Cliff Weathers, AlterNet

There are obvious signs you’re about to be terminated: You’ve had several poor performance reviews, you don’t get along with your supervisor, or your company is having financial difficulties. And some employees deserve to be let go: they may be unproductive, confrontational, dishonest, or abusive.

For most of the 20th century, corporations got along just fine without human resources departments. Instead, they had personnel managers who found new employees and handled the welfare of those on payroll. Personnel managers were pretty low on the corporate totem pole, quietly administering a multitude of banal tasks.

The measles outbreak and recent statements by politicians like Rand Paul and Chris Christie have reignited the debate on childhood vaccinations. However, there is very little to debate; vaccinations are proven to protect public health. Still, this isn’t stopping vaccination critics from spouting misinformation. Here are nine examples.

A  study is challenging the relationship between depression and an imbalance of serotonin levels in the brain, and brings into doubt how depression has been treated in the U.S. over the past 20 years.

The following is the latest in a new series of articles on AlterNet called Fear in America that launched this March. Read the introduction to the series.