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Supreme Court’s decision on birthright citizenship will depend on its interpretation of one key phrase

Supreme Court’s decision on birthright citizenship will depend on its interpretation of one key phrase

The Supreme Court on Dec. 5, 2025, agreed to review the long-simmering controversy over birthright citizenship. It will likely hand down a ruling...

previous day 30

The Conversation

Morgan Marietta

Far-right extremists have been organizing online since before the internet – and AI is their next frontier

Far-right extremists have been organizing online since before the internet – and AI is their next frontier

How can society police the global spread of online far-right extremism while still protecting free speech? That’s a question policymakers and...

friday 20

The Conversation

Michelle Lynn Kahn

Buying a gift for a loved one with cancer? Here’s why you should skip the fuzzy socks and give them meals or help with laundry instead

Buying a gift for a loved one with cancer? Here’s why you should skip the fuzzy socks and give them meals or help with laundry instead

The season of gifting is in full swing – a time when people scour the internet and shops of all kinds for items that appropriately symbolize their...

friday 10

The Conversation

Ellen T. Meiser

‘Yes’ to God, but ‘no’ to church – what religious change looks like for many Latin Americans

‘Yes’ to God, but ‘no’ to church – what religious change looks like for many Latin Americans

In a region known for its tumultuous change, one idea remained remarkably consistent for centuries: Latin America is Catholic. The region’s...

friday 20

The Conversation

Matthew Blanton

Girls and boys solve math problems differently – with similar short-term results but different long-term outcomes

Girls and boys solve math problems differently – with similar short-term results but different long-term outcomes

Among high school students and adults, girls and women are much more likely to use traditional, step-by-step algorithms to solve basic math...

friday 20

The Conversation

Sarah Lubienski

3 states are challenging precedent against posting the Ten Commandments in public schools – cases that could land back at the Supreme Court

3 states are challenging precedent against posting the Ten Commandments in public schools – cases that could land back at the Supreme Court

As disputes rage on over religion’s place in public schools, the Ten Commandments have become a focal point. At least a dozen states have...

friday 2

The Conversation

Charles J. Russo

A culinary educator and local dining expert breaks down Michelin’s debut Philly list − and gives zero stars to the inspectors

A culinary educator and local dining expert breaks down Michelin’s debut Philly list − and gives zero stars to the inspectors

Working in restaurants is physically, mentally and emotionally taxing and often thankless work. So it was wonderful to see so many hardworking...

friday 1

The Conversation

Jonathan Deutsch

Hope and hardship have driven Syrian refugee returns – but many head back to destroyed homes, land disputes

Hope and hardship have driven Syrian refugee returns – but many head back to destroyed homes, land disputes

Close to 1.5 million Syrian refugees have voluntarily returned to their home country over the past year. That extraordinary figure represents...

friday 2

The Conversation

Sandra Joireman

2025’s words of the year reflect a year of digital disillusionment

2025’s words of the year reflect a year of digital disillusionment

Which terms best represent 2025? Every year, editors for publications ranging from the Oxford English Dictionary to the Macquarie Dictionary of...

friday 2

The Conversation

Roger J. Kreuz

The Supreme Court’s decision on birthright citizenship will depend on its interpretation of one phrase

The Supreme Court’s decision on birthright citizenship will depend on its interpretation of one phrase

The Supreme Court on Dec. 5, 2025, agreed to review the long-simmering controversy over birthright citizenship. It will likely hand down a ruling...

friday 3

The Conversation

Morgan Marietta

Vaccine committee votes to scrap universal hepatitis B shots for newborns despite outcry from children’s health experts

Vaccine committee votes to scrap universal hepatitis B shots for newborns despite outcry from children’s health experts

The committee advising the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on vaccine policy voted on Dec. 5, 2025, to stop recommending that all...

friday 2

The Conversation

David Higgins

Pete Hegseth could be investigated for illegal orders by 5 different bodies – but none are likely to lead to charges

Pete Hegseth could be investigated for illegal orders by 5 different bodies – but none are likely to lead to charges

News reports about a U.S. military attack on a boat in the Caribbean allegedly carrying drugs have raised critical questions about the military...

04.12.2025 5

The Conversation

Joshua Kastenberg

Everything everywhere all at once: How Zohran Mamdani campaigned both online and with a ground game

Everything everywhere all at once: How Zohran Mamdani campaigned both online and with a ground game

Accounts of Zohran Mamdani’s campaign for New York City mayor have highlighted both his online presence and his ground game. Mamdani won the...

04.12.2025 30

The Conversation

Stuart Soroka

Most normal matter in the universe isn’t found in planets, stars or galaxies – an astronomer explains where it’s distributed

Most normal matter in the universe isn’t found in planets, stars or galaxies – an astronomer explains where it’s distributed

If you look across space with a telescope, you’ll see countless galaxies, most of which host large central black holes, billions of stars and their...

04.12.2025 9

The Conversation

Chris Impey

People who talk with their hands seem more clear and persuasive – new research

People who talk with their hands seem more clear and persuasive – new research

When people use hand gestures that visually represent what they’re saying, listeners see them as more clear, competent and persuasive. That’s the...

04.12.2025 7

The Conversation

Giovanni Luca Cascio Rizzo

Meditating on the connectedness of life could help reunite a divided country – here’s how ‘interbeing’ works

Meditating on the connectedness of life could help reunite a divided country – here’s how ‘interbeing’ works

The late Vietnamese Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh often emphasized the interconnectedness of everything in this world. He explained how meditation can...

