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The Conversation

Look at 3 enduring stories Americans tell about guns to understand the debate over them

  • Written by Greg Dickinson, Professor of Rhetoric and Memory, Colorado State University
imageA family poses in front of their sod house in Custer County, Neb., in 1887.Bettmann/Bettmann via Getty Images

The United States has struggled with a spate of horrific mass shootings – and will now need to grapple with the implications of the Supreme Court striking down New York’s restrictions on carrying concealed firearms, with...

Read more: Look at 3 enduring stories Americans tell about guns to understand the debate over them

Was there anything real about Elvis Presley?

  • Written by Michael T. Bertrand, Professor of History, Tennessee State University
imagePinpointing Elvis Presley's true persona can depend on when and whom you ask.Don Cravens/Getty Images

In Baz Luhrmann’s “Elvis,” there’s a scene based on actual conversations that took place between Elvis Presley and Steve Binder, the director of a 1968 NBC television special that signaled the singer’s return to live...

Read more: Was there anything real about Elvis Presley?

Citizen science volunteers are almost entirely white

  • Written by Bradley Allf, PhD Candidate in Conservation Biology, North Carolina State University
imageMany citizen science projects rely on volunteers to collect data in the field.Marko Geber/DigitalVision via Getty ImagesimageCC BY-ND

Every day, volunteers around the world contribute to scientific studies through “citizen science.” Citizen science can be anything from counting migrating birds to measuring precipitation or even tracking...

Read more: Citizen science volunteers are almost entirely white

What is a heat dome? An atmospheric scientist explains the weather phenomenon baking large parts of the country

  • Written by William Gallus, Professor of Atmospheric Science, Iowa State University
imageThe first day of summer 2022 brought soaring temperatures across a large part of the United States.National Weather Service

A heat dome occurs when a persistent region of high pressure traps heat over an area. The heat dome can stretch over several states and linger for days to weeks, leaving the people, crops and animals below to suffer through...

Read more: What is a heat dome? An atmospheric scientist explains the weather phenomenon baking large parts...

Teacher burnout hits record high – 5 essential reads

  • Written by Jeff Inglis, Freelance Editor, The Conversation US
imageSchoolteachers are reporting high levels of burnout.AP Photo/David Goldman

Teachers in grades K through 12 are more burned out than workers in any other industry, according to a new Gallup poll that finds 44% of K-12 employees report “always” or “very often” feeling burned out at work. That number climbs to 52% when looking...

Read more: Teacher burnout hits record high – 5 essential reads

What is curtailment? An electricity market expert explains

  • Written by Theodore J. Kury, Director of Energy Studies, University of Florida
imageThe control room of the California Independent System Operator, which manages the flow of electricity on the state's power grid.Rolf Schulten/ullstein bild via Getty Images

Curtailment has a special meaning in electric power systems. It describes any action that reduces the amount of electricity generated to maintain the balance between supply and...

Read more: What is curtailment? An electricity market expert explains

Predictable and consistent parental behavior is key for optimal child brain development

  • Written by Tallie Z. Baram, Professor of Pediatrics, Anatomy and Neurobiology, Neurology, Physiology and Biophysics, Neurological Sciences, University of California, Irvine
imagePredictable and consistent parental behavior can include set routines for meals and transportation.Sue Zeng/Unsplash, CC BY-ND

Scientists have long known that the experiences you have during infancy and childhood play an important role in shaping how your brain matures and how you behave as an adult. But figuring out why this happens has been...

Read more: Predictable and consistent parental behavior is key for optimal child brain development

Pandemic's impacts on how people live and work may change city centers for decades to come

  • Written by Andrii Parkhomenko, Assistant Professor of Finance and Business Economics, University of Southern California
imageA permanent rise in telecommuting might spur more companies to relocate to city centers.Alexander Spatari/Moment via Getty Images

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

The big idea

If companies allowed more of their employees to permanently work from home, businesses would gravitate toward city centers, while people...

Read more: Pandemic's impacts on how people live and work may change city centers for decades to come

Ukraine's foreign legion may be new, but the idea isn't

  • Written by Joshua Holzer, Assistant Professor of Political Science, Westminster College
imageForeign soldiers who volunteered to fight for Ukraine participate in training exercises.Geovien So/NurPhoto via Getty Images

After Russia launched its large-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, many countries quickly responded by imposing sanctions on Russia and by sending weapons to help Ukraine defend itself.

But so far, the U.S. and its...

Read more: Ukraine's foreign legion may be new, but the idea isn't

How Octavia E. Butler mined her boundless curiosity to forge a new vision for humanity

  • Written by Alyssa Collins, Assistant Professor of English Language and Literature, University of South Carolina
imageOctavia E. Butler poses in a Seattle bookstore in 2004. The celebrated science fiction author died in 2006.AP Photo/Joshua Trujillo

In 2021, Alyssa Collins was awarded a yearlong Octavia E. Butler Fellowship from The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens in San Marino, California.

imageAlyssa Collins.University of South Carolina

Butler,...

