TOP FOUR – Page 4

For Some Nonreligious Americans Secular Congregations Fill A Need

4Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

CULTURE, Journalism, TOP FOUR

For Some Nonreligious Americans Secular Congregations Fill A Need

Church without God: How secular congregations fill a need for some nonreligious Americans. Shared testimonies, collective singing, silent meditation and baptism rituals – these are all activities you might find at a Christian church service on a Sunday morning in the United States. But what would it look like if atheists were gathering to do these rituals instead? Today, almost 30% of adults in the United States say they have no religious affiliation, and only half attend worship services regularly. But not all forms of church are on the decline – including “secular congregations,” or what many call “atheist churches.” As a sociologist of religion who has spent the past 10 years studying nonreligious communities, I have found that atheist churches serve many of the same purposes as religio...

What Are The Implications Of The Big Tent Philosophy Of Free Speech?

18Feb

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

LGBTQ, LIFESTYLE, TOP FOUR, VIDEO REELS

What Are The Implications Of The Big Tent Philosophy Of Free Speech?

In the ‘big tent’ of free speech, can you be too open-minded? People often extol the virtue of open-mindedness, but can there be too much of a good thing? As a college dean, I regularly observe campus controversies about the Israel-Hamas war, race relations and other hot-button issues. Many of these concern free speech – what students, faculty and invited speakers should and shouldn’t be allowed to say. But free speech disputes aren’t merely about permission to speak. They are about who belongs at the table – and whether there are limits to the viewpoints we should listen to, argue with or allow to change our minds. As a philosopher who works on “culture war” issues, I’m particularly interested in what free-speech disputes teach about the value of open-mindedness. Talking together in the...

The Unintended Impact Of Redundancies For All Employees

18Feb

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

SOCIETY, TOP FOUR, WORK

The Unintended Impact Of Redundancies For All Employees

Redundancies have unintended consequences for all employees, even those who keep their jobs. Tech giants including X (then known as Twitter) and Facebook owner Meta announced thousands of job cuts globally in 2022 and 2023, as did other firms like entertainment company Disney, consultancy firm KPMG and phone company Vodafone. And let’s not forget those making redundancies as a result of company collapses such as UK retailer Wilko. In the UK alone, the number of planned redundancies by companies increased by 54% over the last year, from 153,635 to 237,017. This is likely to continue. Businesses are dealing with sharp rises in borrowing costs and continued wage growth, at the same as consumer spending is falling, affecting industries like advertising and retail. Of course, such news has a ve...

Could Formula One And Other Big Events Be The Answer To Driving Growth And Tourism In The Hospitality Industry

18Feb

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

SPORTS, TOP FOUR

Could Formula One And Other Big Events Be The Answer To Driving Growth And Tourism In The Hospitality Industry

Revving up tourism: Formula One and other big events look set to drive growth in the hospitality industry. In late 2023, I embarked on my first Formula One race experience, attending the first-ever Las Vegas Grand Prix. I had never been to an F1 race; my interest was sparked during the pandemic, largely through the Netflix series “Formula 1: Drive to Survive.” But I wasn’t just attending as a fan. As the inaugural chair of the University of Florida’s department of tourism, hospitality and event management, I saw this as an opportunity. Big events and festivals represent a growing share of the tourism market – as an educator, I want to prepare future leaders to manage them. And what better place to learn how to do that than in the stands of the Las Vegas Grand Prix? The author at the La...

Emerging Across The US — Nitazenes, A Powerful Class Of Street Drugs

18Feb

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

HEALTH & WELLNESS, IMPACT, TOP FOUR

Emerging Across The US — Nitazenes, A Powerful Class Of Street Drugs

Nitazenes are a powerful class of street drugs emerging across the US. Two deaths in Boulder County, Colorado, in 2023 are the latest in the U.S. to be blamed on the powerful class of synthetic opioids called nitazenes. Most health systems cannot detect nitazenes, so the exact number of overdoses is unknown, but they’re implicated in more than 200 deaths in Europe and North America since 2019, including . One of the two Boulder County deaths is linked to a new formulation called N-Desethyl etonitazene, which was identified by a national laboratory, and is thought to be the first related death. The Conversation interviewed Dr. Christopher Holstege, professor of emergency medicine and pediatrics at the University of Virginia School of Medicine and director of the Blue Ridge Poison Center, wh...

