The COVID-19 pandemic took an immense toll on the lives of most Americans. Still, for those already experiencing homelessness or housing and economic insecurity, the challenges presented by the public health crisis were nearly impossible to escape. For unhoused people, emergency shelters, which once promised at least temporary refuge from the elements, became sources of […]
Stacker
Posted inNews
Rhode Island among states with the most reported rental scams
Picture this: You’re hunting for an apartment and finally see an online listing in your price range that sparks your interest. You contact the property manager, file an application, and maybe even visit the property. But after you send them a security deposit and the first month’s rent, things take a turn. Maybe you’re told […]
Posted inNews
25 costliest hurricanes of all time
On the afternoon of Sept. 28, Hurricane Ian made landfall in Southwest Florida as a Category 4 storm. Winds reached 150mph, just a few miles shy of a Category 5 classification. Only four Category 5 hurricanes have ever hit the U.S., the most recent one being Hurricane Michael in 2018. By the following morning, at […]
Posted inNews
How "monkeypox" and other disease names have caused controversy
Naming diseases is a complicated business. To be useful, a name needs to be unique, descriptive, and memorable so it can be referenced easily, especially when medical situations become urgent. Though the easiest way to name illnesses may be just to give them identification numbers, that system becomes extraordinarily difficult to reference efficiently when time […]
Posted inNews
Natural gas prices are at a record high—here's what that means as the weather cools
Winter is coming—and so are higher energy bills for American consumers, thanks to a global shortage of natural gas and ongoing conflict in Eastern Europe. President Vladimir Putin of Russia has cut off multiple NATO countries’ access to his country’s oil and gas production in recent weeks, worsening already skyrocketing utility bills for small and […]
Posted inNews
Rates of women voter registrations are surging—particularly where reproductive rights are threatened
The Supreme Court’s reversal of Roe v. Wade in June confirmed what many Americans already knew—that the highly polarizing issue of abortion would continue to divide people personally and politically. But the decision also had a less predictable outcome: Women have been registering to vote at very high rates in several conservative states where abortion […]
Posted inNews
Here's what the most popular American vehicles actually cost the average driver
The cost of a car or truck is more than just the price you pay driving it off the lot. Every year, auto owners need to factor in a number of different costs to determine the true price of owning a particular model. Everything from the cost of repairs to the price of fuel goes […]
Posted inNews
How AP scores in 2021 compared to pre-pandemic scores
The disruption to education at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic was widespread, affecting how and where students learned. The lasting result has left a serious impact on what they’re learning too, according to standardized testing. Elementary students’ test scores in mathematics and reading plummeted between 2020 and 2022. For older students, Advanced Placement exams […]
Posted inNews
33 groundbreaking NASA missions in photographs
The universe is nearly 14 billion years old. Human existence makes up a tiny fraction of that time. If the history of Earth was made up of 24 hours, humans came into the picture just before 11:59 p.m.—and we’ve spent much of that time fascinated with space. For so long, we have posited theories and done our […]
Posted inNews
50 space terms for understanding the universe
The National Aeronautics and Space Agency, or NASA, was founded on July 29, 1958 when President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the National Aeronautics and Space Act, one year after the Soviets launched Sputnik 1, the world’s first artificial satellite. NASA was designed from the start to push the bounds of space exploration with research into aerospace and aeronautics as […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Books set in Rhode Island
Every state has its hallmark writers. Mississippi has William Faulkner and his incomparable (fictional) Yoknapatawpha County and Missouri can lay claim to Mark Twain. The state of Maine is gifted with Pulitzer winner Richard Russo and horror icon Stephen King. Rural Pennsylvania is the playground of the much-heralded (and occasionally maligned) John Updike, and when […]
Posted inNews
How to prepare for and recover from hurricanes
As Hurricane Ian approaches the west coast of Florida, more than 2 million people have already evacuated. The storm comes less than two weeks after Hurricane Fiona barreled through Puerto Rico in what was, until that point, a relatively quiet hurricane season. It’s easy to feel powerless while facing natural disasters of such epic proportions. […]
Posted inNews
Jewish holiday recipes for everyone to try
