Shop
 Explore 

citizenship democracy

Health

Take an audio adventure with some of the best 'binaural soundscapes'

All you need is a pair of headphones.

Canva

A total mind expanding experience is a click away.

I found a hidden gem on the Internet this week: NPR has a Soundcloud set of "binaural soundscapes." Strap on your headphones — it's going to be a surreal ride.Important note: If you have hearing loss, this may not work well for you.

Maybe you don't know what a binaural recording is.

Basically, the deal is, you have two ears.

They are the width of your head apart. And there's a big lumpy meatball in the middle. So your ears hear different things. Then your brain processes these two distinct streams of information and uses them to position stuff in space. Standard stereo recording often uses a couple of mics, but it's not trying to position them in a way that mimics your ears.

Keep ReadingShow less

Noah was still a new host for "The Daily Show," and knocked it out of the park with his signature wit we would all come to love.

Daily Show/Youtube

Trevor Noah as a host on 'The Daily Show'

A previous episode of "The Daily Show" addressed two hot-button issues at the same time: abortion and gun control.

It was one of the earliest tests for new host Trevor Noah, and he pretty much knocked this one out of the park. The segment began with a discussion about the pro-life movement's laser focus on making completely legal abortions really, really hard to get.

Noah started with the movement's push to defund Planned Parenthood on what turned out to be deceptive, altered, and debunked videos. And even he had to admit, pro-lifers are pretty great at what they do, given that they were able to get Congress to hold hearings based on ... nothing, really.

Keep ReadingShow less

trevor noah

Lawyers' Committee

Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights

Trans students' rights are at risk, but they aren't alone.

On Feb. 22, the Trump administration formally rescinded Obama-era guidelines protecting transgender students from discrimination — but hope for trans students remains.

The Obama administration's now-rescinded letter was merely guidance to school districts as to whether existing law provides anti-discrimination protection on the basis of students' gender identity, something that's likely to be determined this year when the Supreme Court hears 17-year-old transgender student Gavin Grimm's case.

What makes the Trump administration's action harmful is not a matter of whether this changes the rights of trans students (it doesn't or, at least, it shouldn't). It's harmful because it signals to those who want to deny those rights that the administration won't intervene on behalf of trans students.

Keep ReadingShow less

citizenship democracy

All you need is a pair of headphones.

Basically, the deal is, you have two ears.

Recording artists have started building these crazy microphone setups that imitate the position and direction of your real ears.

It's like a window into other landscapes. It makes the world feel so close and small and familiar.

First stop: A regular day on a street in Tibet.

Next up, a stop in the Ecuadorean rain forest to hear the song of the orapendula. (It's a bird. I looked it up.)

Let's wrap up with a visit to Dzanga Bai, a clearing in the Central African Republic, where elephants gather as evening closes in.

For more magical journeys, check out the rest of NPR's Binaural Soundscapes.

Noah was still a new host for "The Daily Show," and knocked it out of the park with his signature wit we would all come to love.

If pro-lifers are so concerned about the preservation of all lives, Noah wonders, then why don't they support common-sense gun control measures?

Noah then brilliantly compared reactions from two "pro-life" presidential candidates on the Oregon shooting and on abortion.

In closing, Noah posed this to pro-lifers: If you actually care about lives, do something about guns.

Watch the complete segment in the video below.

From the skies to the ground, these airplanes continue to serve a purpose.

What happens to airplanes after they're no longer fit to roam the skies?

Photojournalist Taylor Weidman recently stopped by a graveyard in Bangkok, Thailand.

Life in the graveyard is about as bare-bones as it gets.

Weidman's photos shine a light on the luxuries we so often take for granted in life; namely, the ability to travel.

Most of all, Weidman's photos tell a story about the importance of empathy.

This stunning collection of photos brings just a brief glimpse of what it's like to step into their shoes; something we should all strive to do more often.

Remember: You're not alone out there.

Wondering how Trevor Noah become the Daily Show host? Watch this.

Trevor Noah, one of the newest correspondents on "The Daily Show," hails from South Africa.

Noah invited his new boss and their viewers to see a different side of Africa by playing a game. You can play along too.

Round 1

Answer:

Round 2

Answer:

Last Round

Answer:

OK, so Africa isn't just the giant mass of despair it's often made out to be. But what exactly is Noah getting at?

So let's stop paternalizing all of Africa. Our country has its own problems to deal with.

Trans students' rights are at risk, but they aren't alone.

On Feb. 22, the Trump administration formally rescinded Obama-era guidelines protecting transgender students from discrimination — but hope for trans students remains.

In response, protests popped up in New York, Washington, and San Francisco to show support for trans students.

A recent estimate from UCLA's Williams Institute shows that around 150,000 youth between the ages of 13 and 17 identify as transgender — roughly 0.7% of the population.

Some have argued that allowing trans students to use bathrooms and locker rooms that match their gender identity will put other students at risk. This has been thoroughly debunked.

In 2015, Media Matters spoke with officials in 17 school districts with transgender protections, representing more than 600,000 schools. The total number of problems? Zero.

Trans kids just want to exist in a world free from bullying, free from discrimination. That's all.