The Conversation

Studying chimpanzee calls for clues about the origins of human language

Written by Michael Wilson, Associate Professor of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, University of Minnesota

Nisarg Desai observes wild chimps known as Sandi, Ferdinand and Siri in Tanzania.Michael Wilson, CC BY-ND

Freud, Wilkie and the other chimpanzees peacefully fed and rested in the sun-dappled Tanzanian forest. Mzee Hilali stood next to me, writing notes on the chimpanzees’ behavior, as he had been doing for over 30 years as a field assistant...

Why graduation rates lag for low-income college students

Written by Nathan Favero, Assistant Professor of Public Administration & Policy, American University School of Public Affairs

Just under half of all Pell Grant recipients graduate on time, new data show.Joseph Sohm/www.shutterstock.com

As college students nationwide prepare for graduation, a new analysis has shown that just under half of all those who receive Pell Grants – the federal government’s main form of direct financial aid for low-income students...

Presidents often reverse US foreign policy — how Trump handles setbacks is what matters most now

Written by Charles Hermann, Senior Professor, and Brent Scowcroft Chair Emeritus, Bush School of Government & Public Service, Texas A&M University

The United States will withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal, according to a May 8 announcement by President Donald Trump. The decision reverses a hardwon agreement that President Barack Obama negotiated with European allies, Russia, Iran and other nations in 2015.

This is hardly Trump’s first foreign policy turnaround.

The president plans to...

What Mary Shelley's Frankenstein teaches us about the need for mothers

Written by Richard Gunderman, Chancellor's Professor of Medicine, Liberal Arts, and Philanthropy, Indiana University

Frankenstein's monster in the Hollywood Wax Museum. The fictional character first appeared in Mary Shelley's novel in 1818.www.shutterstock.com

Motherhood is getting considerable attention, even if much of the news is concerning. Fertility rates are falling in America as millennials decide not to have children. This should hardly come as a...

The thinking error at the root of science denial

Written by Jeremy P. Shapiro, Adjunct Assistant Professor of Psychological Sciences, Case Western Reserve University

Could seeing things in black-and-white terms influence people's views on scientific questions? Lightspring/Shutterstock.com

Currently, there are three important issues on which there is scientific consensus but controversy among laypeople: climate change, biological evolution and childhood vaccination. On all three issues, prominent members of the...

Ending sexual assault in youth detention centers

Written by Eileen M. Ahlin, Assistant Professor, Criminal Justice, Pennsylvania State University

Juvenile residents sit in a classroom at detention center in Atlanta.AP Photo/David Goldman

Rampant violence and civil rights abuses in juvenile prisons are prompting calls to shut them down.

In the wake of scandals in 2017 in Texas and Florida where correctional officers were accused of sexually assaulting youth in custody, the issue has drawn...

Reading and singing to preemies helps parents feel comfortable with their fragile babies

Written by Brenda Hussey-Gardner, Associate Professor, Pediatrics, University of Maryland, Baltimore

A mother in the Mother Goose on the Loose program reading to her infant. University of Maryland Medical System Foundation, CC BY-SA

One out of 10 babies is born prematurely in the United States. These babies typically are cared for in neonatal intensive care units, often called NICUs.

Traditional NICUs have an open-bay design where multiple babies...

Cryptojacking spreads across the web

Written by Pranshu Bajpai, Security Researcher, PhD Candidate, Michigan State University

Is someone else making money on your computer?WICHAI WONGJONGJAIHAN/Shutterstock.com

Right now, your computer might be using its memory and processor power – and your electricity – to generate money for someone else, without you ever knowing. It’s called “cryptojacking,” and it is an offshoot of the rising popularity...

The EPA says burning wood to generate power is 'carbon-neutral.' Is that true?

Written by William Moomaw, Professor Emeritus of International Environmental Policy, Tufts University

Enviva's wood pellet plant in Ahoskie, NC. Marlboro Productions, CC BY-ND

Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt recently told a group of forestry executives and students that from now on the U.S. government would consider burning wood to generate electricity, commonly known as forest or woody biomass, to be “carbon neutral...

Americans are becoming more socially isolated, but they're not feeling lonelier

Written by Sara Konrath, Assistant Professor of Philanthropic Studies, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis

Alone in the crowd, but not lonely.Realstock/shutterstock.com

Are Americans becoming lonelier?

On May 1, NPR reported on a survey about loneliness conducted by Cigna, a large health insurance company. Cigna asked over 20,000 American adults if they agreed with statements like “People are around me but not with me” and “No one...