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Facebook's algorithms fueled massive foreign propaganda campaigns during the 2020 election – here's how algorithms can manipulate you

  • Written by Filippo Menczer, Luddy Distinguished Professor of Informatics and Computer Science, Indiana University
imageFacebook has known that its algorithms enable trolls to spread propoganda.STR/NurPhoto via Getty Images

An internal Facebook report found that the social media platform’s algorithms – the rules its computers follow in deciding the content that you see – enabled disinformation campaigns based in Eastern Europe to reach nearly half...

Read more: Facebook's algorithms fueled massive foreign propaganda campaigns during the 2020 election –...

The Supreme Court has overturned precedent dozens of times in the past 60 years, including when it struck down legal segregation

  • Written by David Schultz, Professor of Law, University of Minnesota; Professor of Political Science, Hamline University
imageHow much importance does the Supreme Court place on prior decisions?Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

It is a central principle of law: Courts are supposed to follow earlier decisions – precedent – to resolve current disputes. But it’s inevitable that sometimes, the precedent has to go, and a court has to overrule another court, or even...

Read more: The Supreme Court has overturned precedent dozens of times in the past 60 years, including when it...

New treatments for COVID-19 may stave off the worst effects of the virus

  • Written by Patrick Jackson, Assistant Professor of Infectious Diseases, University of Virginia
imageEmergency medical technicians aid a COVID-19 patient at his home in Louisville, Kentucky. Like much of the U.S., Louisville is experiencing an uptick in COVID-19 patients requiring emergency transport to medical facilities. John Cherry/Getty Images

Even with three highly effective vaccines available in abundance throughout the country, the delta...

Read more: New treatments for COVID-19 may stave off the worst effects of the virus

A giant space rock demolished an ancient Middle Eastern city and everyone in it – possibly inspiring the Biblical story of Sodom

  • Written by Christopher R. Moore, Archaeologist and Special Projects Director at the Savannah River Archaeological Research Program and South Carolina Institute for Archaeology and Anthropology, University of South Carolina
imageArtist's evidence-based depiction of the blast, which had the power of 1,000 Hiroshimas.Allen West and Jennifer Rice, CC BY-ND

As the inhabitants of an ancient Middle Eastern city now called Tall el-Hammam went about their daily business one day about 3,600 years ago, they had no idea an unseen icy space rock was speeding toward them at about...

Read more: A giant space rock demolished an ancient Middle Eastern city and everyone in it – possibly...

FDA panel recommends limiting Pfizer booster shots to Americans 65 and older, and those at high risk of severe COVID-19

  • Written by Matthew Woodruff, Instructor of Human Immunology, Emory University
imageNo third dose for now.AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty

The key scientific advisory council of the Food and Drug Administration has voted to deny use of a “booster” shot of Pfizer’s mRNA vaccine to the general public – a move that will likely disappoint some public health experts pushing for a third dose to help slow the spread of...

Read more: FDA panel recommends limiting Pfizer booster shots to Americans 65 and older, and those at high...

Are COVID-19 boosters ethical, with half the world waiting for a first shot? A bioethicist weighs in

  • Written by Nancy S. Jecker, Professor of Bioethics and Humanities, School of Medicine, University of Washington
imagePeople wait in line to receive a vaccine shot against COVID-19 in Belgrade, Serbia, Aug. 17, 2021. Serbia and other countries have started administering booster doses. Meanwhile, more than half the world's population has not had a first dose.AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic

Should countries that can afford COVID-19 booster vaccines offer them to residents...

Read more: Are COVID-19 boosters ethical, with half the world waiting for a first shot? A bioethicist weighs in

'Tax the rich'? Democrats' plans to make the wealthy pay a little more will barely dent America's long slide from progressive taxation

  • Written by Gabriel Zucman, Associate Professor of Economics, University of California, Berkeley
imageU.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez making a fashion statement.Ray Tamarra/GC Images via Getty Images

Demanding tax increases on the rich is back in fashion – both in the corridors of the House of Representatives and on the red carpet of the Met Gala.

The House Ways and Means Committee outlined plans on Sept. 13, 2021, to move the top marginal...

Read more: 'Tax the rich'? Democrats' plans to make the wealthy pay a little more will barely dent America's...

Biden urges countries to slash methane emissions 30% – here's why it's crucial for protecting climate and health, and how it can pay for itself

  • Written by Drew Shindell, Professor of Climate Sciences, Duke University
imageMethane is the world’s second most abundant greenhouse gas, and it’s many times more potent than carbon dioxide.Vanderlei Almeida/AFP via Getty Images

The U.S. and European Union are working on a pledge to cut methane emissions by at least 30% this decade, President Joe Biden announced on Sept. 17, 2021, and he urged countries around...

Read more: Biden urges countries to slash methane emissions 30% – here's why it's crucial for protecting...

Directed energy weapons shoot painful but non-lethal beams – are similar weapons behind the Havana syndrome?

