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The Conversation

Zoos and aquariums shift to a new standard of 'animal welfare' that depends on deeper understanding of animals' lives

  • Written by Michael J. Renner, Professor of Biology, Psychology, and Environmental Science & Sustainability, and director of the program in Zoo & Conservation Science, Drake University
imageClimbers must climb, diggers must dig and runners must run. Doris Rudd Designs, Photography/Moment via Getty Images

In 1980 I visited the zoo in a major U.S. city and found row after row of bare concrete boxes with jailhouse-style bars occupied by animals from around the world. The animals appeared to be in good physical condition, but many were...

Read more: Zoos and aquariums shift to a new standard of 'animal welfare' that depends on deeper...

'Dataraising' – when you're asked to chip in with data instead of money

  • Written by Lucy Bernholz, Senior Research Scholar of Philanthropy and Civil Society, Stanford University
imageVolunteers across the U.S. tag and count monarchs during the insects' annual migrations. AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster

Fundraising appeals are part of everyday life, both online and off.

Requests for financial donations arrive by snail mail, email, social media and text messages. Cashiers at chain stores and supermarkets ask if you want to chip in for...

Read more: 'Dataraising' – when you're asked to chip in with data instead of money

How changing parental beliefs can build stronger vocabulary and math skills for young children

  • Written by Julie Pernaudet, Research Associate in Economics, University of Chicago
imageParents nurture their child's development when they tell stories and have conversations with them.FG Trade/E+ Collection via Getty Images

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

The big idea

The key to improving young children’s vocabulary and math skills may lie in changing their parents’ beliefs. We describe...

Read more: How changing parental beliefs can build stronger vocabulary and math skills for young children

American support for conspiracy theories and armed rebellion isn't new – we just didn't believe it before the Capitol insurrection

  • Written by Amanda J. Crawford, Assistant Professor of Journalism, University of Connecticut
imageRioters are tear-gassed as they storm the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images

Americans had to confront a new reality when an angry mob attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021: Some of their fellow citizens were in the grips of a false reality and had resorted to violence to support it.

Conspiracy...

Read more: American support for conspiracy theories and armed rebellion isn't new – we just didn't believe it...

The 'sore loser effect': Rejecting election results can destabilize democracy and drive terrorism

  • Written by James Piazza, Liberal Arts Professor of Political Science, Penn State
imageThe Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol offers an example of how refusing to accept election results can lead to violence. Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images

An attendee at an October 2021 political rally hosted by right-wing activist Charlie Kirk asked: “How many elections are they going to steal before we kill these people?&r...

Read more: The 'sore loser effect': Rejecting election results can destabilize democracy and drive terrorism

Not all polarization is bad, but the US could be in trouble

  • Written by Robert B. Talisse, W. Alton Jones Professor of Philosophy, Vanderbilt University
imageProtesters and counter-protesters face off at a political rally in September 2021.AP Photo/Nathan Howard

For the first time, the United States has been classified as a “backsliding democracy” in a global assessment of democratic societies by the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance, an intergovernmental...

Read more: Not all polarization is bad, but the US could be in trouble

Why can’t we throw all our trash into a volcano and burn it up?

  • Written by Emily Johnson, Research Geologist, US Geological Survey
imageLava flows from a fissure in the aftermath of eruptions from the Kilauea volcano on Hawaii's Big Island, May 22, 2018. Andrew Richard Hara/Ena Media Hawaii via Getty Imagesimage

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.

Why can’t we...

Read more: Why can’t we throw all our trash into a volcano and burn it up?

Rifts between older mothers and their adult children usually endure – even through divorce, illness and death

  • Written by Megan Gilligan, Associate Professor of Human Development and Family Studies, Iowa State University
imageRelationships among family members can be tough.vm/ iStock / Getty Images Plus via Getty Images

At the start of every new year, individuals often make resolutions to change aspects of their lives that they find undesirable. For some, these promises to themselves may involve trying to mend broken family relationships.

Well-meaning friends and family...

Read more: Rifts between older mothers and their adult children usually endure – even through divorce,...

Philanthropists seeking to fix big problems must tread carefully – here's how they can make their efforts more compatible with democracy

  • Written by Ted Lechterman, Research Fellow, University of Oxford
imageMartin Luther King Jr. is among the many big thinkers to question the importance of philanthropy.AP Photo

How should wealthy people respond to daunting problems like racism, economic inequality and climate change? Leading thinkers have long questioned whether philanthropy offers appropriate or meaningful solutions to vexing challenges.

Eighteenth-ce...

Read more: Philanthropists seeking to fix big problems must tread carefully – here's how they can make their...

