Immigration deal or bust?

Ahead of government shutdown, Congress sets its sights on not-so-comprehensive immigration reform [Click here to view this message in your web-browser](. Edition: US 19 January 2018 [[The Conversation]Academic rigor, journalistic flair]( Editor's note Today Senate Democrats appear ready to block a bill to fund the government if Republicans refuse to include a provision to protect “Dreamers,” the undocumented immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children. American University’s Matthew Wright points out that the wider issue with any potential deal on immigration is that it will be woefully short of long sought-after comprehensive reform. “The only remotely viable path to a ‘comprehensive’ deal, it seems, is to [leave millions of undocumented immigrants who are not Dreamers out in the cold](.” According to new data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 2017 was the third-warmest year on record. But that figure masks major extremes, from scorching heat last summer to arctic cold in late December. Economists Garth Heutel, David Molitor and Nolan Miller analyzed the impact of extreme temperatures on elderly people and found that both [very hot weather and very cold weather can be deadly](. When colleges began to make the SAT optional, the idea was to make selective colleges more accessible to low-income and minority students. Penn State scholar Kelly Ochs Rosinger explains why [things didn’t turn out that way](. Bryan Keogh Economics + Business Editor Top stories Senators meet with President Donald Trump to discuss immigration on Jan. 9, 2018. AP Photo/Evan Vucci [Ahead of government shutdown, Congress sets its sights on not-so-comprehensive immigration reform]( Matthew Wright, American University If they pass a deal on DACA, it's a win for both sides of the aisle and thousands of ‘Dreamers,’ but a loss for millions of undocumented immigrants. Extreme cold weather in Atlanta, Ga., on Jan. 3, 2018. AP Photo/David Goldman [Climate change and weather extremes: Both heat and cold can kill]( Garth Heutel, Georgia State University; David Molitor, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Nolan Miller, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Many parts of the US have experienced extreme heat or extreme cold in the past year. Recent research projects that climate change will increase deaths from both types of weather, especially cold spells. Students in New York City prep for the SAT in 2016 at a Kaplan Test Prep center. Shutterstock.com [If you thought colleges making the SAT optional would level the playing field, think again]( Kelly Ochs Rosinger, Pennsylvania State University Although proponents of making the SAT optional hoped it would expand college access for low-income and minority students, research shows that hasn't happened. Economy + Business - ['Dreamers' could give US economy – and even American workers – a boost]( Amy Hsin, City University of New York While comprehensive immigration reform may be out of reach, giving immigrants who came to the US as children citizenship not only has broad political support but makes economic sense too. - [Is the FBI's latest probe of the Clinton Foundation a 'witch hunt' – or something more?]( Jeffrey Berry, Tufts University The foundation initially seemed well-suited for cleaning up Bill Clinton's legacy after the Monica Lewinsky scandal's ugliness. That's no longer true. Health + Medicine - [Time to stop using 9 million children as a bargaining CHIP]( Simon Haeder, West Virginia University Funding for a children's health insurance program ran out at the end of last September. Despite the program's clear benefits, plans to renew it have been caught in partisan bickering. Ethics + Religion - [Tolerating distraction]( David Marno, University of California, Berkeley We disapprove of distraction and consider attention as being valuable. What if they were, in fact, morally charged words, referring to the same behavior? Here's what early Christian monks thought. Science + Technology - [50 years ago, a US military jet crashed in Greenland – with 4 nuclear bombs on board]( Timothy J. Jorgensen, Georgetown University In what came to be known as the Thule incident, an American bomber crashed in Greenland, spreading radioactive wreckage across 3 square miles of a frozen fjord. Denmark was not happy. Arts + Culture - [How social media helped fuel indie wrestling's resurgence]( Bill Zimmerman, Pennsylvania State University Could the WWE's grip on professional wrestling be weakening? From our international editions - [A new blood test can detect eight different cancers in their early stages]( Peter Gibbs, Walter and Eliza Hall Institute There are currently few effective and non-invasive methods to screen for early stages of cancer. But scientists have now developed a new blood test that promises to detect eight different cancers. - [Scientists are breeding super-nutritious crops to help solve global hunger]( Heather Ohly, University of Central Lancashire; Nicola Lowe, University of Central Lancashire Biofortification – enhancing the micronutrient concentration of staple crops – offers a sustainable solution to hidden hunger. - [Why Tunisians are back on the streets seven years after the Jasmine Revolution]( John Filitz, University of the Witwatersrand Seven years after ousting Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, Tunisians are back on the streets protesting the government’s new Finance Act. Today’s quote [It is reasonable to ask whether attention and distraction are simply two morally and culturally charged terms referring to what in reality is the same behavior.]( [Tolerating distraction]( David Marno University of California, Berkeley [David Marno] [Follow us on Twitter.]( [Join us on Facebook.]( You’re receiving this newsletter from [The Conversation](. Not interested anymore? [Unsubscribe instantly](. We’ll miss you. 89 South Street - Suite 202 Boston, MA 02111