Are you frustrated by the endless search for the next big crypto investment for 500x gains? You have watched others strike gold in the market, but every time you try, it feels like you’re just one step behind. The fear of missing out on life-changing returns keeps gnawing at you, leaving you wondering if there’s still a way to get ahead.
The crypto market can feel overwhelming, with thousands of altcoins vying for your attention. But what if you had a clear roadmap to navigate this maze and pinpoint the best altcoins to buy now—those poised to deliver massive returns in 2025?
The good news? Such opportunities exist. You can reap significant rewards by focusing on altcoins backed by innovative technology, real-world utility, and strong market potential.
In this article, we will explore five high-growth altcoins that are not just trends but transformative forces shaping the future of cryptocurrency. Let’s dive in and discover how you can gear up for returns with these cryptos in 2025.
Below-mentioned is a list of the best altcoins to buy now for massive returns in 2025:
Are you wondering why these five best altcoins are our top picks for 500x gains when there’s a sea of opportunities? Know about these crypto projects in-depth and understand their market positioning, which can help you secure 500x profits in 2025!
5thScape is at the forefront of a digital revolution, seamlessly blending blockchain technology with immersive virtual reality experiences. Built on Ethereum and utilizing Skale’s Layer 2 solutions, 5thScape delivers lightning-fast, low-cost, and highly secure transactions, setting a new benchmark for innovation in gaming, content creation, and decentralized ecosystems.

