Chimpanzees, our closest relatives, turn a blind eye to crimes that don’t affect them directly, suggesting that third-party punishment— the foundation of complex societies governed by laws s and courts—is a uniquely human development. German researchers trained chimpanzees to 1 play one of three roles while facing one another in cages: One was given access to food within reach of […]
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Radioactive residue from the Cold War could provide a valuable tool for stemming the deadly trade in illegal ivory, National Geographic News reports. Poachers killed an estimated 30,000 African elephants last year alone for their tusks—an ongoing slaughter that threatens the long-term survival of the species, whose population numbers about 500,000. Ending poaching has been nearly impossible because it is […]
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American culture is sick, and secularism is the cause of our disease. That, said Steve Chapman, is the contention of religious conservatives like presidential candidate Rick Santorum, who insist that feminists, liberals, and gay marriage have undermined traditional morality, and that only a return to our Christian roots will cure what ails us. But all evidence suggests that this view […]
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The question has puzzled criminologists for decades: Why did violent crime rates start to soar across the U.S. from the 1960s, before beginning “a spectacular decline” in the 1990s—a decline that’s continued ever since? Theories abound, from improved policing strategies to the end of the crack epidemic. But a more likely possibility is a molecule, said Kevin Drum in Mother […]
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BERLIN (AP) — German police have arrested five South Koreans on suspicion of murder following the death of a relative in an exorcism ritual in the city of Frankfurt, prosecutors. Officers discovered the body of the 41-year-old woman in a hotel room when the suspects called a priest after it became apparent that the victim had died, prosecutor Nadja Niesen […]
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A 12-year-old Florida boy was arrested after stealing an 89-year-old man’s car after telling the man he needed to check his tires. The boy, who St. Petersburg authorities say has been arrested at least 20 times, is allegedly seen on surveillance footage approaching a car while on his bike. The brazen boy then jumps into the driver’s seat of the elderly man’s car and […]
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Dresden, Germany A German police officer has confessed to murdering a businessman who had a sexual fantasy of being killed and eaten. The officer, 55, identified as Detlev G., said he met his victim in an Internet chat room billed as “the No. 1 website for exotic meat,” where those who want to be cannibalized meet those who want to […]
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