The New Republic

From an alert Study tipster comes harrowing news out of Boxford, Massachusetts, where a “roving group of cows” burst into a backyard party and “bullied the guests for their beer.” The cows, which had roamed far from their pastures, were spotted by police officers on a Boxford resident’s front lawn. READ MORE >>

Today, Egyptians are voting in an historic presidential election. It’s the first competitive presidential vote in the country’s history, and election monitors from organizations like the Carter Center are there to ensure the integrity of the process. There’s obviously some risk involved—the monitors may, in fact, find evidence of vote-tampering. Why do countries agree to have international observers inspect domestic political events? READ MORE >>

May is National Bike Month, and today is Bike To Work Day. It’s a pretty big event here in D.C.: Last year, over 11,000 people participated, and turnout is likely to be even higher this year (aided in part by the rapid expansion of a bikeshare program). READ MORE >>

Today, the White House is expected to announce new steps designed to ease investment in Burma, the notoriously closed-off country whose ruling junta, to nearly everyone’s surprise, has recently begun to liberalize. The White House’s decision follows years of sanctions against Burma, but it’s far from clear that sanctions spurred the government’s recent reforms. READ MORE >>

Yesterday, The Washington Post published a lengthy account of Mitt Romney’s years at prep school. READ MORE >>

Today, President Obama announced he supports gay marriage. The president revealed his position in a much-anticipated interview with ABC. READ MORE >>

Yesterday, voters in North Carolina approved a narrow-minded, mean-spirited, and poorly-written state constitutional amendment banning gay marriage. What happens now? READ MORE >>

Cole Hamels, the Philadelphia Phillies pitcher, has been given a five-day suspension for beaning Bryce Harper of the Washington Nationals on Sunday. READ MORE >>

Major political change is afoot in France, where a presidential election has brought anti-austerity politician François Hollande to power. In the face of the EU’s economic crisis, incumbent president Nicolas Sarkozy has cooperated closely with German chancellor Angela Merkel to push for tough austerity measures. Now, France’s leadership is poised to go in a different direction. READ MORE >>

At the 138th Kentucky Derby yesterday, “I’ll Have Another” outmatched the favorite, “Bodemeister,” for a victory by 1½ lengths. If you bet on him, you were in luck: As the Washington Post notes, I’ll Have Another faced 15-1 odds at racetime. Now, a few of you might bristle at the notion that picking a winner against the odds is merely “luck.” Can research shed any light on the dynamics of odds and wagers? READ MORE >>