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US role in Syria is unclear in wake of Assad’s fall from power

  • Written by Jordan Tama, Provost Associate Professor, American University School of International Service
imageU.S. forces patrol oil fields near Syria's northeastern border near Turkey on Sept. 3, 2024. Delil Souleiman/AFP via Getty Images

As a new government is set to form in Syria following a sudden coup earlier this week, the United States’ response to the political upheaval appears uncertain.

Rebel groups unexpectedly overthrew Syria’s...

Read more: US role in Syria is unclear in wake of Assad’s fall from power

What the US Supreme Court will consider when it rules on gender-affirming care for trans children

  • Written by Mark Satta, Associate Professor of Philosophy and Law, Wayne State University
imageTransgender rights supporters and opponents rally outside the U.S. Supreme Court on Dec. 4, 2024, as the Skrmetti case is being argued. Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

A case recently argued in the U.S. Supreme Court will likely determine for the foreseeable future how difficult it will be for trans people to win constitutional challenges to laws that...

Read more: What the US Supreme Court will consider when it rules on gender-affirming care for trans children

What’s next for Albertsons after calling off its $25B grocery merger with Kroger: More lawsuits

  • Written by Christine P. Bartholomew, Professor of Law, University at Buffalo
imageAlbertsons is now suing the competitor that had tried to acquire it.AP Photo/Jenny Kane

Albertsons announced on Dec. 11, 2024, that it had called off an attempted merger with Kroger and would sue Kroger for breach of contract. The US$25 billion deal, first announced in 2022, would have combined Cincinnati-based Kroger, already the largest...

Read more: What’s next for Albertsons after calling off its $25B grocery merger with Kroger: More lawsuits

Assad’s fall in Syria will further weaken Hezbollah and curtails Tehran’s ‘Iranization’ of region

  • Written by Mireille Rebeiz, Chair of Middle East Studies and Associate Professor of Francophone and Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies, Dickinson College

The fall of President Bashar Assad will not only affect the 24 million Syrians who lived – and largely suffered – under his brutal rule. Over the border in Lebanon, the impact will be felt, too.

The collapse of Assad’s government provides another blow to its Lebanese ally, Hezbollah, which was already reeling from an Israel...

Read more: Assad’s fall in Syria will further weaken Hezbollah and curtails Tehran’s ‘Iranization’ of region

Blood tests are currently one-size-fits-all − machine learning can pinpoint what’s truly ‘normal’ for each patient

  • Written by Brody H. Foy, Assistant Professor of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Washington
imageBlood tests are essential tools in medicine.Bloomberg Creative/Bloomberg Creative Photos via Getty Images

If you’ve ever had a doctor order a blood test for you, chances are that they ran a complete blood count, or CBC. One of the most common blood tests in the world, CBC tests are run billions of times each year to diagnose conditions and...

Read more: Blood tests are currently one-size-fits-all − machine learning can pinpoint what’s truly ‘normal’...

High rises made out of wood? What matters in whether ‘mass timber’ buildings are sustainable

  • Written by Brent Sohngen, Professor of Environmental and Resource Economics, The Ohio State University

A material that’s been around since people built shelters – wood – is increasingly being proposed for low- and mid-rise buildings.

Companies behind these “mass timber” projects say that wood is a lower-carbon alternative to steel or concrete and brings other benefits, such as faster construction time and lower cost...

Read more: High rises made out of wood? What matters in whether ‘mass timber’ buildings are sustainable

Trump wants to use the Alien Enemies Act to deport immigrants – but the 18th-century law has been invoked only during times of war

  • Written by Daniel Tichenor, Professor of Political Science, University of Oregon
imageMigrants crossing from Mexico into Jacumba Hot Springs, Calif., are detained by U.S. Border Patrol officers on June 4, 2024. Katie McTiernan/Anadolu via Getty Images

President-elect Donald Trump often said during the 2024 presidential campaign that he plans to launch the nation’s largest-ever mass deportation operation in his second term.

Tru...

Read more: Trump wants to use the Alien Enemies Act to deport immigrants – but the 18th-century law has been...

Why being forced to precisely follow a curriculum harms teachers and students

  • Written by Cara Elizabeth Furman, Associate Professor of Literacy Education, Hunter College
imageEducators speak of being forced to follow scripts.SolStock/E+ via Getty Images

In teaching, “fidelity” refers to closely following specific procedures for how to teach a lesson or respond to student behavior. For example, following a curriculum to fidelity might mean a teacher is required to read from a script, use a certain tone or...

Read more: Why being forced to precisely follow a curriculum harms teachers and students

US secretary of education helps set national priorities in a system primarily funded and guided by local governments

  • Written by Dustin Hornbeck, Assistant Professor of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, University of Memphis
imagePresident Jimmy Carter gets a round of applause in 1979 after signing legislation establishing a Department of Education.AP Photo/Charles Tasnadi

The Department of Education has been a source of political controversy since its creation in 1980 during Jimmy Carter’s presidency. President Ronald Reagan, who was first elected that year, called...

Read more: US secretary of education helps set national priorities in a system primarily funded and guided by...