Click here to invest in the 5thScape VR ecosystem now >>
The platform’s vision is clear: to redefine the VR space by offering a decentralized environment where users can play, create, and thrive economically. With its ongoing presale raising over $8.3 million, 5thScape is already generating significant buzz among early adopters and crypto enthusiasts.
Priced at just $0.00433 during the presale, the 5SCAPE token represents a rare ground-floor opportunity for investors. With an official crypto exchange listing scheduled for January 2025, early buyers are positioned for an impressive 130% return from day one—a solid foundation for even greater long-term gains.
What sets 5thScape apart is its well-rounded ecosystem. It offers immersive VR games like Cage of Conquest and Immersive Kickoff, cutting-edge hardware such as a proprietary VR headset and SwiftScape gaming chair, and a decentralized marketplace for content creators to monetize their work.
The play-to-earn (P2E) model further enhances the platform, allowing players to earn 5SCAPE tokens by achieving in-game milestones. These tokens hold real-world value, enabling users to unlock premium content, buy exclusive in-game gear, or stake for annual returns as high as 365%.
The platform’s capped total supply of 5.21 billion tokens adds to the excitement, creating scarcity that is expected to drive up demand significantly post-listing. With the presale ending soon, the clock is ticking for investors to lock in their position before the limited circulating supply becomes a major factor in the token’s valuation surge.
For those looking to invest in the next big thing, 5thScape is more than just a cryptocurrency—it’s a gateway to the future of VR, gaming, and blockchain.
Act now, and you could be part of a transformative project that could potentially deliver life-changing returns. Don’t let this opportunity slip away!
Ripple is one of the most innovative projects in the cryptocurrency space, designed to revolutionize global financial transactions. Unlike traditional cryptocurrencies, XRP focuses on solving real-world problems, particularly in cross-border payments. Its primary objective is facilitating fast, cost-effective, and secure money transfers between banks and financial institutions, making it a strong contender for mass adoption.
What sets Ripple apart is its advanced blockchain technology, which eliminates the inefficiencies of traditional banking systems. XRP transactions settle in 3-5 seconds, with negligible fees that outclass traditional wire transfers and even most cryptocurrencies. This has positioned Ripple as a partner of choice for over 300 financial institutions, including Santander and American Express.
The XRP Ledger, Ripple’s decentralized blockchain, ensures robust security while maintaining scalability, capable of handling 1,500 transactions per second.
Moreover, Ripple is actively working towards regulatory clarity, leading to significant partnerships and adoption globally. With the recent partial victory in its ongoing legal battle with the SEC, Ripple is gaining renewed confidence from investors and institutions alike.
For 2025, XRP’s potential lies in its ability to capture an even larger share of the $156 trillion cross-border payment industry. As blockchain adoption grows, Ripple’s advanced infrastructure and real-world utility position it as a long-term winner.
For retail and institutional investors, XRP offers an opportunity to be part of a cryptocurrency that’s not just speculative but transformative in reshaping global finance.
Polkadot has emerged as a revolutionary blockchain protocol that addresses one of the most critical issues in the crypto space—interoperability. Designed by Dr. Gavin Wood, one of Ethereum’s co-founders, Polkadot enables multiple blockchains, or parachains, to operate together seamlessly. This creates a unified ecosystem where data and value can flow freely, unlocking unprecedented possibilities for decentralized applications (dApps).
Polkadot’s shared security model makes it unique, where all parachains benefit from the robust security of the main relay chain. This ensures that projects built on Polkadot remain both scalable and secure. Additionally, developers can create custom blockchains tailored to specific use cases without compromising interoperability, thanks to the Substrate framework.
The native token, DOT, plays a vital role in Polkadot’s ecosystem. It is used for governance, staking, and bonding, ensuring the network remains decentralized and community-driven. Investors can stake their DOT tokens to earn attractive rewards while contributing to the network’s security.
As blockchain technology moves toward mass adoption, Polkadot’s focus on scalability and interoperability gives it a competitive edge. By 2025, Polkadot is expected to become a hub for decentralized ecosystems, making DOT an asset with significant growth potential. Whether you are a seasoned investor or a newcomer, Polkadot offers a unique value proposition that combines innovation, utility, and sustainability.
Chainlink has established itself as the leading decentralized oracle network, a crucial component for connecting blockchain-based smart contracts with real-world data. In simple terms, Chainlink enables smart contracts to access external data feeds, APIs, and other off-chain resources, making it indispensable for industries like decentralized finance (DeFi), insurance, and supply chain management.
Chainlink’s robust infrastructure ensures data reliability and security. Its decentralized nature eliminates the risk of manipulation, ensuring smart contracts execute accurately based on real-world conditions. This unique capability has made Chainlink the go-to solution for significant blockchain projects, with integrations spanning Ethereum, Binance Smart Chain, Solana, and more.
