NewsPronto

 
Times Advertising


.

The Conversation

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

How Twitter and other social media can draw the US into foreign interventions

  • Written by Eleonora Mattiacci, Assistant Professor of Political Science, Amherst College

Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika has promised to resign by the end of the month. That announcement came after thousands of Algerians took to the streets in March to protest his decision to run for a fifth term.

Social media played a crucial role in those demonstrations, allowing protesters to coordinate the place and time of the mass...

Read more: How Twitter and other social media can draw the US into foreign interventions

New York gets serious about traffic with the first citywide US congestion pricing plan

  • Written by John Rennie Short, Professor, School of Public Policy, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
Traffic flows into Manhattan from Brooklyn over the Williamsburg Bridge. AP Photo/Mary Altaffer

After years of debate, New York state has adopted congestion pricing to deal with traffic problems in New York City. Starting in 2021, fees will be imposed on all vehicles entering a pricing zone that covers lower Manhattan, from 60th Street at the...

Read more: New York gets serious about traffic with the first citywide US congestion pricing plan

More Articles ...

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