New clues about the origins of biological intelligence

New clues about the origins of biological intelligence

Rafael Yuste and Michael Levin write: In the middle of his landmark book On the Origin of Species, Darwin had a crisis of faith. In a bout of honesty, he wrote, “To suppose that the eye with all its inimitable contrivances for adjusting the focus to different distances, for admitting different amounts of light, and for the correction of spherical and chromatic aberration, could have been formed by natural selection, seems, I confess, absurd in the highest degree.” While scientists…

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America’s anti-democratic movement

America’s anti-democratic movement

David Leonhardt writes: American politics these days can often seem fairly normal. President Biden has had both big accomplishments and big setbacks in his first year, as is typical. In Congress, members are haggling over bills and passing some of them. At the Supreme Court, justices are hearing cases. Daily media coverage tends to reflect this apparent sense of political normalcy. But American politics today is not really normal. It may instead be in the midst of a radical shift…

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The GOP is an anti-America party

The GOP is an anti-America party

Juan Williams writes: I am a Democrat. Yet I have voted for Republicans. In fact, one of my sons ran for office as a Republican. My other son worked for Republicans in Congress and the Republican National Committee. But I can’t stomach what has happened to the GOP in the last year. And I can’t understand why every American isn’t screaming about it. How can anyone dismiss a violent attack on the U.S. Capitol as just “one day in January,”…

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Taliban seek ties with U.S., other ex-foes

Taliban seek ties with U.S., other ex-foes

The Associated Press reports: Afghanistan’s new Taliban rulers are committed in principle to education and jobs for girls and women, a marked departure from their previous time in power, and they seek the world’s “mercy and compassion” to help millions of Afghans in desperate need, a top Taliban leader said in a rare interview. Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi also told The Associated Press that the Taliban government wants good relations with all countries and has no issue with…

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The U.S. has a dirty-money problem

The U.S. has a dirty-money problem

Anne Applebaum writes: In 2010, things started going wrong at the steel plant in Warren, Ohio, a Rust Belt town that went on to cast its votes twice for Donald Trump. A cooling panel started leaking, and the furnace operator didn’t see the leak in time; the water hit molten steel, leading to an explosion that sent workers to the hospital with burns and severe injuries. A year later, another explosion caused another round of destruction. A federal regulatory investigation…

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When did scientists first warn humanity about climate change?

When did scientists first warn humanity about climate change?

Live Science reports: Climate change warnings are coming thick and fast from scientists; thousands have signed a paper stating that ignoring climate change would yield “untold suffering” for humanity, and more than 99% of scientific papers agree that humans are the cause. But climate change wasn’t always on everyone’s radar. So when did humans first become aware of climate change and the dangers it poses? Scientists first began to worry about climate change toward the end of the 1950s, Spencer…

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Junk food and the brain: How modern diets lacking in micronutrients may contribute to angry rhetoric

Junk food and the brain: How modern diets lacking in micronutrients may contribute to angry rhetoric

Research reveals links between the irritability, explosive rage and unstable moods that have grown more common in recent years, and a lack of micronutrients that are important for brain function. (Shutterstock) Bonnie Kaplan, University of Calgary and Julia J Rucklidge, University of Canterbury Emotional, non-rational, even explosive remarks in public discourse have escalated in recent years. Politicians endure insults during legislative discussions; scientists receive emails and tweets containing verbal abuse and threats. What’s going on? This escalation in angry rhetoric…

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Eighteen steps to a democratic breakdown

Eighteen steps to a democratic breakdown

Risa Brooks and Erica De Bruin write: Democracy is most likely to break down through a series of incremental actions that cumulatively undermine the electoral process, resulting in a presidential election that produces an outcome clearly at odds with the voters’ will. It is this comparatively quiet but steady subversion, rather than a violent coup or insurrection against a sitting president, that Americans today have to fear most. Five sets of actions fuel this corrosion: limiting participation in elections; controlling…

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A PR giant is caught between climate pledges and fossil fuel clients

A PR giant is caught between climate pledges and fossil fuel clients

The New York Times reports: After last month’s United Nations-sponsored environmental conference in Glasgow, the public relations giant Edelman praised the participants for reaching “a new level of international consensus that climate change is an existential threat to humanity.” In a statement posted on its website, Edelman also called for “more scrutiny on corporate climate lobbying efforts” and argued that many of the pledges that resulted from the conference “fall far short of what is necessary to avert global climate…

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What has the Omicron variant changed?

What has the Omicron variant changed?

Dhruv Khullar writes: The Covid-19 pandemic, like every pandemic before it, is a story of equilibriums: between viral biology and human immune response; between news of the pathogen and fear of it; between the damage it inflicts and the social, economic, and political choices we make. A disease persists as a pandemic as long as these forces remain in flux; it becomes endemic when the balance is, more or less, set. The morning after Thanksgiving, Americans awoke to an unsettling…

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G7 diplomats warn Russia of ‘massive consequences’ if it invades Ukraine

G7 diplomats warn Russia of ‘massive consequences’ if it invades Ukraine

The New York Times reports: The top diplomats for the world’s wealthiest large democracies warned Russia on Sunday of “massive consequences” and “severe costs” should it invade Ukraine or continue military aggressions near its border. The foreign ministers for the Group of 7 urged Russia to pull back from the tense border standoff and made clear that any effort to negotiate or otherwise avoid confrontation would be welcome. “Any use of force to change borders is strictly prohibited under international…

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Majority of UK voters think Boris Johnson should resign

Majority of UK voters think Boris Johnson should resign

The Observer reports: Labour surged into a commanding nine-point lead over the Tories this weekend as controversies over rule-breaking Christmas parties at Downing Street and Tory sleaze plunged Boris Johnson into a battle to save his premiership. The latest Opinium poll for the Observer also shows 57% of voters think Johnson should now resign, up nine points from a fortnight ago, as the prime minister appears to be haemorrhaging public support. Johnson’s personal ratings have fallen to -35%, down 14…

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Civilian deaths mounted as secret American unit pounded ISIS in Syria

Civilian deaths mounted as secret American unit pounded ISIS in Syria

The New York Times reports: A single top secret American strike cell launched tens of thousands of bombs and missiles against the Islamic State in Syria, but in the process of hammering a vicious enemy, the shadowy force sidestepped safeguards and repeatedly killed civilians, according to multiple current and former military and intelligence officials. The unit was called Talon Anvil, and it worked in three shifts around the clock between 2014 and 2019, pinpointing targets for the United States’ formidable…

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Deadly collapse at Amazon warehouse puts spotlight on work area phone ban

Deadly collapse at Amazon warehouse puts spotlight on work area phone ban

Bloomberg reports: An Amazon.com Inc. warehouse collapse on Friday night that killed at least six people has amplified concerns among its blue collar workforce about the return of the internet retailer’s mobile phone ban in work areas. The warehouse in Edwardsville, Illinois, near St. Louis, was reduced to rubble when a string of tornadoes ripped through six states, leaving a trail of destruction that stretched more than 200 miles. Emergency responders expect recovery efforts to continue into next week. Amazon…

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