Debt ceiling deal ignores Social Security’s serious funding woes

House approval of debt ceiling deal a triumph of the political center

Matt Harris, Park University

The news media spent a lot of time reporting on how much progressive Democrats and conservative Republicans didn’t like the debt ceiling deal. But centrists had enough votes to pass it in the House.

I study migrants traveling through Mexico to the US, and saw how they follow news of dangers – but are not deterred

Angel Alfonso Escamilla García, Cornell University

A fire killed 38 migrants in a Mexico detention facility in March 2023. A sociologist’s conversations with migrants show that they had a common response to this news – a deep sense of grief.

Reparations over formerly enslaved people has a long history: 4 essential reads on why the idea remains unresolved

Howard Manly, The Conversation

Former enslaved persons have never received a dime for their labor. Nor have their descendants received reparations for the legacy of slavery. Should the descendants be paid? By whom and how much?

War in Ukraine might give the Chinese yuan the boost it needs to become a major global currency – and be a serious contender against the US dollar

Tuugi Chuluun, Loyola University Maryland

Despite China’s economic power, the yuan lags as a major global currency. Here’s why current US interest rates and sanctions on Russia may change that.

It’s not just climate – we’ve already breached most of the Earth’s limits. A safer, fairer future means treading lightly

We’ve blown past the safe and just limit for vital Earth systems, from climate change to the biosphere and the use of fertilisers and freshwater. For humans to thrive means living in safe limits

Atlantic hurricane season 2023: El Niño and extreme Atlantic Ocean heat are about to clash

Christina Patricola, Iowa State University

Current forecasts suggest a warm tropical Pacific will be interfering with what could otherwise be a ferocious Atlantic hurricane season.

Invasive lionfish have spread south from the Caribbean to Brazil, threatening ecosystems and livelihoods

Osmar J. Luiz, Charles Darwin University

One of the most damaging invasive species in the oceans has breached a major barrier – the Amazon-Orinoco river plume – and is spreading along Brazil’s coast. Scientists are trying to catch up.

Drugs that melt away pounds present more questions than answers, but they could be a key tool in reducing the obesity epidemic

Wesley Dudgeon, College of Charleston

Anti-obesity medications are becoming the go-to treatment for weight loss. But drugs alone may not provide the same benefits as lifestyle choices like exercise and a healthy diet.

Israeli protesters fear for the future of their country’s precarious LGBTQ rights revolution

Orit Avishai, Fordham University

LGBTQ rights are not the main issue bringing Israeli protesters to the streets, but they do symbolize the country’s stark divide.

‘Across the Spider-Verse’ and the Latino legacy of Spider-Man

Regina Marie Mills, Texas A&M University

Latino characters have traditionally been underrepresented in mainstream comics. But Spider-Man’s backstory makes him the perfect superhero to be recast as a minority.

A little-understood sleep disorder affects millions and has clear links to dementia – 4 questions answered

‘Man, the hunter’? Archaeologists’ assumptions about gender roles in past humans ignore an icky but potentially crucial part of original ‘paleo diet’

To have better disagreements, change your words – here are 4 ways to make your counterpart feel heard and keep the conversation going