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Zombies, jiangshi, draugrs, revenants − monster lore is filled with metaphors for public health

Zombies, jiangshi, draugrs, revenants − monster lore is filled with metaphors for public health

Imagine a city street at dusk, silent save for the rising sound of a collective guttural moan. Suddenly, a horde of ragged, bloodied creatures...

yesterday 40

The Conversation

Tom Duszynski

HIV rates are highest in the American South, despite effective treatments – a clash between culture and public health

HIV rates are highest in the American South, despite effective treatments – a clash between culture and public health

The American South has the highest HIV rates in the country, accounting for more than half of new HIV diagnoses nationwide in 2023. This is despite...

yesterday 30

The Conversation

Brandon Nabors

Banning abortion is a hallmark of authoritarian regimes

Banning abortion is a hallmark of authoritarian regimes

Pregnant women crossing borders to get an abortion. People who miscarry facing jail time or dying from infection. Doctors who won’t perform...

yesterday 20

The Conversation

Seda Saluk

The real reason conservatives are furious about Bad Bunny’s forthcoming Super Bowl performance

The real reason conservatives are furious about Bad Bunny’s forthcoming Super Bowl performance

Soon after the NFL’s announcement that Puerto Rican rapper Bad Bunny would headline the Super Bowl halftime show, conservative media outlets and...

yesterday 20

The Conversation

Ediberto Román

FEMA buyouts vs. risky real estate: New maps reveal post-flood migration patterns across the US

FEMA buyouts vs. risky real estate: New maps reveal post-flood migration patterns across the US

Dangerous flooding has damaged neighborhoods in almost every state in 2025, leaving homes a muddy mess. In several hard-hit areas, it wasn’t the...

yesterday 20

The Conversation

James R. Elliott

Stethoscope, meet AI – helping doctors hear hidden sounds to better diagnose disease

Stethoscope, meet AI – helping doctors hear hidden sounds to better diagnose disease

When someone opens the door and enters a hospital room, wearing a stethoscope is a telltale sign that they’re a clinician. This medical device has...

yesterday 10

The Conversation

Valentina Dargam

Why and how does personality emerge? Studying the evolution of individuality using thousands of fruit flies

Why and how does personality emerge? Studying the evolution of individuality using thousands of fruit flies

As a Ph.D. student, I wanted to understand the evolution of individual differences in fruit fly behavior – the building blocks of personality. My...

yesterday 10

The Conversation

Shraddha Lall

Madagascar’s military power grab shows Africa’s coup problem isn’t restricted to the Sahel region

Madagascar’s military power grab shows Africa’s coup problem isn’t restricted to the Sahel region

Those who rise to power through a coup often fall by the same means. That is one of the takeaways from events in Madagascar, where on Oct. 14,...

yesterday 2

The Conversation

John Joseph Chin

Why countries struggle to quit fossil fuels, despite higher costs and 30 years of climate talks and treaties

Why countries struggle to quit fossil fuels, despite higher costs and 30 years of climate talks and treaties

Fossil fuels still power much of the world, even though renewable energy has become cheaper in most places and avoids both pollution and the...

yesterday 3

The Conversation

Kate Hua-Ke Chi

Denver study shows removing parking requirements results in more affordable housing being built

Denver study shows removing parking requirements results in more affordable housing being built

Removing parking requirements for new buildings could help thousands of Coloradans who struggle to afford housing. There is a shortage of over...

yesterday 3

The Conversation

Susan D. Daggett

New Pentagon policy is an unprecedented attempt to undermine press freedom

Free press advocates warn that limiting how journalists cover the Defense Department hampers the stability and freedom that democracies enjoy.

yesterday 10

The Conversation

Amy Kristin Sanders

Concerns about AI-written police reports spur states to regulate the emerging practice

Concerns about AI-written police reports spur states to regulate the emerging practice

Police are getting a boost from artificial intelligence, with algorithms now able to draft police reports in minutes. The technology promises to...

previous day 1

The Conversation

Andrew Guthrie Ferguson

Yes, ADHD diagnoses are rising, but that doesn’t mean it’s overdiagnosed

Yes, ADHD diagnoses are rising, but that doesn’t mean it’s overdiagnosed

Many news outlets have reported an increase – or surge – in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD, diagnoses in both children and...

