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Sabrina Carpenter’s and Chappell Roan’s sexy pop hits have roots in the bedroom ballads of Teddy Pendergrass and Philly soul

  • Written by Jared Bahir Browsh, Assistant Teaching Professor of Critical Sports Studies, University of Colorado Boulder
imageTeddy Pendergrass was known for romantic R&B ballads like the 1978 hit "Close the Door."Michael Putland via Getty Images

When Sabrina Carpenter’s provocative 2024 pop single “Bed Chem” plays on the radio, and I hear the lyrics

“But I bet we’d have really good bed chem / How you pick me up, pull ‘em down, turn...

Read more: Sabrina Carpenter’s and Chappell Roan’s sexy pop hits have roots in the bedroom ballads of Teddy...

6 myths about rural America: How conventional wisdom gets it wrong

  • Written by Tim Slack, Professor of Sociology, Louisiana State University
imageDusk in downtown Lumberton, county seat in Robeson County, N.C., the most diverse rural county in America. AP Photo/David Goldman

Roughly 1 in 5 Americans live in rural areas – places the federal government defines based on small populations and low housing density.

Yet many people understand rural America through stereotypes. Media and...

Read more: 6 myths about rural America: How conventional wisdom gets it wrong

Young, undocumented immigrants are finding it increasingly hard to attend college as South Carolina and other states restrict in-state tuition or ban them altogether

  • Written by William McCorkle, Associate Professor of Education, College of Charleston
imageStudents at Arizona State University protest against a Republican student group encouraging people to report undocumented immigrants in January 2025 . Ross D. Franklin/Associated Press

The Trump administration’s aggressive deportationpolicies haveheightened stress among the country’s approximately 14 million immigrants who are living...

Read more: Young, undocumented immigrants are finding it increasingly hard to attend college as South...

Outside the West, the Kundalini tradition presents a model of the ‘divine feminine’ beyond binary gender

  • Written by Anya Foxen, Associate Professor of Religious Studies, California Polytechnic State University
imageA piece of art shows the tantric tradition's depiction of Kundalini and energy centers – or chakras.Tantrika painting/Wellcome Collection, CC BY

The notion of the divine feminine is a recurring motif in American pop culture, playing with the assumptions people make when referring to God – often the deity described in the Bible –...

Read more: Outside the West, the Kundalini tradition presents a model of the ‘divine feminine’ beyond binary...

Pope Leo XIV’s visits to Turkey and Lebanon were about religious diplomacy

  • Written by Ramazan Kılınç, Professor of Political Science, Kennesaw State University
imagePope Leo XIV and the Armenian patriarch of Constantinople, Archbishop Sahag II Mashalian, celebrate a liturgy in the Armenian Apostolic Cathedral of Istanbul, Turkey, on Nov. 30, 2025.Dilara Acikgoz/AP Photo

On his visit to Turkey and Lebanon between Nov. 27 and Dec. 2, 2025, Pope Leo XIV met with political and religious leaders, celebrated Mass...

Read more: Pope Leo XIV’s visits to Turkey and Lebanon were about religious diplomacy

How crime in Brazil drags down the economy and heaps economic pain on the nation’s poor

  • Written by Robert Muggah, Richard von Weizsäcker Fellow na Bosch Academy e Co-fundador, Instituto Igarapé; Princeton University

Brazil’s “criminal economy” does not appear on any national balance sheet. Yet the cost of violence, contraband, tax evasion and environmental crime can be measured in the tens of billions of dollars every year and serves as a major drag on Brazil’s economic growth and stability.

Attempts to quantify this burden go back at...

Read more: How crime in Brazil drags down the economy and heaps economic pain on the nation’s poor

You care about fairness at work – so why do you feel like a fake?

  • Written by Meg Warren, Associate Professor of Management, Western Washington University

Most people care about fairness at work and want to support colleagues who face marginalization – for example, people of color, women and people with disabilities. Our research has found that 76% of employees want to be allies to co-workers who face additional challenges, and 84% value equity. That’s in line with a 2025 national survey...

Read more: You care about fairness at work – so why do you feel like a fake?

Lower-cost space missions like NASA’s ESCAPADE are starting to deliver exciting science – but at a price in risk and trade‑offs

  • Written by Ari Koeppel, Earth Sciences Postdoctoral Scientist and Adjunct Associate, Dartmouth College
imageThis artist's rendering shows the ESCAPADE probes near Mars.NASA

After a yearslong series of setbacks, NASA’s Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers, or ESCAPADE, mission has finally begun its roundabout journey to Mars.

Launched on Nov. 13, 2025, aboard Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket, ESCAPADE’s twin probes will...

Read more: Lower-cost space missions like NASA’s ESCAPADE are starting to deliver exciting science – but at a...

PFAS in pregnant women’s drinking water puts their babies at higher risk, study finds

  • Written by Derek Lemoine, Professor of Economics, University of Arizona
imageStudies show PFAS can be harmful to human health, including pregnant women and their fetuses.Olga Rolenko/Moment via Getty Images

When pregnant women drink water that comes from wells downstream of sites contaminated with PFAS, known as “forever chemicals,” the risks to their babies’ health substantially increase, a new study...

