Sociology

Large language models can create muddled, misinformed multiverses

The more exciting, transformative and revolutionary a science result appears, especially if it comes out of nowhere, the more likely it is to be dead wrong. So approach science headlines with a healthy amount of skepticism and patience

Voters supported abortion rights measures while electing antiabortion candidates in the 2024 election. The split reflects a complicated abortion landscape post-Dobbs

A social scientist looks at the portrait of U.S. voters, and voting, in the aftermath of the 2024 presidential election that put Trump into the White House

Examining body camera videos at scale reveals racial differences in how police treat drivers during traffic stops—and what corrective programs really work

Famous people who die at age 27, such as Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix and Amy Winehouse, get even more famous because of the mythology surrounding that number—an example of how modern folklore emerges

Experts say the effects of global warming are playing a greater role in where people decide to move

The new interconnected breed of autocrats gains and retains power by deception, globally undermining democracies through their own institutions

In online forums the term “cuck” has become synonymous with “sucker” and “loser.” But this use distorts its history and meaning, creating a baseless moral panic that harms both women and science

The world’s richest man, Elon Musk, owes his superstar success to self-satisfied competitors who blew obvious opportunities

The “Raygun” Olympics fiasco points to how hip-hop scholarship is at risk of being colonized and undermined in academia

A dishonest creationist debating tactic shouldn’t go unchallenged in American life. Or in national politics