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Hamas – hemmed in and isolated – finds itself with few options for the day after the Gaza war

  • Written by Mkhaimar Abusada, Visiting Scholar of Global Affairs, Northwestern University

In early December 2024, Hamas announced a major concession: It was prepared to cede future governance of Gaza to a unity Palestinian committee, working alongside its chief political rival, Fatah, to create the body.

Fatah, the party of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, has since expressed hesitancy about such an arrangement –...

Read more: Hamas – hemmed in and isolated – finds itself with few options for the day after the Gaza war

The chilling crime spree of The Order – and its lasting effect on today’s white supremacists

  • Written by Matthew Valasik, Associate Professor of Criminology and Criminal Justice, University of Alabama
imageWhite supremacists murdered Jewish radio talk show host Alan Berg in the driveway of his home in June 1984.Lyn Alweis/The Denver Post via Getty Images

Justin Kurzels’ new historical crime drama, “The Order,” starring Jude Law and Nicholas Holt, is being described as a riveting “cat-and-mouse thriller.”

But for criminolo...

Read more: The chilling crime spree of The Order – and its lasting effect on today’s white supremacists

Syrians rejoice in a new beginning, after 54 years of tyranny

  • Written by Wendy Pearlman, Professor of Political Science, Northwestern University
imageSyrians gather in the heart of Damascus on Dec. 9, 2024, to celebrate the fall of the Assad regime. Rami Alsayed/NurPhoto via Getty Images)Rami Alsayed/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Millions of Syrians are feeling hope for the first time in years.

The authoritarian regime of Bashar al-Assad fell on Dec. 8, 2024, after a 12-day rebel offensive.

Most...

Read more: Syrians rejoice in a new beginning, after 54 years of tyranny

Syrians, in a triumph of hope, turn the page on the horrors of Assad

  • Written by Wendy Pearlman, Professor of Political Science, Northwestern University
imageSyrians gather in the heart of Damascus on Dec. 9, 2024, to celebrate the fall of the Assad regime. Rami Alsayed/NurPhoto via Getty Images)Rami Alsayed/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Millions of Syrians are feeling hope for the first time in years.

The authoritarian regime of Bashar al-Assad fell on Dec. 8, 2024, after a 12-day rebel offensive.

Most...

Read more: Syrians, in a triumph of hope, turn the page on the horrors of Assad

Arctic has changed dramatically in just a couple of decades – 2024 report card shows worrying trends in snow, ice, wildfire and more

  • Written by Twila A. Moon, Deputy Lead Scientist, National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC), Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES), University of Colorado Boulder

The Arctic can feel like a far-off place, disconnected from daily life if you aren’t one of the 4 million people who live there. Yet, the changes underway in the Arctic as temperatures rise can profoundly affect lives around the world.

Coastal flooding is worsening in many communities as Arctic glaciers and the Greenland Ice Sheet send meltwat...

Read more: Arctic has changed dramatically in just a couple of decades – 2024 report card shows worrying...

Pearl Young, the first woman to work in a technical role at NASA, overcame barriers and ‘raised hell’ − her legacy continues today

  • Written by Caitlin Milera, Research Assistant Professor of Aerospace, University of North Dakota

Thirteen years before any other woman joined the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics – or the NACA, NASA’s predecessor – in a technical role, a young lab assistant named Pearl Young was making waves in the agency. Her legacy as an outspoken and persistent advocate for herself and her team would pave the way for women in...

Read more: Pearl Young, the first woman to work in a technical role at NASA, overcame barriers and ‘raised...

Stadiums don’t have to be a drain on taxpayer dollars − 4 lessons from St. Louis

  • Written by Peter Boumgarden, Professor of Family Enterprise, Washington University in St. Louis
imageThe inaugural match at CITYPARK on March 4, 2023.Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images

The world of professional sports is flush with cash, thanks to multibillion-dollar TV deals, sponsorships and ticket sales. Yet some of the biggest investments in major franchises come from taxpayers. Between 1970 and 2020, state and local governments spent US$33...

Read more: Stadiums don’t have to be a drain on taxpayer dollars − 4 lessons from St. Louis

Polarization, brain rot and brat – the 2024 words of the year point to the power, perils and ephemeral nature of digital life

  • Written by Roger J. Kreuz, Associate Dean and Professor of Psychology, University of Memphis
imageSocial media has played a big role in political polarization.kieferpix/iStock via Getty Images Plus

Ever since the American Dialect Society selected a Word of the Year at its conference in 1990, over half a dozen English dictionaries have anointed an annual word or phrase that’s meant to encapsulate the zeitgeist of the prior year.

In 2003,...

Read more: Polarization, brain rot and brat – the 2024 words of the year point to the power, perils and...

New set of human rights principles aims to end displacement and abuse of Indigenous people through ‘fortress conservation’

  • Written by John H. Knox, Professor of International Law, Wake Forest University
imageMany protected areas, including California's Yosemite National Park, displaced Indigenous people in the name of protecting wildlands.Matthew Dillon/Flickr

For more than a century, conservationists have worked to preserve natural ecosystems by creating national parks and protected areas. Today the Earth faces a global biodiversity crisis, with more...