04.12.2025 7

The Conversation

Jeremy David Engels

Tired of the same old Christmas songs? So were these countercultural carolers

Tired of the same old Christmas songs? So were these countercultural carolers

With Mariah Carey and Wham! saturating airwaves with their holiday tunes, it’s beginning to sound a lot like Christmas. But if all you want for...

04.12.2025 5

The Conversation

Florian Walch

Measuring Colorado’s mountains one hike at a time

Measuring Colorado’s mountains one hike at a time

In the middle of a chilly October night in 2025, my two friends and I suited up at the Cottonwood Creek trailhead and started a trek into the...

04.12.2025 6

The Conversation

Eric Gilbertson

Down-ranking polarizing content lowers emotional temperature on social media – new research

Down-ranking polarizing content lowers emotional temperature on social media – new research

Reducing the visibility of polarizing content in social media feeds can measurably lower partisan animosity. To come up with this finding, my...

04.12.2025 2

The Conversation

Tiziano Piccardi

The housing crisis is forcing Americans to choose between affordability and safety

The housing crisis is forcing Americans to choose between affordability and safety

Picture this: You’re looking to buy a place to live, and you have two options. Option A is a beautiful home in California near good schools and job...

04.12.2025 4

The Conversation

Ivis García

Facing myriad global pressures, Iran intensifies outreach to African partners for critical needs

Facing myriad global pressures, Iran intensifies outreach to African partners for critical needs

Burkina Faso’s security minister headed to Tehran on Nov. 12, 2025, for high-level talks with Iranian officials. The visit was a fruitful one: The...

04.12.2025 2

The Conversation

Eric Lob

Declaration of Independence’s promises ring out today as loudly as they did for Lincoln, FDR and through 249 years of US history

Declaration of Independence’s promises ring out today as loudly as they did for Lincoln, FDR and through 249 years of US history

The Declaration of Independence’s 250th anniversary in 2026 is certain to be a time of national reflection. Americans tend to look to the...

04.12.2025 2

The Conversation

Graeme Mack

FDA claims on COVID-19 vaccine safety are unsupported by reliable data – and could severely hinder vaccine access

FDA claims on COVID-19 vaccine safety are unsupported by reliable data – and could severely hinder vaccine access

The Food and Drug Administration is seeking to drastically change procedures for testing vaccine safety and approving vaccines, based on unproven...

03.12.2025 10

The Conversation

Frank Han

What are small modular reactors, a new type of nuclear power plant sought to feed AI’s energy demand?

What are small modular reactors, a new type of nuclear power plant sought to feed AI’s energy demand?

As U.S. electricity demand rises and technology companies seek to build more and larger data centers to drive artificial intelligence systems, the...

03.12.2025 4

The Conversation

Leonel Lagos

Why one 16th-century theologian’s advice for a bitterly divided nation holds true today

Why one 16th-century theologian’s advice for a bitterly divided nation holds true today

Ideological division was tearing the country apart. Factions denounced each other as unpatriotic and evil. There were attempted kidnappings and...

03.12.2025 1

The Conversation

Michael Bruening

Yes, the government can track your location – but usually not by spying on you directly

Yes, the government can track your location – but usually not by spying on you directly

If you use a mobile phone with location services turned on, it is likely that data about where you live and work, where you shop for groceries,...

03.12.2025 3

The Conversation

Emilee Rader

Federal funding cuts are only one problem facing America’s colleges and universities

Federal funding cuts are only one problem facing America’s colleges and universities

Higher education is under stress. The highest-profile threat has been the Trump administration’s efforts to cut funding to several universities,...

03.12.2025 1

The Conversation

Roger Meiners

The marketing genius of Spotify Wrapped

The marketing genius of Spotify Wrapped

Even before this year’s Spotify Wrapped dropped, I had a hunch what mine would reveal. Lo and behold, one of my most-listened-to songs was an...

03.12.2025 1

The Conversation

Ishani Banerji

A hard year for federal workers offers a real-time lesson in resilience

A hard year for federal workers offers a real-time lesson in resilience

Imagine going from having a book club with your co-workers to seeing them only on a Signal chat where every member has to be vetted – and the main...

03.12.2025 2

The Conversation

Anne Pisor

Labeling dissent as terrorism: New US domestic terrorism priorities raise constitutional alarms

Labeling dissent as terrorism: New US domestic terrorism priorities raise constitutional alarms

A largely overlooked directive issued by the Trump administration marks a major shift in U.S. counterterrorism policy, one that threatens bedrock...

03.12.2025 1

The Conversation

Melinda Haas

Google’s proposed data center in orbit will face issues with space debris in an already crowded orbit

Google’s proposed data center in orbit will face issues with space debris in an already crowded orbit

The rapid expansion of artificial intelligence and cloud services has led to a massive demand for computing power. The surge has strained data...

03.12.2025 1

The Conversation

Mojtaba Akhavan-Tafti

Lasting peace in Ukraine may hinge on independent monitors – yet Trump’s 28-point plan barely mentions them

Lasting peace in Ukraine may hinge on independent monitors – yet Trump’s 28-point plan barely mentions them

Start-and-stop negotiations for a deal to end the war in Ukraine have been injected with new intensity after U.S. President Donald Trump’s...

03.12.2025 1

The Conversation

Peter J. Quaranto

Empathy and reasoning aren’t rivals – new research shows they work together to drive people to help more

Empathy and reasoning aren’t rivals – new research shows they work together to drive people to help more

For years, philosophers and psychologists have debated whether empathy helps or hinders the ways people decide how to help others. Critics of...

02.12.2025 5

The Conversation

Kyle Fiore Law