Creating A Magical Valentine’s Day: A Look At The History Of The Holiday

13Feb

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

SEX & RELATIONSHIPS, TOP FOUR

Creating A Magical Valentine’s Day: A Look At The History Of The Holiday

Valentine's Day is a wonderful holiday full of hearts, chocolate, and flowers. When many people think of Valentine's Day that's what comes to mind. But how often do we think of the real reason behind the holiday. Let's look at the history behind Valentine's Day: who was St. Valentine, what did he do to become a saint, and why is the "holiday of love" named after him. St. Valentine is suspected to be a Roman Catholic priest that lived in the third century AD and was martyred around 270 AD by Claudius II Gothicus, the Roman Emperor at the time. As the story goes, St. Valentine wrote a love letter to the daughter of his jailer, with whom he had established a friendship and grown to love, and signed it "from your Valentine." (1) Sound like a familiar phrase? Today, Valentine's Day is celebra...

An American Insult Shaped By Political Corruption

13Feb

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

IMPACT, POLITICS, TOP FOUR

An American Insult Shaped By Political Corruption

Sellout! How political corruption shaped an American insult. If you follow politics, sports, Hollywood or the arts, you’ve no doubt heard the insult “sellout” thrown around to describe someone perceived to have betrayed a core principle or shared value in their pursuit of personal gain. The term has recently been hurled at a range of well-known targets: Donald Trump’s former chief of staff Mark Meadows for cooperating with a special counsel investigating election fraud in 2020; Kim Kardashian for advertising her personal brands as a form of women’s empowerment; even former NFL great Deion Sanders, for leaving Jackson State, a historically Black university, to coach at the University of Colorado. Most people, I find, are familiar with this accusation. But few people really know the full sto...

Balancing Your Home Life By Using Your Phone At Work

4Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

Journalism, TOP FOUR

Balancing Your Home Life By Using Your Phone At Work

Using your phone at work can help to balance your home life – new research. You might not think twice about using your phone while you’re at work. Maybe you need to send a quick message to a family member or a friend, or catch up on the news. Then there’s that dental appointment which needs to be booked – and while you’re at it, you may as well get the online grocery shopping done. It’s all very convenient, and means plenty of domestic tasks can be crossed off the to-do list while you’re on company time. And it appears to be widespread. One survey suggests that employees use their phones for personal reasons for more than two hours during the average working day. But those hours add up. And with people reportedly checking their phones more than 100 times a day, some employers and companies...

13Feb

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

SELF, TOP FOUR

Stop Scrolling In The Bathroom

The dirty truth about your phone – and why you need to stop scrolling in the bathroom. We carry them everywhere, take them to bed, to the bathroom and for many people they’re the first thing they see in the morning – more than 90% of the world owns or uses a mobile phone and many of us couldn’t manage without one. But while health concerns about phones use usually focus on the distraction they can cause while driving, the possible effects of radiofrequency exposure, or just how addictive they can be. The microbial infection risk of your phone is much less appreciated – but it’s very real. A 2019 survey found that most people in the UK use their phones on the toilet. So it’s not surprising to discover studies have found our mobile phones to be dirtier that toilet seats. We give our phones t...

The Danger Of Political Violence Orchestrated Over Social Media

4Feb

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

POLITICS, TOP FOUR, VIDEO REELS

The Danger Of Political Violence Orchestrated Over Social Media

Jan. 6 was an example of networked incitement − a media and disinformation expert explains the danger of political violence orchestrated over social media. The shocking events of Jan. 6, 2021, signaled a major break from the nonviolent rallies that categorized most major protests over the past few decades. What set Jan. 6 apart was the president of the United States using his cellphone to direct an attack on the Capitol, and those who stormed the Capitol being wired and ready for insurrection. My co-authors and I, a media and disinformation scholar, call this networked incitement: influential figures inciting large-scale political violence via social media. Networked incitement involves insurgents communicating across multiple platforms to command and coordinate mobilized social movements ...