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When Congress passes a law telling federal regulators to do something – say, reduce air pollution or make workplaces safer – it doesn’t always spell that mission out in great detail. For the past 40 years, an important tenet of administrative law, known as Chevron deference, has dictated that when a law isn’t clear and legal challenges ensue, courts should defer to the agency’s reasonable interpretation of what the statute requires.
But that idea will be tested on Jan. 17, when the Supreme Court hears two cases in which herring fishers argue that the law doesn’t empower federal regulators to make them pay part of the costs of monitoring their catch. As University of Southern California law professor Robin Kundis Craig explains, conservative justices are strongly interested in curbing the power of the administrative state. The outcome may leave regulatory agencies with much less latitude to address challenges like artificial intelligence that the founders never could have anticipated.
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Jennifer Weeks
Senior Environment + Cities Editor
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Two cases centered on Atlantic herring could have widespread impacts on federal regulation.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Robin Kundis Craig, University of Southern California
An important but controversial legal doctrine, known as Chevron deference, is at issue in two fishing cases. The outcome could affect many sectors across the nation.
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Health + Medicine
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Mandy Conrad, Mississippi State University
Medications can play an important role in weight management, but not at the expense of overall nutrition. And healthy lifestyle habits are also key.
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Ethics + Religion
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Danielle Tumminio Hansen, Emory University
Surrogacy can exploit women, but others may choose to be involved for altruistic reasons. A scholar points out that surrogacy’s ethical value is dependent upon the people and systems who use it.
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Elisa J. Sobo, San Diego State University
A medical anthropologist explores claims about the health benefits of sound baths and how to choose the one to attend.
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Arts + Culture
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James Dawes, Macalester College
Whether they’re heroic or inscrutably weird, video game records reveal a lot about play, cooperation and the drive for perfection.
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Roger J. Kreuz, University of Memphis
Pleasant-sounding words might have a leg up.
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Science + Technology
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Wei Gordon, Menlo College; Nadav Ahituv, University of California, San Francisco
Fruit bats can eat up to twice their body weight in fruit a day. But their genes and cells evolved to process all that sugar without any heath consequences − a feat drug developers can learn from.
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Gongjie Li, Georgia Institute of Technology
You might hate winter, but at least you know what to expect every year. Other planets have wobbly axes that lead to wild, unpredictable seasons.
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Kimberly D. Gwinn, University of Tennessee
Hemp flowers and certain cannabis products contain fungal toxins, including Aspergillus and Fusarium, that can exceed acceptable regulatory levels.
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Environment + Energy
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Shuang-Ye Wu, University of Dayton
An atmospheric scientist explains how rising temperatures are helping to fuel extreme storms, floods, droughts and devastating wildfires.
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Joanna Lambert, University of Colorado Boulder
At one time, perhaps as many as 2 million gray wolves roamed the North American continent. But now those numbers are down to a few thousand.
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Politics + Society
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Jean Lantz Reisz, University of Southern California
A GOP proposal would make it nearly impossible for most migrants now crossing the US border to gain asylum and the right to remain in the country.
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International
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Magnus Killander, University of Pretoria
There is precedent showing the ICJ may grant provisional measures within a month or two of the hearing, preventing Israel from causing further harm in Gaza.
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