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In 1995, gender studies researcher Judy Chu found herself chauffeuring around her 13-year-old brother and his friend.

In the moody alcoves of a lobby bar in Chicago in 2021 over French 75s, Dr.

Donald Trump waves to the media on the South Lawn of the White House on September 26, 2026. | Aaron Schwartz/Getty Images This story appeared in The Logoff, a daily newsletter that helps you stay informed about the Trump administration without letting pol…

People cast ballots on the second day of early voting in Wheaton, Illinois, on September 25, 2026. | Kamil Krzaczynski/AFP via Getty Images This story appeared in Today, Explained, a daily newsletter that helps you understand the most compelling news and…

Horse racing can be an unusually dangerous profession for both the jockey and the horse: Riding a half-ton animal at nearly 40 miles per hour means your fate depends on the health and performance of both athletes.

How to untangle our underground mess of cables, gas lines, and pipes. | Bing Guan/Bloomberg via Getty Images Buried beneath every American city is a mysterious jumble of cables, pipes, and gas lines, entangled like a pair of wired headphones the moment you

Welcome to The Midterms, Actually.

Independent candidate for US Senate Brian Bengs center, of South Dakota, at a news conference outside the Capitol on September 24, 2026.

After moving to West Virginia last year, Steve Kuo signed up for a new insurance plan that would cost him $500 a month.

Congressional Democrats outside the US Capitol on May 21, 2026. | Aaron Schwartz/Bloomberg via Getty Images With the 2026 midterm elections fast approaching, polling increasingly suggests that the GOP is in for a bad time.

Iraqis gather in Baghdad to celebrate the withdrawal of US and international coalition forces on September 30, 2026. | Murtadha Al-Sudani/Anadolu via Getty Images This story appeared in Today, Explained, a daily newsletter that helps you understand the mo…

The price of diesel fuel is displayed outside of a Shell gas station in Carson, California, on September 22, 2026. | Patrick T.

Homes under construction in Valencia, California, 2026. | Justin Sullivan/Getty Images The Soviet Union famously churned out tens of thousands of new apartment buildings in the 1960s, ’70s, and ’80s — some assembled in as little as 12 days — together comp…

In this photo illustration, ground beef patties are cooked on a grill on May 22, 2026, in Chicago, Illinois. | Scott Olson/Getty Images On most fronts, President Donald Trump has shown little concern for reducing Americans’ cost of living ahead of Novembe…

Sifting through my pile, I feel the crisp edges of the glossy, technicolor marker that was previously nestled in the dirt of a bonnie green bell sweet pepper plant I bought from the farmers market this summer.

Cornell University students walk through campus in Ithaca, New York. | Matt Burkhartt/Getty Images This story appeared in Today, Explained, a daily newsletter that helps you understand the most compelling news and stories of the day.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump in the White House on September 24, 2026. | Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images The national conversation about AI in the US is full of fear: fear about AI’s potential to end humanity, fear of data centers…

The lower federal courts are filled with people who make this guy look like a model of nonpartisan rectitude. | Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images The Supreme Court ruled on Friday that Missouri may not use a newly drawn Republican gerrymander during the 2026…

A man attends a live sneakers auction sale on the Whatnot app on March 12, 2026. | Alain Jocard/AFP via Getty Images If you haven’t heard of “live shopping,” you might soon.

My favorite restaurant, here in Madison, Wisconsin, closed this week.

Donald Trump talks to the media after disembarking from Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House on September 27, 2026. | Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images This story appeared in The Logoff, a daily newsletter that helps you stay informed about the…

President Donald Trump shakes hands with China's President Xi Jinping on September 25, 2026. | Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images This story appeared in Today, Explained, a daily newsletter that helps you understand the most compelling news and stories of the…

Vegan and vegetarian dining options might be more common than ever, but around the country, vegan restaurants are closing at a quicker rate than their non-vegan peers.

