The Conversation

Why is Russia's church backing Putin's war? Church-state history gives a clue

Written by Scott Kenworthy, Professor of Comparative Religion, Miami University

Vladimir Putin speaks to Russian Orthodox Church Patriarch Kirill (center) in Samolva, Russia, on Sept. 11, 2021. Alexei Druzhinin/Pool Photo via AP

Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the leader of the Russian Orthodox Church has defended Russia’s actions and blamed the conflict on the West.

Patriarch Kirill’s support for the...

Maps show – and hide – key information about Ukraine war

Written by Timothy Barney, Associate Professor of Rhetoric & Communication Studies, University of Richmond

Maps contain useful information, but that means leaving out other information that is also useful.Associated Press

“All maps are lies,” my colleague, geographer David Salisbury, says.

He’s right. All maps are inherently incomplete, focusing on certain subjects and areas to the exclusion of others. These are crucial aspects of...

6 wildfire terms to understand, from red flag warning to 100% containment

Written by David Godwin, Director of the Southern Fire Exchange, University of Florida

Forest floors are often laden with fuel for fires.Stockzilla via Getty Images

Wildfires fueled by dry, windy conditions have destroyed dozens of homes in Texas and threatened hundreds of others there and in Oklahoma and Florida this March. They’re a sharp reminder to be prepared for what forecasters warn is likely to be a risky spring for...

Fewer Americans are hunting, and that raises hard questions about funding conservation through gun sales

Written by John Casellas Connors, Assistant Professor of Geography, Texas A&M University

Smith & Wesson handguns on display at the Shooting, Hunting and Outdoor Trade Show in Las Vegas, Jan. 19, 2016.AP Photo/John Locher

Gun and ammunition sales in the U.S. have skyrocketed in recent years. And although it may come as a surprise, this trend has supported conservation activities.

That’s because every firearm and bullet produced...

Ukraine's women fighters reflect a cultural tradition of feminist independence

Written by Mia Bloom, Professor and Fellow at Evidence Based Cyber Security Program, Georgia State University

A Ukrainian soldier on March 9, 2022, waits for a train in Lviv that will take her to the front line. Vincenzo Circosta/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

Tens of thousands of Ukrainian women have taken up arms during the war sparked by Russia’s invasion. According to media reports, women constitute as much as 15% to 17% of the...

Why weren't women allowed to act in Shakespeare's plays?

Written by Elizabeth Steinway, Instructor of Literature and Composition, Colorado State University

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 curiouskidsus@theconversation.com.

Why weren’t women allowed to act in Shakespeare’s plays? – Anastasia, Herdon, Virginia, 15

The role of Desdemona, the devoted, loving wife murdered by her husband in...

Ukraine's economy went from Soviet chaos to oligarch domination to vital global trader of wheat and neon – and now Russian devastation

Written by Yuriy Gorodnichenko, Quantedge Presidential Professor of Economics, University of California, Berkeley

Ukrainian wheat is vital to global food chains. But fighting near farmland like around Mykolayiv may prevent seeds from being planted.Mykola Sosiukin/EyeEm via Getty Images

Ukraine’s economy continues to operate despite the battering the country is getting from the Russian military.

Many factories and businesses still function. Other...

Russia's energy clout doesn't just come from oil and gas – it's also a key nuclear supplier

Written by Alex Gilbert, PhD Candidate in Space Resources, Colorado School of Mines

Manufacturing a 300-ton nuclear reactor pressure vessel at a factory in Volgodonsk, Russia.Pallava Bagla/Corbis via Getty Images

As Western nations look for ways to reduce their reliance on Russian oil and gas, another aspect of the Ukraine crisis has received less attention: Most of the 32 countries that use nuclear power rely on Russia for some...

Some states are making it harder to vote, some are making it easier – but it's too soon to say if this will affect voter turnout in 2022

Written by Nancy Martorano Miller, Associate Professor of Political Science, University of Dayton

Mail-in ballots for the California recall election are processed in Pomona, Calif., on Sept. 9, 2021.Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images

There’s been a good deal of crying foul about what are being called anti-democratic new state laws that make it harder to vote.

But it turns out such laws might have little impact on voter turnout and...

Why pregnant people should get vaccinated for COVID-19 – a maternal care expert explains

Written by Stacy Potts, Professor of Family Medicine and Community Health, UMass Chan Medical School

Pregnant people are at significantly greater risk from COVID-19 than from the vaccine.Emilija Manevska/Moment 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.

I don a gown, gloves and a mask to enter the...