Thanks to deep-sea fish, the ocean absorbs about half of the carbon humans produce; Las Vegas’ main water supply is a lake that just hit record-low levels; meanwhile, Bowe Bergdahl would not be alone in the “honorable history of war deserters.” These discoveries and more below.

On a regular basis, Truthdig brings you the news items and odds and ends that have found their way to Larry Gross, director of the USC Annenberg School for Communication. A specialist in media and culture, art and communication, visual communication and media portrayals of minorities, Gross helped found the field of gay and lesbian studies.

Resignations Threat Over Taylor & Francis ‘Censorship’ A journal’s editorial board has been left on the brink of resignation after an eight-month standoff with its publisher Taylor & Francis over the publication of a debate on academic publishing and the profits made by major firms.

The U.S. Economy Finally Hit a Historic Milestone—and It Doesn’t Matter This is what the longest jobs recovery in American history looks like.

Fish Can Help Slow Down Global Warming—But Not If We Keep Eating Them Deep-sea fish transfer carbon into the depths of the ocean.

New Species Identified in Myanmar A dragon fish with intricate, maze-like markings on every scale, a frog with rough, chocolate-colored skin and a ginger plant are among more than two dozen flora and fauna species found in Myanmar since it emerged from a half-century of military rule and isolation.

How Comments Shape Perceptions of Sites’ Quality—and Affect Traffic Even if you don’t realize it, unmoderated comments change the way you think about what you read.

The Lake That Supplies Vegas With Most of Its Water Is Now at Record-Low Levels Thanks in part to the epic ongoing drought, the city’s main water supply just hit a frightening new milestone low recently.

Bowe Bergdahl and the Honorable History of War Deserters “Myths abound about deserters.” So begins an essay in the April 16, 1973, issue of The Nation.

Bees Build Mental Maps to Get Home Study suggests the insects do not rely solely on the Sun as a compass.

Israel-Palestine talks: What’s Mine Is Mine; What’s Yours Is Negotiable The U.S., chief guarantor for the Israeli-Palestinian talks for decades, is so habitually and instinctually pro-Israel that it can’t understand that the Palestinians even have a viewpoint, let alone what it is.

Israel’s Medieval Ban on Intermarriage Here is a simple infographic (possibly behind the Haaretz paywall) setting out how Israel has engineered a series of hurdles to prevent intermarriage, especially between Jews and non-Jews.

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