Social Issues News

December 22, 2025

Top Headlines

Deaths of Despair Were Rising Long Before Opioids

Dec. 20, 2025 Long before opioids flooded communities, something else was quietly changing—and it may have helped set the stage for today’s crisis. A new study finds that as church attendance dropped among middle-aged, less educated white Americans, deaths ...

A Hidden Climate Shift May Have Sparked Epic Pacific Voyages 1,000 Years Ago

Dec. 15, 2025 Around 1,000 years ago, a major climate shift reshaped rainfall across the South Pacific, making western islands like Samoa and Tonga drier while eastern islands such as Tahiti became increasingly ...

Global Surge in Ultra-processed Foods Sparks Urgent Health Warning

Nov. 24, 2025 Ultra-processed foods are rapidly becoming a global dietary staple, and new research links them to worsening health outcomes around the world. Scientists say only bold, coordinated policy action can counter corporate influence and shift food systems ...

This 14th Century Story Fooled the World About the Black Death

Nov. 11, 2025 Historians have traced myths about the Black Death’s rapid journey across Asia to one 14th-century poem by Ibn al-Wardi. His imaginative maqāma, never meant as fact, became the foundation for centuries of misinformation about how the plague ...

Ancient DNA Reveals the Deadly Diseases Behind Napoleon’s Defeat

Oct. 26, 2025 Researchers have uncovered microbial evidence in the remains of Napoleon’s soldiers from the 1812 Russian retreat. Genetic analysis revealed pathogens behind paratyphoid and relapsing fever, diseases likely contributing to the army’s massive ...

Scientists Reveal the Everyday Habits That May Shield You from Dementia

Sep. 21, 2025 New studies reveal that lifestyle changes—such as exercise, healthy eating, and social engagement—can help slow or prevent cognitive decline. Experts say this low-cost, powerful approach could transform dementia care and reduce its crushing toll ...

Doctors Warn of a Stealth Opioid 20x More Potent Than Fentanyl

Sep. 18, 2025 Nitazenes, a powerful and largely hidden class of synthetic opioids, are quickly becoming a deadly factor in the overdose crisis. Over 20 times stronger than fentanyl, these drugs often go undetected on routine drug tests, making overdoses harder to ...

AI Has No Idea What It’s Doing, but It’s Threatening Us All

Sep. 7, 2025 Artificial intelligence is reshaping law, ethics, and society at a speed that threatens fundamental human dignity. Dr. Maria Randazzo of Charles Darwin University warns that current regulation fails to protect rights such as privacy, autonomy, and ...

Ancient DNA Finally Solves the Mystery of the World’s First Pandemic

Aug. 30, 2025 Scientists have finally uncovered direct genetic evidence of Yersinia pestis — the bacterium behind the Plague of Justinian — in a mass grave in Jerash, Jordan. This long-sought discovery resolves a centuries-old debate, confirming that the ...

9 in 10 Australian Teachers Are Stressed to Breaking Point

Aug. 26, 2025 Australian teachers are in crisis, with 9 in 10 experiencing severe stress and nearly 70% saying their workload is unmanageable. A major UNSW Sydney study found teachers suffer depression, anxiety, and stress at rates three to four times higher than ...

Maui’s Fires Drove a 67% Jump in Deaths. Most Went Uncounted

Aug. 25, 2025 Researchers uncovered that the Maui wildfires caused a spike in deaths far higher than reported, with hidden fatalities linked to fire, smoke, and lack of medical access. They warn that prevention rooted in Native Hawaiian ecological knowledge is ...

Could This New Earthquake System Give Alaska 50 Seconds to Prepare?

Aug. 16, 2025 A new study reveals that an earthquake early warning system, similar to the USGS ShakeAlert used in California, Oregon, and Washington, could give Alaskan communities precious seconds to prepare before strong shaking hits. Modeling shows that towns ...

Latest Headlines

updated 12:59pm EST

A Loud Minority Makes the Internet Look Far More Toxic Than It Is

Dec. 17, 2025 People think online platforms are overflowing with toxic and misleading content, but the reality is far calmer. A small group of highly active users creates most of the harm, while the majority ...

New Evidence Shows the Maya Collapse Was More Than Just Drought

Nov. 26, 2025 Researchers studying Classic Maya cities discovered that urban growth was driven by a blend of climate downturns, conflict, and powerful economies of scale in agriculture. These forces made crowded, ...

Why Did Ancient People Build Massive, Mysterious Mounds in Louisiana?

Nov. 24, 2025 Hunter-gatherers at Poverty Point may have built its massive earthworks not under the command of chiefs, but as part of a vast, temporary gathering of egalitarian communities seeking spiritual ...

Ancient Tides May Have Sparked Humanity’s First Urban Civilization

Oct. 27, 2025 New research shows that the rise of Sumer was deeply tied to the tidal and sedimentary dynamics of ancient Mesopotamia. Early communities harnessed predictable tides for irrigation, but when deltas ...

Why Gen X Women Can’t Stop Eating Ultra-Processed Foods

Sep. 29, 2025 Researchers found that middle-aged adults, especially women, are far more likely to be addicted to ultra-processed foods than older generations. Marketing of diet-focused processed foods in the 1980s ...

The Surprising Brain Chemistry Behind Instant Friendships

Aug. 13, 2025 UC Berkeley scientists found oxytocin is key for quickly forming strong friendships, but less critical for mate bonds. In prairie voles, a lack of oxytocin receptors delayed bonding and reduced ...

Scientists Discover the Pancake Secret That Makes Vegan Eggs Irresistible

Aug. 12, 2025 A study finds that people are more open to plant-based eggs when they’re part of familiar foods, like pancakes, rather than served plain. While taste and appearance still favor regular eggs, vegan ...

