A Himalayan Balancing Act

In the rugged Himalayas, where borders are as much a matter of history and perception as of maps and rivers, Nepal’s new prime minister has offered an unusually candid assessment of his country’s long-running territorial quarrel with India. Speaking in…

From Cotton Fields to Rocket City

Two centuries ago, Alabama was a raw, restless frontier on the edge of the young American republic. In the 1820s, shortly after achieving statehood in 1819, it was a land of fertile river valleys and dense forests, drawing ambitious settlers…

A hard-won franchise

Few pieces of legislation have reshaped a democracy as profoundly as America’s Voting Rights Act. Signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson on August 6, 1965, at the height of the civil-rights struggle, the Act stands as one of…

In the Wired World, Society at Crossroads

Technology: Does it Connect–or Isolate? Technology’s promise of an ever‑smaller world contends with a paradox: we may be more connected than ever, yet many feel profoundly alone. Social media, AI companions and smartphones offer virtual worlds of “friends,” yet loneliness…