Sunday, December 22

TOP FOUR

NFL Cheerleaders Are Still Being Sidelined And Have Been Fighting For Better Pay For 10 Years
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SPORTS, TOP FOUR

NFL Cheerleaders Are Still Being Sidelined And Have Been Fighting For Better Pay For 10 Years

NFL cheerleaders have been fighting for better pay for 10 years. They’re still being sidelined. Lacy Thibodeaux Fields was one of the lucky ones. Out of thousands of people who audition every year, she had been picked to be an NFL cheerleader. But at home, she was just a young mom caring for her toddler, Scarlett, while trying to pay the bills and buy diapers — all the things that her paycheck as an Oakland Raiderette should have helped cover. Except, she didn’t get a paycheck all season, despite spending nine hours a week in practice, another nine on game days and doing at least 10 community events. All she was entitled to was $125 a game — little more than $1,000. It would arrive nine months later, at the conclusion of the 2014 season. “It was my dream to be there, so I was soaking in...
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The Astronauts Are Still In Space — Why The Boeing Starliner Returned Without The Crew
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TECHNOLOGY, TOP FOUR

The Astronauts Are Still In Space — Why The Boeing Starliner Returned Without The Crew

The Boeing Starliner has returned to Earth without its crew – a former astronaut details what that means for NASA, Boeing and the astronauts still up in space. Boeing’s crew transport space capsule, the Starliner, returned to Earth without its two-person crew right after midnight Eastern time on Sept. 7, 2024. Its remotely piloted return marked the end of a fraught test flight to the International Space Station which left two astronauts, Butch Wilmore and Sunita “Suni” Williams, on the station for months longer than intended after thruster failures led NASA to deem the capsule unsafe to pilot back. Wilmore and Williams will stay on the International Space Station until February 2025, when they’ll return to Earth on a SpaceX Dragon capsule. The Conversation U.S. asked former commander ...
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US Oil And Gas Production Surged, Under Both Trump And Biden-Harris, Despite Very Different Energy Goals
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BUSINESS, TOP FOUR

US Oil And Gas Production Surged, Under Both Trump And Biden-Harris, Despite Very Different Energy Goals

Under both Trump and Biden-Harris, US oil and gas production surged to record highs, despite very different energy goals. The United States is producing more oil and natural gas today than ever before, and far more than any other country. So, what roles did the Trump-Pence and Biden-Harris administrations play in this surge? The answer might surprise you, given the way each has talked publicly about fossil fuels: former President Donald Trump embracing them, and President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris focusing on reducing fossil fuel use to fight climate change. Under each of the three most recent presidencies, Republican and Democratic alike, U.S. oil and gas production was higher at the end of the administration’s term than at the beginning. That production has both pr...
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This Year Could Give Harris A Chance To Make History
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POLITICS, TOP FOUR

This Year Could Give Harris A Chance To Make History

Nothing about this year is normal. It could give Harris a chance at history. With 70 days to go until Election Day, Vice President Kamala Harris is now within striking distance of becoming America’s 47th president. For some, the moment seemed implausible just over a month ago — and that was not lost on Harris as she accepted the Democratic Party’s nomination for president. “America, the path that led me here in recent weeks, was no doubt unexpected,” Harris told voters Thursday, the final night of the Democratic National Convention. “But I’m no stranger to unlikely journeys.” In record time, Harris has gone from running mate to candidate, from overlooked to undeniable as the Democratic Party’s standard bearer. The circumstances of Harris’ historic run, like the 2024 election cycle, ha...
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Regulating Cannabis — Here’s What Can Be Learned From Colorado And Washington
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BUSINESS, TOP FOUR

Regulating Cannabis — Here’s What Can Be Learned From Colorado And Washington

26 states may soon need to regulate cannabis – here’s what they can learn from Colorado and Washington. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration has made moves to reclassify marijuana, making it a type of legal but regulated medicine, like Tylenol with codeine or some steroids. With the reclassification, 26 states where cannabis is currently illegal will need to decide whether they want to take action to stop the sale of cannabis in their state or figure out how to regulate the newly legal drug. A few states such as North Carolina have laws on the books saying cannabis will automatically become legal once the federal change goes into effect. But the regulation of cannabis is nothing new in Colorado and Washington. These two states have more than a decade of experience writing and enf...
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By Stepping Up For A Democratic Woman President Democratic Men Are Stepping Back
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IMPACT, TOP FOUR

