The Conversation

Salman Rushdie renews fight against book-banning -- 3 essential articles on right-wing challenges to what schoolkids can read

Written by Howard Manly, Race + Equity Editor, The Conversation US

Salman Rushdie speaks at the PEN America Literary Gala on May 18, 2023, in New York City.Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for PEN America

No one needs to tell Salman Rushdie about the cost of free speech.

In 1989, Rushdie’s novel “The Satanic Verses” triggered the ire of Iranian leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, who called for the...

Coca-Cola's biggest challenge in greening its operations is its own global marketing strategy

Written by Bart Elmore, Professor of History, The Ohio State University

Egyptian workers push Coca-Cola branded refrigerators, provided free to grocers, through a Cairo street.Mohammed Al-Sehiti/AFP via Getty Images

Coca-Cola is one of the world’s most widely recognized brands. Its global reach, spanning more than 200 countries, was the theme of a 2020 commercial that showed families drinking Coke with their...

What Greek mythology teaches us about women’s resistance and rebellion

Written by Marie-Claire Beaulieu, Associate Professor of Classical Studies, Tufts University

After some hard-fought victories, women’s rights are threatened again in many parts of the world. In the United States, the Supreme Court overturned women’s right to abortion in June 2022; women have also been leaving the workforce since the COVID-19 pandemic, in many cases to care for children and elderly relatives. In other parts of...

New approach to teaching computer science could broaden the subject's appeal

Written by Lauren Margulieux, Associate Professor of Learning Technologies, Georgia State University

Language arts students can program chatbots for literary characters.shironosov/iStock/Getty Images Plus

Despite growing demand for computer science skills in professional careers and many areas of life, K-12 schools struggle to teach computer science to the next generation.

However, a new approach to computer science education – called integrat...

White House plan to combat antisemitism needs to take on centuries of hatred, discrimination and even lynching in America

Written by Pamela S. Nadell, Professor and Patrick Clendenen Chair in Women's & Gender History and Director of the Jewish Studies Program, American University

Bess Myerson, center, was crowned Miss America in 1945, but was turned away from hotels that did not admit Jews when she went on tour. AP photo/Sam Myers

As reported antisemitic incidents in the U.S. in 2022 soared to an all-time high, the White House began developing plans to combat this hate, proclaiming in an official statement, “antisemiti...

White House plan to combat antisemitism takes on centuries of hatred, discrimination and even lynching in America

Written by Pamela S. Nadell, Professor and Patrick Clendenen Chair in Women's & Gender History and Director of the Jewish Studies Program, American University

Bess Myerson, center, was crowned Miss America in 1945, but was turned away from hotels that did not admit Jews when she went on tour. AP photo/Sam Myers

As reported antisemitic incidents in the U.S. in 2022 soared to an all-time high, the White House began developing plans to combat this hate, proclaiming in an official statement, “antisemiti...

Chronic pain can be objectively measured using brain signals – new research

Written by Prasad Shirvalkar, Associate Professor of Anesthesia, University of California, San Francisco

Researchers are working on untangling the neural circuitry of chronic and acute pain.Victor Habbick Visions/Science Photo Library via Getty Images

The Research Brief is a short take about interesting academic work.

The big idea

Using a brain implant that can record neural signals over many months, my research team and I have discovered objective...

Trans joy and family bonds are big parts of the transgender experience lost in media coverage and anti-trans legislation

Written by Derek P. Siegel, Ph.D. Candidate, Sociology, UMass Amherst

Some trans people find gender euphoria in being mothers and being with family.rparobe/E+ via Getty Images

Since the beginning of 2023, 49 U.S. state legislatures have introduced over 500 anti-trans bills. While mainstream media increasingly cover violence and legislative attacks against trans people, many scholars and activists worry that focusing...

What is a black box? A computer scientist explains what it means when the inner workings of AIs are hidden

Written by Saurabh Bagchi, Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Purdue University

You can't see inside any opaque box, but the color black adds an air of mystery.chingraph/iStock via Getty Images

For some people, the term “black box” brings to mind the recording devices in airplanes that are valuable for postmortem analyses if the unthinkable happens. For others it evokes small, minimally outfitted theaters. But...

Gravitational wave detector LIGO is back online after 3 years of upgrades – how the world's most sensitive yardstick reveals secrets of the universe

Written by Chad Hanna, Professor of Physics, Penn State

When two massive objects – like black holes or neutron stars – merge, they warp space and time. Mark Garlick/Science Photo Library via Getty Images

After a three-year hiatus, scientists in the U.S. have just turned on detectors capable of measuring gravitational waves – tiny ripples in space itself that travel through the...