Benchmark Blog

In a speech to Congress at the end of June, President Biden urged state and federal legislators to implement a three-month gas tax holiday.

On the whole, the research on millions of genealogy records shows that there’s nothing new about modern immigration. In fact, the only hint of something new is that immigration is becoming more popular—though a segment of the population is also becoming more anti-immigration at the same time.

Every June and July Ukraine starts harvesting winter wheat. The war with Russia may complicate things this year.

Farming is starting to look more like a Star Wars than Little House on the Prairie as they start to implement drones and more technology.

If you want gleaming, modern infrastructure worthy of the richest country on the planet, don’t focus on interest rates. Build state capacity.

October 4, 2021, Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp were down for almost six hours. What did people do? Will Rinehart dives into the data.

You think inflation is making us grumpy now? Just wait until we start running out of chocolate. Josh Smith explains in this blog post.

Former undergraduate research fellow Rachel Idso explains the US refugee resettlement program is like a paddleboard that has lost its keel.

Social media has been blamed for increased teen suicide and self-harm. Taylor Barkley shows it's more complicated than it is being portrayed.

The United States has always been a nation of immigrants. What has driven political hostility toward immigration and how can we change it?

With the fate of the world at stake, Project Hail Mary shows Earthlings how to innovate to save the planet. What lessons about working together and working quickly can we learn to not only address climate change but also cooperate with other life-forms in the universe?

In this post, Will Rinehart uses an economic model to estimate the real extent of broadband availability in the US.

David Miller makes the case that the higher the rate of immigration, the more pro-active integration policy needs to be in this blog post.

How can we make delivery more eco-friendly? Mitchell Pound discusses some potential solutions in this blog post.

On Earth Day, Josh Smith and Jennifer Morales discuss how more people, not fewer, can help in the fight against climate change.

On Earth Day, Will Rinehart reminds us that: The only way to make Earth a better place is by joining abundance and ingenuity.

An ongoing list of how veto points have slowed development, transportation projects, housing, and people trying to start a business.

Immigration enforcement has been rising at an unprecedented rate. Catalina Amuedo-Dorantes discusses the fallout and how to change our assimilation approach.

Among the many causes of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, one that stands out is Europe’s dependence on Russian natural gas. Eli Dourado explains.

When addressing pollution, we can’t allow environmental perfection to get in the way of environmental progress. Joe Davis explains.

Josh Smith makes the case for why the US should grant Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to Ukraine refugees after the Russian invasion.

In February 2022, Facebook (now Meta) stock dropped almost 30%, Will Rinehart explains why that happened and the policy implications from it.

Senior research fellow Eli Dourado discusses some of the features and strengths of Web3 in this blog post.

How will the states spend billions of dollars on broadband in 2022? Sarah Oh of the Technology Policy Institute answers in a blog post.

Establishing urban green spaces and a nationwide wildlife corridor system would help conservation efforts of wildlife and natural habitats.

How has public opinion shifted over the years on immigration? Matthew Wright and Morris Levy explain in this blog post.

What is enlightened nationalism and why should it be at the forefront of immigration conversations? Alexander Kustov explains in this blog.

Brian Whitacre’s essay on rural broadband is the second in a series on broadband. He discusses the effect on rural areas.

What are GEIR programs and why should every U.S. university have one? David Jung and Josh Smith explain in this blog post.

In the infrastructure bill, over $60 billion goes to expanding broadband. Doug Dawson explains why labor shortages could slow down deployment.