The Conversation

Researchers trained mice to control seemingly random bursts of dopamine in their brains, challenging theories of reward and learning

Written by David Kleinfeld, Professor of Physics and Neurobiology, University of California San Diego

The brains of mice randomly produce large bursts of dopamine that could produce feelings of hope.Julia Kuhl, CC BY-ND

The Research Brief is a short take about interesting academic work.

The big idea

My colleagues and I recently found that we were able to train mice to voluntarily increase the size and frequency of seemingly random dopamine impulses...

'Work with hope' – a poet and classics scholar on facing the flood of bad news

Written by Rachel Hadas, Professor of English, Rutgers University - Newark

What, more depressing news?Rolling Camera/ iStock / Getty Images Plus

Patience is wearing thin. Not only are we all bone-weary of the pandemic; rising hopes have made the current precarious state of confusion and fear, vigorous variants and stubborn vaccine rejection all the more frustrating.

We thought we were almost out of the woods, but...

An entire generation of Americans has no idea how easy air travel used to be

Written by Janet Bednarek, Professor of History, University of Dayton

Airplane passengers line up for TSA security screenings at Denver International Airport in 2019.Robert Alexander/Getty Images

During the mid-1990s I traveled between Dayton, Ohio, and Washington, D.C., twice a month during the school year as half of a commuting couple. I could leave Dayton by 5:15 p.m., drive nearly 80 miles to the Columbus airport...

As Texas ban on abortion goes into effect, a religion scholar explains that pre-modern Christian attitudes on marriage and reproductive rights were quite different

Written by Luis Josué Salés, Assistant Professor of Religious Studies, Scripps College

The U.S. Supreme Court has allowed Texas' abortion restrictions to take effect.Drew Angerer/Getty Images

The U.S. Supreme Court has failed to rule on an emergency application to block SB8, a controversial Texas law that bans abortions after six weeks of pregnancy. As such, the legislation went into effect on Sept. 1, 2021.

While signing the new law...

Education debates are rife with references to war – but have they gone too far?

Written by Mark Hlavacik, Associate Professor of Communication Studies, University of North Texas

Battlefield analogies are a long-standing feature of public debates about education.Colin Anderson Productions pty ltd/Getty

As President Joe Biden oversaw the transfer of the remains of the U.S. soldiers killed in a suicide bomb attack at Afghanistan’s Kabul airport on Aug. 26, 2021, former Education Secretary Arne Duncan took to Twitter....

At my hospital, over 95% of COVID-19 patients share one thing in common: They’re unvaccinated

Written by Nicholas Johnson, Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine, UW School of Medicine, University of Washington

Many hospitals have reached a point where the demand for health care has outstripped the ability to provide it.Westend61 via Getty Images

The Conversation is running a series of dispatches from clinicians and researchers operating on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic. You can find all of the stories here.

As an emergency medicine and...

When human life begins is a question of politics – not biology

Written by Sahotra Sarkar, Professor of Philosophy and Integrative Biology, The University of Texas at Austin College of Liberal Arts

Science can observe these various phases of fetal development but cannot determine when human life begins.UrsaHoogle/E+ via Getty Images

A Texas law that aims to eliminate almost all abortions in the state is part of a long-standing nationwide movement to restrict the right to abortion. The Texas law went into effect on Sept. 1, 2021, and severely...

How the Purdue opioid settlement could help the public understand the roots of the drug crisis

Written by Antoine Lentacker, Assistant Professor of History, University of California, Riverside

Esther Nesbitt lost two of her children to drug overdoses.Andrew Lichtenstein/Corbis via Getty Images

There’s a long history of U.S. courts being called upon to fix large-scale public health crises.

Lawyers and judges, for instance, were key in settling claims related to asbestos, lead paint, Agent Orange and tobacco. More recently, they have...

20 years of 'forever' wars have left a toll on US veterans returning to the question: 'Did you kill?'

Written by Marian Eide, Professor of English and Women's & Gender Studies, Texas A&M University

Every soldier has a different story.Yuri Cortez/AFP via Getty Images

Military service members returning from America’s “forever” wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have often faced deeply personal questions about their experience.

As one veteran explained to me: “I’ve been asked, ‘Have you ever killed anyone in war? Are...

Feds are increasing use of facial recognition systems – despite calls for a moratorium

Written by James Hendler, Professor of Computer, Web and Cognitive Sciences, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Government agencies are increasingly using facial recognition technology, including through security cameras like this one being installed on the Lincoln Memorial in 2019.Mark Wilson/Getty Images

Despite growing opposition, the U.S. government is on track to increase its use of controversial facial recognition technology.

The U.S. Government...