Flock provides police departments with networks of surveillance cameras — primarily, automatic license plate readers that photograph each vehicle that passes them. | NurPhoto via Getty Images To no small extent, Americans have grown accustomed to being wa…

Recently, while taking the metro to work, I encountered something that shocked me.

Kevin Ross removes damaged vinyl sheets from underneath his sister's mobile home in Watkins, Colorado.

Michigan Democratic congressional candidate Will Lawrence speaks with reporters on September 14, 2026, in Mason, Michigan. | Nic Antaya/Getty Images William Lawrence is a Democrat running to represent Michigan’s Lansing-area Seventh Congressional District…

An autonomous reef monitoring structure (ARMS) in the mesophotic zone. | © Luiz Rocha This story was originally published in The Highlight.

Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico speaks during a campaign rally in Kerrville, Texas, on August 31, 2026. | Brandon Bell/Getty Images This story appeared in Today, Explained, a daily newsletter that helps you understand the most compelling news a…

Maddie Kowalski is a student at the University of Florida.

Over the years, Julianne Holt-Lunstad has fielded many requests from startups looking for her help.

“Diagnosis and treatment of Alzheimer’s has changed in a way that is revolutionary compared to, say, four or five years ago,” said Dr.

Texas Senate candidate James Talarico on September 10, 2026. | Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty High energy prices, an unpopular war, and frustration with the economy are hammering Republicans across the country in competitive races.

First lady Melania Trump walks with a humanoid robot as she arrives for the Fostering the Future Together Global Coalition Summit in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on March 25, 2026. | Oliver Contreras/AFP via Getty Images) Six months…

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman looks on during a UN Security Council meeting on artificial intelligence during the 81st United Nations General Assembly on September 23, 2026. | Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images When the AI apocalypse becomes regular dinner-table c…

A sign in support of AP, CNN, MS NOW, and Politico near the James S.

The AI freakout of the past few weeks has centered on nothing less than the risk of human extinction — on the possibility that artificial intelligence could wipe us all out.

President Donald Trump greets Chinese President Xi Jinping at Joint Base Andrews on September 23, 2026. | Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images This story appeared in Today, Explained, a daily newsletter that helps you understand the most compelling news and stor…

Even if this astronomically kooky plan does take off, it may not change much for those of us left on terra firma. | Paige Vickers/Vox; Getty Images During a tense vote on a data center being built in her drought-stricken Arizona district last summer, Tucs…

If we want our beach towns to survive, we may need to wheel them further upshore. | David Swanson/AFP via Getty Images There is a kind of terror-tinged embarrassment that comes from dozing off on your beach towel on the sand, only to find a rising tide in…

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A man wearing a "Latinos for America" t-shirt attends a Republican campaign event on October 10, 2022 at the University Drafthouse in Mcallen, Texas.

President Donald Trump answers questions from reporters in the Oval Office on September 18, 2026. | Samuel Corum/Bloomberg via Getty Images This story appeared in Today, Explained, a daily newsletter that helps you understand the most compelling news and…

The question "Should I kill humans?"

Lisa Marie Wilson matched with a man on a dating app who claimed to be 5-foot-10 and to live on the beach.

U.S.

President Donald Trump, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, and Greenlandic Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen sign a trilateral security deal on the sidelines of the 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York City on September 22, 2026. | Br…

The White House campus, including a new helipad on the South Lawn and President Donald Trump ballroom that’s under construction, are seen from above on September 21, 2026. | Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images Since President Donald Trump returned to office, he has

Young visitors watch the beluga whales at L'Oceanogràfic in Valencia, Spain. | Miguel Candela/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images This story appeared in Today, Explained, a daily newsletter that helps you understand the most compelling news and stori…

The new version of SARBOT, Turkey’s first armed robot, is demonstrated in Duzce, Turkey, on April 29, 2026. | Omer Urer/Anadolu/Getty Images Who gets to tell the military “no”?