METRO - Metropolitan Digital

‘Cajun Navy’ volunteers who participate in search-and-rescue operations after hurricanes are forming long-lasting organizations

Volunteers with Savage Freedoms Relief Operation coordinates aid in Swannanoa, on Oct. 7, 2024, after Hurricane Helene severely damaged the North Carolina town.Allison Joyce/AFP via Getty ImagesThe vo...

Kyle Breen, Assistant Professor of Sociology, Texas A&M International University

Machine learning cracked the protein-folding problem and won the 2024 Nobel Prize in chemistry

Protein molecules can have complicated structures that dictate their functions.Christoph Burgstedt/Science Photo Library via Getty ImagesThe 2024 Nobel Prize in chemistry recognized Demis Hassabis, Jo...

Marc Zimmer, Professor of Chemistry, Connecticut College

Columbus who? Decolonizing the calendar in Latin America
Demonstrators make graffiti reading 'Columbus Out, Long Live the People' on a fence protecting a sta…
Blitz of political attack ads in Pennsylvania and other swing states may be doing candidates and vot…
Nearly $11 billion is projected to be spent on political advertising in the 2024 fall election seaso…
How a subfield of physics led to breakthroughs in AI – and from there to this year’s Nobel Prize
Neural networks have their roots in statistical mechanics. BlackJack3D/iStock via Getty Images PlusJ…
Misspoke: The long and winding road to becoming a political weasel word
Democratic candidate Tim Walz, during the vice presidential debate in which he said he ‘misspo…

Misspoke: The long and winding road to becoming a political weasel word

Democratic candidate Tim Walz, during the vice presidential debate in which he said he ‘misspoke’ about being in Hong Kong during Tiananmen Square protests.Chip Somodevilla/Getty ImagesDu...

Valerie M. Fridland, Professor of Linguistics, University of Nevada, Reno

DEA could reclassify marijuana to a less restrictive category – a drug policy expert weighs the pros and cons
The move would not make marijuana legal at the federal level for recreational use and would require dispensaries to comply with medical marijuana requirements.Nathalie Jamois/SOPA Images, LightRocket via Getty ImagesThe Drug Enforcement Administration announced in early…
So you don’t like Trump or Harris – here’s why it’s still best to vote for one of them
In a close election, every vote really does matter.Nadzeya Haroshka/iStock / Getty Images PlusMany Americans are not thrilled with either of the two major-party candidates for president. As of Oct. 4, 2024, polls showed that 46.5% had an unfavorable opinion of Kamala Ha…
The woman who revolutionized the fantasy genre is finally getting her due
Hugo Award-winner Arthur C. Clarke called Judy-Lynn del Rey the 'most brilliant editor I ever encountered.'Artwork by Adriano Botega. Courtesy of Inspiration Films, LLC.Think of your favorite fantasy or science fiction novel. You’ll know the author and title, of c…
5 kinds of American evangelicals and their voting patterns
Evangelicals may share the same basic theology, but they are not a monolithic group.Joe Raedle/Getty ImagesPolls and analyses from journalists, scholars and even religious leaders often seem to assume that evangelicalism represents a singular religious and social identi…

Harris proposes that Medicare cover more in-home health care, filling a large gap for older Americans and their caregivers

Vice President Kamala Harris' proposal would allow Medicare to expand its coverage of home health care aides for older Americans.FredFroese/E+ via Getty ImagesVice President Kamala Harris has outlined...

Jane Tavares, Senior Research Fellow and Lecturer of Gerontology, LeadingAge LTSS Center @UMass Boston, UMass Boston

Nobel Prize in physics spotlights key breakthroughs in AI revolution − making machines that learn
Artificial neural networks mimic human brains, but the technology has its roots in physics.Thom Leach/Science Photo Library via Getty ImagesIf your jaw dropped as you watched the latest AI-generated video, your bank balance was saved from criminals by a fraud detection …
Trump and Harris are sharply divided on science, but share common ground on US technology policy
Science topics don't always come up during presidential debates – but they did on Sept. 10, 2024.Mario Tama via Getty ImagesFor the first time in American history, quantum computing was mentioned by a candidate during a presidential debate, on Sept. 10, 2024. Afte…
How foreign operations are manipulating social media to influence your views
Russians, Chinese, Iranians – even Israelis – are trying to affect what you believe.Sean Gladwell/Moment via Getty ImagesForeign influence campaigns, or information operations, have been widespread in the run-up to the 2024 U.S. presidential election. Influe…
Is it COVID-19? Flu? At-home rapid tests could help you and your doctor decide on a treatment plan
Over-the-counter multiplex tests for more than one illness may soon come to a pharmacy near you.Paco Burgada/iStock via Getty ImagesA scratchy, sore throat, a relentless fever, a pounding head and a nasty cough – these symptoms all scream upper respiratory illness…

‘No antidote for bad polls’: Recalling the New York Times’ 1956 election experiment in shoe-leather reporting

President Dwight Eisenhower and his wife, Mamie, left, with Vice President Richard Nixon and his wife, Pat, greet crowds after Adlai Stevenson conceded defeat on Nov. 7, 1956.Bettmann/Getty ImagesIn r...

