Children are participating in extracurricular activities more often than two decades ago, according to data from the Census Bureau, but participation rates vary significantly along demographic lines such as income level.

For that reason, schools and organizations are working to bridge the access gap and provide opportunities for play and ...Read more

In 1995, Pixar Animation Studios released "Toy Story," the first computer-generated 3D-animated feature film, to glowing reviews, kicking off 15 years of critical adoration. In 2008, "Wall-E" landed on more film critics' top 10 lists than any other film, and when it wasn't nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars, the Academy caught heat. ...Read more

In 1903, Horatio Nelson Jackson, a physician from Vermont, his mechanic, Sewall Crocker, and Jackson's dog, Bud, made the first cross-country road trip. It took the group about 63 days to drive from coast to coast.

Mudslides, torrential rain, breakdowns, and a complete lack of roads and bridges at several critical junctures impeded their ...Read more

One of the best ways to get to know the spirit of a place is through its food. Whether it's beignets in New Orleans or oysters in Maine, regional cuisine is a portal to the histories, values, traditions, and communities that shape the communities we live in and visit.

Food culture deeply depends on the success of local restaurants, bars, ...Read more

The Maine Medical Association, a professional organization of about 4,000 doctors and medical students, formally called for universal health care insurance coverage in September. The group joins four other medical associations and several advocacy groups representing the state's physicians, and they are urging lawmakers for a national system-...Read more

After the Soviet Union successfully launched the first-ever artificial satellite in 1957, the competition between the United States and its Cold War rival became more urgent. The Space Race, a technological and ideological competition to explore outer space, began earnestly with both sides eager to launch satellites and put living creatures in ...Read more

The exodus from major metropolitan areas that peaked during the COVID-19 pandemic—when people fled large cities in part due to pandemic restrictions, small living spaces, and the high cost of rent and real estate—is continuing. Census data shows that interstate migration rates are sliding back to pre-pandemic rates, but the trend of moving ...Read more

They move us through the world, but automobiles play an even more significant role in our daily lives and culture.

More than simply a mode of transportation, a car can be a form of self-expression, a marker of social and economic status, and a reflection of the times. Dating back to the 15th century when Italian polymath Leonardo da Vinci ...Read more

As Kirsten Neuschäfer sailed toward Les Sables-d'Olonne, France, on April 27, 2023, she knew her nearly eight-month journey was almost complete. What she didn't know was that she was about to become the first woman to win the Golden Globe Race.

"I didn't know until I was about 7 miles from [Les Sables-d'Olonne] that I had won," the South ...Read more

Tens of millions of American business owners have only one person on their payroll: themselves.

They're the lone wolves of the U.S. workforce, yet they comprise about 80% of U.S. small businesses. And they've been growing in numbers for at least a decade, reaching 27 million in 2022.

Formally referred to as "nonemployer" businesses, these...Read more

Your body is home to a vast ecosystem of trillions of microorganisms, mainly in the large intestine. All those bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites make up what's called your gut microbiome. They primarily exist in a symbiotic relationship with you, their host, helping break down cellulose fiber, supplying essential nutrients, and ...Read more

Though many jobs moved from in-person to remote during the COVID-19 pandemic, nursing was certainly at the top of the essential in-person list. But virtual nursing actually began to take hold during the pandemic—and may still play a vital role in the medical field in the very near future.

For that reason, Vivian Health took a closer look ...Read more

When players enter casinos, they may be game to try out their luck, but casinos are meticulously designed to ensure that they play as long as possible—lucky or not. Casinos conveniently have no windows, so patrons have a harder time tracking the time passing at the tables. They serve free drinks to gamblers to help loosen inhibitions (and ...Read more

The right combination of place, time, and frame of mind can inspire works of creativity that live on throughout history. Could Thoreau have thought up the words "a man is rich in proportion to the number of things which he can afford to let alone" were he anywhere but by Walden Pond? Would The Beatles' "White Album" have been as transcendent if...Read more

Household spending on restaurant food has grown at a faster rate than spending on groceries since restaurants began recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a Simply Business analysis of recent data from the Census Bureau and the Department of Agriculture.

So far this year, Americans are spending about $73 billion on groceries per...Read more

Skin cancer diagnosis rates are on the rise across the developed world. Between 1975 and 2018, American melanoma incidence rates more than tripled from 7.9 to 25.3 cases per 100,000 people, according to a study published in 2021; today, melanoma represents the fifth-most common type of cancer in the country. The reasons for this increase are ...Read more

With cars rapidly gaining popularity in the early 20th century, an American businessman in Tulsa, Oklahoma, had a vision of a network of highways connecting the whole country.

Starting small in 1901 as a businessman and county commissioner, Cyrus Avery was nominated in 1925 to the newly formed Joint Board on Interstate Highways, a federal ...Read more

The typical image of tutoring, where an individual instructor comes to a student's home every week, has evolved considerably in recent years.

These days, tutoring may involve individualized instruction at home, school, or a learning center. Instruction can now be offered online at a potentially lower cost and with greater flexibility. Hybrid...Read more

Dr. Desi Small-Rodriguez calls her traveling data science lab her "Data War Pony." It's a huge trailer—a classroom on wheels equipped with computers and software, wrapped with ledger art by Dakota artist Holly Young. Small-Rodriguez, researcher, data advocate, and professor, rolls up to tribal communities in the lab (by invitation) to support...Read more

Films about musicians and the music business have long captured the public imagination. In recent years, movies like "Elvis" and "Bohemian Rhapsody" have illuminated the personal struggles behind highly public music legends, a trend that shows no sign of slowing down, as movies about Bob Marley, Carole King, and Leonard Bernstein are all either...Read more