The LINK token is central to Chainlink’s ecosystem, used as a payment mechanism for node operators and a staking tool to ensure data integrity. As the adoption of smart contracts grows, so does the demand for LINK, making it an attractive investment option.
Looking ahead, Chainlink is expanding its offerings with innovations like Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol (CCIP) and staking, further enhancing its utility and security.
By 2025, Chainlink is poised to play a critical role in bridging traditional industries with blockchain technology. For investors, LINK offers a rare combination of strong fundamentals and market demand, making it one of the best altcoins for long-term gains.
Initially created as a joke, Dogecoin has evolved into one of the most popular cryptocurrencies globally. What started as a lighthearted meme coin has garnered a passionate community, mainstream attention, and real-world utility. With endorsements from high-profile figures like Elon Musk, Dogecoin has demonstrated its staying power in the volatile crypto market.
Unlike Bitcoin, which is limited to 21 million coins, Dogecoin has an unlimited supply, making it an inflationary currency. While this might seem a drawback, it ensures DOGE remains a practical medium for everyday transactions. Its low transaction fees and fast processing times make it an ideal choice for tipping, charitable donations, and microtransactions.
In 2025, Dogecoin’s growth potential lies in its ability to capitalize on mainstream adoption. Recent developments, such as its integration with Tesla’s payment system and collaborations with retail platforms, highlight its growing utility. Moreover, the Dogecoin Foundation has developed technological upgrades to enhance the network’s scalability and security.
For investors, DOGE represents a unique opportunity. While its speculative nature carries risks, its massive community support and increasing real-world use cases make it a coin worth watching. As the crypto market matures, Dogecoin’s ability to transition from a meme to a functional digital asset could lead to significant gains.
When searching for the best altcoins to buy now, it’s crucial to evaluate each project’s long-term utility, scalability, and growth potential. Cryptocurrencies like 5thScape, Ripple, Polkadot, Chainlink, and Dogecoin offer unique value propositions that make them standout investments for 2025 and beyond.
Each of these projects taps into a distinct niche, from revolutionary VR-blockchain integration to cross-border payments and decentralized oracles, offering multiple opportunities for substantial returns.
Among these, 5thScape (5SCAPE) shines as the top contender. Its innovative approach to merging blockchain and VR technology, coupled with its capped supply and staggering presale success of $8.3 million, makes it a once-in-a-generation investment opportunity. With a confirmed listing and the potential for high staking rewards, 5thScape could set the stage for transformative returns in the coming years.
Ripple’s focus on revolutionizing cross-border payments, Polkadot’s groundbreaking interoperability, Chainlink’s indispensable oracle solutions, and Dogecoin’s surprising transition into real-world utility also make them noteworthy picks.
While each of these altcoins has a specific value proposition, 5thScape’s holistic ecosystem and groundbreaking technology position it as the leading choice for investors aiming for maximum returns.
As always, investing in cryptocurrencies requires due diligence and a clear understanding of the risks. Diversify your portfolio wisely, and seize the opportunity to be part of these groundbreaking projects as they shape the future of digital finance and technology.
This is a sponsored article. Opinions expressed are solely those of the sponsor and readers should conduct their own due diligence before taking any action based on information presented in this article.
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What is the Honey browser extension controversy? Details surrounding alleged scam explored as PayPal comes under fire  Sportskeeda
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What does “Love Actually” actually tell us about our relationships, and how to use questions — and … [+] the holidays — to make the most of them? Picture: Hugh Grant (R) and Martine McCutcheon arrive for the UK premiere of “Love Actually” in London, 16 November 2003. (ALESSANDRO ABBONIZIO)
“A two-hour whirlwind of improbable, questionable and downright daft scenes of love, propped up by a star-studded cast.” That’s how the BBC described “Love Actually” at the film’s 20th anniversary last year.
The Christmas classic has been critized for fat-shaming and lack of diversity, and, prompted by his own daughter, the director, Richard Curtis, has said that he feels “stupid and wrong” about certain elements of his movies.
But maybe this questionable love story with questionable characters making questionable decisions is just what we need to up our questioning game?
“Love Actually” is often described as a rom-com that follows the lives of eight different couples as they deal with their love lives a month before Christmas in London, England. But there is more to “Love Actually” than romantic relationships.
The movie also shines a warm and loving light on, 1) the relationship between strangers, 2) working relationships, including the relationship between leaders and employees, 3) the relationship between (step) parents and their kids, and even 4) the relationship we have with ourselves — yes, I am thinking of the self-encouraging declaration Kris Marshall’s character makes before leaving for the United States: “I’m Colin. God of Sex, I’m just on the wrong continent, that’s all.”
