My Favorite Bit this week was about how spies cultivate assets in foreign countries and the ways known contact between representatives of the Russian government and the Trump campaign reflect those spy strategies.
One of the starkest lines that divides American society is the growing wealth gap between the highest and lowest earners and the mentality of entitlement amongst the wealthy that is cultivated by a false perception of meritocracy. The U.S. wealth gap is further exacerbated by the legal (and illegal) ways that corporations use legal loopholes to shield revenue from taxes; an economically useless activity that allows capital holders to capture excess rents without adding value to broader society. Another example of societally counterproductive laws prevents teachers from taking advantage of loan forgiveness programs due to paperwork errors.
In social science we take a look at some of the negative emotions that can arise during meditation as well as the way college freshman seek out different types of classmates for various roles in their social life.
Emerging medical research looks at how MDMA and psilocybin can be used as more effective treatments for anxiety and depression than selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) which also carry a much higher risk of addiction. Other scientists have been masturbating in MRI machines in order to develop a better understanding of how female genitalia maps onto the somatosensory cortex which can help to clinicians to better understand a number of disorders affecting both men and women.
Finishing off your week in review is a hodgepodge of articles about how Chinese authorities work to simultaneously suppress free speech and counteract it with propaganda, the innovative way that Transport for London uses wifi to more accurately track customer movements, the challenges faced by black women who are “not believed in the (predominantly white) world or in their (predominantly black) communities”, a few examples of police officers who abuse their power yet are still on the police force, and the way Hasidic Jewish communities are changing customs in some towns to promote modest dress and separation of genders in public spaces.
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Have a great rest of your week!