The Conversation

Do wasps have a queen like bees do?

Written by Caralyn Zehnder, Lecturer in Biology, University of Massachusetts Amherst

Some wasps are social insects, meaning they live in groups and have a queen.umsiedlungen/Pixabay.com), CC BY-SA

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.

Is there a queen wasp? - Gabriel H., age 7, Providence, Rhode Island

That’s...

Tornadoes that strike at night are more deadly and require more effective warning systems

Written by Kelsey Ellis, Associate Professor of Geography, University of Tennessee

Salvaging items from a destroyed home near Lebanon, Tenn., March 3, 2020, after tornadoes ripped across the state. AP Photo/Mark Humphrey

During the hours after midnight on March 3, 2020, tragedy struck middle Tennessee when a tornado ripped through the region, traveling over 50 miles from West Nashville to near Gordonsville. Another tornado forme...

Less than one-fifth of reported rapes and sexual assaults lead to arrests

Written by Melissa Morabito, Associate Professor of Criminology and Justice Studies, University of Massachusetts Lowell

Protesters attended Harvey Weinstein's first day of trial.lev radin/Shutterstock.comCC BY-ND

As experts in criminology and the justice system, we were surprised to learn that a jury voted to convict Harvey Weinstein on two counts of rape and sexual assault.

This surprise was based on our more than a decade of research on the attrition of sexual...

Biden's resurrection was unprecedented – and well-timed

Written by Robert Shrum, Carmen H. and Louis Warschaw Chair in Practical Politics, University of Southern California – Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences

Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden speaks during a campaign rally in Los Angeles on Super Tuesday.Ronen Tivony/Echoes Wire/Barcroft Media via Getty Images

The dominant question going into Super Tuesday was: Did Joe Biden’s sweeping victory in South Carolina come just in time, or was it too late?

The answer is now clear. Biden all-but-...

What really works to keep coronavirus away? 4 questions answered by a public health professional

Written by Brian Labus, Assistant Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of Nevada, Las Vegas

Duane Clark works to sanitize surfaces at the Avenue X subway station in New York City on Tuesday, March 3, 2020.AP Photo/Kevin Hagen

Editor’s note: The World Health Organization has declared that COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, has a higher fatality rate than the flu. As of March 4, 2020, nine deaths have been reported...

Vaccines without needles – new shelf-stable film could revolutionize how medicines are distributed worldwide

Written by Maria Croyle, Professor of Pharmaceutics, University of Texas at Austin

Films that dissolve rapidly when placed under the tongue or high in the cheek will make vaccines cheaper and more reliable.Stephen C. Schafer, CC BY-ND

The race is on to identify an effective vaccine for the COVID-19 virus. Once discovered, the next challenge will be manufacturing and distributing it around the world.

My research group has...

Super Tuesday results show how Latino voters, moderate Democrats and Trump supporters are shaping the election

Written by Katie A. Cahill, Associate Director, Howard H. Baker Jr. Center for Public Policy, University of Tennessee

Voting machine operator David Schaefer, right, helps voter Kaitron Gordon with her ballot on Tennessee's Super Tuesday primary in Nashville after deadly overnight tornadoes delayed the start of voting. AP/Mark Humphrey

Editor’s note: From tiny Vermont villages to the tornado-damaged city of Nashville to California’s sprawling suburbs,...

Spring is arriving earlier across the US, and that's not always good news

Written by Theresa Crimmins, Director, USA National Phenology Network, University of Arizona

Yellow trout lily flowers nearly a week earlier now than in previous decades in the Appalachian Mountains.Katja Schulz/Wikipedia, CC BY

Across much of the United States, a warming climate has advanced the arrival of spring. This year is no exception. In parts of the Southeast, spring has arrived weeks earlier than normal and may turn out to be the w...

The Fed's 'surprise' interest rate cut: 5 questions answered

Written by Jonathan T. Fluharty-Jaidee, Assistant Department Chair and Professor of Finance, West Virginia University

The rate cut didn't calm investor nerves. AP Photo/Richard Drew

Editor’s note: The Federal Reserve unexpectedly cut interest rates by half a percentage point on March 2 to calm investors worried the unfolding coronavirus outbreak will slow economic growth. After the surprise move – the first since the 2008 financial crisis –...

There’s no easy exit for the US in Afghanistan

Written by Madhav Joshi, Research Associate Professor & Associate Director, Peace Accords Matrix (PAM), University of Notre Dame

New Afghan National Army recruits march during their February graduation ceremony.AP Photo/Rahmat Gul

After 18 months of negotiations, the U.S. and the Taliban signed a peace deal on Feb. 29. It is expected that the deal will provide a plan for a comprehensive Afghan peace process.

The deal addresses the security of foreign troops; the...