So, what does “Love Actually” actually tell us about our relationships, and how to use questions — and the holidays — to make the most of them?
“Do you love him?” Mark has been observing his best friend dancing with his bride for some time when Sarah asks him this question. The question clearly surprises Mark, so Sarah explains herself by adding:
“I just thought I’d ask the blunt question in case it was the right one, and you needed someone to talk to about it. And no one had ever asked you, so you’d never been able to talk about it even though you might have wanted to.”
When approaching someone we don’t have a close relationship to, we have the opportunity to introduce topics that the people who are close to them would never address. And while the answer might be no — as Mark makes clear — chances are we’ve established a connection with our question that opens up for other questions: “This DJ, what do you reckon?”, Mark asks, “The worst in history?”
The trick to successfully connect with strangers is to be as honest and humble as Sarah is when she says, “I just thought I’d ask the blunt question in case it was the right one.” But it’s also to invest a few minutes reading the room before inviting someone to share. After all, “Do you love him?” probably wouldn’t have occurred to Sarah if she hadn’t spent the previous moment observing Mark observing his best friend dance with the woman they both love.
Is “Love Actually” with its questionable characters making questionable decisions just what we need … [+] to up our questioning game? Photo: British actresses Martine McCutcheon and Keira Knightley and British actors Hugh Grant, Alan Rickman and Colin Firth arrive at the UK premiere of “Love Actually”. (Photo by Dave Benett)
As the newly elected Prime Minister, David is determined not to jeopardize England’s relationship with the United States. So when his staff asks critical questions of the visiting U.S. president, he dismisses them by saying, “Let’s move on, shall we?”
But then the American president makes a move on the new household, Natalie, to whom David is attracted. And it makes David reconsider the nature of the relationship between England and the United States.
So when asked at a press conference if he agrees with the American president that England and the United States have a special relationship, David says: “I love that word, ‘relationship.’ Covers all manners of sins, doesn’t it?”
In “Love Actually”, it is David’s feelings for Natalie that make him find the strength within himself to give his employees, people and country what they need. But of course, the trick to connecting people in the workplace is not to fall in love with your employees. It is to use the critical questions your staff is asking to reconsider if you’re doing what it takes to protect what really matters from all manners of sins.
When Liam Neeson’s character Daniel decides to talk to his stepson about his isolation after his mother’s death, he starts by asking the same kinds of questions that most parents ask — with the same failing luck:
“What’s the problem, Samuel? Is it just mum, or is it something else? Maybe school? Are you being bullied? Or is it something worse? Can you give me any clues at all?”
It’s only when Neeson stops asking questions and his stepson gets a chance to ask a question of his own that the conversation gets going:
Sam: “You really want to know?”
Daniel: “I really want to know.”
Sam: “Even though you won’t be able to do anything to help?”
Daniel: “Even if that’s the case, yeah.”
Sam: “The truth is, actually, I’m in love.”
Daniel: “I’m a little relieved.”
Sam: “Why?”
Daniel: “Well, because I thought it would be something worse.”
Sam: “Worse than the total agony of being in love?”
Daniel: “Um. No, you’re right. Yeah, total agony.”
The trick to successfully connect across generations is to be okay with not knowing what to ask, not being able to do anything, and not having a plan for how to help. The second, Daniel is okay with that, he is also ready to figure things out along the way.
And, most importantly, he is ready to do so in the company of Sam rather than on his behalf. Which is brilliantly illustrated by the roles being reversed so that it’s now Sam asking all the questions. Daniel ends the Titanic scene by jokingly saying, “Basically, you’re fucked, aren’t you?”, making it clear that when it comes to love — and life — we’re all in the same sinking boat as “Kate and Leo.”
“I just worked out why I can never find true love,” Colin says to his friend. “Why is that?” his friend asks. And then Colin shares his theory about just being on the wrong continent. “I should just go to America,” he concludes. “I would get a girlfriend there instantly.”
When Colin asks his friend what he thinks about his plan, he says, “I think it’s crap, Colin.” But that doesn’t stop Colin. He responds, “No, that’s where you’re wrong. American girls would seriously dig me with my cute British accent.”
“You don’t have a cute British accent,” his friends objects. But Colin insists, “Yes, I do. I’m going to America.” Even when his friends says, “Colin, you’re a lonely, ugly arsehole, and you must accept it,” Colin persists, “Never.”
The trick to successfully connecting with ourselves is to ask our own questions about who we are and what we need to do to succeed. And then owning our own answers. No matter how much his friend insists that he is ugly and stupid, Colin does not give in: “No, I’m wise. Stateside I am Prince William without the weird family.”
“Love Actually” reminds us that Colin, Sam, Daniel, David, Natalie, Mark, Sarah and all the other questionable characters are right. We are all very lovable. Sometimes we’re just on the wrong continent. And then it’s good to know that our opportunity to bring ourselves and our relationships to a better place is just a question away.

