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Editor's Choice
Could ChatGPT convince you to buy something? Threat of manipulation looms as AI companies gear up to sell ads
Bruce Schneier, Harvard Kennedy School and Nathan Sanders, Harvard University Eighteen months ago, it was plausible that artificial intelligence might take a different path than social media. Back then, AI’s…
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Editor's Choice
why comms dropped out during the central Victorian fires
Fiannuala Morgan, The University of Melbourne Australia has entered an era of climate instability, where communications during bushfires and extreme weather must perform under increasingly severe conditions. Digital services such…
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Editor's Choice
Prioritising protein? What the new US dietary guidelines get right – and wrong – according to 2 nutrition experts
Lauren Ball, The University of Queensland and Emily Burch, Southern Cross University Last week, United States health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr released the government’s revamped dietary guidelines for 2025…
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Editor's Choice
What is Christian Reconstructionism − and why it matters in US politics
Art Jipson, University of Dayton Christian Reconstructionism is a theological and political movement within conservative Protestantism that argues society should be governed by biblical principles, including the application of biblical…
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Book
how Maggie O’Farrell’s Hamnet takes from – and mistakes – Shakespeare
Kate Flaherty, Australian National University and Amy Walters, Australian National University In her eighth novel Hamnet, Maggie O’Farrell imagines the short life and tragic death of Shakespeare’s only son, aged…
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Book
what was the board’s role in the end of Adelaide Writers Week?
Kim Goodwin, The University of Melbourne This afternoon, Adelaide Writers Week was cancelled for 2026 – less than a week after Palestinian-Australian writer Randa Abdel-Fattah was disinvited by the Adelaide…
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Editor's Choice
Colorado ranks among the highest states in the country for flu – an emergency room physician describes why the 2025-26 flu season is hitting hard
Jean Hoffman, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus Colorado is in the midst of a record-breaking flu season. In the week ending Dec. 27, 2025, 831 people were hospitalized with…
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Editor's Choice
From flammable neighborhoods to moral hazards, fire insurance maps capture early US cities and the landscape of discrimination
Jack Swab, University of Tennessee Imagine a map that allows you to see what your neighborhood looked like a century ago in immense detail. What you’re thinking of is probably…
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Editor's Choice
Rural areas have darker skies but fewer resources for students interested in astronomy – telescopes in schools can help
Emma Marcucci, Smithsonian Institution The night sky has long sparked wonder and curiosity. Early civilizations studied the stars and tracked celestial events, predicted eclipses and used their observations to construct…
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Book
Small businesses say they aren’t planning to hire many recent graduates for entry-level jobs – here’s why
Murugan Anandarajan, Drexel University; Cuneyt Gozu, Drexel University, and David Prisco, Drexel University Small businesses are planning to hire fewer recent college graduates than they did in 2025, making it…
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Editor's Choice
In the ocean, some help fuel the food web – a new study shows how
Steven Wilhelm, University of Tennessee and Joshua Weitz, University of Maryland Virus. The word evokes images of illness and fears of outbreaks. Yet, in the oceans, not all viruses are…
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Editor's Choice
Research institutions tout the value of scholarship that crosses disciplines – but academia pushes interdisciplinary researchers out
Bruce Weinberg, The Ohio State University; Enrico Berkes, University of Maryland, Baltimore County; Monica Marion, Indiana University, and StaÅ¡a Milojević, Indiana University The most exciting landmark scientific achievements don’t happen…
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Editor's Choice
Damn the torpedoes! Trump ditches a crucial climate treaty in latest move to dismantle America’s climate protections
Gary W. Yohe, Wesleyan University On Jan. 7, 2026, President Donald Trump declared that he would officially pull the United States out of the world’s most important global treaty for…
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Editor's Choice
NZ’s health data hack needs a proper diagnosis – and a transparent treatment plan
Dylan A Mordaunt, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington; Flinders University; The University of Melbourne Two cyber hacks have highlighted the vulnerability of New Zealand’s digital health systems…
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Editor's Choice
What’s the difference between a sprained ankle and a twisted ankle?
Hunter Bennett, Adelaide University and Lewis Ingram, Adelaide University After the summer break, you’re ready to get back into exercise. You put on your shoes, pop on your headphones and…
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