We’re hardwired to love finding patterns, solving puzzles, mastering challenges. Business, education, health, marketing and other fields tap into these drives via game elements to help us hit goals or change behavior.
Attendants wait to serve delegates with water during the opening of the annual full session of the National People’s Congress, the country’s parliament, at Great Hall of the People, in Beijing, March 5, 2015.
Jason Lee/Reuters
No Child Left Behind (NCLB) has not only failed to close the achievement gap, but has led to schools resorting to corrupt practices in an attempt to show better test results.
Best practice?
Prescription pad and pills via www.shutterstock.com
According to a study of Vermont doctors, best practice guidelines for prescribing antipsychotic medication to children are followed only half the time.
The massive Ivanpah Solar Power Facility in California was partially funded by a large Department of Energy loan guarantee yet the policy has been harshly criticized.
Gregg Tavares
The world needs new energy technologies to meet global demand and slow emissions. Government plays an outside role in energy so what policies work best for innovation?
Studies have shown that mentioning misinformation – even in the process of combating it – can cause it to stick in listeners’ minds.
from www.shutterstock.com
Nearly US$ 3 billion in financial aid is left on the table each year, as students fail to fill out the FAFSA, the free application for federal student aid.
Human-headed winged bulls guarding a door in Dur-Sharrukin.
Poulpy/
ISIS’s destruction of archeological treasures is horrifying but reflects a too-human history of obliterating the past of “enemy” cultures. Moreover, all is not really “lost.”
A little branding can go a long way in the corporate suite.
Bar code on head from www.shutterstock.com
Not in terms of the Kardashian-style “personal brands” in vogue these days, but by using the practice’s core principles to make leaders better and more mindful of diversity.
Racial tensions on college campuses may not be much different for today’s students from what they were even 36 years ago, argues associate professor of history at University of Oklahoma.
Neil deGrasse Tyson is just one scientist celeb who already unofficially does the job of a science laureate.
John Roling
Declan Fahy, American University School of Communication
A bill before congress would create a science laureate position akin to the poet laureate for poetry. But some science stars are already essentially doing the job now.
Marvin Gaye’s daughter speaks to the media after her family was awarded $7.4 million.
Lucy Nicholson/Reuters
Forests, wetlands, wildlife, waterways all provide valuable services to society. Would we take better conserve natural resources if we paid for these ecosystem services?
Yelling protesters at health care reform town hall meeting in West Hartford, CT, in 2009.
Sage Ross
Politics as partisan blood sport may be fun to watch but may undermine discourse necessary for democracy. A study finds that online town halls may re-engage potential voters in the political process.