Politics
In deep‑red Idaho, even Republicans break with Trump on farm labor
A statewide survey finds majorities in farm country at odds with the deportation push reshaping their workforce.
How local communities are challenging Big Tech data centers’ noise, pollution and rising electricity bills
Local needs, political tensions and corporate power all get involved in the democratic processes by which Americans govern their communities.
Americans keep voting for scandal‑prone candidates because they just don’t want the other party to win
Polarization and negative partisanship have lowered the standards for whom Americans are willing to support.
The world agreed to protect 30% of the ocean by 2030 – but marine protection can’t be judged by area alone
So far, about 10% of the ocean has formal protection as countries work toward the 30×30 goal, but many areas are still protected on paper only.
Colorado criminal cases are dismissed at a higher rate when prosecutors face heavier workloads
When prosecutors’ caseloads increase, so do dismissal rates.
How political leaders use combat spectacles to symbolize national power and purpose
For both Roman gladiators and modern-day mixed martial arts participants, physical contests become moral dramas about sacrifice and human limits. That has led today’s fighters to right-wing politics.
Who was the first transgender person?
There is evidence of people who crossed gender boundaries even in ancient civilizations, though the terms naming them have evolved over time.
Prediction markets are opening many new opportunities for unregulated insider trading and unethical bets – in the name of making a game out of politics
The rapidly growing popularity of prediction markets is sparking worries about the markets’ effects on US politics, where campaign staff has bet on its candidate’s electoral performance.
Trump’s US‑Iran ceasefire deal is a costly return to prewar conditions – and resolving nuclear questions will run into the ‘indivisibility problem’
Iran has emerged with its uranium enrichment knowledge intact, its stockpile buried and fresh reason to believe that only a nuclear weapon would have deterred the US-Israel attack.
Paving paradise: Dismantling the US Roadless Rule threatens to disrupt wildlife, water and peace in the last quiet places in America
The constant noise of traffic is so ubiquitous, it is barely noticeable to our ears – until we step into a roadless forest and experience true quiet.