The Conversation

What are 'mule addresses'? Criminologists explain how vacant properties serve as depots for illegal online purchases

Written by David Maimon, Professor of Criminal Justice and Criminology, Georgia State University

Nobody's home, just as the sender intended.AndreyPopov/ iStock via Getty Images Plus

Online shopping isn’t just a convenient way to buy batteries, diapers, computers and other stuff without going to a brick-and-mortar store.

Many Americans also use the internet to quietly acquire illegal, fake and stolen items. Guns, prescription drugs no...

Racial trauma has profound mental health consequence - a Black clinical psychologist explains and offers 5 ways to heal

Written by Char Newton, Clinical Assistant Professor, University of North Dakota

Racial trauma can cause feelings of isolation among Black people. Taiyou Nomachi/Getty Images

Since European expansion into the Americas, white people have demonized Black people and portrayed them as undesirable, violent and hypersexual. Originally, the intent of this demonization was to legitimize the conquest and sale of African people.

One...

India and Vietnam are partnering with the US to counter China − even as Biden claims that's not his goal

Written by Leland Lazarus, Associate Director of National Security, Florida International University

United States and Chinese flags are set up before a July 8, 2023, meeting between officials of the two countries in Beijing.Mark Schiefelbein/Getty Images News via Getty Images

This fall, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is slated to lead a bipartisan group of U.S. senators to China. The planned trip, like other recent visits to China by...

Desert dust storms carry human-made toxic pollutants, and the health risk extends indoors

Written by Claire Williams Bridgwater, Research Professor in Environmental Science, American University

A massive dust storm billows across the western desert of Iraq on April 26, 2005.Shannon Arledge/USMC via Getty Images

Humans have contended with dust storms for thousands of years, ever since early civilizations appeared in the Middle East and North Africa. But modern desert dust storms are different from their preindustrial counterparts.

Around...

Keeping your cool in a warming world: 8 steps to help manage eco-anxiety

Written by Karen Magruder, Assistant Professor of Practice in Social Work, University of Texas at Arlington

In a world facing environmental challenges unprecedented in human history, it’s no surprise that eco-anxiety – a pervasive worry about the current and future state of our planet – has become an increasingly prevalent mental health issue.

As people witness the devastating impacts of climate change, deforestation and loss of biodiversi...

What are the liberal arts? A literature scholar explains

Written by Blaine Greteman, Professor and Chair of English, University of Iowa

Cicero defined 'liberal arts' in a book he wrote about rhetoric in a republic. ra-photos/E+ via Getty Images

The term “liberal arts” is one of the most misunderstood terms in the public discourse on higher education today. A higher education expert once said that putting the words “liberal” and “arts” together...

'Big Bang of Numbers' – The Conversation's book club explores how math alone could create the universe with author Manil Suri

Written by Maggie Villiger, Senior Science + Technology Editor

Fractals emerge on Day 4 of Suri's playful Genesis-inspired narrative about math's role in creation.oxygen/Moment via Getty Images

The Conversation U.S. launched its new book club with a bang – talking to mathematician Manil Suri about his nonfiction work “The Big Bang of Numbers: How to Build the Universe Using Only Math.” Suri, a...

US autoworkers launch historic strike: 3 questions answered

Written by Joshua Murray, Assistant Professor of Sociology, Vanderbilt University

United Auto Workers members rally after marching in the Detroit Labor Day Parade on Sept. 4, 2023. Bill Pugliano via Getty Images

The United Auto Workers union, or UAW, has told workers at three factories to go on strike after failing to agree on new contracts with each of Detroit’s major automakers. The contracts expired at 11:59 p.m. on...

Alzheimer's disease is partly genetic − studying the genes that delay decline in some may lead to treatments for all

Written by Steven DeKosky, Professor of Neurology and Neuroscience, University of Florida

Researchers are zeroing in on understanding what goes awry in the brains of people with Alzheimer's disease.Tek Image/Science Photo Library via Getty Images

Diseases that run in families usually have genetic causes. Some are genetic mutations that directly cause the disease if inherited. Others are risk genes that affect the body in a way that...

The president loves ice cream, and a senator has a new girlfriend – these personal details may seem trivial, but can help reduce political polarization

Written by Jennifer Wolak, Professor of political science, Michigan State University

President Joe Biden eats an ice cream cone at a Baskin-Robbins in Portland, Ore., in October 2022. Carolyn Kaster/AP

Politicians want to be heard – to land a soundbite on the nightly news, to advertise their legislative accomplishments and to have people know their platform. But when given opportunities to talk to voters, they often share...