• Refugee or Asylum-Seeker in the U.S.: What's the Difference?

    In the United States, there are notable distinctions between refugees or asylum-seekers. While the terms are often used interchangeably, there are significant differences under U.S. immigration law when pursuing these statuses. The U.S. Refugee Admissions Program has established specific priorities for processing individuals and groups with special humanitarian concerns who seek entry into the United States.

  • Evaluation Approaches for the Protection of Venues and Public Spaces from Terrorism

    In recent years, governments across the world have included legislation and published guidance material on how to mitigate the impact of terrorism on venues and public spaces. Known as Protective Security this pillar of counterterrorism comprises physical security, personnel security, and cyber security.

  • Robots Could Help Verify Compliance with Nuclear Arms Agreements

    Ensuring that countries abide by future nuclear arms agreements will be a vital task. Inspectors may have to count warheads or confirm the removal of nuclear weapons from geographical areas. Those hotspots could include underground bunkers and require confirmation that no weapons exist in a location at all. Now, researchers have devised an automated way to ensure compliance.

  • Three Convicted for Helping China to Repatriate Chinese Nationals

    The three men were acting on behalf of China in a campaign to harass, stalk and coerce certain residents of the United States to return to the PRC as part of a global and extralegal repatriation effort known as “Operation Fox Hunt.”

  • Scientific and Technological Flows Between the United States and China

    What are the potential benefits and risks of U.S.-Chinese scientific research collaboration? What is the nature and volume of scientific researcher flows between the United States and China? What potential threats and benefits have emerged from the recent uptick in scientific collaboration between the United States and China on aerospace engineering research?

  • Russia Increases Spy Activity, Disinformation Campaign in Germany

    Germany’s domestic intelligence agency has warned that Russia’s spy operations are expected to increase in Germany. The agency noted that far-right movements are harnessing opposition to military support for Ukraine.

  • As California Attempts a “Managed Retreat,” Coastal Homeowners Sue to Stay

    “Managed retreat” is a climate adaptation policy that calls for relocating and removing coastal structures rather than protecting them where they are. Experts say managed retreat is an important last-resort option for adapting to climate change, but California’s early attempts to implement the policy have provoked a backlash from homeowners and politicians.

  • State Farm’s California Pullout: What It Means for Climate Adaptation and Communities

    State Farm recently announced that it will no longer be offering new insurance policies to homeowners in California. The company made it clear that it no longer made financial sense to continue covering properties in the state due to its growing risk of wildfires, in addition to other challenges. State Farm is not alone in its departure; nor is California the only state in the red zone. As climate change magnifies the risks and impacts of disasters like wildfires, hurricanes, and floods, the insurance industry is being forced to shift strategies.

  • Texas Farmers Are Worried One of the State’s Most Precious Water Resources Is Running Dry. You Should Be, Too.

    The Ogallala Aquifer serves farming communities in multiple states. When it runs dry, the agriculture industry in Texas and the nation is in jeopardy.

  • Can America’s Students Recover What They Lost During the Pandemic?

    Disastrous test scores increasingly show how steep a toll the COVID-19 era exacted on students, particularly minorities. Schools are grappling with how to catch up, and the experience of one city shows how intractable the obstacles are.

  • Support for Violence Nearly Doubles if Americans Believe Election Losses Stem from Unfair Actions: Study

    As dangerous rhetoric by political leaders dominates the news, new data on American views of political violence found that Americans’ support for political violence was deeply influenced by the context of why they believe their preferred candidate lost an election.Nearly 40 percent of survey respondents said that violence could be justified if they believe their preferred candidate lost as a result of “unfair actions” taken by political opponents.

  • Why Do We Believe Compulsive Liars? What Makes Them Tick?

    One of the fascinating aspects concerning the saga of convicted entrepreneur Elizabeth Holmes and recently indicted New York Congressman George Santos is how long they got away with lying to investors, patients, voters, and the public. Given the sheer number of prevarications each of them employed, shouldn’t observers, even casual ones, have caught on to them sooner?

  • Examining Text Strategies for Refuting Myths and Fake News

    The spread of false information is increasingly hindering the clarification of socially relevant, scientifically proven facts. Two new studies examine the impact of texts aimed at refuting myths and fake news concerning Covid-19 vaccines and genetically modified foods.

  • New Law Targets Gun Trafficking to Mexico

    A new law that imposes harsher penalties on gun trafficking is giving U.S. prosecutors a powerful tool to combat the illicit flow of weapons from the United States to drug cartels in Mexico. The cartels use the weapons to protect their drug smuggling operations, fueling an overdose epidemic that is claiming the lives of tens of thousands of Americans.

  • Why Norms Matter More Than Ever for Space Deterrence and Defense

    As the uses of space grow in significance, so too has the question of how to keep space systems safe and secure. Robin Dickey writes that one of the potential answers to that question is to fill in gaps in norms of responsible behavior for space. “What may seem like a relatively niche topic actually supports a broad swath of U.S. strategic objectives and has become a central line of effort in protecting national security interests in the space domain,” he writes.