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Top headlines
Lead story
Veterans Day, as it has been for over 100 years, is an opportunity to recognize the sacrifices of America’s military. Nov. 11 also provides a chance to learn more about U.S. troops. Who are they, and where do they come from?
Since taking office, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has addressed these questions in part by labeling the Defense Department “the woke department,” one that is imbued by the “insane fallacy that ‘our diversity is our strength,’” as he put it. But Gonzaga military scholar Jeremiah Favara writes that Hegseth’s complaints thoroughly misjudge diversity in the armed forces.
Favara, who has studied the U.S. military and written a book about its diversity, explains that today’s generation of veterans is the most diverse ever. That’s not because of “wokeness” but simply due to the nature of the all-volunteer force, which has relied on Americans from all walks of life to meet the U.S. military’s personnel and recruitment goals.
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Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth speaks to senior military leaders in Quantico, Va., on Sept. 30, 2025.
Andrew Harnik/Pool via AP
Jeremiah Favara, Gonzaga University
On Veterans Day, a look at how the Trump administration views diversity as a symptom of ‘woke’ culture rather than as a long-standing practice driven by the nature of the all-volunteer force.
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Education
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Paul L. Morgan, University at Albany, State University of New York; Eric Hengyu Hu, University at Albany, State University of New York
The achievement gap in reading is evident by students’ first year of school, according to a new study – making early intervention all the more important.
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Health + Medicine
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Kathryn H. Jacobsen, University of Richmond
Decreased vaccination rates have led to measles outbreaks in Canada and other countries.
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Environment + Energy
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Jason Gray, University of California, Los Angeles
The Tropical Forest Forever Facility is designed to reward countries for preventing deforestation. Charts show the magnitude of the problem.
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Politics + Society
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Robert B. Talisse, Vanderbilt University
Politicians get blamed for government shutdowns. But does the fault lie also with citizens, who are more invested in punishing partisan rivals than in demanding competent government?
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Austin Sarat, Amherst College
Florida leads the nation in executions in a year that has seen an increase in the number of inmates put to death nationwide.
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Science + Technology
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Daniel K. Schwartz, University of Colorado Boulder; Ankur Gupta, University of Colorado Boulder
Moving tiny particles through materials quickly can improve the efficiency of a variety of technologies.
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Ashley Brandebura, University of Virginia
Down syndrome results in changes to the structure and function of neural circuits in the brain. Delivering a specific protein to neurons could reverse these changes.
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International
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Bulbul Ahmed, University of Iowa; Bangladesh University of Professionals
A recent Security Council resolution to curb violence in Haiti was not just a local issue but a broader idea about how to stay relevant as a global organization.
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Kristin Brig, Washington University in St. Louis
Colonial era records reveal the intersection of race and access to water in South Africa’s history.
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