Jewish cuisine has long been influential in the U.S. and global food culture. Diaspora brought traditional Jewish foods across the world: Over centuries and continents, Jewish foods became part of the places Jews have migrated, just as diverse and rich regional foodways have shaped the evolution and reinterpretation of Jewish food. Because Ashkenazi Jews (of the […]
Posted inNews
Timeline of Jewish history in the US
One of the most compelling reasons for early settlers to immigrate to the Americas was to exercise their right to religious freedom. As a result, members of several minority religions, including Judaism, were some of the first to brave the journey across the Atlantic Ocean. The Jewish Virtual Library has records of the Jewish population […]
Posted inNews
COVID-19 changed how we eat out—here are the trends that are here to stay
Restaurants had to make major adjustments when dining rooms all over the world had to shut down due to COVID-19. Between delivery services and crafty outdoor seating arrangements, businesses got creative to keep customers interested in ordering—yet it still wasn’t enough to keep sales anywhere near pre-pandemic levels. The U.S. restaurant industry brought in about […]
Posted inNews
Rhode Island among 12 least affordable states for renters
Full-time workers are feeling the pinch in today’s rental market. A nationwide housing shortage and skyrocketing property values—coupled with fewer pay raises for the general working population in recent decades—are fueling a squeeze in the rental market. But how affordable is rent in your state? In order to assess affordability, Foothold Technology looked at rent […]
Posted inNews
Biggest days at the box office in film history
The movies with the biggest single-day box office hauls are either a sequel, remake, or part of a franchise, and all take place in worlds of science fiction and fantasy. Stacker analyzed data from The Numbers on films with the biggest single days at the box office in the United States and presented the top […]
Posted inNews
How federal COVID-19 educational aid was awarded to every state
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the federal government allocated $274.2 billion to help schools and students recover from the mass disruption in educational operations and development forced by remote learning models and other pandemic-related precautionary measures and methods. Approximately $189.5 billion of these funds were made available in three waves via the Elementary and Secondary School […]
Posted inNews
What hurricane season was like the year you were born
The fast winds, rapid rainfall, and huge storm surges of hurricanes make this natural disaster responsible for many deaths and millions of dollars worth of damage each year. Capable of triggering flash floods, mudslides, and tornadoes, even weak hurricanes can cause extensive destruction to property, infrastructure, and crops. Other hurricanes remain at sea and never […]
Posted inNews
6 tips for eating more mindfully
It’s easy to get distracted and rush through life. Between constant smartphone notifications, work emails, family obligations, and the never-ending scroll on social media, it’s no wonder the world is constantly operating in a state of hurry. Unfortunately, our eating habits tend to reflect that. With numerous fast food options and the ability to order […]
Posted inNews
How to become a poll worker—and other ways to encourage voting
Voting in America is as old as the country itself. From the first election in 1788, in which George Washington was unanimously elected president, to President Joe Biden’s victory over former President Donald Trump in 2020, voting for our leaders is one of the few parts of the political process that hasn’t changed much—though in […]
Posted inNews
3 home improvement projects with the highest payoff before and after COVID-19
That kitchen remodeling you’ve been saving for? It may not add as much value to your home today as it would have three years ago. That’s because, generally, returns on investment in home improvement projects are lower now than pre-pandemic. But there are still several upgrades—including a kitchen remodel—that can help homeowners recoup a majority […]
Posted inNews
Former jobs of the governor of every state
In 2018, 36 out of the nation’s 50 states held elections for governor. A record-shattering 16 women were major party nominees for governor, nine of which were successful, making the current number of female governors tied with the all-time high number set in 2004. The LGBTQ+ community also made historic strides, as Colorado’s Jared Polis […]
Posted inNews
10 industries with the most job openings
The U.S. economy has had a strong recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the International Monetary Fund. The unemployment rate has returned to 2019 levels and wage increases for lower-income workers have reduced income gaps. Inflation, however, has posed a problem. The country’s gross domestic product, or GDP, did drop in the first half […]
Posted inNews
Rhode Island monkeypox weekly update
On August 4, 2022, the Biden administration declared monkeypox a public health emergency. Since then, every state and Washington, D.C. has recorded cases of the virus, with the first death from monkeypox confirmed on August 30 in Texas. Though monkeypox is not a new disease—it was discovered in animals in 1958 and in humans in […]