The Conversation

Solving the world’s microplastics problem: 4 solutions cities and states are trying after global treaty talks collapsed

Written by Sarah J. Morath, Professor of Law and Associate Dean for International Affairs, Wake Forest University

Microplastics are a growing concern in marine environments. As they break down, the particles can become microscopic.Oregon State University via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA

Microplastics seem to be everywhere – in the air we breathe, the water we drink, the food we eat. They have turned up in human organs, blood, testicles, placentas and even...

Charlie Kirk talked with young people at universities for a reason – he wanted American education to return to traditional values

Written by Daniel Ruggles, PhD Candidate in Politics, Brandeis University

Charlie Kirk speaks at Utah Valley University on Sept. 10, 2025, in Orem, Utah, shortly before he was shot and killed. Trent Nelson/The Salt Lake Tribune/Getty Images

Conservative activist Charlie Kirk was assassinated on Sept. 10, 2025, at the start of a college campus tour that centered on Kirk discussing politics – and education –...

How hardships and hashtags combined to fuel Nepal’s violent response to social media ban

Written by Nir Kshetri, Professor of Management, University of North Carolina – Greensboro

Riot police fire tear gas into crowds of demonstrators in Kathmandu on Sept. 8, 2025.Prabin Ranabhat/AFP via Getty Images

Days of unrest in Nepal have resulted in the ousting of a deeply unpopular government and the deaths of at least 50 people.

The Gen Z-led protests – so-called due to the predominance of young Nepalese among the...

How to avoid seeing disturbing content on social media and protect your peace of mind

Written by Annie Margaret, Teaching Assistant Professor of Creative Technology & Design, ATLAS Institute, University of Colorado Boulder

Social media often serves up disturbing images but you can minimize your exposure.Jacob Wackerhausen/iStock via Getty Images

When graphic videos go viral, like the recent fatal shooting of Charlie Kirk, it can feel impossible to protect yourself from seeing things you did not consent to see. But there are steps you can take.

Social media platforms...

Yes, this is who we are: America’s 250-year history of political violence

Written by Maurizio Valsania, Professor of American History, Università di Torino

Punishment by tar and feather of Thomas Ditson, who purchased a gun from a British soldier in Boston in March 1775. Interim Archives/Getty Images

The day after conservative activist Charlie Kirk was shot and killed while speaking at Utah Valley University, commentators repeated a familiar refrain: “This isn’t who we are as Americans.&r...

Scientists detected a potential biosignature on Mars – an astrobiologist explains what these traces of life are, and how researchers figure out their source

Written by Amy J. Williams, Assistant Professor of Geology, University of Florida

NASA’s Perseverance rover explores Mars' Jezero Crater.NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS, CC BY-NC

As the Perseverance rover traversed an ancient river valley in Mars’ Jezero Crater back in July 2024, it drilled into the surface and extracted a sample from of a unique, striped rock called Chevaya Falls. The rover’s instruments then analyzed...

Parasitic worms bury themselves in the brains of moose and elk – a new test can help diagnose these animals to prevent disease spread

Written by Richard Gerhold, Professor of Parasitology, University of Tennessee

The difficult-to-detect meningeal worm is spread by white-tailed deer and is a notorious killer of moose. AP Photo/Jim Cole, File

A moose in Minnesota stumbles onto the road. She circles, confused and dazed, unable to orient herself or recognize the danger of an oncoming semitruck. What kills her is the impact of 13 tons of steel, but what causes...

‘Publish or perish’ evolutionary pressures shape scientific publishing, for better and worse

Written by Thomas Morgan, Associate Professor of Evolutionary Anthropology, Institute of Human Origins, Arizona State University

While developing his theory of natural selection, Charles Darwin was horrified by a group of wasps that lay their eggs within the bodies of caterpillars, with the larvae eating their hosts alive from the inside-out.

Darwin didn’t judge the wasps. Instead, he was troubled by what they revealed about evolution. They showed natural selection to...

Beauty sleep isn’t a myth – a sleep medicine expert explains how rest keeps your skin healthy and youthful

Written by Joanna Fong-Isariyawongse, Associate Professor of Neurology, University of Pittsburgh

Getting enough sleep is one of the most accessible and powerful ways to maintain healthy skin.TatyanaGl/iStock via Getty Images

Have you ever woken up after a night of poor sleep, glanced in the mirror and thought, “I look tired?”

You’re not imagining it.

I am a neurologist who specializes in sleep medicine. And though...

Proposed cuts to NIH funding would have ripple effects on research that could hamper the US for decades

Written by Mohammad S. Jalali, Associate Professor, Systems Science and Policy, Harvard University

The NIH is a node in an interconnected system producing health and medical advances. Anchalee Phanmaha/Moment via Getty Images

In May 2025, the White House proposed reducing the budget of the National Institutes of Health by roughly 40% – from about US$48 billion to $27 billion. Such a move would return NIH funding to levels last seen in 2007....