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Berberine, a plant compound traditionally used in herbal medicine, is today commonly stocked on the shelves of health food stores and pharmacies as a supplement.
Berberine supplements gained rapid popularity in 2023, with Google searches for berberine reaching an all time high in late June of last year. A quick search of berberine on TikTok reveals countless videos discussing the supplement’s weight loss potential — with some going as far as to claim berberine to be “nature’s Ozempic.”
Beyond weight loss, berberine also has a few other possible, intriguing benefits. Recent research has investigated berberine’s role in supporting heart health and lowering blood sugar levels, per Healthline.
How do berberine supplements hold up against prescription medication? Here’s what experts have to say.
Berberine is a chemical compound derived from plants like tree turmeric, barberry, goldenseal, goldenthread — all of which have historically played an important role in Chinese and Ayurvedic medicine.
Holiday deals: Shop this season’s top products and sales curated by our editors.
Berberine offers many potential benefits, from weight loss support to blood sugar regulation, says Alma Simmons, a registered dietitian nutritionist at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center.
On the cellular level, berberine supports a number of functions, says Simmons. “One of the main functions is activating an important enzyme called AMPK, which regulates metabolism,” she explains. “It can also enhance the body’s ability to respond to insulin, helping cells absorb glucose more efficiently.”
Berberine has potential benefits for heart health, such as lowering triglycerides (fat in the blood), total and LDL cholesterol, and systolic blood pressure, says Dr. Lona Sandon, PhD, RDN, LD, a registered dietitian nutritionist and associate professor of clinical nutrition at UT Southwestern. A review that considered berberine’s effects on heart health found some studies supporting this claim, but due high risk of bias, the researchers recommended more clinical trials be performed.
Does berberine offer a natural alternative to medications like Ozempic, as many users on social media claim? “Berberine has shown to help with weight loss, but in comparison to Ozempic, they work through different pathways,” says Brian Lee, a pharmacist at UCLA Health. 
Ozempic and Wegovy are brand medications of the same generic name: semaglutide. They are prescription GLP-1 agonists that promote weight loss by slowing digestion and reducing appetite, says Lee. Both medications have undergone testing and received approval by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration — Wegovy for targeting weight loss, and Ozempic for treating type 2 diabetes. Studies have proven semaglutide has positive weight loss effects.
Berberine supplements, on the other hand, activate AMPK enzymes in your body, which work to regulate metabolism (offering potential benefits for weight loss), says Lee. When it comes to studies measuring berberine’s effect on losing weight, “existing studies do not include weight loss as an end point,” says Sandon. “The studies generally speculate on the potential for weight loss benefits.” According to the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, there are some studies that support berberine’s weight loss potential, but others had inconclusive outcomes. 
So, if you’re comparing medications like Ozempic or Wegovy side by side to an herbal supplement like berberine, “there is more proven data with GLP-1 agonists for weight loss as it is FDA-approved,” says Lee. If you are considering taking berberine supplements for weight loss, consult your healthcare provider or pharmacist first, he underscores.
It is not recommended for young children, or people who are pregnant or nursing, to take berberine supplements, Simmons says. There are also a few medications that berberine interacts with (such as diabetes, blood pressure and antiseizure medications), which is why it’s always important to speak with your healthcare provider before taking any kind of herbal supplement, says Lee.
More:Do biotin supplements actually help with hair growth? Experts weigh in.
If you’re in the clear to take berberine, there are a few potential side effects to consider. Berberine can upset your gastrointestinal system, causing symptoms like: nausea, diarrhea, constipation, gas and abdominal pain, Simmons says. It’s also possible that taking berberine can increase your bilirubin levels, blood sugar levels and blood pressure, she adds. 
Finally, “it is always important to remember that supplements do not undergo the same safety and efficacy testing as prescription medications,” says Sandon. “If you choose to take a supplement, stick to a well-known brand and look for third-party testing.”

