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Deaf Christians often struggle to hear God's word, but some find meaning in the richness of who they are

  • Written by Jana Bennett, Professor of Religion, University of Dayton
Deaf worshippers sign a hymn while following sign language interpreter Diely Martinez at Holyrood Episcopal Church-Iglesia Santa Cruz in New York City, Sunday, Dec. 15, 2019.AP Photo/Emily Leshner

For years, my husband would say after we returned from the church, “I thought the sermon was good.” To that, I would reply, “I...

Read more: Deaf Christians often struggle to hear God's word, but some find meaning in the richness of who...

What do kids really think about Santa?

  • Written by Jonathan Lane, Assistant Professor of Psychology and Human Development, Vanderbilt University
Young children are captivated by the Santa Claus myth. Yoganov Konstantin/Shutterstock.com

Children’s belief in Santa may be taken as evidence that they’re gullible or unable to distinguish fantasy from reality. But, consider your reaction to the following scenario:

The past few nights, the local news has been filled with reports of an...

Read more: What do kids really think about Santa?

Washington's perilous Christmas night crossing of the Delaware: Health hazards worse than war

  • Written by Richard Gunderman, Chancellor's Professor of Medicine, Liberal Arts, and Philanthropy, Indiana University
'Washington Crossing the Delaware,' by Emanuel Leutze.Emanuel Leutze/Wikimedia Commons

For most people today, Christmas is a time of food, family and festivities, when attention turns from work and woes to fellowship and celebration. Yet it has not always been so. In fact, Christmas of 1776 marked one of the most harrowing days in American history...

Read more: Washington's perilous Christmas night crossing of the Delaware: Health hazards worse than war

Lemurs are the world's most endangered mammals, but planting trees can help save them

  • Written by Andrea L. Baden, Assistant Professor of Anthropology, Hunter College
Black-and-white ruffed lemurs are important indicators of rainforest health.Franck Rabenahy, CC BY-NDMadagascar, the world’s fourth-largest island, is a global biodiversity hotspot.Andrea Baden

The island of Madagascar off the southeastern coast of Africa hosts at least 12,000 plant species and 700 vertebrate species, 80% to 90% of which are...

Read more: Lemurs are the world's most endangered mammals, but planting trees can help save them

Hate exercise? Small increases in physical activity can make a big difference

  • Written by Libby Richards, Associate Professor of Nursing, Purdue University
You don't have to run a marathon to get into better shape. Make walking a part of your routine every day.Rawpixel/Shutterstock.com

A new year typically brings new resolutions. While making resolutions is easy, sticking with them is not. Exercise-related resolutions consistently make the top 10 list, but up to 80% of resolutions to be healthier,...

Read more: Hate exercise? Small increases in physical activity can make a big difference

Archaeological discoveries are happening faster than ever before, helping refine the human story

  • Written by Elizabeth Sawchuk, Postdoctoral Fellow and Research Assistant Professor of Anthropology, Stony Brook University (The State University of New York)
Nearly a century ago, archaeologists started to shift the focus of human origins research from Europe to Africa’s ‘cradles of humankind’ like Oldupai (Olduvai) Gorge in Tanzania. What will the next big shifts be? Manuel Domínguez-Rodrigo, CC BY-SA

In 1924, a 3-year-old child’s skull found in South Africa forever...

Read more: Archaeological discoveries are happening faster than ever before, helping refine the human story

3 internet language trends from 2019, explained

  • Written by Zachary Jaggers, Postdoctoral Scholar of Linguistics, University of Oregon
What started as a SpongeBob meme took on a life of its own in 2019. Alexander Oganezov/Shutterstock.com

Social media has created an entirely new linguistic ecosystem, with new words, phrases and features for expressing ourselves cropping up all the time.

Last year, internet language expert Gretchen McCulloch – whose best-selling book “Be...

Read more: 3 internet language trends from 2019, explained

Statistic of the decade: The massive deforestation of the Amazon

  • Written by Liberty Vittert, Professor of the Practice of Data Science, Washington University in St Louis
Aerial view of deforested area of the Amazon rainforest.PARALAXIS/Shutterstock.com

This year, I was on the judging panel for the Royal Statistical Society’s International Statistic of the Decade.

Much like Oxford English Dictionary’s “Word of the Year” competition, the international statistic is meant to capture the...

Read more: Statistic of the decade: The massive deforestation of the Amazon

Why some people distrust atheists

  • Written by Jaimie Arona Krems, Assistant Professor of Psychology, Oklahoma State University
Some researchers believe atheists are disliked because people link their lack of belief to an overall lack of values.Gary Stevens/Flickr, CC BY

An ad featuring Ron Reagan, son of the Republican former President Ronald Reagan, surprised some viewers of the recent Democratic primary debates.

In the 30-second spot, run by the Freedom from Religion...

Read more: Why some people distrust atheists

Mormons and money: An unorthodox and messy history of church finances

  • Written by John Turner, Professor of American Religion, George Mason University
There was something fishy about this $3 bill.Everett Historical/Shutterstock.com

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has allegedly amassed US$100 billion in purportedly charitable assets since 1997 without ever giving any money away – a possible breach of federal tax laws.

This previously unknown investment vehicle known as Ensign...

Read more: Mormons and money: An unorthodox and messy history of church finances

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  20. A real-life deluminator for spotting exoplanets by reflected starlight
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  28. The Madrid climate conference's real failure was not getting a broad deal on global carbon markets
  29. How Crisco toppled lard – and made Americans believers in industrial food
  30. Tracking your heart rate? 5 questions answered about what that number really means
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  38. When a chief justice reminded senators in an impeachment trial that they were not jurors
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  42. 3 lessons for today's teachers and students from coach Vince Lombardi
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  44. Catholic activism, not repentance for sexual abuse, is what forces clergy to resign
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  46. Transgender homeless Americans find few protections in the law
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  48. US-China trade deal: 3 fundamental issues remain unresolved
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