Be pro-social
Four Nigerians citizens sued Shell in the Netherlands for environmental damage allegedly caused by Shell’s Nigerian subsidiary in Nigeria. Context of the story: Why is this important? Nigeria is oil rich but economically poor, and environmental damage is part of the problem for many poor Nigerians. Furthermore, rebels have attacked many oil facilities in Nigeria … Read more
I have been exploring the idea of turning my website into an income. I have a lot of ideas and a lot of doubts, but I have one idea that I think will be useful: I want to develop my business plan on my website. If I can make money as a “blogger” or “news … Read more
The mainstream media (MSM) attempted to report on a study linking that suggests the children of older fathers have an increased risk of bipolar disorder. Many reports exaggerated or distorted the study. Context of the story: Why is this important? Science can be difficult to report especially by non-scientific journalists for a scientifically-illiterate audience. Who … Read more
A new study shows that bullies enjoy seeing other people in pain, while average people do not enjoy watching other people in pain. Context of the story: Why is this important? Bullying is a problem, especially because it is not limited to the schoolyard. This type of research may help us understand, and prevent, many … Read more
The US attacked another target in Pakistan today, but no one in the US is debating the costs and benefits of such attacks. Context of the story: Why is this important? Incidents such as this make it clear that there are benefits to attacking targets in Pakistan, but no one in the US is actually … Read more
Bush rushes through ‘harmful’ environment laws Fungus makes pseudo-biofuel from cellulose or sugar Sri Lankan army chief says war nearly complete Colombia army chief resigns amid scandal Science: mental filters are very important How disease can wipe out an entire species Ants have a simple solution to traffic congestion Guantanamo detainees deny they planned to … Read more
This commentary points out that a scientific study showing a correlation between rainfall and autism was incorrectly reported in some main stream media as showing that rainfall causes autism. The author suggests MSM should be be more discriminating. Context of the story: Why is this important? Science can be difficult to report especially by non-scientific … Read more
Israeli planes attacked targets in Hamas-controlled Gaza today. According to the Israeli army, the attack was to destroy a tunnel dug from Gaza. Context of the story: Why is this important? Israel and Hamas reached a truce in June and violence decreased dramatically. The peace is fragile, however. Who is involved? The Israeli army. Hamas, … Read more
Scientists have created healthy mice from mice that had been dead for 16 years and frozen. This technique could be applied to help endangered species or even to revive extinct species. Context of the story: Why is this important? First, the frozen cells were not frozen with a special method–so it suggests that most frozen … Read more
A study of US senators and representatives suggests that politicians generally keep their campaign promises. Context of the story: Why is this important? People often base their vote on the policy proposals of candidates. Who is involved? Tracy Sulkin, a political scientist at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign studied 475 congresspeople. What can you … Read more