Business: Photography and Humor,' Phoenix Art Museum, 2025. Katie Jones-Weinert, CC BY-SA

Deadpan is not so much a type of joke as a mode of delivery, a manner of address to an audience that often provokes nervous laughter.

Comedian Nathan Fielder’s persona is marked by deadpan. In his hit HBO comedy series “Th...

Read more: A straight face, with a wink – the subtle humor of deadpan photography

The first stars may not have been as uniformly massive as astronomers thought

  • Written by Luke Keller, Professor of Physics and Astronomy, Ithaca College
imageStars form in the universe from massive clouds of gas. European Southern Observatory, CC BY-SA

For decades, astronomers have wondered what the very first stars in the universe were like. These stars formed new chemical elements, which enriched the universe and allowed the next generations of stars to form the first planets.

The first stars were...

Read more: The first stars may not have been as uniformly massive as astronomers thought

Trump’s Epstein problem is real: New poll shows many in his base disapprove of his handling of the files, and some supporters are having second thoughts about electing him

  • Written by Tatishe Nteta, Provost Professor of Political Science and Director of the UMass Amherst Poll, UMass Amherst
imagePollsters found that 47% of 2024 Trump voters disapprove of Trump’s handling of the Epstein controversy. These supporters are at a rally in Doral, Fla., on July 9, 2024.Giorgio Viera/AFP via Getty Images

Has President Donald Trump survived the latest and most serious firestorm of controversy over the Epstein scandal? Or has the Trump...

Read more: Trump’s Epstein problem is real: New poll shows many in his base disapprove of his handling of the...

A Detroit street is named in honor of Vincent Chin – his death mobilized Asian American activists nationwide

  • Written by Jennifer Ho, Professor of Asian American Studies, University of Colorado Boulder
imagePeterboro Street was recently renamed Vincent Chin Street in his memory.Valaurian Waller/The Conversation, CC BY-ND

The legacy of Vincent Chin has recently been commemorated in a street sign bearing his name on the corner of Cass Avenue and Peterboro Street in Detroit’s historic Chinatown.

I was glad to see it. Watching the 1987 documentary...

Read more: A Detroit street is named in honor of Vincent Chin – his death mobilized Asian American activists...

More Articles ...

  1. Tit-for-tat gerrymandering wars won’t end soon – what happens in Texas and California doesn’t stay there
  2. Wildfire disasters are increasingly in the news, yet less land is burning globally – here’s why
  3. By ‘focusing on the family,’ James Dobson helped propel US evangelicals back into politics – making the Religious Right into the cultural force it is today
  4. Parenting strategies are shifting as neuroscience brings the developing brain into clearer focus
  5. ‘These people do it naturally’: President Trump’s views on immigrant farmworkers reflect a long history of how farming has been idealized and practiced in America
  6. Studying philosophy does make people better thinkers, according to new research on more than 600,000 college grads
  7. Why America still needs public schools
  8. Hulk Hogan’s daughter can’t write herself out of the wrestler’s will – but she can refuse to take his money
  9. State Department layoffs could hurt US companies’ ability to compete globally – an economist explains why
  10. Bruce Springsteen’s ‘Born to Run’ still speaks to a nation vacillating between hope and despair
  11. Pediatricians’ association recommends COVID-19 vaccines for toddlers and some older children, breaking with CDC guidance
  12. The Orwellian echoes in Trump’s push for ‘Americanism’ at the Smithsonian
  13. Most air cleaning devices have not been tested on people − and little is known about their potential harms, new study finds
  14. AI has passed the aesthetic Turing Test − and it’s changing our relationship with art
  15. Colorado’s subalpine wetlands may be producing a toxic form of mercury – that’s a concern for downstream water supplies
  16. Before celebrating big gifts, charities must watch out for fake donors
  17. Trump administration has proven no friend to organized labor, from attacking federal unions to paralyzing the National Labor Relations Board
  18. In a closely divided Congress, aging lawmakers are a problem for Democrats
  19. Even if Trump succeeds in bringing Putin and Zelenskyy together, don’t expect wonders − their only previous face-to-face encounter ended in failure
  20. What an old folktale can teach us about the ‘annoying persistence’ of political comedians
  21. Data centers consume massive amounts of water – companies rarely tell the public exactly how much
  22. Chaos gardening – wild beauty, or just a mess? A sustainable landscape specialist explains the trend
  23. One of Hurricane Katrina’s most important lessons isn’t about storm preparations – it’s about injustice
  24. Misspelled names may give brands a Lyft – if the spelling isn’t too weird
  25. Reverse discrimination? In spite of the MAGA bluster over DEI, data shows white Americans are still advantaged
  26. Alaska summit and its afterlife provides a glimpse into what peace looks like to Putin and Trump
  27. 1 in 5 Bolivians spoiled their ballots – a sign of voter dissatisfaction as nation tips to the right
  28. AI is about to radically alter military command structures that haven’t changed much since Napoleon’s army
  29. Some pro athletes keep getting better as they age − neuroscience can explain how they stay sharp
  30. Data-driven early intervention strategies could revolutionize Philly’s approach to crime prevention
  31. Data that taxpayers have paid for and rely on is disappearing – here’s how it’s happening and what you can do about it
  32. Do people dream in color or black and white?
  33. NASA wants to put a nuclear reactor on the Moon by 2030 – choosing where is tricky
  34. At one elite college, over 80% of students now use AI – but it’s not all about outsourcing their work
  35. Twelver Shiism – a branch of Islam that serves both as a spiritual and political force in Iran and beyond
  36. Cultivating for color: The hidden trade-offs between garden aesthetics and pollinator preferences
  37. Trump-Putin summit: Veteran diplomat explains why putting peace deal before ceasefire wouldn’t end Russia-Ukraine war
  38. Why universities are hiring more chief marketing officers – even as budgets shrink
  39. Kids need soft skills in the age of AI, but what does this mean for schools?
  40. Grand Canyon’s Dragon Bravo megafire shows the growing wildfire threat to water systems
  41. RFK Jr.’s plans to overhaul ‘vaccine court’ system would face legal and scientific challenges
  42. Protestant ideas shaped Americans’ support for birth control – and the Supreme Court ruling protecting a husband and wife’s right to contraception
  43. When workers’ lives outside work are more fulfilling, it benefits employers too
  44. Sanctuary cities in the US were born in the 1980s as Central American refugees fled civil wars
  45. Afghans in US face uncertainty after the cancellation of their humanitarian relief
  46. The growing fad of ‘microdosing’ mushrooms is leading to an uptick in poison control center calls and emergency room visits
  47. Why rural Coloradans feel ignored − a resentment as old as America itself
  48. ‘It’s a complicated time to be a white Southerner’ − and their views on race reflect that
  49. Older Americans are using AI − study shows how and what they think of it
  50. Genomics can help insect farmers avoid pitfalls of domestication