In The News

Forbes: These Asian Countries Could Follow in Taiwan's LGBT Rights Footsteps

Ralph Jennings May 31, 2017
Taiwan’s Constitutional Court declared that same-sex marriage is part of the “people’s right to equality” in May and became the first place in Asia to legalize the practice. The island has a history of practicing progressive values, with the LGBT movement forming more than two decades ago as politicians attempted to build a more pluralistic society. “Taiwanese LGBT groups are wondering now who...

The Atlantic: My Family’s Slave

Alex Tizon May 23, 2017
Cultural traditions in one society can be crimes in another. Children raised with such traditions confront a dilemma as acceptance slowly transforms into questions and shame. Author Alex Tizon, now deceased, profiles a woman who had served his family without pay for more than 50 years. The uneducated worker was taken from the fields at age 12 and eventually given to Tizon’s mother by his...

National Geographic: What Makes a Genius?

Claudia Kalb May 12, 2017
Some ideas and creations are visionary and influential, spreading around the globe to resonate through the ages. The work of Albert Einstein, with the theory of relativity, and William Shakespeare whose plays explore human relationships and emotions, are two examples. Scientists study the sources of genius, which may not be easily identifiable. “Genius is too elusive, too subjective, too wedded...

The Guardian: Who Are the New Jihadis?

Olivier Roy April 18, 2017
The contemporary terrorist’s brutal acts against symbolic targets are centered around his or her own death, explains author Olivier Roy in an essay for the Guardian. “Muslim tradition, while it recognises the merits of the martyr who dies in combat, does not prize those who strike out in pursuit of their own deaths, because doing so interferes with God’s will,” he writes. Roy describes jihadism...

Quartz: Critiquing Child Marriage Policies

Neha Thirani Bagri February 10, 2017
Regulating longstanding cultural traditions to protect individuals can ignite political backlash. Sheikh Hasina, prime minister of Bangladesh, strives to be a champion of women’s empowerment, but proposed legislation that would allow marriage for underage girls who become pregnant is under fire. “Critics say the bill would weaken the existing law and send the message to parents that child...

The Search for a Past

Cathy Shufro January 12, 2017
An estimated 140,000 Chinese children were adopted by families in the United States, Europe and elsewhere after China opened to the world in the 1990s while maintaining a one-child policy to eliminate poverty. Many of the children, now young adults, and birth parents search for one another. Cathy Shufro describes the search of Yale graduate Jenna Cook for Yale Alumni Magazine. Cook studied...

Algorithms Are Making US Small-Minded

Sydney Finkelstein January 3, 2017
Computer programs tackle requests and problems with sets of rules and algorithms provided by humans, but the goal to please audiences may limit creativity and lead to bland predictability. “The ubiquity of incredibly powerful algorithms designed to reinforce our interests also ensures that we see little of what’s new, different and unfamiliar,” writes Sydney Finkelstein for BBC News. “The very...