NewsPronto

 
The Times


.

USA Conversation

The Conversation USA

The Conversation USA

From flammable neighborhoods to moral hazards, fire insurance maps capture early US cities and the landscape of discrimination

  • Written by Jack Swab, Assistant Professor Department of Geography & Sustainability, University of Tennessee
image1909 Sanborn map of Suffolk County in Boston, Mass.Library of Congress

Imagine a map that allows you to see what your neighborhood looked like a century ago in immense detail. What you’re thinking of is probably very much like the fire insurance maps produced from the 1860s to the 1970s for insurance companies to identify potential fire risks....

Read more: From flammable neighborhoods to moral hazards, fire insurance maps capture early US cities and the...

More Articles ...

  1. Viruses aren’t all bad: In the ocean, some help fuel the food web – a new study shows how
  2. 3 ways US actions in Venezuela violated international law
  3. Nearly half of Detroit seniors spend at least 30% of their income on housing costs − even as real estate values fall
  4. Small businesses say they aren’t planning to hire many recent graduates for entry-level jobs – here’s why
  5. Wars without clear purpose erode presidential legacies, and Trump risks political consequences with further military action in Venezuela
  6. 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
  7. DOJ criminal probe highlights risk of Fed losing independence – a central bank scholar explains what’s at stake
  8. How social media is channeling popular discontent in Iran during ongoing period of domestic unrest
  9. Ukraine is under pressure to trade land for peace − if it does, history shows it might not ever get it back
  10. What is Christian Reconstructionism − and why it matters in US politics
  11. Eating less ultraprocessed food supports healthier aging, new research shows
  12. Saudi-UAE bust-up over Yemen was only a matter of time − and reflects wider rift over vision for the region
  13. Financial case for college remains strong, but universities need to add creative thinking to their curriculum
  14. What is below Earth, since space is present in every direction?
  15. Trump lawsuits seek to muzzle media, posing serious threat to free press
  16. Venezuela’s oil industry has flailed under government control – Mexico and Brazil have had more success with nationalizing
  17. CPR on TV is often inaccurate – but watching characters jump to the rescue can still save real lives
  18. NASA’s Pandora telescope will study stars in detail to learn about the exoplanets orbiting them
  19. Damn the torpedoes! Trump ditches a crucial climate treaty as he moves to dismantle America’s climate protections
  20. Damn the torpedoes! Trump ditches a crucial climate treaty in latest move to dismantle America’s climate protections
  21. George Washington’s foreign policy was built on respect for other nations and patient consideration of future burdens
  22. Why the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s closure exposes a growing threat to democracy
  23. The 6-7 craze offered a brief window into the hidden world of children
  24. Meth inflames and stimulates your brain through similar pathways – new research offers potential avenue to treat meth addiction
  25. ‘Shared decision-making’ for childhood vaccines sounds empowering – but it may mean less access for families already stretched thin
  26. Live healthier in 2026 by breathing cleaner air at home
  27. Americans have had their mail-in ballots counted after Election Day for generations − a Supreme Court ruling could end the practice
  28. The 17th-century Pueblo leader who fought for independence from colonial rule – long before the American Revolution
  29. Superheavy-lift rockets like SpaceX’s Starship could transform astronomy by making space telescopes cheaper
  30. ICE killing of driver in Minneapolis involved tactics many police departments warn against − but not ICE itself
  31. New US dietary guidelines recommend more protein and whole milk, less ultraprocessed foods
  32. Illness is more than just biological – medical sociology shows how social factors get under the skin and cause disease
  33. Seeking honor is a double-edged sword – from ancient Greece to samurai Japan, thinkers have wrestled with whether it’s the way to virtue
  34. Racial profiling by ICE agents mirrors the targeting of Japanese Americans during World War II
  35. The western US is in a snow drought, and storms have been making it worse
  36. Taming the moral menace at capitalism’s core
  37. Grok produces sexualized photos of women and minors for users on X – a legal scholar explains why it’s happening and what can be done
  38. Cuba’s leaders just lost an ally in Maduro − if starved of Venezuelan oil, they may also lose what remains of their public support
  39. Congress takes up health care again − and impatient voters shouldn’t hold their breath for a cure
  40. Risks young chimps take as they swing through the trees underscore role of protective parenting in humans
  41. Today Venezuela, tomorrow Iran: can the Islamic Republic survive a second Trump presidency?
  42. Viral outbreaks are always on the horizon – here are the viruses an infectious disease expert is watching in 2026
  43. New federal loan limits will worsen America’s nursing shortage and leave patients waiting longer for care
  44. How facial recognition for bears can help ecologists manage wildlife
  45. Why 2026 could see the end of the Farm Bill era of American agriculture policy
  46. How tourism, a booming wellness culture and social media are transforming the age-old Japanese tea ceremony
  47. Wearing a weighted vest can promote bone health and weight loss, but it’s not a cure-all
  48. Venezuela’s civil-military alliance is being stretched — if it breaks, numerous armed groups may be drawn into messy split
  49. RFK Jr. guts the US childhood vaccine schedule despite its decades-long safety record
  50. Regime change means different things to different people. Either way, it hasn’t happened in Venezuela … yet