The United States’ higher education system is often cited as the best in the world. Since its conception with Harvard University in 1636, it has ballooned to over four thousand universities and colleges. College degrees in the US have become viewed as a tool for economic prosperity and social mobility. As the economy has changed, […]
Illustration by Ellie Strayer “Tank Man”—the photo of a man defiantly standing in front of four advancing tanks during the Tiananmen Square massacre 30 years ago—is one of the most iconic photographs of the twentieth century. Search for it in the United States and Google returns millions of hits. Search for it on the Chinese […]
During the 2016 Brexit referendum, Northern Ireland voted to remain in the European Union (EU) with 56 percent of the vote, but the United Kingdom (UK) as a whole voted to leave, with 52 percent of the vote. While the Irish border problem was not a talking point in the initial Brexit debate, it quickly […]
As America heads into another presidential election, trade relations with China continue to be a complicated issue. Just recently, Chinese officials canceled planned visits with US farmers in Montana and Nebraska. This was a surprise, as the White House had announced hours prior that they would temporarily spare more than 400 Chinese products from tariffs. […]
Though the United States has a slight obsession with installing democratic governments across the globe, American democracy is consistently one of the least active among developed countries. In the 2016 presidential election, only 55.6 percent of citizens in the voting-age population cast a ballot. Turnout has been between fifty-two and sixty-three percent in every presidential […]
On October 3, North Korea launched a missile into the Sea of Japan. It was the eleventh missile test this year, and the first one launched from a submarine. Japan claimed that the missile landed in its exclusive economic zone—an area two hundred nautical miles around the island. In response, Japan’s Self Defense Force (SDF) […]
As the Iowa caucus steadily approaches, Democratic primary candidates are eager to demonstrate their support for rural America, promising to bolster industries that have yet to shift jobs overseas. In Iowa, the largest of these industries is ethanol, a biofuel made from the closest thing Iowa has to gold: corn. Ethanol is a biofuel made […]
Photo courtesy of Aidan Marzo June 1989 marked a flashpoint for Hong Kong activism, when one million Cantonese people protested the massacre of pro-democracy demonstrators in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square. Many Hong Kongers continue to observe June 4th to remember those who died in the crackdown. Martin Lee is one such observer. Lee is the founding […]
The Basics On October 8, 2019, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments for three cases that will impact the lives of LGBT people across the United States. The cases will determine whether the Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which bans employment discrimination on the basis of sex, also extends to […]
Humanity’s propensity for unbridled technological advancement has pushed us ever closer to the edge of a cliff. The industrial revolution riddled us with greenhouse gas emissions, and the Manhattan Project brought us to the brink of nuclear devastation more than once. Our powerful painkillers—once touted as a cure for debilitating chronic pain—are now one of […]
