The Case for Staying in Your Comfort Zone
Source: Fast Company
Writer Samantha Cole weighs the pros and cons of staying in your comfort zone, the premise of Meghan Daums’s book, The Unspeakable: And Other Subjects of Discussion.
Culture & Society
Running Down a Dream
Source: Outside
Read the story of Allen Martin, who coaches long-distance runners to succeed not only in the sport, but in life.
Ending Gang Retaliation With Text Messages
Source: Voice of San Diego
Because most gang violence can be attributed to retaliation, the city of San Diego has implemented a program in which former gang members intervene with victims and persuade them not to seek revenge.
What Does Free Speech Mean?
Source: United States Courts
Public figures often tout their constitutional freedom of speech to defend their statements. As with any right, though, the freedom of speech includes certain guidelines and limits. The United States Courts spell out what the law says about this essential American right.
Through August: Exploring hidden cost of Grand Coulee Dam
Source: Washington State University
Read to find out about a 2015 exhibit at Washington State University that explored the consequences of the construction of the Grand Coulee Dam, the subject of Sherman Alexie’s poem, “The Powwow at the End of the World.”
Why Isn’t the U.S. on the Metric System?
Source: How Stuff Works
Nearly every nation on earth—except for the United States—primarily uses the metric system for all weights and measures. With its clear base-10 relationships among measurements, the metric system is easy to use. So why does the United States still mainly use the far more complicated customary measures? How Stuff Works explores the American resistance to change.
Racial Bias in Medicine Leads to Worse Care for Minorities
Source: U.S. News & World Report
The struggle for full equality doesn’t just show up in history books—it’s happening in hospitals every day.
U.S. public seldom has welcomed refugees into country
Source: Pew Research Center
Some Americans disagree about whether we should take in refugees fleeing war and disaster in other countries. This is far from the first time.
Why do we need heroes?
Source: How Stuff Works
Read about why heroes from Odysseus to today continue to inspire us.
Out of Eden Walk
Source: National Geographic
Paul Salopek is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist who is retracing our ancestors’ migration out of Africa on foot. This epic journey began in Ethiopia in 2013 and will end this year at the tip of South America. Explore the walk and some of the latest stories from the journey.