previous day 3

The Conversation

Carol Mathews

When government websites become campaign tools: Blaming the shutdown on Democrats has legal and political risks

When government websites become campaign tools: Blaming the shutdown on Democrats has legal and political risks

For decades, federal shutdowns have mostly been budget fights. The 2025 one has become bigger than that: It’s turned into a messaging war. Official...

previous day 2

The Conversation

Stephanie A. Martin

Why higher tariffs on Canadian lumber may not be enough to stimulate long-term investments in US forestry

Why higher tariffs on Canadian lumber may not be enough to stimulate long-term investments in US forestry

Lumber, especially softwood lumber like pine and spruce, is critical to U.S. home construction. Its availability and price directly affect housing...

previous day 2

The Conversation

Andrew Muhammad

Winning with misinformation: New research identifies link between endorsing easily disproven claims and prioritizing symbolic strength

Winning with misinformation: New research identifies link between endorsing easily disproven claims and prioritizing symbolic strength

Why do some people endorse claims that can easily be disproved? It’s one thing to believe false information, but another to actively stick with...

previous day 1

The Conversation

Randy Stein

Jean-Jacques Dessalines: Reassessing the Haitian revolutionary leader’s legacy

Jean-Jacques Dessalines: Reassessing the Haitian revolutionary leader’s legacy

Every Oct. 17, Haiti celebrates Dessalines Day, commemorating the assassination in 1806 of the country’s first head of state postindependence,...

previous day 3

The Conversation

Julia Gaffield

Erie Canal’s 200th anniversary: How a technological marvel for trade changed the environment forever

Erie Canal’s 200th anniversary: How a technological marvel for trade changed the environment forever

If you visit the Erie Canal today, you’ll find a tranquil waterway and trail that pass through charming towns and forests, a place where hikers,...

previous day 2

The Conversation

Christine Keiner

Detroit parents face fines if their children break curfew − research shows the policy could do more harm than good

Detroit parents face fines if their children break curfew − research shows the policy could do more harm than good

Detroit is seeing declines in violent crime, but 33% more young people were victims of gun violence in the city so far in 2025 compared with the...

previous day 3

The Conversation

Caitlin Cavanagh

Focused sound energy holds promise for treating cancer, Alzheimer’s and other diseases

Focused sound energy holds promise for treating cancer, Alzheimer’s and other diseases

Sound waves at frequencies above the threshold for human hearing are routinely used in medical care. Also known as ultrasound, these sound waves...

previous day 1

The Conversation

Richard J. Price

Our team of physicists inadvertently generated the shortest X-ray pulses ever observed

Our team of physicists inadvertently generated the shortest X-ray pulses ever observed

X-ray beams aren’t used just by doctors to see inside your body and tell whether you have a broken bone. More powerful beams made up of very short...

previous day 3

The Conversation

Uwe Bergmann

What the First Amendment doesn’t protect when it comes to professors speaking out on politics

What the First Amendment doesn’t protect when it comes to professors speaking out on politics

American colleges and universities are increasingly firing or punishing professors and other employees for what they say, whether it’s on social...

tuesday 1

The Conversation

Neal H. Hutchens

In defense of ‘surveillance pricing’: Why personalized prices could be an unexpected force for equity

In defense of ‘surveillance pricing’: Why personalized prices could be an unexpected force for equity

Surveillance pricing has dominated headlines recently. Delta Air Lines’ announcement that it will use artificial intelligence to set individualized...

tuesday 3

The Conversation

Aradhna Krishna

Industrial facilities owned by profitable companies release more of their toxic waste into the environment

Industrial facilities owned by profitable companies release more of their toxic waste into the environment

How much pollution a facility engaged in production or resource extraction emits isn’t just based on its location, its industry or the type of work...

tuesday 3

The Conversation

Mahelet G Fikru

Government shutdown hasn’t left US consumers glum about the economy – for now, at least

Government shutdown hasn’t left US consumers glum about the economy – for now, at least

The ongoing federal shutdown has resulted in a pause on regular government data releases, meaning economic data has been in short supply of late....

