Many modern video games include a list of achievements that players can earn as they play. These trophies often reward the player for taking actions beyond the normal plot or path of the basic story. For some, achievements reward creative gameplay, add replayability, and encourage exploration. For others, they are annoying, repetitive distractions that artificially make a game seem bigger or more complex than it is. What do you think? Do achievements make games feel more or less enjoyable?
| Pizza from a printer? Cookies made with “food ink”? It’s real, and could change the way people eat around the world. |
People don’t need to be old to make history. In this talk, Brad Meltzer encourages young people to change the world by following three simple principles.
The First Amendment of the United States Constitution guarantees that Congress shall make no law abridging the freedom of the press. That essential freedom provides a powerful check to protect our democracy.
| Some people may believe they have all the facts and make bold decisions with only half the story. Here’s your reminder that in order to think smart, you should think twice. |
| More and more people are using AI programs to generate images quickly and cheaply, sparking a heated debate about the value of human creativity versus machine-made art. |
Have you ever made a great discovery, only for someone else to take the credit? That’s what happened to these women in science.
R.L. Stine, the award-winning and best-selling author of the Goosebumps and Fear Street series of books (as well as many episodes of their respective spin-off TV shows), writes an essay answering the questions that he gets asked the most: “What scares you? What are you afraid of?”
The daring exploits of a legendary hero have captured human imagination for centuries. Read about why Beowulf stays with us.
Influencers sometimes push a lifestyle of constantly buying new clothing, high-tech gadgets, or the hottest new cosmetic products. But a growing number of people are becoming disillusioned with what they perceive as pressure to constantly purchase new things. Their solution? Buying less.
Blue is for boys and pink is for girls. Or are they? Read about how the colors associated with gender have changed over time.
There is currently a surging trend in young preteen girls buying expensive make-up and other beauty products. Some older shoppers are complaining that they are rude and messy while doing it. Others think kids that young should not be be so obsessed with beauty products to begin with. Regardless, it shows a changing trend in who the consumers for these products are. Talk in your class about the trend and politely debate why this is a good or bad thing.
Like it or not, artificial intelligence is here to stay–and it is making its way into every part of our lives. With self-driving cars using A.I. to make split-second steering decisions, A.I. helping to sort job and college applications, and companies using A.I, to sway customer behavior, a lot of people are growing fearful of the technology. People used to fear monsters in the darkness, but in modern times, some of our scariest monsters are lines of code in a machine.
How good are you at basketball? What about playing an instrument? Psychological research suggests we’re not actually very good at evaluating our own abilities accurately. In fact, we frequently overestimate our own abilities thanks to something known as the Dunning-Kruger Effect.
Gender, age, and socioeconomic status play a part in how well someone performs in school. Read about the complicated and layered issue “redshirting” could help solve.
In this article, 17-year-old science student Sara Sakowitz shares her experience being a girl who loves science.
The tragic consequences of the collapse of a garment factory in Bangladesh makes us question the ethics of low-cost goods. Should we be more mindful of our buying choices? Experts in ethical shopping share five ways to be more socially conscious when shopping.
Read one author’s take on our “age of fear” and the rise of the zombie.
Do dogs love each other? Do they feel guilty about the rotten things they sometimes do? Read Stanley Coren’s article to find the answers, and, while you’re at it, discover how to laugh like a dog, interpret a dog’s barks, and tell what a wagging tail really means.
In 2010, a modern version of The Tragedy of Macbeth appeared on PBS’s Great Performances. The star of that groundbreaking production, Sir Patrick Stewart, discusses the choices he and director Rupert Goold made to bring Shakespeare’s work to life on the small screen.
