The Conversation

Disparities in advanced math and science skills begin by kindergarten

Written by Paul L. Morgan, Harry and Marion Eberly Fellow, Professor of Education and Demography, Department of Education Policy Studies, Penn State

A child's family background has a lot to do with how advanced their math knowledge is in kindergarten.Nitat Termmee/Moment via Getty Images

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

The big idea

Racial and ethnic disparities in advanced math and science skills occur far earlier in the U.S. than previously known. Our new...

What is a flash drought? An earth scientist explains

Written by Antonia Hadjimichael, Assistant Professor of Geosciences, Penn State

Weeds grow on the dried-out floor of the Hoppin Hill Reservoir in North Attleboro, Mass., on Aug. 3, 2022.AP Photo/Charles Krupa

Many people are familiar with flash floods – torrents that develop quickly after heavy rainfall. But there’s also such a thing as a flash drought, and these sudden, extreme dry spells are becoming a big...

The inconvenient truth of Herman Daly: There is no economy without environment

Written by Jon D. Erickson, Professor of Sustainability Science and Policy, University of Vermont

The economy depends on the environment. Economics can seem to forget that point.Ines Lee Photos/Moment via Getty Images

Herman Daly had a flair for stating the obvious. When an economy creates more costs than benefits, he called it “uneconomic growth.” But you won’t find that conclusion in economics textbooks. Even suggesting that...

Rock music has had sympathy for God as well as the devil – Kennedy Center honoree Amy Grant is just one big star who’s walked the line between ‘Christian’ and ‘secular’ music

Written by David W. Stowe, Professor of Religious Studies, Michigan State University

Amy Grant performs in Abbotsford, British Columbia, in 2017.Andrew Chin/Getty Images

After three multiplatinum and six platinum albums, 30 million albums sold and more than a billion streams, singer Amy Grant is set to receive one of American music’s biggest awards: Kennedy Center Honors.

Grant, the so-called queen of Christian pop,...

8 billion people: Four ways climate change and population growth combine to threaten public health, with global consequences

Written by Maureen Lichtveld, Dean of the School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh

Infectious diseases like COVID-19 top the list of health concerns.Marco Longari/AFP via Getty Images

There are questions that worry me profoundly as a population- and environmental-health scientist.

Will we have enough food for a growing global population? How will we take care of more people in the next pandemic? What will heat do to millions with...

American workers feel alienated, helpless and overwhelmed – here's one way to alleviate their malaise

Written by Alec Stubbs, Postdoctoral Fellow of Philosophy, UMass Boston

Labor-saving technologies have not afforded workers more leisure time.Pict Rider/iStock via Getty Images

First it was the “Great Resignation.” Then it was “nobody wants to work anymore.” Now it’s “quiet quitting.”

Yet it seems like no one wants to talk about what I see as the root cause of America’s...

In first nationwide election since Roe was overturned, voters opt to protect abortion access

Written by Linda C. McClain, Professor of Law, Boston University

Voters in Michigan said 'yes' to Prop 3, a ballot protecting abortion rights.Brandon Bell/Getty Images

The first major election since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade saw abortion rights on the ballot in a record number of states. The outcomes of these initiatives suggest that when Kansas voters in August 2022 rejected a proposed...

I'm an election law expert who ran a polling station this election – here's what I learned about the powerful role of local officials in applying the law fairly

Written by Derek T. Muller, Professor of Law, University of Iowa

Local residents wait in line to receive their ballots before casting their vote, Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022, in West Des Moines, Iowa. AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall

Derek Muller is a nationally recognized expert in election law at the University of Iowa College of Law, where he studies and teaches about the role of states in the administration of...

Why Maradona's 'Hand of God' goal is priceless -- and unforgettable

Written by Stefan Szymanski, Professor of Sport Management, University of Michigan

One giant leap for soccerkind.Allsport/Getty Images

Football has “The Catch,” baseball has “The Shot Heard ‘Round the World,” and basketball has “The Block.”

For soccer, it is Diego Maradona’s “Hand of God” – a sporting moment captured in time, the mere mention of which can conjure...

Environmental justice has the White House's attention, building on 40 years of struggle – but California suggests new funding won't immediately solve deeply entrenched problems

Written by Tracy Perkins, Assistant Professor, School of Social Transformation, Arizona State University

Smokestacks in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Wilmington.Citizen of the Planet/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

A new office within the Environmental Protection Agency is bringing increased attention to a once-obscure concept: environmental justice.

The Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights will...