By Giselle Bastin, Associate Professor of English, Flinders University
“I’ve had Japanese people crying when I tell them I’m not Diana,” British woman Christina Hance, who sometimes earned thousands of pounds a day as a Diana impersonator, told the BBC in 1996. A few months later, she announced she was stepping back from her duties as a Diana lookalike, saying the job had sent her mad and made her ill.
“I ended up a zombie just like her […] the strain of public life has been too much for both of us,” she said. Probably the best known of countless professional Diana impersonators, she “didn’t really look very much like Diana at all”, according to Edward…
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By Benjamin Nickl, Senior Lecturer in Comparative Culture, Literature and Translation, University of Sydney
Why do so many of the funniest things on social media make no sense at all?
How about Ashby’s stunt scenes for a back brace infomercial on a white swivel chair, overlaid with Chopin’s Nocturne in E Flat Major – or her improvisations as The Lorax; a sequence of HOW…
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By Human Rights Watch
Click to expand Image Members of the media protest a police raid on the office of a news portal and homes of journalists and writers linked to it, at the Press Club in New Delhi, India, October 4, 2023. © 2023 Anushree Fadnavis/Reuters This month the Indian government banned 25 books on the Himalayan region of Jammu and Kashmir, saying they “excite secessionism.”The action by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led administration of Prime Minister Narendra Modi reflects a wider attempt to silence dissent in response to unusually sharp criticisms over its policies. After the…
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By Jean-Christophe Brunet
An interview with Togolese author Sami Tchak, exploring how he defines and shapes his francophone writing in the context of the growing visibility of francophone African literatures.
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By Pardis Mahdavi, Professor of Anthropology, University of La Verne
Several religious groups have historically used psychedelics for healing. Now, a growing number are pushing for their use as a way to mystical experiences.
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By Abigail Folberg, Assistant Professor of Psychology, University of Nebraska Omaha
Brittany Givens Rassoolkhani, Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering, University of Kentucky
President Donald Trump’s administration has dramatically reshaped health and medical research by rolling back federal funding from institutions that have diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives and by cutting federal funding for research projects that the administration considers related to DEI.
As of Aug. 20, 2025, the…
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By Kristen Demoruelle, Associate Professor of Rheumatology, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus
Advances in research and medicine have given doctors helpful tools to assess a person’s individual risk and to help prepare them for pregnancy.
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By Nicole M. Bennett, Ph.D. Candidate in Geography and Assistant Director at the Center for Refugee Studies, Indiana University
When the U.S. government signs contracts with private technology companies, the fine print rarely reaches the public. Palantir Technologies, however, has attracted more and more attention over the past decade because of the size and scope of its contracts with the government.
Palantir’s two main platforms are Foundry and Gotham. Each does different things. Foundry is used by corporations in the private sector to help with global operations. Gotham is marketed as an “operating…
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By Justin Dunnavant, Assistant Professor of Anthropology, University of California, Los Angeles
As many as 10% of enslaved people on St. Croix escaped. Where they went has remained a mystery, but scientists are using new mapping technology to find answers.
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By Ray Brescia, Associate Dean for Research and Intellectual Life, Albany Law School
A federal court stopped contempt proceedings against Trump administration lawyers, but they may still have to respond to charges in states where they are licensed to practice law.
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