Inflation, workforce participation and real wages: 3 key indicators for monitoring the economy in 2022

  • Written by Veronika Dolar, Assistant Professor of Economics, SUNY Old Westbury
imageMirror mirror on the wall, who's the best economy of them all?PM Images/DigitalVision via Getty Images

The U.S. economy ended 2021 with a lot of uncertainty. Inflation surged to levels not seen since the 1980s – seriously eroding consumer purchasing power – while the highly contagious omicron variant forced many Americans to hunker down...

Read more: Inflation, workforce participation and real wages: 3 key indicators for monitoring the economy in...

More Articles ...

  1. Ghislaine Maxwell guilty in Epstein sex trafficking trial: What the case revealed about female sex offenders
  2. E.O. Wilson's lifelong passion for ants helped him teach humans about how to live sustainably with nature
  3. 4 New Year's resolutions for a healthier environment in 2022
  4. Not all calories are equal – a dietitian explains the different ways the kinds of foods you eat matter to your body
  5. What will 2022 bring in the way of misinformation on social media? 3 experts weigh in
  6. How common is the 'Common Era?' How A.D. and C.E. took over counting years
  7. Manchin takes aim at Build Back Better, but his real focus is on West Virginia
  8. Medical technologies have been central to US pandemic response – but social behaviors matter just as much
  9. Biden to expand access to at-home COVID kits: 4 essential reads on the critical role of rapid tests
  10. During a COVID-19 surge, ‘crisis standards of care’ involve excruciating choices and impossible ethical decisions for hospital staff
  11. 2021: a year physicists asked, 'What lies beyond the Standard Model?'
  12. What is Log4j? A cybersecurity expert explains the latest internet vulnerability, how bad it is and what's at stake
  13. Stress is contagious in relationships – here's what you can do to support your partner and boost your own health during the holidays and beyond
  14. As spiritualism's popularity grows, photographer Shannon Taggart takes viewers inside the world of séances, mediums and orbs
  15. Sports card explosion holds promise for keeping kids engaged in math
  16. The Massachusetts flag glorifies the violence committed by colonizers – Native Americans want it changed
  17. Why Putin has such a hard time accepting Ukrainian sovereignty
  18. Nickel oxide is a material that can 'learn' like animals and could help further artificial intelligence research
  19. Millions more Americans now have the right to vote in non-English languages
  20. Home for the holidays and worried about an older relative? Make observations, not assumptions
  21. 2021’s climate disasters revealed an east-west weather divide, with one side of the country too wet, the other dangerously dry
  22. Devastating Colorado fires cap a year of climate disasters in 2021, with one side of the country too wet, the other dangerously dry
  23. Mechanical forces in a beating heart affect its cells' DNA, with implications for development and disease
  24. How do fireworks work? A pyrotechnics chemist explains the science behind the brilliant colors and sounds
  25. The best way to follow through on your New Year's resolution? Make an 'old year's resolution'
  26. Manchin killed Build Back Better over inflation concerns – an economist explains why the $2 trillion bill would be unlikely to drive up prices
  27. Don't care about the Build Back Better Act? Hearing people's personal stories might change that
  28. What's the point of holiday gifts?
  29. Genomic sequencing: Here's how researchers identify omicron and other COVID-19 variants
  30. Facebook became Meta – and the company's dangerous behavior came into sharp focus in 2021: 4 essential reads
  31. To get people the help they need from the government, postcards may be the answer
  32. Family rifts affect millions of Americans – research shows possible paths from estrangement toward reconciliation
  33. Are parents criminally responsible for the actions of their child? In the Oxford shooting case, prosecutors say yes
  34. What's the record for how long it's ever rained without stopping?
  35. UN fails to agree on 'killer robot' ban as nations pour billions into autonomous weapons research
  36. People who are bad with numbers often find it harder to make ends meet – even if they are not poor
  37. The magnificent history of the maligned and misunderstood fruitcake
  38. Kim Jong Un’s decade in power: Starvation, repression and brutal rule – just like his father and grandfather
  39. bell hooks will never leave us – she lives on through the truth of her words
  40. The US is making plans to replace all of its lead water pipes from coast to coast
  41. A Persian festival, Yalda, celebrates the triumph of light over darkness, with pomegranates, poetry and sacred rituals
  42. Taking out a student loan for your child can hurt your own financial well-being
  43. Convenient but susceptible to fraud: Why it makes sense to regulate charitable crowdfunding
  44. The 'runner's high' may result from molecules called cannabinoids – the body's own version of THC and CBD
  45. How to help those who have lost loved ones to suicide cope with grief during the holidays
  46. Sold-out supplies, serving a public need and other adventures of doing science during a pandemic – 4 researchers share their experiences
  47. 'Twas the night before Christmas' helped make the modern Santa – and led to a literary whodunit
  48. Why spending $2 trillion on child care, health care and fighting climate change won't make inflation any worse than it already is
  49. Mistletoe – famous for stolen holiday kisses – is a parasite that steals water and nutrients from other plants
  50. Surveys of scientists show women and young academics suffered most during pandemic and may face long-term career consequences