The Conversation

Brain-machine interfaces are getting better and better – and Neuralink's new brain implant pushes the pace

Written by Robert Gaunt, Assistant Professor of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, University of Pittsburgh

Existing BMIs focus on restoring function for people with mobility or communication issues.UPMC/Pitt Health Sciences, CC BY-NC-ND

Elon Musk grabbed a lot of attention with his July 16 announcement that his company Neuralink plans to implant electrodes into the brains of people with paralysis by next year. Their first goal is to create assistive...

Are Syrian refugees a danger to the West?

Written by Arie Kruglanski, Professor of Psychology, University of Maryland

A Syrian family loads their belongings as they evacuate an informal refugee camp in Deir Al-Ahmar, east Lebanon, June 9, 2019. AP/Hussein Malla

While today’s news is full of stories about refugees and migrants to the U.S. from Central America, the plight of those particular refugees is only part of an international migration crisis that has...

What school segregation looks like in the US today, in 4 charts

Written by Erica Frankenberg, Professor of Education and Demography, Pennsylvania State University

Many kids in the U.S. today attend public schools composed mostly of students of the same race.Aksinia Abiagam/Shutterstock.com

Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris, a senator from California, has spoken about how she benefited from attending Berkeley’s desegregated schools.

“There was a little girl in California who was part...

Cartel kingpin El Chapo is jailed for life, but the US-Mexico drug trade is booming

Written by Luis Gómez Romero, Senior Lecturer in Human Rights, Constitutional Law and Legal Theory, University of Wollongong

Kingpin no longer.AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo, File

The infamous Mexican drug lord Joaquín Archivaldo Guzmán Loera – aka “El Chapo” – has been sentenced to life plus an additional 30 years for drug trafficking, conspiracy, money laundering and weapons charges, among other crimes committed over the past...

Adapting cities to a hotter world: 3 essential reads

Written by Jennifer Weeks, Environment + Energy Editor, The Conversation

Keeping cool in Brooklyn.A. Katz/Shutterstock

Heat waves can be deadly, especially when they combine high temperatures with elevated humidity levels that make the air feel even hotter. The impacts can be especially strong in cities, which often are several degrees warmer than nearby rural areas due to the urban heat island effect. These three...

Heat stroke: A doctor offers tips to stay safe as temperatures soar

Written by Gabriel Neal, Clinical Assistant Professor of Family Medicine, Texas A&M University

Staying hydrated is key to avoiding heat stroke and other heat-related health problems.FocusStocker/Shutterstock.com

I easily remember laughing at Wile E. Coyote trying to catch the Road Runner while watching Saturday morning cartoons as a child. I can still see the Coyote walking slowly through the sweltering desert, sun high in the sky,...

Why the federal government isn't prosecuting the officer who choked Eric Garner

Written by Caren Morrison, Associate Professor of Law, Georgia State University

Gwen Carr, Eric Garner's mother, says the federal government should have filed charges.AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews

The Justice Department won’t file federal charges against the New York City police officer who put Eric Garner into the chokehold that led to his death. With the statute of limitations having run out, the case, legally, is closed.

The...

Washington state's big bet on 'free college'

Written by William Zumeta, Professor of Public Policy and Governance and Professor of Education, University of Washington

Washington state has passed a measure to cover college tuition for students from low- and moderate-income families.VDB Photos/Shutterstock.com

Washington state doesn’t have a problem finding educated people to work in its booming high-tech economy – it’s just most of those people come from out of state.

This is why Washington...

Better design could make mobile devices easier for seniors to use

Written by Edward Henry Steinfeld, SUNY Distinguished Professor of Architecture, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York

If all of these devices really work together, they can be a bigger help than any one of them alone.Pro Image Content/Shutterstock.com

A loud “bing” sounded as we drove onto the highway access ramp. I didn’t see a message on our car’s screen. Was it my phone or my wife’s? Was it a calendar alert, or did one of us...

The dysfunctional debt ceiling and why we should kill it: 5 questions answered

Written by Steven Pressman, Professor of Economics, Colorado State University

Treasury Secretary Mnuchin is taking 'extraordinary measures' to avoid busting the debt ceiling. AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana

Editor’s note: The U.S. government maxed out its national credit card in March and has been moving money around ever since to avoid running out of cash. Very soon the Treasury Department will reach the limits of this...