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Philosopher George Santayana once said, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” With that being said, preserving and saving as much as we can will improve society as a whole – internet archives play an important role in this sentiment.
Last month, the Internet Archive, a non-profit organization, lost a major appeal and court battle after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled against the organization in a case related to the digitization of books.

The lawsuit in question arose after publishers caught onto the Internet Archive’s National Emergency Library (NEL) program which came about after mass library closures during the COVID-19 pandemic.
With an unfortunate rise in textbook costs, book costs and rising prices as a whole, this court decision impacts everyone’s access to information. In particular, NEL allowed students to find textbooks and other literature at reduced, or no costs. Now, many disadvantaged students will have little to no help finding resources essential to their academic success.

Though the plaintiffs in the case argued that their copyright was being infringed upon, it should be noted that the Internet Archive, through its online lending system, only gave out the same amount of digital copies of its books as it had printed copies. By giving out the limited supplies of books for free NEL essentially functioned as a digital library, not the pirating scheme the court made it out to be.
 
Strangely enough, one of the books forcibly removed from the archive is George Orwell’s “1984.” Removing a piece of literature that is literally about erasing knowledge, is horrendous.
 
Likewise, another important topic regarding the internet archives, is that it is a free way for one to see how the internet has changed over the years. This is because the internet archive has saved nearly 900 billion web pages, many dating from the very early days of the web. These webpages can be viewed through the “Wayback Machine,” another program of the Internet Archives.

The founder of the Internet Archive, Brewster Kahle, is an archivist, not just of the internet. In a similar way to the Svalbard Global Seed Vault, Khale has meticulously archived over 500,000 books. He believes in the importance of people’s access to information.
 
Saving media of any type is important, in the same way, that our country saves our founding documents, the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. Saving our founding documents is clearly important, but saving all the information generated in this country is just as important —- the information we generate constitutes our nation’s identity.
 
With these recent legal cases, the future of digital lending and archives will be in the air, and as such, many people around the country will lack access to not just information that interests them but important information as well. 
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Terry S Marrlett • Oct 25, 2024 at 12:31 am
I like the Internet Archive. They, usually have what you want. I have many apts for books but they usually don’t have what I want. Lots of time wasted looking thru these apps. Frustrating, the time wasted when I could be reading.
Sunnysideup12 • Oct 24, 2024 at 4:46 pm
Nice write up of the internet archive William:)

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Bonterra Grants Security-Based Compensation  Yahoo Finance
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President Trump and his VP Vance will not forget their promises to ‘honestly and aggressively attack universities’.
Rashid Khalidi, America’s foremost scholar on Palestine, best described the sorry state of higher education in the United States today in a recent interview.
Explaining his decision to retire from his position as Edward Said chair of modern Arab history at Columbia University, he said, “I didn’t want to be a cog in that machine any more.