Why AI Emails Can Quietly Destroy Trust at Work

Aug. 12, 2025 AI is now a routine part of workplace communication, with most professionals using tools like ChatGPT and Gemini. A study of over 1,000 professionals shows that while AI makes managers’ messages ...

Researchers Discover Key Social Factors That Triple Long COVID Risk

Aug. 4, 2025 New research led by Mass General Brigham reveals that people facing social challenges—like food insecurity, financial strain, and limited healthcare access—are two to three times more likely to ...

Scientists Modeled Nuclear Winter—the Global Food Collapse Was Worse Than Expected

July 26, 2025 What would happen if a nuclear war triggered a climate-altering catastrophe? Researchers have modeled how such a scenario could devastate global corn ...

How 1 in 4 Older Adults Regain Happiness After Struggling

Oct. 10, 2025 A University of Toronto study found that nearly one in four adults aged 60+ who reported poor well-being were able to regain optimal wellness within three years. The research highlights that physical ...

Three-Person DNA IVF Stops Inherited Disease—eight Healthy Babies Born in UK First

July 18, 2025 In a groundbreaking UK first, eight healthy babies have been born using an IVF technique that includes DNA from three people—two parents and a female donor. The process, known as pronuclear ...

Cognitive Collapse and the Nuclear Codes: When Leaders Lose Control

July 17, 2025 A shocking study reveals that many leaders of nuclear-armed nations—including US presidents and Israeli prime ministers—were afflicted by serious health problems while in office, sometimes with ...

Why Monkeys—and Humans—can’t Look Away from Social Conflict

July 9, 2025 Long-tailed macaques given short videos were glued to scenes of fighting—especially when the combatants were monkeys they knew—mirroring the human draw to drama and familiar faces. Low-ranking ...

Pregnancy’s 100-Million-Year Secret: Inside the Placenta’s Evolutionary Power Play

July 6, 2025 A group of scientists studying pregnancy across six different mammals—from humans to marsupials—uncovered how certain cells at the mother-baby boundary have been working together for over 100 ...

Mining the Deep Could Mute the Songs of Sperm Whales

June 24, 2025 Exploration for deep-sea minerals in the Clarion Clipperton Zone threatens to disrupt an unexpectedly rich ecosystem of whales and dolphins. New studies have detected endangered species in the area ...

Artificial Intelligence Isn’t Hurting workers—It Might Be Helping

June 23, 2025 Despite widespread fears, early research suggests AI might actually be improving some aspects of work life. A major new study examining 20 years of worker data in Germany found no signs that AI ...

Attachment Theory: A New Lens for Understanding Human-AI Relationships

June 2, 2025 Human-AI interactions are well understood in terms of trust and companionship. However, the role of attachment and experiences in such relationships is not entirely clear. In a new breakthrough, ...

Researchers Use Deep Learning to Predict Flooding This Hurricane Season

June 2, 2025 Researchers have developed a deep learning model called LSTM-SAM that predicts extreme water levels from tropical cyclones more efficiently and accurately, especially in data-scarce coastal regions, ...

The EU Should Allow Gene Editing to Make Organic Farming More Sustainable, Researchers Say

May 30, 2025 To achieve the European Green Deal's goal of 25% organic agriculture by 2030, researchers argue that new genomic techniques (NGTs) should be allowed without pre-market authorization in organic ...

The Future of AI Regulation: Why Leashes Are Better Than Guardrails

May 29, 2025 Many policy discussions on AI safety regulation have focused on the need to establish regulatory 'guardrails' to protect the public from the risks of AI technology. Experts now argue that, ...

Earlier Measles Vaccine Could Help Curb Global Outbreak

May 29, 2025 The global measles outbreak must trigger an urgent debate into whether a vaccine should be recommended earlier to better protect against the highly contagious disease during infancy, a new review ...

Nearly Five Million Seized Seahorses Just 'Tip of the Iceberg' in Global Wildlife Smuggling

May 28, 2025 Close to five million smuggled seahorses worth an estimated CAD$29 million were seized by authorities over a 10-year span, according to a new study that warns the scale of the trade is far larger ...

Mother's Warmth in Childhood Influences Teen Health by Shaping Perceptions of Social Safety

May 28, 2025 Parental warmth and affection in early childhood can have life-long physical and mental health benefits for children, and new research points to an important underlying process: children's sense ...

AI Is Here to Stay, Let Students Embrace the Technology, Experts Urge

May 22, 2025 A new study says students appear to be using generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) responsibly, and as a way to speed up tasks, not just boost their ...

Breakthrough AI Model Could Transform How We Prepare for Natural Disasters

May 22, 2025 From deadly floods in Europe to intensifying tropical cyclones around the world, the climate crisis has made timely and precise forecasting more essential than ever. Yet traditional forecasting ...

May 21, 2025 Hurricane winds are a major contributor to storm-related losses for people living in the southeastern coastal states. As the global temperature continues to rise, scientists predict that hurricanes ...

Landmark Report Reveals Key Challenges Facing Adolescents

May 20, 2025 Poor mental health, rising obesity rates, exposure to violence and climate change are among the key challenges facing our adolescents today, according to a global ...

Tech Meets Tornado Recovery

May 14, 2025 Traditional methods of assessing damage after a disaster can take weeks or even months, delaying emergency response, insurance claims and long-term rebuilding efforts. New research might change that. ...

New Study Shows AI Can Predict Child Malnutrition, Support Prevention Efforts

May 14, 2025 A multidisciplinary team of researchers has developed an artificial intelligence (AI) model that can predict acute child malnutrition in Kenya up to six months in advance. The tool offers governments ...