While it’s not the equivalent as making same-sex marriage legal, Vietnam’s recent move to lift the ban on gay marriage is a step in the right direction—and means that couples won’t face legal prosecution or fines if they try to get hitched in the South East Asian nation. The government still won’t officially recognize same-sex marriages, or provide legal protection for those in them, but …
1. Cornell Renames Institute After Carl Sagan Cornell University’s Institute for Pale Blue Dots is being renamed the Carl Sagan Institute: The Pale Blue Dot and Beyond in honor of the late astrophysicist and former Cornell faculty member. After Sagan’s wife and collaborator Ann Druyan visited the science center to give a speech, she was inspired by the innovative work being done and proposed the …
At the age of 13, in a remote Croatian minefield, Bay Area-native Kyleigh Kühn’s life changed forever. Visiting the war-torn region left an indelible mark on Kühn, inspiring her to join in Roots of Peace, an international non-profit organization founded by her mother that aims to aid in post-war recovery around the world—planting grapes where mines once laid. After a formative trip to Afghanistan, Kühn …
