In 2004, the North Korean government launched one of the oddest television campaigns in recent history: “Let’s trim our hair in accordance with the socialist lifestyle.”

Accompanied by radio and print ads, the five-part TV series urged North Korean men to wear their hair short. State-approved haircuts, the campaign explained,...

When we talk about the successes and shortcomings of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) – and health care in the U.S. in general – little attention is given to dental care.

While the ACA defines dental coverage as an essential benefit for those under 18, insurers aren’t required to offer dental coverage for adults. Medicare, the...

Two weeks ago Bernie Sanders and Ted Cruz seemed to have all the momentum in the presidential race. In Wisconsin, Sanders won the Democratic primary by 13 percentage points and Cruz won the GOP primary by the same margin.

But on Tuesday night the narrative changed once again. In landslide victories, Donald Trump won the New York GOP primary and...

Editor’s note: This article is part of our collaboration with Point Taken, a new program from WGBH that will next air on Tuesday, April 19 on PBS and online at pbs.org. The show features fact-based debate on major issues of the day, without the shouting.

How do we change our minds about a person or group we consider a threat?

As the first...

The leak of 11 million confidential documents (in about 2.6 terabytes of data) from the Panamanian law firm Mossack, Fonseca and Co. has been credited by some media outlets to a whistle-blower who wants to remain anonymous. Others have suggested it came from an attack by hackers.

If it was a whistle-blower, then like...

What do conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh, singer Courtney Love and deceased actor Heath Ledger all have in common? The answer, according to published reports, is that all battled addiction to OxyContin, an opioid pain reliever now sometimes called “rich...

Robert Eggers' period horror film “The Witch” has been one of the surprise hits of 2016. It’s even gained a second wind since its February 23 release: the first weekend of April it played on 666 screens around the country, raking in an additional USD$465,000.

The tale of a Puritan family turning on each other as they attempt to...

I’m a cognitive psychologist who studies language comprehension. If I see an ad for a vacation rental that says “Your going to Hollywood!” it really bugs me. But my collaborator, Robin Queen, a sociolinguist, who studies how language use varies across social groups,...

The Conversation’s collaboration with Point Taken continues this week with an in-depth look at the Syrian refugee crisis. Point Taken is an exciting new program from WGBH TV that features debate on a topic that Americans care about –- without the shouting.

Up for discussion on Tuesday, April 19 at 11 Eastern/10 Central on PBS and at...

The April 19 primary in New York looks like it will play a familiar role in this latest Clinton presidential campaign.

Bernie Sanders is hoping his Brooklyn roots and left-wing stands will propel him to victory there, finally altering the dynamic of the race in his favor.

More likely, however, is that the New York primary will do for Hillary Clinton...