Project Veritas and the mainstream media: Strange allies in the fight to protect press freedom

Jane E Kirtley, University of Minnesota

The mainstream media are holding their collective noses and supporting Project Veritas after its founder’s home was raided by the FBI. It’s a matter of principle and self-preservation.

Rittenhouse verdict flies in the face of legal standards for self-defense

Ronald Sullivan, Harvard Law School

In its decision, the Wisconsin jury believed Kyle Rittenhouse acted in self-defense – not recklessness, as prosecutors alleged – when he shot three people, two fatally.

Adoptees nationwide may soon gain access to their original birth certificates

Andrea Ross, University of California, Davis

Adopted children face a slew of legal challenges in trying to obtain their original birth certificates. Lawmakers across the country are increasingly granting more access as a basic human right.

Infrastructure law’s digital equity goals are key to smart cities that work for everyone

Gregory Porumbescu, Rutgers University - Newark

Smart cities’ focus on technology has made the digital divide worse, not better. The new infrastructure law could change that.

Meet the person responsible for keeping inflation from spiraling out of control – without tanking the economy

Veronika Dolar, SUNY Old Westbury

Biden is expected to soon decide whether to keep Jerome Powell as Federal Reserve chair or name a replacement. The nominee will have more influence on the trajectory of inflation than anyone else.

Americans support climate change policies, especially those that give them incentives and clean up the energy supply

Janet K. Swim, Penn State; Nathaniel Geiger, Indiana University

A set of studies found people prefer incentives to disincentives, especially for individuals but also for businesses. They have views on clean energy and efficiency, too.

Why are barns painted red?

Thomas Durant Visser, University of Vermont

Barns are practical buildings, designed to safeguard farm animals and equipment. Why are so many of them painted to stand out from the landscape?

The first Thanksgiving is a key chapter in America’s origin story – but what happened in Virginia four months later mattered much more

Peter C. Mancall, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences

The communion between Native Americans and the Pilgrims makes for a compelling narrative. But it masks the suspicions and brewing violence that were far more representative of the era.

Talking turkey! How the Thanksgiving bird got its name (and then lent it to film flops)

Jack Lynch, Rutgers University - Newark

From ‘turkey trot’ to ‘going cold turkey,’ the centerpiece to many Thanksgiving dinners has lent its name to many things. But it also borrowed its name from elsewhere.

Could oral antiviral pills be a game-changer for COVID-19? An infectious disease physician explains why these options are badly needed

Patrick Jackson, University of Virginia

Merck and Pfizer both have oral antiviral pills under review by the FDA. Such treatments could help turn the tide of the pandemic.

Misremembering might actually be a sign your memory is working optimally

Robert Jacobs, University of Rochester

Errors don’t necessarily mean your mind is faulty. They may actually be a sign of a cognitive system with limited capacity working efficiently.

What’s the difference between a PCR and antigen COVID-19 test? A molecular biologist explains

Nathaniel Hafer, UMass Chan Medical School

The two types of COVID-19 tests – antigen and PCR – work in very different ways, which is why one is fast but less accurate and the other is slow and precise.

"I’m also wondering how much the tech sector plays into this. Suddenly, everyone was work from home. That meant you could get a job from ANY tech company without having to move from where you lived. I’ve seen it happen in my own job place. Many of us moved closer to home/family/relatives, and were able to keep our job. Many also found new work at west coast tech companies that would have required moving pre-pandemic."

– Reader Margaret Schultz on the story The ‘great resignation’ is a trend that began before the pandemic – and bosses need to get used to it