The Conversation

From breakbeats to the dance floor: How hip-hop and house revolutionized music and culture

Written by Joycelyn Wilson, Assistant Professor of Ethnographic and Cultural Studies , Georgia Institute of Technology

Producers Fast Eddie and Joe Smooth mix at DJ International Studios in Chicago in 1990. Innovation was at the forefront of house and hip-hop.Raymond Boyd/Getty Images

There was a time when artists representing two of America’s biggest homegrown musical genres wouldn’t get a look in at the Grammys.

Hip-hop and house both have their...

How nonprofits abroad can fill gaps when the US government cuts off foreign aid

Written by Susan Appe, Associate Professor of Public Administration and Policy, University at Albany, State University of New York

The U.S. Agency for International Development distributes a lot of foreign aid through local partners in other countries.J. David Ake/Getty Images

The U.S. government gives other nations US$68 billion of foreign assistance annually – more than any other country. Over half of this sum is managed by the U.S. Agency for International Development,...

Biden targeted the online right-wing terrorism threat − now it’s up to Trump

Written by Jason M. Blazakis, Professor of Practice and Director of Center on Terrorism, Extremism and Counterterrorism, Middlebury

U.S. officials say the right-wing terrorism threat is significant.Farion_O/iStock via Getty Images

In the waning days of the Biden administration, the U.S. Department of State took its first major step against terrorism groups primarily focused on what is called “accelerationism” – the effort to inspire independent followers to...

A federal policy expert weighs in on Trump’s efforts to stifle gender-affirming care for Americans under 19

Written by Elana Redfield, Federal Policy Director at the Williams Institute, University of California, Los Angeles

President Donald Trump signs an executive order in the Oval Office of the White House on Jan. 23, 2025.AP Photo/Ben Curtis

Amid a flurry of executive orders affecting transgender Americans, the Trump administration ordered restrictions on gender-affirming care for minors. Calling it “a stain on our Nation’s history,” the Jan. 28,...

How satellites and AI help fight wildfires today

Written by John W. Daily, Research Professor in Thermo Fluid Sciences, University of Colorado Boulder

The wind and terrain can quickly change how a fire, like this one near Los Angeles in January 2025, behaves.AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez

As wind-driven wildfires spread through the Los Angeles area in January 2025, fire-spotting technology and computer models were helping firefighters understand the rapidly changing environment they were facing.

That...

Why Trump’s meme coin is a cash grab

Written by Maximilian Brichta, Doctoral Student of Communication, University of Southern California

The Trump meme coin has already attracted over a half-million buyers.Mateusz Slodkowski/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

Three days before his presidential inauguration, Donald Trump launched a meme coin, a type of cryptocurrency whose value is buoyed by social media and internet culture, rather than any sort of functionality or intrinsic...

Stricter abortion laws may cause increased infant deaths − 2 maternal and child health researchers explain the data

Written by Almut Winterstein, Distinguished Professor of Pharmaceutical Outcomes & Policy, University of Florida

Many babies born with severe birth defects die within the first few days or weeks of life.shironosov/iStock via Getty Images Plus

Infant mortality in the U.S. has increased by 7% since the 2022 Dobbs v. Jackson U.S. Supreme Court decision overturned the constitutional right to abortion, according to an October 2024 study.

Those findings followed...

‘We painted our fear, hope and dreams’ − examining the art and artists of Guantánamo Bay

Written by Alexandra Moore, Professor of Human Rights in Literary and Cultural Studies, Binghamton University, State University of New York

Sailing ships are a common feature of Moath al-Alwi's art.Moath al-Alwi, 2016, CC BY-SA

When Moath al-Alwi left Guantánamo Bay for resettlement in Oman, accompanying him on his journey was a cache of artwork he created during more than two decades of detention.

Al-Alwi was detainee number “028” – an indication that he was...

Gen Z seeks safety above all else as the generation grows up amid constant crisis and existential threat

Written by Yalda T. Uhls, Founder and Executive Director of the Center for Scholars & Storytellers and Assistant Adjunct Professor in Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles

Asked to rate the importance of 14 personal goals, Gen Z reported 'to be safe' as the top goal.Darya Komarova/Getty Images

After many years of partisan politics, increasingly divisive language, finger-pointing and inflammatory speech have contributed to an environment of fear and uncertainty, affecting not just political dynamics but also the...

Philly Whole Foods store becomes first to unionize – a labor expert explains what’s next and how Trump could stall workers’ efforts

Written by Paul F. Clark, Professor of Labor and Employment Relations, Penn State

Workers at a Whole Foods store in Philadelphia voted 130-100 to unionize.Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

Whole Foods workers at the Philadelphia flagship store in the city’s Art Museum area voted to unionize on Jan. 27, 2025. They are the first store in the Amazon-owned grocery chain to do so.

Paul Clark, a professor of labor and employment...