The Conversation

Handwritten diaries may feel old fashioned, but they offer insights that digital diaries just can’t match

Written by Paula Vene Smith, Professor of English, Grinnell College

Handwritten diaries and digital diaries both help preserve experiences and memories, but in different ways.luza studios/E+ via Getty Images

The first time I taught a college course called “The London Diary” for young Americans studying abroad back in 2002, each student ended up with a tangible book of memories, a handwritten record of...

Atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki left survivors wrestling with spiritual questions – here's how Buddhists and Catholics responded

Written by Yuki Miyamoto, Professor of Religious Studies, DePaul University

Priests from several religions pray for the victims of the atomic bomb in Nagasaki upon the 60th anniversary.Koichi Kamoshida/Getty Images

It has been over seven decades since the atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki on Aug. 6 and Aug. 9, 1945. The U.S. attack left between 110,000 and 220,000 people dead, and hundreds of thousands...

Nancy Pelosi's Taiwan visit sparked international tension, but isn't likely to shake up her popularity with Chinese American voters at home in San Francisco

Written by Jonathan H. X. Lee, Professor of Asian American Studies, San Francisco State University

US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her delegation leave Taipei on August 3, 2022.Taiwanese Foreign Ministry/Handout/Andalou Agency via Getty Images

U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taipei, Taiwan, prompted warnings and threats from the Chinese government, but it is unlikely to upset her Taiwanese American and Chinese American...

From whistling arrows and trumpeting elephants to battle cries and eerie horns, ancient soldiers used sound to frighten and confuse their enemies

Written by Adrienne Mayor, Research Scholar, Classics and History and Philosophy of Science, Stanford University

Three soldiers (far right) carry karnyxes, long horns with frightening boar-headed mouths that produce eerie calls during battle.Prisma/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

As if the tumultuous din of battle is not horrendous enough, over the ages humans have discovered plenty of ways to exploit sound in warfare. I found an astonishing variety...

More than 1 in 5 US adults don’t want children

Written by Zachary P. Neal, Associate Professor of Psychology, Michigan State University

Americans are deciding to be childfree at a far younger age than previously thought.Photo via Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images

Fears about declining fertility rates have come from sources as diverse as Pope Francis and Tesla CEO Elon Musk. The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson could force women to give birth against their...

Coyotes are here to stay in North American cities – here's how to appreciate them from a distance

Written by David Drake, Professor of Forest and Wildlife Ecology and Extension Wildlife Specialist, University of Wisconsin-Madison

A coyote on a golf course in Scottsdale, Ariz., June 19, 2011.Dru Bloomfield/Flickr, CC BY

Coyotes have become practically ubiquitous across the lower 48 United States, and they’re increasingly turning up in cities. The draws are abundant food and green space in urban areas.

At first these appearances were novelties, like the hot summer day...

Charities that don't embrace common financial norms tend to outperform their peers

Written by George E. Mitchell, Associate Professor of Public and International Affairs, Baruch College, CUNY

Bucking conventions can be wise.wenmei Zhou/ DigitalVision Vectors via Getty Images

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

The big idea

Charities following widely accepted norms for nonprofit financial management generally perform worse than those embracing other approaches. That’s the main – and perhaps...

Why Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan puts the White House in delicate straits of diplomacy with China

Written by Meredith Oyen, Associate Professor of History and Asian Studies, University of Maryland, Baltimore County

Not everyone is so thrilled by the visit.AP Photo/Chiang Ying-ying

U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi arrived in Taiwan on Aug. 2, 2022 – a highly controversial trip that has been strongly opposed by China.

Such is the sensitivity over the island’s status that even before Pelosi’s plane touched down in the capital of Taipei, mere...

Who was Ayman al-Zawahri? Where does his death leave al-Qaida and what does it say about US counterterrorism?

Written by Haroro J. Ingram, Senior Research Fellow at the Program on Extremism, George Washington University

Who will replace the man who replaced bin Laden?Visual News/Getty Images

Ayman al-Zawahri, leader of al-Qaida and a plotter of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, has been killed in a drone strike in the Afghan city of Kabul, according to the U.S. government.

Al-Zawahri was the the successor to Osama bin Laden and his death marked “one more measure of...

Congress is considering making same-sex marriage federal law – a political scientist explains how this issue became less polarized over time

Written by Tim Lindberg, Assistant professor, political science , University of Minnesota

A same-sex marriage supporter waves a rainbow flag outside the Supreme Court in 2015.Drew Angerer/Getty Images

While public opinion and different state laws on abortion rights are sharply dividing the country, there’s growing indication that most people agree on another once-controversial topic – protecting same-sex marriage.

The U.S....