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12 ways the Trump administration dismantled civil rights law and the foundations of inclusive democracy in its first year

  • Written by: Spencer Overton, Professor of Law, George Washington University
imageThe second Trump administration has weakened federal civil rights law and is shredding the foundations of America's racially inclusive democracy.imagedepotpro, iStock/Getty Images Plus

One year after Donald Trump’s second inauguration, a pattern emerges. Across dozens of executive orders, agency memos, funding decisions and enforcement...

Read more: 12 ways the Trump administration dismantled civil rights law and the foundations of inclusive...

Thecla, the beast fighter: The saint who faced down lions and killer seals is one of many ‘leading ladies’ in early Christian texts

  • Written by: Christy Cobb, Associate Professor of Christianity, University of Denver
imageA relic said to be part of Saint Thecla's arm has been kept in the Cathedral of Tarragona, Spain for centuries.Gaspar Ros/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA

The Bible is filled with brave and courageous women.

Deborah, the judge who fought a war to protect her people. The widow Ruth, who wittingly convinces a man to marry her in order to continue the...

Read more: Thecla, the beast fighter: The saint who faced down lions and killer seals is one of many ‘leading...

American farmers, who once fed the world, face a volatile global market with diminishing federal backing

  • Written by: Peter Simons, Lecturer in History, Hamilton College
imageAmerican farmers face a changing future for their businesses.Roberto Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images

President Donald Trump appears to have upended an 85-year relationship between American farmers and the United States’ global exercise of power. But that link has been fraying since the end of the Cold War, and Trump’s moves are just...

Read more: American farmers, who once fed the world, face a volatile global market with diminishing federal...

Deep reading can boost your critical thinking and help you resist misinformation – here’s how to build the skill

  • Written by: JT Torres, Director of the Harte Center for Teaching and Learning, Washington and Lee University
imageJust slowing down gives you time to question and reflect.Morsa Images/DigitalVision via Getty Images

The average American checks their phone over 140 times a day, clocking an average of 4.5 hours of daily use, with 57% of people admitting they’re “addicted” to their phone. Tech companies, influencers and other content creators...

Read more: Deep reading can boost your critical thinking and help you resist misinformation – here’s how to...

Iran’s latest internet blackout extends to phones and Starlink

  • Written by: Amanda Meng, Senior Research Scientist, College of Computing, Georgia Institute of Technology
imageProtesters have filled the streets in Iranian cities, but the regime's internet shutdown means little news gets in or out of the country.MAHSA/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images

The Iranian regime’s internet shutdown, initiated on Jan. 8, 2026, has severely diminished the flow of information out of the country. Without internet access,...

Read more: Iran’s latest internet blackout extends to phones and Starlink

New variant of the flu virus is driving surge of cases across the US and Canada

  • Written by: Zachary W. Binder, Associate Professor of Pediatrics, UMass Chan Medical School
imageThe 2025-2026 flu season seems to be affecting children more severely than usual.Renphoto/iStock via Getty Images

After a sharp uptick in flu cases in mid-December 2025, flu activity across the U.S. and Canada remains high.

Although cases are trending downward in Canada as of Jan. 9, 2026, the season has yet to peak in the U.S., according to data...

Read more: New variant of the flu virus is driving surge of cases across the US and Canada

International aid groups are dealing with the pain of slashed USAID funding by cutting staff, localizing and coordinating better

  • Written by: Sarah Stroup, Professor of Political Science, Middlebury College
imageA Burundian official holds up a sack of rice from the final batches delivered by USAID before the agency's closure.Luis Tato/AFP via Getty Images

Since Jan. 20, 2025, the first day of his second term in office, President Donald Trump has slashed U.S. foreign aid spending. It began with a stop-work order that paused spending on everything from treati...

Read more: International aid groups are dealing with the pain of slashed USAID funding by cutting staff,...

Colorado ranchers and consumers can team up to make beef supply chains more sustainable

  • Written by: Jordan Kraft Lambert, Director of Ag Innovation and Partnerships, College of Business, Colorado State University
imageBeef production provides a valuable contribution to human health while also impacting the natural environment.Brandee Gillham courtesy of the Colorado Department of Agriculture., CC BY

Cowboys guided a herd of longhorn cattle through downtown Denver to celebrate the opening of the annual National Western Stock Show on Jan. 8, 2026. As ranchers...

Read more: Colorado ranchers and consumers can team up to make beef supply chains more sustainable

Raccoons break into liquor stores, scale skyscrapers and pick locks – studying their clever brains can clarify human intelligence, too

  • Written by: Kelly Lambert, Professor of Behavioral Neuroscience, University of Richmond
imageThe moment you look away from those adorable eyes, these mischievous creatures will sneak out of your lab.Joshua J. Cotten/Unsplash, CC BY-SA

When a curious raccoon broke into an Ashland, Virginia, liquor store in December 2025, sampled the stock and passed out on the bathroom floor, the story went viral within minutes. The local animal...

Read more: Raccoons break into liquor stores, scale skyscrapers and pick locks – studying their clever brains...

