The Conversation

Rare portraits reveal the humanity of the slaves who revolted on the Amistad

Written by Kate McMahon, Historian of Global Slavery, Smithsonian Institution

John Warner Barber's 'Death of Capt. Ferrer,' 1839.Sepia Times/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

On the night of July 1, 1839, 53 enslaved Africans revolted aboard the slaving schooner La Amistad – Spanish for “Friendship” – while they were being shipped to a plantation in Puerto Príncipe, Cuba.

Kidnapped and...

Your environment affects how well your medications work − identifying exactly how could make medicine better

Written by Gary W. Miller, Professor of Environmental Health Sciences, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health

Even the air you breathe may influence how effective a drug may be for you.Jorg Greuel/Photodisc via Getty Images

Your genes play a major role in determining your height, hair and eye color, and skin tone, but they don’t tell the entire story of who you are. Your environment is incredibly important in shaping your personality, your likes and...

Where does black fall on the color spectrum? A color scientist explains

Written by Michael J. Murdoch, Associate Professor of Color Science, Rochester Institute of Technology

You perceive electromagnetic radiation in the form of light in all the colors of the rainbow.MirageC/Movement via Getty Images

Curious Kids is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to curiouskidsus@theconversation.com.

Where does black fall on the color spectrum? – Utsav, age...

The Black librarian who rewrote the rules of power, gender and passing as white

Written by Deborah W. Parker, Professor of Italian, University of Virginia

A 1910 watercolor portrait of Belle da Costa Greene by Laura Coombs Hills.The Morgan Library & Museum, New York, gift of the Estate of Belle da Costa Greene.

“Just Because I am a Librarian doesn’t mean I have to dress like one.”

With this breezy pronouncement, Belle da Costa Greene handily differentiated herself from most...

Bogus scientific papers are enriching fraudsters and slowing lifesaving medical research

Written by Frederik Joelving, Contributing editor, Retraction Watch

Assistant professor Frank Cackowski, left, and researcher Steven Zielske at Wayne State University in Detroit became suspicious of a paper on cancer research that was eventually retracted.Amy Sacka, CC BY-ND

Over the past decade, furtive commercial entities around the world have industrialized the production, sale and dissemination of bogus...

Property and sovereignty in space − as countries and companies take to the stars, they could run into disputes

Written by Wayne N White Jr, Adjunct Professor of Aviation and Space Law, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University

As travel to the Moon grows more accessible, countries may have to navigate territorial disputes.Neil A. Armstrong/NASA via AP

Private citizens and companies may one day begin to permanently settle outer space and celestial bodies. But if we don’t enact governing laws in the meantime, space settlers may face legal chaos.

Many wars on Earth sta...

Can a charter school be religious? The Supreme Court decision about St. Isidore, a Catholic school in Oklahoma, could redraw lines around church and state in education

Written by Charles J. Russo, Joseph Panzer Chair in Education and Research Professor of Law, University of Dayton

If approved, St. Isidore's would be the first religious charter school.Jonathan Kirn/The Image Bank via Getty Images

The Supreme Court has agreed to decide whether Oklahoma can open St. Isidore: an online Roman Catholic charter school named after the patron saint of the internet. If affirmed, the school would be the nation’s first faith-based...

AI gives nonprogrammers a boost in writing computer code

Written by Leo Porter, Teaching Professor of Computer Science and Engineering, University of California, San Diego

AI coding handles the hard parts for nonprogrammers.Andriy/Moment via Getty Images

What do you think there are more of: professional computer programmers or computer users who do a little programming?

It’s the second group. There are millions of so-called end-user programmers. They’re not going into a career as a professional programmer...

Teens on social media: Red, blue and purple states are all passing laws to restrict and protect adolescents

Written by Naomi Cahn, Professor of Law, University of Virginia

While more states are trying to regulate how teenagers and preteens use social media, the federal government has not acted yet on the issue. Daniel de la Hoz/Getty Images

Children should be seen and not heard, or so the old saying goes. A new version of this adage is now playing out across the United States, as more states are passing laws about...

Nonprofits that provide shelter for homeless people, disaster recovery help, and food for low-income Americans rely heavily on federal funding – they would be reeling if Trump froze that money

Written by Dyana Mason, Associate Professor of Planning, Public Policy and Management, University of Oregon

Food pantry staff members and volunteers hand out food in Chelsea, Mass., in November 2024. Joseph Prezioso/AFP via Getty Images

On Jan. 27, 2025, the Trump administration ordered a freeze on federal grants and contracts covering a wide array of aid programs to take effect at 5 p.m. the following day. This freeze was partially prevented when a...