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Texas broadened its terrorism law in 2023; a new prosecution is testing how far it reaches. Bo Zaunders/Getty

Texas prosecutors are calling a teenage shooting spree ‘terrorism’ – the case could reshape American criminal law

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For decades, terrorism researchers have generally distinguished terrorism from other forms of violence by one defining feature: the intention to intimidate a wider audience beyond immediate victims.

That distinction has shaped both academic research and criminal prosecutions in the U.S. Yet scholars have long debated a deceptively ...Read more

President Donald Trump boards Air Force One on July 1, 2026, at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland.  Finn Gomez/Getty Images

Air Force One is more than transportation – it has defined how presidents run the country and meet the world

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Air Force One used to be a high-flying symbol of American technology, ingenuity and power. For many, it was also a source of national pride.

The current Boeing 747s that serve as Air Force One are a combination transport vehicle, command center, press room, medical center and apartment, complete with bedroom and office for the nation�...Read more

A lot goes into making sure your muscles can move your body. Kentaroo Tryman/Moment via Getty Images

What makes muscles contract? A physiologist explains how muscles move

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Curious Kids is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to CuriousKidsUS@theconversation.com.

What makes the cells of the muscles contract? – Samarth, age 13, India

Muscles are amazing. They’re what let you strum a guitar, kick a soccer ball and high-five your ...Read more

In the months of March, April, May and June 2026, Pennsylvania saw a total of 852 reports of severe weather. SeanPavonePhoto/iStock via Getty Images Plus

Severe storms battered Pittsburgh twice as often as usual this spring – a meteorologist explains why

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It’s no secret: This year has been a bad one so far for severe thunderstorms around Pittsburgh. In fact, it has been quite an active season throughout the Ohio Valley and a large part of the Midwest.

How bad has it been? In the months of March, April, May and June 2026, Pennsylvania saw a whopping 852 reports of severe weather. By ...Read more

Birding is a good way to practice mindfulness, psychologists report.  Jennifer Andrews

Flocking together – how a birding hobby may boost your mental health and build community

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If you’ve ever found yourself stuck in a rut while cooped up all day at a nine-to-five job, or just felt stressed about work, school or life in general, you’re not alone. Hearing “just go outside” might sound like trivial advice, but researchers have been investigating a new, unconventional strategy to boost mental health: Seeking the...Read more

Falun Gong practitioners march in London, calling for an end to persecution by the Chinese Communist Party. James Willoughby/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

What is Falun Gong and why does the Chinese Communist Party want to suppress it?

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I joined members of the Falun Gong spiritual movement at Chatter Park in Hong Kong on May 13, 2000, as they celebrated World Falun Dafa Day. The annual event commemorates the anniversary of the day the group claims its leader, Li Hongzhi, first made Falun Gong practices public.

Under the hot midday sun, surrounded by police and camera...Read more

Vaccine skeptics have been around as long as vaccines have – for more than 200 years.  Volanthevist/Moment via Getty Images

How vaccine skeptics use storytelling effectively to create powerful but medically inaccurate messaging

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As long as there have been vaccines, there have been people who doubted their science and safety.

Back in 19th-century England, people rioted against a mandatory smallpox vaccine, claiming that it violated civil rights and was an affront to human bodily integrity. In the United States, organizations dedicated to resisting vaccines ...Read more

D.A. Varela/Miami Herald/TNS

Lawsuit claims government isn't doing enough to protect Florida's Queen Conch

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MIAMI — The Queen Conch, a giant sea snail and unofficial mascot of the Florida Keys, was listed as endangered on Valentine’s Day, 2022. Once a species is listed under the Endangered Species Act, the federal government has to identify and protect the “critical habitat” essential to its recovery.

That still hasn’t happened.

The ...Read more

Benjamin Fanjoy/Getty Images North America/TNS

Michigan cyclosporiasis cases rise to 9,200

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DETROIT — The number of cyclosporiasis cases reported in Michigan since the outbreak began in late June rose to 9,253 on Monday, a 13% increase over Friday's total.

Health officials continue to investigate the state's worst-ever outbreak of the parasitic illness, which usually only affects around 50 people each year. As of Thursday, 160 ...Read more

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Michigan man killed wife, 6 kids before taking his own life in Grand Haven Township, police say

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DETROIT — Roughly a week before she was killed along with her six children, Amanda Karolkiewicz of Grand Haven Township posted multiple TikTok videos of a trip she took to China earlier this month with her two daughters.

