The Conversation

Much of the cost of dementia care in aging Native American adults is due to hospitalization

Written by Joan O'Connell, Associate Professor of Health Economics, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

As the population of American Indian and Alaska Native adults ages, the risk for Alzheimer's disease and other dementias – along with various chronic conditions – goes up.grandriver/E+ via Getty Images

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

The big idea

The total treatment costs for American Indian and Alaska...

What is aphasia? An expert explains the condition forcing Bruce Willis to retire from acting

Written by Swathi Kiran, Professor of Neurorehabilitation, Boston University

Bruce Willis has announced he is stepping away from acting.Theo Wargo/Getty Images

Actor Bruce Willis, 67, is “stepping away” from his career in film and TV after being diagnosed with aphasia, his family announced on March 30, 2022.

In a message posted on Instagram, his daughter, Rumer Willis, said that the condition was “impacting...

Black college presidents had a tough balancing act during the civil rights era

Written by Eddie R. Cole, Associate Professor of Higher Education and History, University of California, Los Angeles

Some Black college presidents stood at the forefront of the civil rights movement. Afro American Newspapers/Gado/Getty Images

Historians have documented again and again how college students contributed to the civil rights movement. Less attention has been paid to the role college presidents played in the fight for equality. Here, Eddie R. Cole,...

Yes, Putin and Russia are fascist – a political scientist shows how they meet the textbook definition

Written by Alexander Motyl, Professor of Political Science, Rutgers University - Newark

Russian President Vladimir Putin on stage during a rally in Moscow on March 18, 2022. Sergei Guneyev/Pool/AFP via Getty Images

When Vladimir Putin unleashed an unprovoked invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, the Ukrainian media, public and policymakers almost unanimously began calling the Russian president and the state he leads...

Black Lives Matter protests are shaping how people understand racial inequality

Written by Jelani Ince, Assistant Professor of Sociology, University of Washington

Activists participate in a march urging Congress to pass voting rights legislation in Washington, D.C., on Aug. 28, 2021.Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

Considered to be the largest social justice movement since the civil rights era of the 1960s, Black Lives Matter is more than the scores of street protests organized by the social...

Restoring touch through electrodes implanted in the human brain will require engineering around a sensory lag

Written by David Caldwell, Neurological Surgery Resident, University of California, San Francisco

The brain responds differently to natural touch on a finger versus a direct electrical stimulation.Sebastian Kaulitzki/Science Photo Library

More than 5 million people in the United States are affected by limb loss or paralysis. Technological devices that directly interact with the brain, known as brain-computer interfaces, offer the potential to...

COVID-19 vaccines for the youngest children may be inching closer to authorization – a pediatrician explains how they're being tested

Written by Debbie-Ann Shirley, Associate Professor of Pediatrics, University of Virginia

Millions of U.S. children ages 5-11 have already received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.Keith Birmingham/MediaNews Group/Pasadena Star-News via Getty Images

For some parents of young children, the wait for COVID-19 vaccines has been long and agonizing.

Throughout 2021, vaccines against COVID-19 emerged as the most effective way to...

What the new science of authenticity says about discovering your true self

Written by Matthew Baldwin, Assistant Professor of Psychology, University of Florida

Studies show that feelings of ease and comfort in a given situation – what psychologists call 'fluency' – are tied to feelings of authenticity.Tara Moore/Getty Images

After following a white rabbit down a hole in the ground and changing sizes several times, Alice finds herself wondering “Who in the world am I?”

This scene,...

How does the COVID-19 prevention drug Evusheld work and who should receive it? An infectious disease specialist explains

Written by Patrick Jackson, Assistant Professor of Infectious Diseases, University of Virginia

While many immunocompromised and high-risk patients may benefit from AstraZeneca's Evusheld, drug distribution and access have been uneven.AP Photo/Ted S. Warren

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted emergency use authorization to AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 antibody drug Evusheld on Dec. 8, 2021. Infectious disease physician Patrick...

I no longer grade my students' work – and I wish I had stopped sooner

Written by Elisabeth Gruner, Professor of English, University of Richmond

Evaluating student work and offering feedback doesn't mean there has to be a grade.PeopleImages/E+ via Getty Images

I’ve been teaching college English for more than 30 years. Four years ago, I stopped putting grades on written work, and it has transformed my teaching and my students’ learning. My only regret is that I didn’t do it...