Read more: New set of human rights principles aims to end displacement and abuse of Indigenous people through...

Hypnosis is not just a parlor trick or TV act − science shows it helps with anxiety, depression, pain, PTSD and sleep disorders

  • Written by David Acunzo, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Neurobehavioral Sciences, University of Virginia
imageAlthough hypnosis can help with a number of medical conditions, it doesn't work for everything.Paula Connelly/iStock via Getty Images Plus

We’ve all seen it, typically on television or on stage: A hypnotist selects a few members from the audience, and with what seems to be little more than a steely stare or a few choice words, they’re...

Read more: Hypnosis is not just a parlor trick or TV act − science shows it helps with anxiety, depression,...

More Articles ...

  1. 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
  2. Links between gender stereotypes and American patriotism date from the Cold War − but weren’t true then either
  3. When AI goes shopping: AI agents promise to lighten your purchasing load − if they can earn your trust
  4. 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?
  5. Why does Colorado have so many ballot measures?
  6. In 2024, independent voters grew their share of the vote, split their tickets and expanded their influence
  7. How utilities are working to meet AI data centers’ voracious appetite for electricity
  8. How to combat toxic bosses: Social media and flexible work can save careers, new research shows
  9. Meditation can reduce stress – but the pressure to overwork remains
  10. 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
  11. What is the universe expanding into if it’s already infinite?
  12. Assad leaves behind a fragmented nation – stabilizing it will be a major challenge for fractured opposition and external backers
  13. Assad leaves behind a fragmented nation – stabilizing Syria will be a major challenge for fractured opposition and external backers
  14. What does the NASA administrator do? The agency’s leader reaches for the stars while navigating budgets and politics back on Earth
  15. Trump attacks diversity, but a fellow New Yorker − US Rep. Vito Marcantonio − worked to represent all Americans in a multiracial democracy
  16. What is Salt Typhoon? A security expert explains the Chinese hackers and their attack on US telecommunications networks
  17. Extraterrestrial life may look nothing like life on Earth − so astrobiologists are coming up with a framework to study how complex systems evolve
  18. Protests, sectarian violence and a growing spat with India: Bangladesh’s new leaders are beset with challenges to its democracy
  19. 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
  20. Love it or hate it, nonliteral ‘literally’ is here to stay: Here’s why English will survive
  21. Adults grow new brain cells – and these neurons are key to learning by listening
  22. White and Black activists worked strategically in parallel in Detroit 50 years ago, fighting for civil rights
  23. What is a self-coup? South Korea president’s attempt ended in failure − a notable exception in a growing global trend
  24. Some black holes at the centers of galaxies have a buddy − but detecting these binary pairs isn’t easy
  25. Long-standing American principle of birthright citizenship under attack from Trump allies
  26. Avian flu virus has been found in raw milk − a reminder of how pasteurization protects health
  27. Can you choose to believe something, just like that?
  28. ‘Lebanon wanted us gone … it was a risk to leave’ − Syrian refugees who fled Israeli bombs face hostility and uncertainty on return
  29. Bluesky isn’t the ‘new Twitter,’ but its resemblance to the old one is drawing millions of new users
  30. How a director of national intelligence helps a president stay on top of threats from around the world
  31. Prenatal supplements largely lack the recommended amount of omega-3 fatty acids to help prevent preterm birth − new research
  32. Supreme Court could narrow the scope of federal environmental reviews, with less consideration of how projects would contribute to climate change
  33. Water fluoridation helps prevent tooth decay – how growing opposition threatens a 70-year-old health practice
  34. Notre Dame reopens in Paris 5 years after fire – its reconstruction preserves the past and illuminates France’s modern ambitions
  35. America’s counties are less purple than they used to be
  36. AI Jesus might ‘listen’ to your confession, but it can’t absolve your sins − a scholar of Catholicism explains
  37. One’s a Hugh Grant thriller, one’s a hot-mess reality show – and both center on stereotypes about Mormon women
  38. Is masculine anxiety spurring support for Trump among Gen Z?
  39. How right-wing media is like improv theater
  40. What South Korea’s short-lived martial law says about nation’s democracy and the autocratic tendencies of President Yoon
  41. Why you should talk to people you disagree with about politics
  42. Threatening texts targeting minorities after election were vile − but they might not be illegal
  43. Rape survivors like Gisèle Pelicot are choosing to speak out, refuting the idea that they should feel shame
  44. We surveyed hundreds of vacationers to confirm this ancient wisdom: The journey matters as much as the destination
  45. New IRS funding boosted tax enforcement and improved taxpayer services during the Biden administration
  46. NEOWISE, the NASA mission that cataloged objects around Earth for over a decade, has come to an end
  47. Noam Chomsky at 96: The linguist, educator, philosopher and public thinker has had a massive intellectual and moral influence
  48. Are trans women ‘biologically male’? The answer is complicated
  49. Wildland firefighters face a big pay cut if Congress doesn’t act − that’s taking a toll on a workforce already under stress
  50. Wildland firefighters face up to $20,000 pay cut if Congress doesn’t act − that’s taking a toll on a workforce already under stress