Editor’s note: The Muslim month of fasting, Ramadan, starts Friday, May 27, 2017. Mohammad Hassan Khalil, associate professor of religious studies and director of the Muslim Studies Program at Michigan State University, answers six questions about the significance of this religious observance.

Why is Ramadan called Ramadan?

Ramadan is the...

From 2014 to 2015, the United States experienced its largest annual increase in firearm deaths over the past 35 years, a 7.8 percent upturn in a single year. In 45 of the 50 states the rate of overall deaths from firearms increased and the firearm homicide rate...

The first stop on Donald Trump’s first trip as U.S. president was to Saudi Arabia.

That was no accident.

His decision was surely based on the fact that the alliance between Saudi Arabia and the United States is one of the foundations...

On Memorial Day and throughout the year, many Americans honor those who have lost their lives in the line of duty by donating to charities that help military veterans. It can, however, be daunting to choose from the more than 8,000 such groups operating...

Cultures change, and new generations are born out of those changes. For many, this might sound obvious.

All you have to do is think about transporting a 25-year-old to 1965. Even after she got over the shock of losing her smartphone, she’d probably still be baffled. Why are so many women her age married with two...

The recent WannaCry ransomware attack spread like wildfire, taking advantage of flaws in the Windows operating system to take control of hundreds of thousands of computers worldwide. But what exactly does that mean?

It can be useful to think of hackers as burglars and malicious...

The U.S. Department of Energy spends US$3-$4 billion per year on applied energy research. These programs seek to provide clean and reliable energy and improve our energy security by...

A January 2017 Pew survey showed that Americans rate terrorism as the top priority for the Trump administration and Congress. They put the issue ahead of the economy, education, jobs and health care costs.

For the past 12 years as Director of the National...

A January 2017 Pew survey showed that Americans rate terrorism as the top priority for the Trump administration and Congress. They put the issue ahead of the economy, education, jobs and health care costs.

For the past 12 years as Director of the National...

Military veterans have a higher unemployment rate than nonveterans, according to federal statistics. One reason may be that when veterans seek civilian jobs, they often face stereotypes from hiring managers. But another set of stereotypes may come into play as well:...