top story in November-December 2008
Academic Research Does Not Take Holidays Off
There is, in fact, a surprising amount of scholarship on the subject of Thanksgiving, a uniquely American celebration marked by rituals that lend themselves to a wide range of interpretations.
Inventing for Peanuts
Jock Brandis invented a low-cost, people-powered peanut sheller that could raise millions out of poverty around the world. Now, if someone would just come up with the money to distribute it.
The Environmental Pyramid
A respected geochemical engineer proposes a new way to deal with toxic waste: Make it into shrines that people can work, shop and even live on.
Juvenile Justice and the Theater of the Absurd
The route to a law that will help keep kids out of adult prisons.
ROCK STAR! (Brought to You by HUGE ADVERTISER!)
A Miller-McCune interview with Bethany Klein of the University of Leeds, who’s researching the increasingly close relationship between pop music and Madison Avenue.
Counting on the Middle Class
Pepperdine University marketing professor Roy Adler helps U.S. businesses take some of the guesswork out of finding customers around the world.
Songs and Ads: Ten Infamous Examples
Here’s 10 examples of songs turned into ads, all influential, some successful.
Voting Prison Blues
There’s a movement to restore voting rights to felons who’ve served their time. Whether you’re for or against it likely depends on whether you’re a Republican or a Democrat.
Retirement Saving: To Nudge or to Shove?
Two new proposals look to greatly increase the number of people who have adequate retirement plans, one by encouraging workers to save and the other by requiring them to.
archive
First, Reduce Harm
Faced with a horrific drug problem, Vancouver is trying a radical experiment: Let junkies be junkies.
‘Fly’-ing to Safety
A look at some current research that merits a raised eyebrow or a painful grin.
Gambling on Gary
If we’re going to rescue Wall Street, let’s bail out the industrial Midwest, too.
The New College Try
Gritty Hammond, Ind., and 80 other cities in decline have a novel approach to economic development: They’re attracting new residents by offering to pay for their children to attend college. But is a promise to pay tuition a growth strategy — or welfare for the middle class?
How to B Good
B Lab wants to separate companies that merely claim they are responsible from those that actually do good in the world. But can a logo really change the way America does business?
Scary Cinema Verité
A documentary film warns that America’s fiscal policies are a looming disaster as Wall Street melts down in real time.
Port Barrel Spending
A reader wonders whether Port of Anchorage project has earmarks of a boondoggle.
Monkey See, Monkey Brew
Coffee can be good for you. But what about monkey spit?
related to November-December 2008
politics
- SOPA Debate Highlights Congress’s Ignorance
- Public Feels Military’s Pain But Won’t Share It
- No Way Out: Exiting Afghanistan and Iraq
- Plain English Urged to Limit Federal Bureaucracy
- Budget Idea: Divert Money From Prisons to Schools
business
- ‘Orcas as Slaves’ Argument Sinks
- The Perceived Delicacy of the Female Conductor
- Prop Planes: The Future of Eco-Friendly Aviation?
- Better Super Bowl Makes for Better Ads
- Five Orcas, Five Slaves or Five Persons?
science
- The iPod Touch as a Crop Saver
- As if Commercials Weren’t Bad Enough Already
- Battling World Hunger Through Innovative Technology
- The Exploitation of Muggles in Harry Potter’s World
- ‘The Real Science Gap’ Receives Investigative Reporting Prize
culture
media
- Pop Charts Still Dominated by Men
- ‘State of Minds’ Puts Research in the Spotlight
- Song Lyrics, Twitter Help Chart Public Mood
- This Really Is the Worst Election Ever
- Across the Science Gap
legal affairs
- ‘Orcas as Slaves’ Argument Sinks
- Five Orcas, Five Slaves or Five Persons?
- Pets, Vets and Stalking Horses
- Should Animals Be Considered People?
- Imagine There’s No Law; It’s Easy If You Try
environment
- Greece, North Africa Promote Their Solar Projects
- U.S. Pledges to Reform Electronics Recycling
- How Much Does Global Warming Cost?
- Designing for Impact and Emotion
- The Tastiest Enemy: Eating Invasive Species
health
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Children’s Books Increasingly Ignore Natural World
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Casual Sex: Men, Women Not So Different After All
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Prop Planes: The Future of Eco-Friendly Aviation?
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Pressure to Conform Can Inspire Creativity
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Japan's Earthquake: Deciphering the Fury
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Learning to Read When a School System Falters
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The Perceived Delicacy of the Female Conductor
from the source
Gender Wage Gap Skewed By Survey Flaws
The wage gap between the sexes in America has been closing much faster than anyone realized, but that’s tempered by learning it’s been much wider than measurements had shown.
‘Orcas as Slaves’ Argument Sinks
An effort to identify five performing orcas as slaves failed in part, argues one scholar, because there’s no legal precedent establishing them as persons.
The Perceived Delicacy of the Female Conductor
New research finds listeners judge symphonic music differently when they’re told the conductor is a woman.
House Puts Transportation in Partisan Crossfire
Transportation used to be one of the few guaranteed areas of agreement when ideology trumped pragmatism in D.C. But that’s no longer the case.
Pressure to Conform Can Inspire Creativity
New research suggests less-creative people do more innovative thinking when they are told individualism is the norm, and instructed to conform.
Better Super Bowl Makes for Better Ads
A lot of people say they watch the Super Bowl mostly for the ads. But it turns out a good game surrounding those ads makes them seem better.
Overseas Troops Finally Get Fair Shot at Voting
After decades of obstacles hindering the voting process, new laws will allow overseas and military voters to submit their votes in time for the 2012 election.
Neglected Tropical Diseases Neglected No More?
World health leaders announce coordinated push to eradicate or control neglected tropical diseases.
Children’s Books Increasingly Ignore Natural World
A survey of award-winning children’s picture books from 1938 to 2008 suggests our increasing estrangement from the natural environment.
Traffic Solution: Make Drivers Less Lonely
Rather than moaning about too many cars on the road, the Ridesharing Institute says the real key to battling traffic congestion and pollution is filling empty passenger seats.
Hall of fame
Slugging — The People’s Transit
In Washington, D.C., commuters have taken thousands of cars off highways via a homegrown rideshare system known as “slugging.” Can the government create more slugs — without stepping on any?
Bacteria ‘R’ Us
Emerging research shows that bacteria have powers to engineer the environment, to communicate and to affect human well-being. They may even think.
A New Take on Political Ideology
An evolutionary psychologist proposes a new framework for understanding the root causes of our political beliefs.
The Real Science Gap
It’s not insufficient schooling or a shortage of scientists. It’s a lack of job opportunities. Americans need the reasonable hope that spending their youth preparing to do science will provide a satisfactory career.
Triumph of the Cyborg Composer
David Cope’s software creates beautiful, original music. Why are people so angry about that?