W. Joseph Campbell, Professor Emeritus of Communication, American University School of Communication

Kamala Harris has spoken of her racial backgrounds − but a shared identity isn’t enough to attract supporters
Vice President Kamala Harris greets guests during a reception for Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month at the White House in May 2022. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images In one of the most memorable moments of the current presidential campaign, Donald Trump in July 2024 con…
Swing state voters along the Great Lakes love cleaner water and beaches − and candidates from both parties have long fished for support there
The Great Lakes account for 20% of the world's freshwater supply. Creative Touch Imaging Ltd./NurPhoto via Getty ImagesIf history holds true to form, I expect the presidential campaigns of Donald Trump and Kamala Harris to begin touting their support for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative as Ele…
Why wildfires started by human activities can be more destructive and harder to contain
Heavy equipment working near dry brush sparked a destructive wildfire near Riverside, Calif., in September 2024.AP Photo/Eric ThayerWildfires are becoming increasingly destructive across the U.S., as the country is seeing in 2024. Firefighters were battling large blazes in several states from Califo…
European court ruling finds just cause to award soccer players greater freedom of movement
A ruling that Harry Kane may be happy about?James Gill/Danehouse via Getty ImagesMany of us have quit a job at some point in our lives – but how many have wondered if they had “just cause” to do so? Were you acting on a whim? Did your departure make life difficult for your employer…
Hurricane Milton explodes into a powerful Category 5 storm as it heads for Florida − here’s how rapid intensification works
Satellite data shows Hurricane Milton on Oct. 8, 2024, as it moves across Gulf of Mexico.NOAAHurricane Milton became one of the most rapidly intensifying storms on record as it went from barely hurricane strength to a dangerous Category 5 storm in less than a day on a path across the Gulf of Mexico …

‘Cajun Navy’ volunteers who participate in search-and-rescue operations after hurricanes are forming long-lasting organizations

Machine learning cracked the protein-folding problem and won the 2024 Nobel Prize in chemistry

Columbus who? Decolonizing the calendar in Latin America

Blitz of political attack ads in Pennsylvania and other swing states may be doing candidates and vot…

How a subfield of physics led to breakthroughs in AI – and from there to this year’s Nobel Prize

Misspoke: The long and winding road to becoming a political weasel word

Corporate directors don't see stopping wayward CEOs as their job – contrary to popular belief

Raising cattle on native grasses in the eastern U.S. benefits farmers, wildlife and the soil

4 reasons teens take part in social media challenges

How Black writers and journalists have wielded punctuation in their activism

Explorer Robert Ballard's memoir finds shipwrecks and strange life forms in the ocean's darkest reaches

Flying colors: Researcher reveals hidden world through the eyes of butterflies

Health care price transparency: Fool's gold, or real money in your pocket?

Digital technology offers new ways to teach lessons from the Holocaust

Olympic Games are great for propagandists – how the lessons of Hitler's Olympics loom over Beijing 2022

Signs, props and light-up wristbands − the 2024 political conventions find a home in the Smithsonian collections

Tax or treat! State laws on candy taxation vary wildly

Misspoke: The long and winding road to becoming a political weasel word

DEA could reclassify marijuana to a less restrictive category – a drug policy expert weighs the pros and cons

So you don’t like Trump or Harris – here’s why it’s still best to vote for one of them

The woman who revolutionized the fantasy genre is finally getting her due

5 kinds of American evangelicals and their voting patterns

Harris proposes that Medicare cover more in-home health care, filling a large gap for older Americans and their caregivers

Nobel Prize in physics spotlights key breakthroughs in AI revolution − making machines that learn

Trump and Harris are sharply divided on science, but share common ground on US technology policy

How foreign operations are manipulating social media to influence your views

Is it COVID-19? Flu? At-home rapid tests could help you and your doctor decide on a treatment plan

‘No antidote for bad polls’: Recalling the New York Times’ 1956 election experiment in shoe-leather reporting

Kamala Harris has spoken of her racial backgrounds − but a shared identity isn’t enough to attract supporters

Swing state voters along the Great Lakes love cleaner water and beaches − and candidates from both parties have long fished for support there

Why wildfires started by human activities can be more destructive and harder to contain

European court ruling finds just cause to award soccer players greater freedom of movement

Hurricane Milton explodes into a powerful Category 5 storm as it heads for Florida − here’s how rapid intensification works