“For some time now, I have been both disgusted and horrified by the way higher education has developed into a cash register – essentially a money-making, MBA, lawyer-run, hedge fund-cum-real estate operation, with a minor sideline in education, where money has determined everything, where respect for pedagogy is at a minimum”.
Regrettably, the situation that pushed Khalidi into what many see as a much too early retirement is likely to get much worse in the near future.
President-elect Donald Trump has promised to launch an all-out attack on American universities as soon as he returns to the White House.
On the campaign trail, Trump cited the rising tuition fees at colleges and universities. But UPenn-educated Trump placed the blame on “radical Left accreditors” who had allowed universities to be “dominated by Marxist Maniacs and lunatics”. His running mate, Yale University graduate JD Vance, meanwhile, called university professors the “enemy” and has pledged to “honestly and aggressively attack universities”.
The broad strokes of what this presidency plans to achieve in higher education are already laid out in the Heritage Foundation’s blueprint for a conservative takeover of the state and all its institutions, Project 2025. The project calls for the dismantling of all diversity, equality and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, and the rejection and removal of “gender ideology” and critical race theory from all teaching material. It underlines the need to prohibit accreditors from requiring educational institutions to adopt DEI policies. It insists on the need to protect faith-based institutions from accreditation agencies’ standards and criteria that they believe “undermine religious beliefs”. Project 2025 also calls for an end to loan forgiveness programs and, eventually, the closing of the Department of Education.
Trump may not be able to achieve all this during his upcoming term. But some of his stated plans for higher education are well within reach and will likely be implemented in some form or other within the next year.
Trump has promised, for example, to “fire radical left accreditors” and “Marxist diversity, equity, and inclusion bureaucrats” and replace them with those committed to upholding a new set of standards, which include “defending the American tradition and Western civilization”. While he will likely not be able to change the way higher education accreditation is done in the US in the short term, he could easily create an environment, and pass regulation, that would pressure institutions to move away from DEI initiatives.
To the detriment of minority and marginalised communities’ access to higher education, Trump could easily weaponise the Department of Justice and federal civil rights laws to target institutions that continue with DEI efforts and tax endowment.  He could also withhold federal funding to “force ideological conformity and promote conservative program preferences” at US universities. This would include forcing university leaders to crack down on Palestine solidarity activists or, as Trump puts it, “pro-Hamas radicals” to make college campuses “safe and patriotic again”.
Title IX, the federal law banning sex discrimination in schools, will likely be in the eye of the storm as well. Biden-era expansion of the definition of the scope of sex discrimination to include discrimination based on sexual orientation has irked the conservatives. Therefore, the incoming Trump administration can be expected to remove existing protections for LGBTQ+ students and staff at federally funded colleges. Under Title IX, the Biden administration had also boosted “safeguards for victims of campus sexual assault” by expanding the definition of sexual harassment and ending the requirement of live hearings Trump introduced during his first term. Trump is now expected to revert these changes by “tightening the definition of sexual harassment, raising the standard of proof for allegations and [once again] allowing live hearings”.
Access to higher education will also be under attack under Trump. He has publicly deemed federal loan forgiveness programs, and programs aimed at keeping monthly loan payments low and reducing the time it takes to pay off loans as “unlawful and unfair”. His administration is expected to scrap these. Of course, this will mean that millions of low-income and middle-income students would be unable to afford higher education.
Trump’s immigration policies and mass deportation plans will also have an effect on higher education. Currently, there are 408,000 undocumented students in higher education institutions in the US. Many states provide these students access to in-state tuition and state financial aid. Only three states prevent undocumented migrants from accessing public colleges. Under Trump, many more public institutions may feel compelled to – or outright be forced to – do the same. Trump’s incoming Education Secretary, former World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) CEO and passionate anti-DEI advocate Linda McMahon, will undoubtedly work hard to turn Trump’s grim vision for American higher education into reality.
Some have pledged to push back.
In August, responding to JD Vance’s promise to “aggressively attack universities in this country” if elected into office, American Association of University Professors (AAUP) President Todd Wilson said, “We are in a crucial moment that will decide the future of higher education for decades to come. Colleges and universities are the bedrock of American democracy and the engine of social mobility, innovation, and progress. We can’t allow fascists to strip it away. Now is the time to fight.”
After the elections, Wilson urged institutions, faculty, staff and students to organise, arguing that the crisis in the sector, with dwindling public funding, rising student debt and increasing attacks on academic freedom, “will only be intensified” under Trump 2.0.
Others, however, appear to perceive the Trump agenda for higher education as the will of the American people, and seem willing to reach a compromise with an administration openly voicing its desire to reshape the entire sector to fall in line with its ideological preferences.
For example, in a statement after the elections defending DEI efforts and academic freedom at US universities, president of Wesleyan University Michael S Roth also suggested that universities “need to be willing to listen” to the point of view of Trump/Vance as millions of Americans had “made their voices heard with their votes [for them]”. Meanwhile, the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) – one of the seven nonprofit accrediting groups in the US that oversees 170 colleges in Hawaii and California – has already proposed the removal of “diversity, equality and inclusion” from its accreditation standards. PEN America expressed its concerns regarding the timing of this measure, adding that doing so “in the face of an incoming president who has threatened to ‘fire the accreditors’ … cannot help but create the perception that WASC is bowing to political pressure”.
That certain leaders and institutions of American higher education appear to be bowing to Trump even before he officially moves back into the White House should not surprise anyone. Higher education has always been a tool of American soft power, and its institutions have been eagerly serving the agenda of the state – whatever this agenda may be – since their very inception. Under Trump, America is poised to reposition itself in the world and restructure its internal dynamics. The incoming administration has made it clear that these grand alterations to “make America great again” will require a complete revamp of the education system. American universities may not have a choice but to accept their fate and adapt.
The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera’s editorial stance.

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Mega Millions Jackpot Nearing a Billion Dollars
Jds 12-23-2024
The Mega Millions jackpot has rolled over to an estimated $944M after no one matched all six numbers in Friday night’s drawing.
The next drawing is Tuesday night.
The cash option for a single winner is an estimated $429.4M.
Meanwhile, lottery officials say there were five one-million-dollar winners who matched five of the six numbers in Friday night’s drawing, two of them in Indiana.
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