Space law may soon get first update in over 50 years

SUV tragedy in Wisconsin shows how vehicles can be used as a weapon of mass killing – intentionally or not

Mia Bloom, Georgia State University

At least five people were killed and many more were injured after an SUV crashed into a Christmas parade. A terrorism expert explains how vehicles have been weaponized.

Supreme Court could redefine when a fetus becomes a person, upholding abortion limits while preserving the privacy right under Roe v. Wade

Morgan Marietta, University of Massachusetts Lowell

The upcoming debate at the Supreme Court is less about the existence of the right to abortion and more about how that right is limited by the emerging personhood of a fetus.

The lessons ‘Moby-Dick’ has for a warming world of rising waters

Aaron Sachs, Cornell University

Melville’s epic novel about life aboard a wayward whaling ship holds lessons for the climate crisis today.

The COVID-19 pandemic offers an opportunity to make a healthy shift in body ideals

Janet J. Boseovski, University of North Carolina – Greensboro

For many, the pandemic has disrupted daily habits around eating and fitness – which makes it a prime time to shake up old assumptions about achieving an ideal body.

Scientist at work: Endangered ocelots and their genetic diversity may benefit from artificial insemination

Ashley Reeves, University of Tennessee

There are so few wild ocelots in the US that the cats are becoming inbred, with a bad prognosis for their ultimate survival. But researchers are perfecting ways to get new genes into the population.

Art illuminates the beauty of science – and could inspire the next generation of scientists young and old

Chris Curran, Northern Kentucky University

Scientists have been using art to illuminate and share their research with the public for centuries. And art could be one way to bolster K-12 science education and scientific literacy in the public.

Why the oil industry’s pivot to carbon capture and storage – while it keeps on drilling – isn’t a climate change solution

June Sekera, The New School; Neva Goodwin, Tufts University

Most carbon dioxide captured in the U.S. today is used to extract more oil. Two scholars point to another way: biological sequestration.

A new ratings industry is emerging to help homebuyers assess climate risks

Matthew E. Kahn, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences

Private companies rate all kinds of investments, from stocks to used cars. Now, they’re starting to analyze climate risks to local real estate – but how reliable are their findings?

Career-based classes keep students more engaged

Jay Stratte Plasman, The Ohio State University

Students from low-income backgrounds fare better when they are able to take career and technical classes in STEM, new research shows.

Little red children and ‘Grandpa Xi’: China’s school textbooks reflect the rise of Xi Jinping’s personality cult

Shih-Wen Sue Chen, Deakin University; Sin Wen Lau

New school textbooks in China focus less on the Chinese Communist Party and more on its figurehead Xi Jinping. The growing cultivation of a personality cult is reminiscent of the days of Mao Zedong.

Bird flu outbreaks in Europe: what you need to know

Arjan Stegeman, Utrecht University

Each year in spring and summer, waterbirds mingle on their breeding grounds in Siberia and mix their flu viruses, creating new variants they then bring to Europe, Asia and Africa.

A fossil cranium from Kenya tells the story of an extinct elephant species

William Sanders, University of Michigan

The anatomy of the teeth in the cranium and its bones show that it belongs to an extinct cousin of the living African savanna and forest elephants.

Today’s graphic

From the story, What Americans hear about social justice at church – and what they do about it