Globalism has made it easier than ever to visit faraway places – and easier to never really leave home while you're there.
Academic rigor, journalistic flair
Humanism
Analysis and Comment
The traumatic separations of children and parents initiated at the border can cause permanent changes in the structure of the infants' and children's brains and the activity of their genes.
As the nation grapples with its opioid addiction epidemic, one solution for many with chronic joint pain and back pain could be physical therapy. But it's often underutilized. Here's why.
Trump's defense of harsh immigration tactics and dehumanizing language should ring alarm bells, according to two scholars who study how to prevent mass atrocities.
Noted physician and author Atul Gawande was named CEO of a new health care venture aimed at cutting costs and improving care. But the most important man to keep an eye on in this effort isn't Gawande. It's the middleman.
Simpson, who has made the black body the focal point of her work, discusses her biggest influences and the challenges of creating in our current cultural and political climate.
Thinking about philanthropy in a more complex way may help donors do more good.
There is a risk that the foundation's alleged disregard for its duty to serve others rather than one family's personal interests could become more commonplace.
Most countries need to find a happy balance between the American attitude that all pain needs to be cured – and the ethos in other countries that pain is to be endured.
Researchers are learning even more about how a sedentary lifestyle is bad for our bodies. A recent study shows a link between sitting patterns and diabetes in older people.
Our neural circuits lead us to find comfort in those like us and unease with those who differ, resulting in a battle between reward and distrust. But these brain connections aren't the end of the story.
The steep decline in refugee children in US schools will lessen the nation's ability to produce students who possess the skills of global citizenship, a researcher argues.
Guatemala has ended its Fuego volcano rescue mission and declared 110 dead. But people in the hot, ash-covered eruption zone say that the real death tally is much higher and that they'll keep digging.
Childhood adversity is linked to social and mental health problems later in life. New research suggests brains that aren't as good at recognizing rewards and responding to change may be to blame.
What happens to motivated, determined and egotistical men when they are forced to abandon the White House? As John Quincy Adams once said, 'There is nothing more pathetic in life than a former president.'
Information on social media can be misleading because of biases in three places – the brain, society and algorithms. Scholars are developing ways to identify and display the effects of these biases.
As knowledge of pain and the highly addictive nature of opioids has grown, so has the knowledge grown about pain and its origins. A pain specialist explains the intricacies, and how treatment is changing as a result.
Many observers had hoped that the court's decision on Gill v. Whitford would provide some clarity on whether gerrymandering is constitutional.
Just as with so many other criminal justice policies, pretrial detention disproportionately affects African-American men and women, destabilizing black families in the process.
Research and News
A lack of affordable housing makes homelessness especially pervasive and visible on the West Coast.
Immigration
There are strong parallels between the Trump administration’s policy on immigrant families and the 19th century's 'New' Poor Laws of England, whose cruelty was illuminated by writer Charles Dickens.
World Cup
China want to win the World Cup by 2050. This year, its team didn't even qualify for the tournament. China has money, power and a dream – but that doesn't add up to soccer brilliance.
Homelessness
People may not have a criminal record before they become homeless, but they likely will afterward due to laws intended to keep people with nowhere to go out of sight.
EPA
EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt has proposed steps that would reduce economic benefits to society from new regulations. An economist who worked for Presidents Clinton and Obama calls this a strategy to justify deregulation.
Pain and opioids
Research and Expert Database
Analysis from academics around the world
Editors’ Picks
After mass killings, politicians feel compelled to offer solutions to gun violence. One of the most common answers is better access to mental health care, but research has found that's not effective.
A scholar of climate misinformation campaigns explains how, in part, the large gap in public opinion on global warming emerged since a scientist's landmark clarion call for action.
As atmospheric carbon dioxide levels rise, rice plants produce fewer vitamins and other key nutrients. This could worsen hunger, malnutrition, child stunting and other diet-related health problems.
Privacy rules enacted in Europe are affecting companies – and their customers and users – all around the world.
Lincoln's description of the Union as a house divided is well-remembered today. But many Americans fail to heed its lessons about equality and the moral foundations of popular government.
Part of yoga's appeal is that it continues to be seen as a mystical, ancient tradition. The truth is, the practice of yoga has gone through some profound shifts.
Venezuela has freed 79 political prisoners in recent months, to global plaudits. But the hard-line regime has also charged 100 military officials with conspiracy. Does President Maduro fear overthrow?
Sen. John McCain, facing terminal cancer, will end his career with growing repudiation by his party and the public of positions, from national defense to bipartisanship, that he has long embodied.
Psychedelic drugs have inspired great songs and works of art. But they may also have potential for treating disease like depression and PTSD by helping to regrow damaged regions of the brain.
Missing a meal can certainly push you toward a bad mood. But new research identifies in what kind of situations hunger is most likely to tip toward hanger.
'Will & Grace,' 'The X-Files,' 'Fuller House,' 'Arrested Development' – the list goes on. If we're in the midst of a TV renaissance, why are networks and their viewers looking to the past?
The first time computer-generated characters interacted with humans on a movie screen was 25 years ago, in 'Jurassic Park.' Since then, technology has improved, giving directors more choices.
For 30 years, it’s been the best-selling vehicle in the US.
When you see a bolt of lightning, do you immediately start counting to see how far off a storm is? An atmospheric scientist parses the practice.
Important points about volcanoes: location matters, explosiveness can be predicted to an extent, and fast-moving flows of volcanic materials (known as pyroclastic flows) are deadly.
Most Read past week
- What is the summer solstice? An astronomer explains
- Suicide nation: What’s behind the need to numb and to seek a final escape?
- Yoga isn’t timeless: it’s changing to meet contemporary needs
- How US policy in Honduras set the stage for today’s mass migration
- Satellite imagery is revolutionizing the world. But should we always trust what we see?
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