Read more: How Octavia E. Butler mined her boundless curiosity to forge a new vision for humanity

More Articles ...

  1. State funds for students at religious schools? Supreme Court says 'yes' in Maine case – but consequences could go beyond
  2. Americans gave a near-record $485 billion to charity in 2021, despite surging inflation rates
  3. Starving civilians is an ancient military tactic, but today it's a war crime in Ukraine, Yemen, Tigray and elsewhere
  4. What are PFAS, and why is the EPA warning about them in drinking water? An environmental health scientist explains
  5. Here's how to meet Biden's 2030 climate goals and dramatically cut greenhouse gas emissions – with today's technology
  6. Does hardening schools make students safer?
  7. Finland's and Sweden's pursuit of NATO membership is the exact opposite of what Putin wanted for Russian neighbors
  8. Kids' neighborhoods can affect their developing brains, a new study finds
  9. Scams and cryptocurrency can go hand in hand – here's how they work and what to watch out for
  10. Millions of years ago, the megalodon ruled the oceans – why did it disappear?
  11. At last, COVID-19 shots for little kids – 5 essential reads
  12. Jan. 6 committee hearings show what went right, not just what went wrong
  13. Mike Pence's actions on Jan. 6 were wholly unremarkable – until they saved the nation
  14. The history of Southern Baptists shows they have not always opposed abortion
  15. Wiccan celebration of summer solstice is a reminder that change, as expressed in nature, is inevitable
  16. The Jan. 6 hearings are tailor-made for social media – that doesn't mean they're reaching a wide audience
  17. Decades of research document the detrimental health effects of BPA – an expert on environmental pollution and maternal health explains what it all means
  18. What’s a bear market? An economist explains
  19. People couldn't look away from the Johnny Depp and Amber Heard trial – the appeal of a relationship drama held true in the 1700s, too
  20. What is Afrofuturism? An English professor explains
  21. How do drugs know where to go in the body? A pharmaceutical scientist explains why some medications are swallowed while others are injected
  22. Jesus' earthly dad, St. Joseph – often overlooked – is honored by Father's Day in many Catholic nations
  23. A celebrated AI has learned a new trick: How to do chemistry
  24. What's at stake as Colombians choose between Trump-like populist and leftist former guerrilla for president
  25. Your past is my present – how Volodymyr Zelenskyy uses history
  26. Comprender la 'crisis de la blasfemia' entre los países musulmanes y la India
  27. Babies don't come with instruction manuals, so here are 5 tips for picking a parenting book
  28. How math and language can combine to map the globe and create strong passwords, using the power of 3 random words
  29. When texts suddenly stop: Why people ghost on social media
  30. Summer reading: 5 books on the joys and challenges of LGBTQ teen and young adult life
  31. Coastal gentrification in Puerto Rico is displacing people and damaging mangroves and wetlands
  32. Juneteenth celebrates just one of the United States’ 20 emancipation days – and the history of how emancipated people were kept unfree needs to be remembered, too
  33. Trump-endorsed candidates would generally win even without his support – and that's usually the case with all political endorsements
  34. International courts prosecuting leaders like Putin for war crimes have a mixed record – but offer clues on how to get a conviction
  35. Social stress can speed up immune system aging – new research
  36. Trouble paying bills can take a heavy toll on fathers' mental health, leading to family conflict
  37. How we describe the metaverse makes a difference – today's words could shape tomorrow's reality and who benefits from it
  38. The James Webb Space Telescope is finally ready to do science – and it’s seeing the universe more clearly than even its own engineers hoped for
  39. Privacy isn't in the Constitution – but it's everywhere in constitutional law
  40. Legal fights persist over policies that require teachers to refer to trans students by their chosen pronouns
  41. 5 things to know about the Fed's biggest interest rate increase since 1994 and how it will affect you
  42. Woodward and Bernstein didn't bring down a president in Watergate – but the myth that they did lives on
  43. Tumblr's enduring appeal reveals the potency of the web's cultural memory
  44. EU law would require Big Tech to do more to combat child sexual abuse, but a key question remains: How?
  45. Fertilizer prices are soaring – and that's an opportunity to promote more sustainable ways of growing crops
  46. Satellites zoom in on cities' hottest neighborhoods to help combat the urban heat island effect
  47. Where the witches were men: A historian explains what magic looked like in early modern Russia
  48. When all else fails to explain American violence, blame a rapper and hip-hop music
  49. Russians with diverse media diet more likely to oppose Ukraine war
  50. Elder abuse comes in many forms – appropriate Adult Protective Services referrals can help reduce mistreatment