The Conversation

Calculating the costs of the Afghanistan War in lives, dollars and years

Written by Neta C. Crawford, Professor of Political Science and Department Chair, Boston University

Heading for the exit.Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images

The U.S. invaded Afghanistan in late 2001 to destroy al-Qaida, remove the Taliban from power and remake the nation. On Aug. 30, 2021, the U.S. completed a pullout of troops from Afghanistan, providing an uncertain punctuation mark to two decades of conflict.

For the past 11 years I have...

Hurricane Ida turned into a monster thanks to a giant warm patch in the Gulf of Mexico – here’s what happened

Written by Nick Shay, Professor of Oceanography, University of Miami

A computer animation reflects the temperature change as eddies spin off from the Loop Current and Gulf Stream along the U.S. Coast.

As Hurricane Ida headed into the Gulf of Mexico, a team of scientists was closely watching a giant, slowly swirling pool of warm water directly ahead in its path.

That warm pool, an eddy, was a warning sign. It was...

Even with the eviction moratorium, landlords continued to find ways to kick renters out

Written by Matthew Fowle, Ph.D. Candidate in Public Policy and Governance, University of Washington

Evictions continued despite the ban imposed during the pandemicPhoto by John Moore/Getty Images

Millions of renters in the U.S. lost a key protection keeping them in their homes on Aug. 26, 2021, with a Supreme Court ruling ending a national moratorium on eviction.

The federal stay on evictions was put in place during the coronavirus pandemic to...

Afghanistan has vast mineral wealth but faces steep challenges to tap it

Written by Scott L. Montgomery, Lecturer, Jackson School of International Studies, University of Washington

Afghanistan has mineral resources that include precious gems and minerals such as copper and rare earth elements.Majid Saeedi/Getty Images

The official ending of the U.S.-led war in Afghanistan leaves a number of long-term questions, including how the country can build a functioning economy. Now that U.S. assistance has evaporated and international...

Microeconomics explains why people can never have enough of what they want and how that influences policies

Written by Amitrajeet A. Batabyal, Arthur J. Gosnell Professor of Economics, Rochester Institute of Technology

Microeconomists study how individuals and companies balance their desires and needs with costs and available resources.invincible_bulldog/iStock via Getty Images

Economics is broadly divided into macroeconomics and microeconomics. The big picture, macroeconomics, concentrates on the behavior of a national or a regional economy as a whole: the...

Refugees after the American Revolution needed money, homes and acceptance

Written by G. Patrick O'Brien, Lecturer in History and Philosophy, Kennesaw State University

An allegorical painting depicted the British Empire taking in American loyalists in 1783.Benjamin West’s portrait of John Eardley Wilmot, 1812. Yale Center for British Art, Paul Mellon Collection

The U.S. has long been a destination for people fleeing war-torn regions of the world. But in 1783, the tables were turned: Between 60,000 and...

Do US teens have the right to be vaccinated against their parents' will? It depends on where they live

Written by Brian Dean Abramson, Adjunct Professor of Vaccine Law, Florida International University

Many U.S. states follow some form of "mature minor doctrine" allowing teens to make medical decisions without parental consent, including COVID-19 vaccination.Pete Bannan/MediaNews Group/Daily Times via Getty Images

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends COVID-19 vaccines for everyone aged 12 and up. And yet, 12- to 15-year olds a...

Bilingual people with language loss due to stroke can pose a treatment challenge – computational modeling may help clinicians treat them

Written by Claudia Peñaloza, Researcher, Aphasia Research Laboratory, Boston University

Researchers can program neural networks composed of artificial neurons to simulate language processing.Andriy Onufriyenko/Getty Images

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

The big idea

New research shows that computational modeling can predict how bilingual stroke patients will respond to language treatment – and...

Lessons about 9/11 often provoke harassment of Muslim students

Written by Amaarah DeCuir, Professorial Lecturer of Education, American University

Muslim students report being teased and harassed when schools focus on 9/11.Jasmin Merdan

Near the start of each school year, many U.S. schools wrestle with how to teach about 9/11 – the deadliest foreign attack ever on American soil.

In interviews I conducted recently in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area – one of three places where...

New gene therapies may soon treat dozens of rare diseases, but million-dollar price tags will put them out of reach for many

Written by Kevin Doxzen, Hoffmann Postdoctoral Fellow, Arizona State University

Gene therapy uses our genomic makeup to treat or prevent disease. ktsimape/iStock via Getty Images

Zolgensma – which treats spinal muscular atrophy, a rare genetic disease that damages nerve cells, leading to muscle decay – is currently the most expensive drug in the world. A one-time treatment of the life-saving drug for a young child c...