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Yes, the country needs a fully functioning Postal Service to ensure all mail-in ballots get counted – not to mention continue shipping urgent prescriptions and other packages. But post offices also serve a symbolic role: Though they’ve endured decades of debasement and defunding under the guise of austerity, they’re one of the last public civic institutions in many American cities and towns.
Urban design scholar Patty Heyda explains that many branches were designed to reflect regional quirks or the grand aspirations of local leaders, all while ensuring every American – no matter their class, race, gender or creed – could connect with the rest of the world. The Postal Service represents the best of American public life, which makes its current role as political football that much more tragic, Heyda writes.
Plus, a look back at the Postal Service’s unifying origins.
Also today:
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Nick Lehr
Arts + Culture Editor
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The J.W. Westcott II is the country’s only floating ZIP code.
cactuspinecone/flickr
Patty Heyda, Washington University in St Louis
Can you find a FedEx store that mimics the design creativity and quality of early US post offices? What are we left with when the best parts of public life are treated like for-profit entities?
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Politics + Society
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Dov Waxman, University of California, Los Angeles
Israel and the United Arab Emirates weren't at war, so their new deal is not really a peace accord. Nor does it satisfy the Palestinians, who need Arab nations to support their drive for statehood.
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Daniel Klinghard, College of the Holy Cross
This year's technological adaptations may signal a permanent shift in the way nominating conventions meet and the way voters watch them – but it's not the first time.
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Amy Werbel, Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT)
The United States Postal Service plays a vital role in US civic life, one that helped shape American society more than 250 years ago and continues to characterize it today.
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Science + Technology
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Christopher von Rueden, University of Richmond
Recognizing the influence of evolution on behavior and gender norms suggests ways to reduce gender inequality in leadership in the real world.
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Health
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Cassandra Quave, Emory University
Consuming the plant can be lethal to animals and humans.
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Phyllis Sharps; Lucine Francis
Checking for symptoms is just the beginning. Here are 10 ways schools can help keep children, families and faculty safe.
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Ethics + Religion
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Christiane Gruber, University of Michigan; Paroma Chatterjee, University of Michigan
In reconverting Hagia Sophia to a mosque, Turkish officials have emphasized veiling of Christian icons to create a Muslim prayer space. Experts explain why the veiling is in fact a Byzantine practice.
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Economy + Business
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Jasmine Kerrissey, University of Massachusetts Amherst; Clare Hammonds, University of Massachusetts Amherst; Donald T. Tomaskovic-Devey, University of Massachusetts Amherst
Stress and physical conditions make essential work unsafe, especially for black and Latino employees.
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From our international editions
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Lina Fadel, Heriot-Watt University
Can you only ever truly 'belong' in Britain if you aren't white?
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Andy Hira, Simon Fraser University
Most populists are only against the system, they aren’t for anything in particular, as Donald Trump’s presidency and Brexit proves. A progressive wave will soon be upon us in response.
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Ryan P. Mulligan, Queen's University, Ontario; Andy Take, Queen's University, Ontario
Massive landslides can trigger destructive and deadly tsunamis, and climate change could make them worse.
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