By Stepping Up For A Democratic Woman President Democratic Men Are Stepping Back

Democratic men are stepping up for a woman president by stepping back, at last. Women have been running for president of the United States since 1872, and for almost that long people have been asking what women need to do in order to break what Hillary Clinton has called the “highest, hardest glass ceiling” left in American culture. Almost no one has asked what men need to do in order to remedy the problem that the job has been off-limits to more than 50% of the talent pool since … forever. At the 2024 Democratic National Convention, that changed. Democratic men made choices that were entirely new, or exceedingly rare, in support of a woman presidential candidate and in service to the nation. It was unprecedented. As a communication scholar who studies gender and political leadership...
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Some App Settings Are A Real Threat To User Privacy
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TECHNOLOGY, TOP FOUR, VIDEO REELS

Some App Settings Are A Real Threat To User Privacy

Complicated app settings are a threat to user privacy. Default privacy settings in popular mobile apps seem like a convenience, allowing you to use a single setting to control the level of privacy – who can see which actions you take – across all of the app’s functions. But default privacy settings are also a potential risk to your privacy. The U.S. app market generated US$44.9 billion in 2023, with smartphone users spending 217 billion hours on their apps. The growing popularity of mobile apps can be attributed to their convenience, ease of use, connectivity and flexibility. For instance, Venmo, a popular peer-to-peer payment app for iPhone and Android users, lets users send and receive money from anyone with a Venmo account. It is particularly convenient when dealing with transactio...
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Webinar Of The Week: Marketing A New Currency: European Central Bank’s Director Of Digital Euro Evelien Witlox On Digitizing Cash
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TOP FOUR, WEBINAR EDUCATION

Webinar Of The Week: Marketing A New Currency: European Central Bank’s Director Of Digital Euro Evelien Witlox On Digitizing Cash

Evelien Witlox is the Director of Digital Euro at the European Central Bank, known for her energetic leadership and expertise in managing large, international teams and partnerships. She champions future-oriented strategies with a results-driven approach, pushing teams and organizations to excel beyond current limits. Committed to inclusivity, she fosters a flat work environment where empowerment and growth thrive. On The Menu: Evolution of cash to digital form and its importance in a digitizing world. Reducing dependence on non-European payment providers and maintaining currency independence. Interaction with stakeholders and the public to shape the digital euro. Significance of societal agreement and legislation for the digital euro. Long-term go...
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Health Care Workers Dance, Write And Draw Their Way Through Burnout And On-The-Job Stress, With The Help Of Creative Arts Therapy Programs
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HEALTH & WELLNESS, TOP FOUR

Health Care Workers Dance, Write And Draw Their Way Through Burnout And On-The-Job Stress, With The Help Of Creative Arts Therapy Programs

Creative arts therapy programs can help health care workers dance, write and draw their way through burnout and on-the-job stress. Doctors and nurses seldom learn in school how to tell a family that their loved one is not going to survive. Yet health care professionals face the immense burden of tragedy, illness and dying in an intensely stressful setting as a routine, ongoing part of their jobs. Long before the COVID-19 pandemic, research was documenting rampant stress and burnout among health care professionals. The effects of this crisis are widespread in the U.S. In 2022, Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy raised concerns about the alarming levels of burnout in the health care community in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Studies show that if current trends continue, the U.S. wi...
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If College Students Have Jobs Or Children To Care For ‘Time Poverty’ Can Keep Them From Graduating
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Journalism, TOP FOUR

If College Students Have Jobs Or Children To Care For ‘Time Poverty’ Can Keep Them From Graduating

‘Time poverty’ can keep college students from graduating − especially if they have jobs or children to care for. Many college students don’t have enough time for their studies. This “time poverty,” as we call it, is often due to inadequate child care access or the need to work to pay for college and living expenses. In an effort to understand how much time poverty affects student outcomes, we surveyed more than 41,000 U.S. college students. We found that the more time poverty, the greater the chances of a student earning fewer credits or dropping out. This is especially true for Black and Hispanic students and for women, who have significantly less time for college compared with their peers, largely due to time spent on their jobs and caring for children. Our research describes how di...
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