Politics & Current Affairs

Announced this week, the US military’s Vanishing Programmable Resources (VAPR) program has as its goal the development of electronics that can dissolve into the environment around them.

I tried something new this week on the first day of my spring term humanities seminar. Rather than hand out the syllabus and introduce the themes and texts coming up, […]

The Pentagon has approved a plan to boost its cybersecurity force to almost 5,000 over the next several years.

As part of a continued effort to improve women’s safety, a technology trade group has announced a contest that’s open to software developers, corporations, and students.

The ambitious goal is part of an €8 billion program designed to put more electric vehicles and hybrids on roads across the continent.

Cash-strapped towns are reevaluating church holdings and their use in hopes of claiming much-needed tax revenue. In response, the church asks why they’re being singled out.

Local authorities have banned any property improvements, including balconies and certain bathroom conversions, that may raise rents and force established residents out.

A study titled “The Point of No Return” says that oil, gas, and coal projects currently planned in various countries will produce more than 6 gigatons of carbon dioxide emissions by 2020.

A new study is the first-ever documented global assessment of the phenomenon, which has intensified over the last four years due to a rise in food prices.

A report released this week by the UK government examines the impact of technology on the concept of identity and offers policy recommendations.

“The situation Mexico is experiencing…is what has given the communities the legitimacy to say, ‘We will assume the tasks that the government has not been able to fulfill.'”

Military service is compulsory for most Israeli youth, but a slight drop in participation has caused the current administration to create several promotional programs.

Surveys that compare student test scores from different countries often fail to take socioeconomic differences into account, say the authors of a new study.

Researchers mined data from 8 years’ worth of comments on a road rage complaint Web site and created a taxonomy of behaviors that could be helpful in new driver education.

Enjoy the inauguration of Barack Obama, Democrats: it may be the last opportunity to cheer a president from your party for quite a while. 

Nearly 40 percent of high school and college students surveyed say they will own a gun in the future, and an additional 20 percent say they’ll consider it.

On Monday, I suggested that Justice Thomas might build on his first moment of non-silence in seven years.  “If he wants to demonstrate that he takes his judicial role seriously […]

It’s unclear exactly what he said, but on Monday, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas spoke during an oral argument for the first time in nearly seven years.  What prompted the […]

New York City’s public hospitals are in negotiations with the doctor’s union to tie a portion of doctors’ salaries to metrics such as patient readmittance rates and how quickly they are discharged.

These cars are infamously quiet at low speeds, which could cause problems for pedestrians. Singing and whistling sounds aren’t allowed, though: It has to mimic the sound of a car.

A symbolic state of emergency was recently declared to draw attention to a population that’s about seven times the size it should be. Towns are offering a variety of incentives to hunters to help reduce numbers.

Officials say their proposed curriculum will ensure less violence and more morality among young citizens. Critics say it will make the country less competitive globally and doesn’t address deeper education issues.

Using data from a variety of sources, writer Andrew Leonard points out the growing dominance of mobile computing, calling it “2012’s biggest technological transformation.”

Using technology, pirates are literally cloning buildings made by famous Western architects, and have even succeeded in replicating an entire Austrian town. Reactions range from outrage to curiosity about future creative mutations.

As in the US, rural overpopulation is affecting farms and gardens all over, but implementing familiar remedies has proven to be a challenge.

A new documentary produced by Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson details the plight of the West Memphis Three, three teenagers wrongly convicted and imprisoned for 18 years. 

This morning, the NRA proposed that teachers carry lethal weapons to make schools safe learning environments for our children. The plan replaces the right to bear arms with an obligation.

It’s been a difficult year for economists, who’ve had to endure a combination of criticism when they apparently had the wrong ideas and being ignored when perhaps they had the right ones. 

The Tor Project was originally created to hide dissidents’ online activity in countries that censor the Internet. Westerners now make up a significant share of its volunteer base, but signing on comes with risks.

Reporters Without Borders has launched a site that “publishes content that has been censored or banned or has led to reprisals against its creator.”