Read more: PFAS in pregnant women’s drinking water puts their babies at higher risk, study finds

Health insurance premiums rose nearly 3x the rate of worker earnings over the past 25 years

  • Written by Vivian Ho, Professor and Chair of Health Economics, Rice University
imagePatients and employers are feeling the pain of increased health premiums.wildpixel/iStock via Getty Images Plus

Health insurance premiums in the U.S. significantly increased between 1999 and 2024, outpacing the rate of worker earnings by three times, according to our newly published research in the journal JAMA Network Open.

Premiums can rise if the...

Read more: Health insurance premiums rose nearly 3x the rate of worker earnings over the past 25 years

More Articles ...

  1. Merry Jewish Christmas: How Chinese food and the movies became a time-honored tradition for American Jews
  2. Are sanctuary policing policies no more than a public relations facade?
  3. How keeping down borrowing costs for mortgages and other loans is built into the Fed’s ‘dual mandate’
  4. Netflix-Warner deal would drive streaming market further down the road of ‘Big 3’ domination
  5. What 38 million obituaries reveal about how Americans define a ‘life well lived’
  6. Florida’s new reporting system is shining a light on human trafficking in the Sunshine State
  7. What does it mean to be a new national park? Ocmulgee Mounds in Georgia may soon find out
  8. The law meets its limits – what ‘Nuremberg’ reveals about guilt, evil and the quest for global justice
  9. Why can’t I wiggle my toes one at a time, like my fingers?
  10. Putting pig organs in people is OK in the US, but growing human organs in pigs is not – why is that?
  11. From evil to upheaval and beyond: How the ‘axis’ metaphor shaped modern geopolitics
  12. Supreme Court’s decision on birthright citizenship will depend on its interpretation of one key phrase
  13. Vaccine committee votes to scrap universal hepatitis B shots for newborns despite outcry from children’s health experts
  14. 3 states are challenging precedent against posting the Ten Commandments in public schools – cases that could land back at the Supreme Court
  15. A culinary educator and local dining expert breaks down Michelin’s debut Philly list − and gives zero stars to the inspectors
  16. Girls and boys solve math problems differently – with similar short-term results but different long-term outcomes
  17. 2025’s words of the year reflect a year of digital disillusionment
  18. Buying a gift for a loved one with cancer? Here’s why you should skip the fuzzy socks and give them meals or help with laundry instead
  19. Far-right extremists have been organizing online since before the internet – and AI is their next frontier
  20. ‘Yes’ to God, but ‘no’ to church – what religious change looks like for many Latin Americans
  21. Hope and hardship have driven Syrian refugee returns – but many head back to destroyed homes, land disputes
  22. Pete Hegseth could be investigated for illegal orders by 5 different bodies – but none are likely to lead to charges
  23. Measuring Colorado’s mountains one hike at a time
  24. Tired of the same old Christmas songs? So were these countercultural carolers
  25. Meditating on the connectedness of life could help reunite a divided country – here’s how ‘interbeing’ works
  26. Down-ranking polarizing content lowers emotional temperature on social media – new research
  27. Most normal matter in the universe isn’t found in planets, stars or galaxies – an astronomer explains where it’s distributed
  28. Facing myriad global pressures, Iran intensifies outreach to African partners for critical needs
  29. People who talk with their hands seem more clear and persuasive – new research
  30. Declaration of Independence’s promises ring out today as loudly as they did for Lincoln, FDR and through 249 years of US history
  31. Everything everywhere all at once: How Zohran Mamdani campaigned both online and with a ground game
  32. The housing crisis is forcing Americans to choose between affordability and safety
  33. FDA claims on COVID-19 vaccine safety are unsupported by reliable data – and could severely hinder vaccine access
  34. The marketing genius of Spotify Wrapped
  35. Lasting peace in Ukraine may hinge on independent monitors – yet Trump’s 28-point plan barely mentions them
  36. A hard year for federal workers offers a real-time lesson in resilience
  37. Why one 16th-century theologian’s advice for a bitterly divided nation holds true today
  38. What are small modular reactors, a new type of nuclear power plant sought to feed AI’s energy demand?
  39. Google’s proposed data center in orbit will face issues with space debris in an already crowded orbit
  40. Yes, the government can track your location – but usually not by spying on you directly
  41. Federal funding cuts are only one problem facing America’s colleges and universities
  42. Labeling dissent as terrorism: New US domestic terrorism priorities raise constitutional alarms
  43. Empathy and reasoning aren’t rivals – new research shows they work together to drive people to help more
  44. Flat Earth, spirits and conspiracy theories – experience can shape even extraordinary beliefs
  45. Planning life after high school isn’t easy – 4 tips to help students and families navigate the process
  46. Why do family companies even exist? They know how to ‘win without fighting’
  47. Larry Summers’ sexism is jeopardizing his power and privilege, but the entire economics profession hinders progress for women
  48. Sugar starts corroding your teeth within seconds – here’s how to protect your pearly whites from decay
  49. Google plans to power a new data center with fossil fuels, yet release almost no emissions – here’s how its carbon capture tech works
  50. High-speed rail moves millions throughout the world every day – but in the US, high cost and low use make its future bumpy