Did the U.S. weaponize ticks?

Considering the U.S.'s history of biological warfare, maybe this theory isn't as crazy as it sounds.

Image source: BERTRAND GUAY / AFP / Getty Images
  • Some believe that the Lyme-ridden ticks on the East Coast of the U.S. are the product of government experiments in biological warfare.
  • Under this theory, the ticks were released accidentally or on purpose, exposing millions to the extremely dangerous disease.
  • There's good cause to be skeptical, but the U.S. has a history of conducting biological warfare tests on its own civilians; maybe there's something to it?
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Politics & Current Affairs

Bank of England to honor Alan Turing on £50 note

"It is almost impossible to put into words the difference that Alan Turing made to society."

Bank of England
  • The late British mathematician and theoretical computer scientist Alan Turing will appear on Britain's 50-pound note starting in 2021.
  • Turing is best known for helping to crack the Nazis' Enigma machine, a feat that's estimated to have cut World War II short by two years.
  • The British government, which chemically castrated Turing in 1952 for "homosexual acts," officially apologized to Turing in 2009.
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Culture & Religion

We spoke to survivalists prepping for disaster: Here’s what we learned about the end of the world

The Doomsday clock has never been closer to midnight.

We are all fucked. A crude though oft-uttered sigh which tries to encapsulate an intense, but vague anxiety we experience on many fronts. What's causing it?

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natural disaster population war security sustainability society
Politics & Current Affairs

U.S. in Top 10 of most dangerous countries for women

#MeToo and #TimesUp catapult America into the club of world's most anti-women countries

Image: Statista / Thomson Reuters Foundation (CC)
  • India tops a global ranking of most dangerous countries for women
  • Most other countries in the Top 10 cluster together in an Indo-Arab-African window of 'female-unfriendliness'
  • One outlier: the United States – 10th most dangerous country for women
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Strange Maps

5 facts you should know about the world’s refugees

Many governments do not report, or misreport, the numbers of refugees who enter their country.

David McNew/Getty Images

Conflict, violence, persecution and human rights violations led to a record high of 70.8 million people being displaced by the end of 2018.

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Politics & Current Affairs