tuesday 2

The Conversation

Joanne Hsu

New student loan limits could change who gets to become a professor, doctor or lawyer

New student loan limits could change who gets to become a professor, doctor or lawyer

As millions of student loan borrowers settle into the school year, many are stressed about how they’ll pay for their degrees. These students may...

tuesday 1

The Conversation

Rodney Coates

The limits of free speech protections in American broadcasting

The limits of free speech protections in American broadcasting

The chairman of the Federal Communications Commission is displeased with a broadcast network. He makes his displeasure clear in public speeches,...

tuesday 2

The Conversation

Michael J. Socolow

Starbucks wants you to stay awhile – but shuttering its mobile-only pickup locations could be a risky move

Starbucks wants you to stay awhile – but shuttering its mobile-only pickup locations could be a risky move

When Starbucks announced that it would phase out its mobile-order pickup-only locations beginning in 2026, it raised a question: Why abandon a...

tuesday 1

The Conversation

Vivek Astvansh

Typhoon leaves flooded Alaska villages facing a storm recovery far tougher than most Americans will ever experience

Typhoon leaves flooded Alaska villages facing a storm recovery far tougher than most Americans will ever experience

Remnants of a powerful typhoon swept into Western Alaska’s Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta on Oct. 12, 2025, producing a storm surge that flooded villages as...

tuesday 3

The Conversation

Rick Thoman

What are climate tipping points? They sound scary, especially for ice sheets and oceans, but there’s still room for optimism

What are climate tipping points? They sound scary, especially for ice sheets and oceans, but there’s still room for optimism

As the planet warms, it risks crossing catastrophic tipping points: thresholds where Earth systems, such as ice sheets and rain forests, change...

tuesday 2

The Conversation

Alexandra A Phillips

Flamingos are making a home in Florida again after 100 years – an ecologist explains why they may be returning for good

Flamingos are making a home in Florida again after 100 years – an ecologist explains why they may be returning for good

Hurricane Idalia blew a flamboyance, or flock, of 300-400 flamingos that was likely migrating between the Yucatan Peninsula and Cuba off course in...

tuesday 20

The Conversation

Jerome Lorenz

Climate tipping points sound scary, especially for ice sheets and oceans – here’s why there’s still room for optimism

Climate tipping points sound scary, especially for ice sheets and oceans – here’s why there’s still room for optimism

As the planet warms, it risks crossing catastrophic tipping points: thresholds where Earth systems, such as ice sheets and rain forests, change...

13.10.2025 30

The Conversation

Alexandra A Phillips

Supreme Court redistricting ruling could upend decades of voting rights law – and tilt the balance of power in Washington

Supreme Court redistricting ruling could upend decades of voting rights law – and tilt the balance of power in Washington

On Oct. 15, 2025, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in one of the most anticipated cases of the 2025-2026 term, Louisiana v. Callais, with...

13.10.2025 10

The Conversation

Sam D. Hayes

3-legged lizards can thrive against all odds, challenging assumptions about how evolution works in the wild

3-legged lizards can thrive against all odds, challenging assumptions about how evolution works in the wild

We are lizard biologists, and to do our work we need to catch lizards – never an easy task with such fast, agile creatures. Years ago, one of us...

13.10.2025 20

The Conversation

James T. Stroud

Why are elements like radium dangerous? A chemist explains radioactivity and its health effects

Why are elements like radium dangerous? A chemist explains radioactivity and its health effects

Curious Kids is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to...

13.10.2025 6

The Conversation

Kelling Donald

‘Space tornadoes’ could cause geomagnetic storms – but these phenomena, spun off ejections from the Sun, aren’t easy to study

‘Space tornadoes’ could cause geomagnetic storms – but these phenomena, spun off ejections from the Sun, aren’t easy to study

Weather forecasting is a powerful tool. During hurricane season, for instance, meteorologists create computer simulations to forecast how these...

13.10.2025 1

The Conversation

Mojtaba Akhavan-Tafti

Far fewer Americans support political violence than recent polls suggest

Far fewer Americans support political violence than recent polls suggest

A series of recent events has sparked alarm about rising levels of political violence in the U.S. These episodes include the assassination of...

13.10.2025 10

The Conversation

Ryan Kennedy