At a Mexican military base, Captain Eduardo Barrón picks up not a rifle but a microphone. Swaying boot-to-boot, he belts out a song as the sounds of trumpets and accordions roar from a band of a dozen camouflage-clad soldiers. The rhythmic style — known as a corrido — is recognizable to just about every soul...
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Americans Die Earlier at All Wealth Levels, Even If Wealth Buys More Years of Life in the U.S. Than in Europe
Americans at all wealth levels are more likely to die sooner than their European counterparts, with even the richest U.S. citizens living shorter lives than northern and western Europeans. That is the key finding of our new study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine. We also found that while the wealthiest Americans live...
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Why You Should Think Twice Before Using Shorthand Like ‘ thx’ and ‘k’ in Your Texts
My brother’s text messages can read like fragments of an ancient code: “hru,” “wyd,” “plz” – truncated, cryptic and never quite satisfying to receive. I’ll often find myself second-guessing whether “gr8” means actual excitement or whether it’s a perfunctory nod. This oddity has nagged at me for years, so I eventually embarked upon a series...
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Cities That Want to Attract Business Might Want to Focus Less on Financial Incentives and More on Making People Feel Safe
To attract business investment, American cities and states offer companies billions of dollars in incentives, such as tax credits. As the theory goes, when governments create a business-friendly environment, it encourages investment, leading to job creation and economic growth. While this theory may seem logical on its face, it’s a bit of a chicken-and-egg situation....
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The ‘Courage to Be’ in Uncertain Times − How One 20th-Century Philosopher Defined Bravery
Over the past few weeks, as negotiations for a ceasefire in Ukraine drag on, I’ve thought back to Feb. 28, 2025: the day of Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s heated visit to the Oval Office. Zelenskyy has called the tone of the meeting “regrettable” as he tries to salvage support for Ukraine. But in some ways, he has...
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What Ancient Animal Fables from India Teach About Political Wisdom
In today’s volatile world, where wars can be fought over territory, commerce can be abruptly subjected to tariffs, and friendly nations can turn hostile after a single election, political leadership is more consequential than ever. So, one must ask, what makes a leader effective, and how should we choose who should lead? Classics such as...
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Global Art Market Faces Challenges in 2024 but Shows Signs of Resilience
Global Art Market Faces Challenges in 2024 but Shows Signs of Resilience: Key Insights from The Art Basel and UBS Global Art Market Report 2025 Amid a challenging economic landscape, the global art market recorded an estimated $57.5 billion in sales in 2024, a 12% decline from the previous year. This marks the second consecutive...
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The Trade Deficit Isn’t an Emergency – It’s a Sign of America’s Strength
When U.S. President Donald Trump imposed sweeping new tariffs on imported goods on April 2, 2025 – upending global trade and sending markets into a tailspin – he presented the move as a response to a crisis. In an executive order released the same day, the White House said the move was necessary to address...
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Amadou Bagayoko: The Blind Malian Musician Whose Joyful Songs Changed West African Music
Amadou Bagayoko (1954-2025), Malian guitarist, singer and composer of the famed duo Amadou & Mariam – known as “the blind couple of Mali” – passed away on 4 April in Bamako. He was 70. The married singers, who met when she was 18 and he 21, took traditional Mali music and blended it with western...
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AI Isn’t What We Should Be Worried About – It’s the Humans Controlling It
In 2014, Stephen Hawking voiced grave warnings about the threats of artificial intelligence. His concerns were not based on any anticipated evil intent, though. Instead, it was from the idea of AI achieving “singularity.” This refers to the point when AI surpasses human intelligence and achieves the capacity to evolve beyond its original programming, making...