Infectious diseases killed Victorian children at alarming rates — their novels highlight the fragility of public health today

  • Written by Andrea Kaston Tange, Professor of English, Macalester College
imageThomas Worth's 1872 illustration for the Household Edition of _The Old Curiosity Shop_ highlights her grandfather's grief at losing Little Nell. Thomas Worth via George P. Landow/Victorian Web

Modern medicine has enabled citizens of wealthy, industrialized nations to forget that children once routinely died in shocking numbers. Teaching...

Read more: Infectious diseases killed Victorian children at alarming rates — their novels highlight the...

More Articles ...

  1. Hamas – hemmed in and isolated – finds itself with few options for the day after the Gaza war
  2. The chilling crime spree of The Order – and its lasting effect on today’s white supremacists
  3. Syrians rejoice in a new beginning, after 54 years of tyranny
  4. Syrians, in a triumph of hope, turn the page on the horrors of Assad
  5. Arctic has changed dramatically in just a couple of decades – 2024 report card shows worrying trends in snow, ice, wildfire and more
  6. Pearl Young, the first woman to work in a technical role at NASA, overcame barriers and ‘raised hell’ − her legacy continues today
  7. Stadiums don’t have to be a drain on taxpayer dollars − 4 lessons from St. Louis
  8. Polarization, brain rot and brat – the 2024 words of the year point to the power, perils and ephemeral nature of digital life
  9. New set of human rights principles aims to end displacement and abuse of Indigenous people through ‘fortress conservation’
  10. Hypnosis is not just a parlor trick or TV act − science shows it helps with anxiety, depression, pain, PTSD and sleep disorders
  11. I’m a scholar of white supremacy who’s visiting all 113 places where Confederate statues were removed in recent years − here’s why Richmond gets it right
  12. Links between gender stereotypes and American patriotism date from the Cold War − but weren’t true then either
  13. When AI goes shopping: AI agents promise to lighten your purchasing load − if they can earn your trust
  14. Abu Mohammed al-Golani may become the face of post-Assad Syria – but who is he and why does he have $10M US bounty on his head?
  15. Why does Colorado have so many ballot measures?
  16. In 2024, independent voters grew their share of the vote, split their tickets and expanded their influence
  17. How utilities are working to meet AI data centers’ voracious appetite for electricity
  18. How to combat toxic bosses: Social media and flexible work can save careers, new research shows
  19. Meditation can reduce stress – but the pressure to overwork remains
  20. Trump’s plans for tougher border enforcement won’t necessarily stop migrants from coming to US − but their journeys could become more costly and dangerous
  21. What is the universe expanding into if it’s already infinite?
  22. Assad leaves behind a fragmented nation – stabilizing it will be a major challenge for fractured opposition and external backers
  23. Assad leaves behind a fragmented nation – stabilizing Syria will be a major challenge for fractured opposition and external backers
  24. What does the NASA administrator do? The agency’s leader reaches for the stars while navigating budgets and politics back on Earth
  25. Trump attacks diversity, but a fellow New Yorker − US Rep. Vito Marcantonio − worked to represent all Americans in a multiracial democracy
  26. What is Salt Typhoon? A security expert explains the Chinese hackers and their attack on US telecommunications networks
  27. Extraterrestrial life may look nothing like life on Earth − so astrobiologists are coming up with a framework to study how complex systems evolve
  28. Protests, sectarian violence and a growing spat with India: Bangladesh’s new leaders are beset with challenges to its democracy
  29. What is the ‘way of the warrior’? Students investigate the arts of war and peace in this course about virtue and the ethics of violence
  30. Love it or hate it, nonliteral ‘literally’ is here to stay: Here’s why English will survive
  31. Adults grow new brain cells – and these neurons are key to learning by listening
  32. White and Black activists worked strategically in parallel in Detroit 50 years ago, fighting for civil rights
  33. What is a self-coup? South Korea president’s attempt ended in failure − a notable exception in a growing global trend
  34. Some black holes at the centers of galaxies have a buddy − but detecting these binary pairs isn’t easy
  35. Long-standing American principle of birthright citizenship under attack from Trump allies
  36. Avian flu virus has been found in raw milk − a reminder of how pasteurization protects health
  37. Can you choose to believe something, just like that?
  38. ‘Lebanon wanted us gone … it was a risk to leave’ − Syrian refugees who fled Israeli bombs face hostility and uncertainty on return
  39. Bluesky isn’t the ‘new Twitter,’ but its resemblance to the old one is drawing millions of new users
  40. How a director of national intelligence helps a president stay on top of threats from around the world
  41. Prenatal supplements largely lack the recommended amount of omega-3 fatty acids to help prevent preterm birth − new research
  42. Supreme Court could narrow the scope of federal environmental reviews, with less consideration of how projects would contribute to climate change
  43. Water fluoridation helps prevent tooth decay – how growing opposition threatens a 70-year-old health practice
  44. Notre Dame reopens in Paris 5 years after fire – its reconstruction preserves the past and illuminates France’s modern ambitions
  45. America’s counties are less purple than they used to be
  46. AI Jesus might ‘listen’ to your confession, but it can’t absolve your sins − a scholar of Catholicism explains
  47. One’s a Hugh Grant thriller, one’s a hot-mess reality show – and both center on stereotypes about Mormon women
  48. Is masculine anxiety spurring support for Trump among Gen Z?
  49. How right-wing media is like improv theater
  50. What South Korea’s short-lived martial law says about nation’s democracy and the autocratic tendencies of President Yoon