  • Written by Iain Boyd, Professor of Aerospace Engineering Sciences, University of Colorado Boulder
imageA television reporter reacts to being hit by a heat ray during a demonstration of the U.S. military's Active Denial System.Paul J. Richards/AFP via Getty Images

The latest episodes of so-called Havana syndrome, a series of unexplained ailments afflicting U.S. and Canadian diplomats and spies, span the globe. They include two diplomats in Hanoi,...

Read more: Directed energy weapons shoot painful but non-lethal beams – are similar weapons behind the Havana...

A direct recommendation from a doctor may be the final push someone needs to get vaccinated

  • Written by Kathleen Mazor, Professor of Medicine, UMass Chan Medical School
imageSometimes facts and statistics aren't enough to convince someone to get the COVID-19 vaccine.PeopleImages/E+ via Getty Images

Have you found yourself feeling frustrated when trying to convince a friend or family member to get vaccinated for COVID-19? Or maybe you are that friend or family member, and you’re fed up with people pushing you to...

Read more: A direct recommendation from a doctor may be the final push someone needs to get vaccinated

More Articles ...

  1. Nurses are leaving the profession, and replacing them won’t be easy
  2. Scientists at work: We use environmental DNA to monitor how human activities affect life in rivers and streams
  3. How to make comparing prices of an MRI or colonoscopy as easy as shopping for a new laptop
  4. The fall armyworm invasion is fierce this year – and scientists are researching how to stop its destruction of lawns, football fields and crops
  5. Andrew Cuomo’s initial refusal to resign echoes executive harassment dilemmas for employers
  6. How many satellites are orbiting Earth?
  7. Facebook has known for a year and a half that Instagram is bad for teens despite claiming otherwise – here are the harms researchers have been documenting for years
  8. What is the Moon Festival? A scholar of Chinese religions explains
  9. Pandemic prompts more teachers to consider early retirement or new career
  10. Underneath all the makeup, who was the real Tammy Faye?
  11. Political orientation predicts science denial – here's what that means for getting Americans vaccinated against COVID-19
  12. OxyContin created the opioid crisis, but stigma and prohibition have fueled it
  13. 4 strategies for a UN breakthrough on energy and climate change
  14. How reparations can be paid through school finance reform
  15. 4 strategies for a global breakthrough on energy and climate change
  16. Capitol Police prepare for a return of insurrectionists to Washington – 5 essential reads on the symbols they carried on Jan. 6
  17. California's political standing among Democrats a big winner in Gavin Newsom's recall victory
  18. North Korea's latest missile provocation was entirely predictable
  19. Texas voting law builds on long legacy of racism from GOP leaders
  20. Critical race theory is an important tool in better understanding how religion operates in America
  21. Cybercriminals use pandemic to attack schools and colleges
  22. James Webb Space Telescope: An astronomer on the team explains how to send a giant telescope to space – and why
  23. Brain scans of Black women who experience racism show trauma-like effects, putting them at higher risk for future health problems
  24. Menstrual cups are a cheaper, more sustainable way for women to cope with periods than tampons or pads
  25. What’s the law on vaccine exemptions? A religious liberty expert explains
  26. 5 characteristics of an effective science teacher – from a researcher who trains them
  27. Poverty got worse in 2020 as many low-wage workers took the brunt of the economic blows
  28. Forceful vaccine messages backfire with holdouts – how can it be done better?
  29. Pew's new global survey of climate change attitudes finds promising trends but deep divides
  30. Who's covered by a vaccine mandate? Here's a quick guide to America's patchwork of COVID-19 shot requirements
  31. What are microschools? 5 questions answered
  32. More education for Mexican Americans may mean less diabetes
  33. Chile has a growing Muslim community – but few know about it
  34. A new platform lets you buy shares of blue-chip paintings – but is art a wise investment?
  35. Apple's plan to scan your phone raises the stakes on a key question: Can you trust Big Tech?
  36. Perilous situation for Afghan allies left behind shows a refugee system that's not up to the job
  37. Food production generates more than a third of manmade greenhouse gas emissions – a new framework tells us how much comes from crops, countries and regions
  38. Black, Hispanic and Asian American donors give more to social and racial justice causes as well as strangers in need – new survey
  39. Who are the Hazara of Afghanistan? An expert on Islam explains
  40. What happens when your foot falls asleep?
  41. 6 big changes in standardized tests – including less focus on grading students and more on learning
  42. Western fires are burning higher in the mountains and at unprecedented rates as the climate warms
  43. Jim Crow tactics reborn in Texas abortion law, deputizing citizens to enforce legally suspect provisions
  44. 'Imagine' at 50: Why John Lennon's ode to humanism still resonates
  45. Biden's pandemic plan overlooks mask mandates and vulnerable populations
  46. Over-the-counter rapid antigen tests can help slow the spread of COVID-19 -- here's how to use them effectively
  47. How 'engagement' makes you vulnerable to manipulation and misinformation on social media
  48. How 'sissy men' became the latest front in China’s campaign against big tech
  49. American Muslims are at high risk of suicide -- 20 years post-9/11, the links between Islamophobia and suicide remain unexplored
  50. 9/11 survivors' exposure to toxic dust and the chronic health conditions that followed offer lessons that are still too often unheeded