Smiling and dressed in one post in a traditional Hanfu style of clothing with her makeup and hair done, the 39-year-old ...Read more

Andrew Harnik/Getty Images North America/TNS

Trump tells Michigan crowd they'll see economic results 'soon'

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MILFORD, Mich. — President Donald Trump touted his administration's efforts to boost manufacturing and combat inflation during a speech in Michigan on Monday, telling people they will "see results very soon."

Trump's remarks came eight days before the battleground state's Aug. 4 primary election and 99 days before the November general ...Read more

-/AFP/Getty Images North America/TNS

Trump says there's a 'good chance' of an Iran deal amid pause

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WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said the United States and Iran were engaged in diplomatic talks to end the Middle East conflict, but warned the two sides would return to fighting if negotiations didn’t yield a deal.

“The only reason they want to meet is because we’ve been hitting them very hard,” Trump told reporters Monday ...Read more

Kyle Green/Pool/Getty Images North America/TNS

'Actual innocence is my truth': Bryan Kohberger now wants a trial, report says

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BOISE, Idaho — Almost 13 months after he pleaded guilty, Bryan Kohberger claims he’s innocent and says he will fight his conviction for murdering four University of Idaho students.

For a New York Times report published Monday, Kohberger provided a statement and interview for the first time since he was sentenced to four consecutive life ...Read more

Luiz C. Ribeiro/New York Daily News/TNS

Former Adams chief of staff Frank Carone taps heavy hitters to fight federal bribery charges

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NEW YORK — Former New York Mayor Eric Adams' chief of staff Frank Carone has put together a list of high-profile lawyers to fight federal charges he took bribes to steer millions of dollars in migrant shelter contracts.

Carone, 56, who was indicted in June on charges he accepted bribes to steer the emergency contract to a Queens hotel owner, ...Read more

Eric Thayer/Los Angeles Times/TNS

California's vote count was painfully slow. Can this proposal speed it up for November?

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In the wake of a painfully slow June vote count in California that led to unfounded claims of election irregularities, a voter watchdog group Monday recommended the state and counties carry out a number of voting reforms that could speed up tabulations. Not all of them, however, are likely to happen before November.

The California Voter ...Read more

ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP/Getty Images North America/TNS

New federal rule sends hundreds of thousands of asylum cases to immigration courts

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WASHINGTON — In its latest move to restrict the legal immigration system, the Trump administration announced a sweeping change Monday that could lead to the deportations of thousands of asylum-seekers.

The change from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services allows asylum officers to bypass the need to interview certain applicants and ...Read more

Frederic J. Brown/Getty Images North America/TNS

Slain teen threatened to destroy singer D4vd's career before she was killed, messages show

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LOS ANGELES — Celeste Rivas Hernandez told the singer D4vd she would destroy his career and ruin his life roughly 24 hours before prosecutors say he killed the teenager, according to text messages made public Monday morning in court.

After an argument about a relationship between another woman and the singer, whose legal name is David Anthony...Read more

Brittny Mejia/Los Angeles Times/TNS

A year after California labor leader arrested at immigration protest, feds move to drop case

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LOS ANGELES — Federal prosecutors on Monday filed a motion to dismiss the case against David Huerta, the labor leader who was arrested during the first day of a series of immigration raids the Trump administration carried out in the region last summer.

In the court filing, prosecutors said "pursuant to an agreement of the parties," they were ...Read more

Finn Gomez/Getty Images North America/TNS

Mitch McConnell continuing recovery, not yet cleared to return to Senate

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Sen. Mitch McConnell is not yet medically cleared to return to work or leave the rehabilitation facility where he’s receiving care following his fall at home last month, his office shared late Monday morning.

McConnell, who was hospitalized June 14, released a statement that said the 84-year-old Kentucky senator is still recovering and ...Read more

Andy Morrison/The Detroit News/TNS

Gordie Howe International Bridge welcomes first vehicles from Michigan

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WINDSOR, Canada — The long-awaited Gordie Howe International Bridge opened to traffic around 10:30 a.m. Monday, the culmination of eight years of construction and two decades of planning by the Canadian government.

A Detroit News reporter and photographer were among the first 10 vehicles to cross the new 1.5-mile, six-lane Detroit River ...Read more