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Human behavior

Elephants in the Chobe National Park in Botswana on March 3, 2013. 

An elephant never forgets, sometimes sheds insight

Critical State

Critical State, a foreign policy newsletter by Inkstick Media, takes a deep dive this week into what the socialization patterns of elephants can teach us about human evolution.

Antonio Trujillo holds a cigarette while resting on a bench, in Pamplona, northern Spain

Big tobacco is forced to pay for cigarette butt pollution in Spain, but smokers may soon be on the hook

Environment
Climate change activists show hands in support of climate action during a climate strike rally, as part of a global youth-led day of global action.

Study finds widespread climate anxiety among youth

Climate Change
Video still from a Tik Tok video

This teen’s TikTok video takes on Malaysia’s toxic culture of misogyny

Sexual violence
Glen Sjögren, a 40-year police officer in Malmö, Sweden, says he was surprised by a recent report showing the rate of gun violence in the country has gone up. His city has been successful in recent years in tackling gangs and gun violence.  

Sweden’s gun violence rates have soared. But this Swedish city is bucking that trend.

Violence
A scene from an Amsterdam metro subway with a huge TV ad of a white man's face

Amsterdam bans fossil fuel ads from its metro

The Big Fix

Advocates hope the ban on ads glorifying cheap flights and gas-guzzling cars will pave the way for larger, more comprehensive ad bans across the Netherlands and beyond.  

Siblings Erika and Dwayne Bermudez comfort one another during a short viewing of their mother, Eudiana Smith, at The Family Funeral Home, May 2, 2020, in Newark, New Jersey.

The pandemic has disrupted how we grieve. The effects could be long-lasting.

Lifestyle & Belief

The nature of the coronavirus has interrupted many rituals of mourning, from visiting the bedsides of the dying to holding funerals. That could lead to mental health impacts down the line, says psychiatry professor Dr. Harvey Chochinov.

Wajahat Ali speaks onstage at SXSW in Austin, Texas, March 11, 2018.

Wajahat Ali on maintaining one’s faith through crises

Religion

Wajahat Ali is a writer and lawyer whose Islamic faith was tested last year when he learned his 3-year-old daughter had liver cancer. He tells The World’s host Marco Werman what his family’s journey taught them about living through great challenges — and maintaining one’s faith.

A woman sits on the floor in front of her computer.

How The World listeners are coping with self-isolation

Bored yet? Our listeners have some tips on how to deal with self-isolation during the coronavirus pandemic.

A person wearing a military uniform stands on the street next to a palm tree

Analysis: Big data may predict where —but not when —conflict happens

Science & Technology

Machine-learning models can predict the location of future military conflicts but they’re not so good at predicting when they will happen.