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Top headlines
Lead story
When you open a medicine bottle, it’s reasonable to expect that the pills inside are safe, effective and generally made to specification.
But that isn’t always true. Case in point: an ongoing recall of a cholesterol drug called atorvastatin.
Atorvastatin – a statin better known by its brand name, Lipitor – is the top-selling medication in the U.S., with over 115 million prescriptions going to more than 29 million Americans.
The current recall of generic atorvastatin, announced last month, affects 142,000 bottles manufactured in India and distributed by a company in New Jersey. Those bottles contain enough tablets to fill a monthly prescription for potentially hundreds of thousands of patients.
Clinical pharmacist C. Michael White, from the University of Connecticut, lays out what exactly is being recalled and why. He also offers a wider perspective on drug safety. As many aspects of drug manufacturing have moved overseas, he writes, the FDA has struggled to stay abreast of quality testing that’s required for drugs sold in the U.S., leaving consumers “largely at the mercy of spotty inspections and testing.”
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Alla Katsnelson
Associate Health Editor
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Several batches of the drug did not dissolve properly, which means the person taking them would receive a lower dose.
Chimperil59/iStock via Getty Images
C. Michael White, University of Connecticut
This recall affects America’s most prescribed drug. It’s the latest in a series of concerning manufacturing issues that have come to light over the past few years.
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Arts + Culture
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Canton Winer, Northern Illinois University
One similarity between people who seek to reinforce gender binary and those who seek to expand beyond it is the idea that everyone has a gender.
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International
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Peter Rutland, Wesleyan University; Elizaveta Gaufman, University of Groningen
Moscow’s framing of its enemies as ‘Anglo-Saxon’ follows a strategy of misusing history to justify the invasion of Ukraine.
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Education
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Eli Alshanetsky, Temple University
Students – and all manner of professionals – are tempted to outsource their thinking to AI, which threatens to undermine learning and credibility. A philosophy professor offers a solution.
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Science + Technology
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Iain Boyd, University of Colorado Boulder
The Russian military claims to have flown its Burevestnik nuclear-powered cruise missile 8,700 miles over 15 hours.
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Carl F. Weems, Iowa State University
Whichever side of an issue you’re on, it’s likely that at the root of what gets you fired up are deep, fundamental human fears about mortality, moral responsibility and meaning.
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Tyler J. Woodward, University of Iowa
Tardigrades make a unique damage suppressor protein that researchers are working to harness for medicine, space, agriculture, data storage and more.
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Mariel Borowitz, Georgia Institute of Technology; Brian Gunter, Georgia Institute of Technology
The US doesn’t currently have much ability to monitor what’s going on in the space around the Moon. An effort by the Air Force Research Laboratory could help.
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Economy + Business
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Robert Applebaum, Miami University
Florida relies on marketplace plans far more heavily than any other state. If subsidies are eliminated, health insurance will be unaffordable for many Floridians.
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Richie Zweigenhaft, Guilford College
Psychologist Richie Zweigenhaft found a link between signature size and self-esteem. A growing body of research has since established a link to narcissism as well.
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Politics + Society
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Ryan D. Griffiths, Syracuse University
As support for secessionist movements increases, it’s vital that political leaders reduce the divisions that threaten to tear the US apart.
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Health + Medicine
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Joshua Anbar, Arizona State University
A greater understanding and acceptance of autism creates opportunities for people with autism to thrive.
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Carlos Coronel, Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez ; Agustín Ibáñez, Trinity College
Taking up a hobby like art, dance or music classes could have significant hidden benefits.
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