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Romeo & Juliet In Rwanda
How do you change someone's behavior? Most of us would point to education or persuasion. But what if the answer lies elsewhere? This week, we revisit a 2018 story about human nature and behavior chan…
Published on 5 years, 5 months ago
The Night That Lasted A Lifetime
Not long after his sixteenth birthday, Fred Clay was arrested for the murder of a cab driver in Boston. Eventually, Fred was found guilty — but only after police and prosecutors used questionable psy…
Published on 5 years, 5 months ago
The Founding Contradiction
"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal." These words, penned by Thomas Jefferson more than 240 years ago, continue to inspire many Americans. And yet they were writ…
Published on 5 years, 6 months ago
Buy, Borrow, Steal
Policymakers have a tried-and-true game plan for jump-starting the economy in times of severe recession: Push stimulus packages and lower interest rates so Americans will borrow and spend. But econom…
Published on 5 years, 6 months ago
A Rap on Trial
In the past few weeks, the nation has been gripped by protests against police brutality toward black and brown Americans. The enormous number of demonstrators may be new, but the biases they're prote…
Published on 5 years, 6 months ago
The Air We Breathe
President Trump said this week that a few "bad apples" were to blame for police killings of black people. But research suggests that something more complicated is at play — a force that affects every…
Published on 5 years, 6 months ago
Playing Favorites
If we do a favor for someone we know, we think we've done a good deed. What we don't tend to ask is: Who have we harmed by treating this person with more kindness than we show toward others? This wee…
Published on 5 years, 6 months ago
Justifying The Means
When we are asked to make a moral choice, many of us imagine it involves listening to our hearts. To that, philosopher Peter Singer says, "nonsense." Singer believes there are no moral absolutes, and…
Published on 5 years, 7 months ago
The Time Machine
In recent months, many of us have looked back with longing at our lives before COVID-19. For many of us, that world was one of bustle and activity — marked by scenes of packed restaurants, crowded su…
Published on 5 years, 7 months ago
The People Like Us
Far from being "the great equalizer," COVID-19 has disproportionately sickened and killed African Americans and Latinos in the U.S. Many of the reasons for these inequalities reach back to before the…
Published on 5 years, 7 months ago