Meet the parenting expert who thinks parenting is a terrible invention There’s no shortage of books, magazines and websites offering parenting advice. But the idea that parents can turn children into better and more successful adults if only they use the right methods is completely misguided, says developmental psychologist and philosopher Alison Gopnik. Read Lynn Berger and Irene Caselli’s article here
Illustration of a cleaner at a large station This is a solution to poverty, human smuggling, and Europe’s ageing society. But hardly anyone wants it Europe is getting older. And fast. The good news: there’s a solution to this looming problem. The bad news: basically no one wants to go near it. Read Maite Vermeulen’s article here
Democracy isn’t working: five ideas that are already helping to fix the problem Innovations in people power are changing how government decisions are made, from Brazil to Kenya, Switzerland and Taiwan. Read Patrick Chalmer’s story here
Why we need hugs and handshakes to stay healthy Touch is the first sense we develop and vital for almost everything we do. Not being able to hug or shake hands really is detrimental to our health and to our ability to understand each other. Read Tanmoy Goswami’s article here
In praise of doubt: we should be less sure about everything. Right? Talking heads spout forth online and in the media, each new opinion seemingly more assertive than the last. But the world is full of uncertainty. If you want to make better decisions, dare to doubt, embrace unpredictability and learn to think like a fox. Read Sanne Blauw’s story here
You might hate jellyfish. But almost everything in the ocean depends on them (and we do too) We fear the humble jellyfish so much that we deploy shredders to keep the ‘jellypocalypse’ at bay. But jellyfish are misunderstood: they’re crucial to ecology and the economy – we need to completely reimagine ocean conservation. Read Rebecca Helm’s story here
Coronavirus apps show governments can no longer do without Apple or Google Google and Apple forced governments to follow tighter privacy standards for coronavirus contact-tracing apps. This sounds like good news, but it also reveals our dependency on Big Tech. Read Morgan Meaker and Dimitri Tokmetzis’s article here
Why climate change is a civil rights battle Climate disasters are not ‘natural’ – they’re human made. If we want to fight climate change, we first need to tackle inequality and racism. Read Eric Holthaus’s article here
What racism really is (hint: it’s not your attitude or belief) Our obsession with racist attitudes can obscure the fact that racism is a system, devised to justify slavery, with a hierarchy that still defines the value of our lives today – that’s why you can be racist without being a racist. Read OluTimehin Adegbeye’s article here
US elections are bought. And the people paying don’t want the same things we do A new study finds just how divergent the interests of US partisan donors are from those of the party base. With the 2020 election expected to be the costliest ever, the potential for consensus narrows as politicians dial for dollars. Read Zaid Jilani’s article here
Why grandparents are the ultimate essential workers Since March, many societies have been split into distinct groups: vulnerable older people, essential workers, and the rest of us who must take precautions to keep others safe. It’s time we realised that our elders play a vital role in raising children – and they actually make us stronger. Read Lynn Berger’s article here