U.S.
Fast food is particularly popular in low-income communities because it is affordable and highly accessible. However, the reliance on unhealthy ingredients—such as ingredients with high levels of sodium, sugar, and unhealthy fats—has serious consequences for residents’ health [1]. This is especially troubling in neighborhoods known as "food deserts," where the availability of fresh, nutritiou...
U.S.
Image source here.
Writ large, American politics has become more polarized in recent decades—congressional representatives at the federal level vote along party lines and reinforce partisan divides today far more often than in previous decades [1]. The advent of the Trump era circa 2015 has undoubtedly intensified this phenomenon and created a trickle-down effect visible at the ...
U.S.
In July of 2015 under President Obama, the U.S. entered the Iran Nuclear Deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Iran signed the agreement with the members of the UN Security Council—the U.S., Russia, China, France, and the United Kingdom—along with Germany and the European Union. The JCPOA required Iran to implement extensive restrictions on its nuclear program...
U.S.
Over the past 20 years, Google has become synonymous with technological innovation. From Search to Cloud, Drive, and even hardware, Google has consistently maintained its place as an industry leader. However, the tech giant is currently facing a lawsuit from the Department of Justice (DOJ), which alleges that Google has leveraged its market dominance and exclusive contracts with device manufacture...
U.S.
Weeks after issuing an executive order to clear encampments on state land, California Governor Gavin Newsom made a public appearance in the Mission Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles sporting jeans and work gloves, ready to help clean up an encampment himself. The statement of the photo op was clear: government officials need to get serious about homelessness in California. However, this posturing ...
World
In 1949, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was formed to combat threats from the Soviet Union. While the USSR has since dissolved, the organization has shifted to protecting its members against Russia. NATO’s mission statement is to “safeguard the freedom and security of all its members” through military and political action, and the organization has proven itself rel...
World
In late October 2024, nearly one thousand days after launching the illegal invasion of Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin triumphantly welcomed thirty-six heads of state to the annual BRICS summit in Moscow in spite of the concerted attempts by America and its allies to cripple Russia’s economy through sanctions and diminish its military capabilities via aid to Ukraine [1]. BRICS&mdas...
World
Extreme climatic events have long been a defining feature of the Sahel region of Africa. In the past century alone, Sahelian nations—comprising much of Burkina Faso, Niger, Mali, Chad, and Nigeria—have experienced droughts and famines, killing 100,000 civilians just in the 1970s [1]. While horrifying, there is another cause for international concern regarding the Sahel that has not received ad...
World
“Have you ever applied for Chinese citizenship? Have you ever been a member of the Chinese Communist Party? Have you ever been affiliated or associated with the Chinese Communist Party?” The series of questions came from U.S. Senator Tom Cotton’s relentless grilling of ByteDance CEO Shou Zi Chew during a Senate hearing. The series of stark questions, echoing geopolitical distrust...
World
In February 2021, the Tatmadaw, Myanmar’s armed forces, overthrew Myanmar’s democratically elected government. Threatened by increasing democratization and liberalization in Myanmar, the Tatmadaw supplanted Myanmar’s government in an attempt to retain military power. After the most recent brutal coup, the Tatmadaw established a military junta. The junta plunged Myanmar back into ...