Googoosh, the ‘Voice of Iran,’ has gone quiet – and that’s her point

  • Written by: Richard Nedjat-Haiem, Ph.D. Candidate in Comparative Literature, University of California, Santa Barbara
imageGoogoosh performs at Scotiabank Arena on Jan. 17, 2025, in Toronto.Jeremy Chan Photography/Getty Images

Before Beyoncé, before Cher, before Madonna, there was Googoosh.

The 75-year-old Iranian megastar catapulted to stardom in Iran during the 1970s, only to be silenced by the Islamist regime that took power after the 1979 Islamic Revolution....

Read more: Googoosh, the ‘Voice of Iran,’ has gone quiet – and that’s her point

More Articles …

  1. The Insurrection Act is one of at least 26 legal loopholes in the law banning the use of the US military domestically
  2. Global power struggles over the ocean’s finite resources call for creative diplomacy
  3. China’s new condom tax will prove no effective barrier to country’s declining fertility rate
  4. Refugee families are more likely to become self-reliant if provided with support outside of camp settings
  5. The hidden power of grief rituals
  6. Science is best communicated through identity and culture – how researchers are ensuring STEM serves their communities
  7. How is China viewing US actions in Venezuela – an affront, an opportunity or a blueprint?
  8. One cure for sour feelings about politics − getting people to love their hometowns
  9. Most of the 1 million Venezuelans in the United States arrived within the past decade
  10. How mountain terraces have helped Indigenous peoples live with climate uncertainty
  11. Supreme Court likely to reject limits on concealed carry but uphold bans on gun possession by drug users
  12. New Year’s resolutions usually fall by the wayside, but there is a better approach to making real changes
  13. Before Venezuela’s oil, there were Guatemala’s bananas
  14. Searching reporters’ homes, suing journalists and repressing citizen dissent are well-known steps toward autocracy
  15. Climate engineering would alter the oceans, reshaping marine life – our new study examines each method’s risks
  16. Climate engineering would alter the oceans, reshaping marine life – new study examines each method’s risks
  17. Reddit and TikTok - with the help of AI - are reshaping how researchers understand substance use
  18. Broncos say their new stadium will be ‘privately financed,’ but ‘private’ often still means hundreds of millions in public resources
  19. For some Jewish women, ‘passing’ as Christian during the Holocaust could mean survival – but left scars all the same
  20. There’s an intensifying kind of threat to academic freedom – watchful students serving as informants
  21. Building ‘beloved community’: Remembering the friendship between Martin Luther King Jr. and Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh
  22. US military has a long history in Greenland, from mining during WWII to a nuclear-powered Army base built into the ice
  23. Could ChatGPT convince you to buy something? Threat of manipulation looms as AI companies gear up to sell ads
  24. From a new flagship space telescope to lunar exploration, global cooperation – and competition – will make 2026 an exciting year for space
  25. The ‘drug threat’ that justified the US ouster of Maduro won’t be fixed by his arrest
  26. South Florida’s Brightline has highlighted an old problem – every year for the past decade, 900 pedestrians were killed by trains
  27. Iran’s protests have spread across provinces, despite skepticism and concern among ethnic groups
  28. Why unlocking Venezuelan oil won’t mean much for US energy prices
  29. Martin Luther King Jr. was ahead of his time in pushing for universal basic income
  30. Rural areas have darker skies but fewer resources for students interested in astronomy – telescopes in schools can help
  31. Research institutions tout the value of scholarship that crosses disciplines – but academia pushes interdisciplinary researchers out
  32. From flammable neighborhoods to moral hazards, fire insurance maps capture early US cities and the landscape of discrimination
  33. Viruses aren’t all bad: In the ocean, some help fuel the food web – a new study shows how
  34. 3 ways US actions in Venezuela violated international law
  35. Nearly half of Detroit seniors spend at least 30% of their income on housing costs − even as real estate values fall
  36. Small businesses say they aren’t planning to hire many recent graduates for entry-level jobs – here’s why
  37. Wars without clear purpose erode presidential legacies, and Trump risks political consequences with further military action in Venezuela
  38. Colorado ranks among the highest states in the country for flu – an emergency room physician describes why the 2025-26 flu season is hitting hard
  39. DOJ criminal probe highlights risk of Fed losing independence – a central bank scholar explains what’s at stake
  40. How social media is channeling popular discontent in Iran during ongoing period of domestic unrest
  41. Ukraine is under pressure to trade land for peace − if it does, history shows it might not ever get it back
  42. What is Christian Reconstructionism − and why it matters in US politics
  43. Eating less ultraprocessed food supports healthier aging, new research shows
  44. Saudi-UAE bust-up over Yemen was only a matter of time − and reflects wider rift over vision for the region
  45. Financial case for college remains strong, but universities need to add creative thinking to their curriculum
  46. What is below Earth, since space is present in every direction?
  47. Trump lawsuits seek to muzzle media, posing serious threat to free press
  48. Venezuela’s oil industry has flailed under government control – Mexico and Brazil have had more success with nationalizing
  49. CPR on TV is often inaccurate – but watching characters jump to the rescue can still save real lives
  50. NASA’s Pandora telescope will study stars in detail to learn about the exoplanets orbiting them