Newsletter Archive

Wild parties and heavy drinking are often associated with American college life. Some university students may be missing meals so they can drink more or get drunk faster. VOA’s Learning English explores the behavior researchers call ‘drunkorexia.’

Waist-deep water, full of sewage, is what residents in Louisiana are coping with in what the Red Cross says is the worst U.S. disaster since Hurricane Sandy ravaged parts of the Northeast in 2012. Even more rain is expected this week, as neighbors turn to each other for help.

Borscht anyone? American students are learning Russian in a Virginia school district. They’re immersing themselves in a summer program where they must speak Russian at all times. The students might not know it, but they’re taking part in a program that impacts U.S. national security.

VIDEO: Take a look at these underground Islamic State tunnels that go for blocks. VOA is with Kurdish forces as they push their way toward the IS stronghold of Mosul in Iraq. Along the way, they’re discovering an elaborate maze of hidden passages below ground.

What happens to people who have lived under Islamic State control for two years? Experts tell us large numbers of people have disappeared at checkpoints, and there are assumptions that many coming out of IS-controlled areas were there by choice. Large-scale acts of revenge and retaliation could be next.

Terror attacks in Belgium and France draw lots of media attention but the truth is that 98 percent of terror-related fatalities have occurred outside of Western Europe and the United States. By far, the vast majority of victims of terrorist attacks over the past 15 years have been Muslims killed by Muslims.

The date was set and the guests invited, but a scheduled mass wedding in Nigeria was cancelled for apparent political reasons. The government encourages — and pays for — mass Islamic weddings, which some believe promote gender equity, but others say the practice lands women — and some men — in a lot of trouble.

If you’re willing to shell out $5,000 for a purse that’s supposed to save you money, then a personal finance website might have the perfect handbag for you. After all, it would be hard to make that ‘OMG, I have to have it’ purchase if your purse suddenly starts shuddering, beeping and self-locks to prevent impulse spending.