The Conversation

What’s a ‘black box’ warning? A pharmacologist explains how these labels protect patients

Written by C. Michael White, Distinguished Professor of Pharmacy Practice, University of Connecticut

Black box warnings can influence whether or not clinicians decide to prescribe a drug.SDI Productions/E+ via Getty Images

A “black box” warning on a health product sounds pretty scary – maybe even more so when it’s suddenly being taken off the packaging.

Americans were reminded of this type of public health messaging on Nov....

Black and Latino homeowners in Philly face discrimination when appraisers assess their properties

Written by Gregory Squires, Professor Emeritus of Sociology, George Washington University

Home appraisal bias contributes to racial wealth disparities and violates the Fair Housing Act. Jeff Fusco/The Conversation U.S., CC BY-SA

For most families, owning a home is the primary way to accumulate wealth and transfer that wealth to future generations.

But in Philadelphia and other U.S. cities, studies have shown that if you live in a Black...

Space debris struck a Chinese spacecraft – how the incident could be a wake-up call for international collaboration

Written by R. Lincoln Hines, Assistant Professor of International Affairs, Georgia Institute of Technology

China's Shenzhou-20 spacecraft – shown here hitching a ride on a Long March-2F carrier rocket – was hit by a piece of space debris. Pedro Pardo/AFP via Getty Images

China’s Shenzhou-20 spacecraft took a hit from a piece of space debris floating through orbit, causing Chinese officials to delay the spacecraft’s return from...

Global companies are still committing to protect the climate – and they’re investing big money in clean tech

Written by Lily Hsueh, Associate Professor of Economics and Public Policy, Arizona State University

Electric delivery vehicles powered by renewable energy are helping several multinationals lower their emissions.Mustafa Hussain/Getty Images

The Trump administration has given corporations plenty of convenient excuses to retreat from their climate commitments, with its moves to withdraw from the Paris Agreement, roll back emissions regulations, and...

Let’s go on an ESCAPADE – NASA’s small, low-cost orbiters will examine Mars’ atmosphere

Written by Christopher Carr, Assistant Professor of Aerospace Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology

This close-up illustration shows what one of the twin ESCAPADE spacecraft will look like conducting its science operations.James Rattray/Rocket Lab USA/Goddard Space Flight Center

Envision a time when hundreds of spacecraft are exploring the solar system and beyond. That’s the future that NASA’s ESCAPADE, or escape and plasma...

‘Simulation theory’ brings an AI twist out of ‘The Matrix’ to ideas mystics and religious scholars have voiced for centuries

Written by Rizwan Virk, Faculty Associate, PhD Candidate in Human and Social Dimensions of Science and Technology, Arizona State University

Computer code appears during an immersive reality screening of the 1999 movie 'The Matrix,' held in Inglewood, Calif., on May 28, 2025. Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images

In the most talked-about film from the final year of the 20th century, “The Matrix,” a computer hacker named Neo finds that the world he lives and works in...

Why rural Maine may back Democrat Graham Platner’s populism in the Senate campaign − but not his party

Written by Nicholas Jacobs, Goldfarb Family Distinguished Chair in American Government, Colby College; Institute for Humane Studies

Graham Platner, left, Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate, chats with his neighbor, Denis Nault, on Nov. 3, 2025, in Sullivan, Maine. AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty

Every few years, Democrats try to convince themselves they’ve found the one – a candidate who can finally speak fluent rural, who looks and sounds like the voters they’ve...

The rise of the autistic detective – why neurodivergent minds are at the heart of modern mysteries

Written by Soohyun Cho, Assistant Professor at the Center for Integrative Studies in the Arts & Humanities, Michigan State University

There never seems to be a shortage of good crime shows on TV, and network television is teeming with detectives who think – and act – differently.

This fall, new seasons of “Elsbeth,” “High Potential,” “Patience” and “Watson” have aired, and they all feature leads who share similar...

The shutdown has ended – but this economist isn’t rejoicing quite yet

Written by Amitrajeet A. Batabyal, Distinguished Professor, Arthur J. Gosnell Professor of Economics, & Head, Department of Sustainability, Rochester Institute of Technology

After 43 days, the U.S. government shutdown finally came to an end late on Nov. 12, 2025, when Congress voted through a long-overdue funding bill, which President Donald Trump promptly signed.

But the prolonged gap in government-as-usual has come at a cost to the economy.

The Conversation spoke with RIT economist Amitrajeet A. Batabyal on the short-...

What is Fusarium graminearum, the fungus a Chinese scientist pleaded guilty to smuggling into the US?

Written by Tom W. Allen, Associate Research Professor of Plant Pathology, Mississippi State University

Wheat infected by *_Fusarium_*, a toxic fungus, has kernels that appear white with orange at the base.Klaus-Dietmar Gabbert/picture alliance via Getty Images

A Chinese plant scientist at the University of Michigan who drew national attention in June 2025 when she was arrested and accused along with another Chinese scientist of smuggling a...