The Conversation

Puerto Rico wants statehood – but only Congress can make it the 51st state in the United States

Written by Rashid Carlos Jamil Marcano Rivera, Ph.D. Candidate in Political Science, Indiana University

As an unincorporated U.S. territory, Puerto Rico has fewer constitutional and political rights than a state.ankmsn/Getty

Puerto Ricans requested statehood on Nov. 3, 2020, with 52.3% of voters asking to change the island’s status from unincorporated territory to U.S. state.

This is the sixth time statehood has been on the ballot since Puerto...

Why getting back to 'normal' doesn't have to involve police in schools

Written by Stanley S. Litow, Visting Professor of the Pratice, Public Policy, Duke University

Roughly half of public schools have a police presence.Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

Since COVID-19 forced many of America’s schools to teach kids remotely, parents and elected officials have been rightly concerned about when things will get back to normal.

But there are certain aspects of education where a return to a...

W.E.B. Du Bois embraced science to fight racism as editor of NAACP's magazine The Crisis

Written by Jordan Besek, Assistant Professor of Sociology, University at Buffalo

W.E.B. Du Bois in his office at The Crisis in New York City, 1925.W. E. B. Du Bois Papers (MS 312). Special Collections and University Archives, University of Massachusetts Amherst Libraries, CC BY-ND

The NAACP – the most prominent interracial civil rights organization in American history – published the first issue of The Crisis, its...

Taking fish out of fish feed can make aquaculture a more sustainable food source

Written by Pallab Sarker, Associate Research Professor of Environmental Studies, University of California, Santa Cruz

Farmed red tilapia, Thai Mueang, Thailand.Kittichai Boonpong / EyeEm via Getty Images

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

The big idea

Aquaculture, or fish farming, is the world’s fastest-growing food production sector. But the key ingredients in commercial fish feed – fishmeal and fish oil – come...

Mermaids aren't real – but they've fascinated people around the world for ages

Written by Peter Goggin, Associate Professor of English, Arizona State University

Superstition or wishful thinking could trick you into thinking you saw one of these mythical creatures.AP Photo/Eduardo Munoz Alvarez

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.

Are mermaids real? – Verona, age 9, Owensboro,...

My university will be getting COVID-19 vaccines soon – here's how my team will get doses into arms

Written by Desi Kotis, Associate Dean and Professor of Pharmacy, University of California, San Francisco

After receiving the vaccine, health systems have a complicated job ahead of them.AP Photo/Ng Han Guan

In late October, I received an email from a member of the California Department of Public Health. I called the number in the email and a bright happy voice answered and asked if the University of California, San Francisco would be interested in the...

Masks and mandates: How individual rights and government regulation are both necessary for a free society

Written by Martha Ackelsberg, William R. Kenan, Jr. Professor of Government, emerita, Smith College

Residents line up in their cars in late November at a food distribution site in Clermont, Florida, where many are hungry because of the pandemic. Paul Hennessy/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

I’ve been thinking a lot, recently, about the tension between demanding “individual rights” – in the sense of deciding...

From the White House to ancient Athens: Hypocrisy is no match for partisanship

Written by Raman Sachdev, Visiting Instructor of Philosophy, University of South Florida

President Donald Trump plays a round of golf on July 15, 2018 in Turnberry, Scotland. Leon Neal/Getty Images

Donald Trump has spent a lot of time on golf courses during his presidency.

That may come across as hypocritical if many of us consider how Trump criticized Barack Obama for playing golf during his presidency instead of attending to the...

Biden's chance to revive US tradition of inserting ethics in foreign policy

Written by David Mayers, Professor of History and Political Science, Boston University

Biden's is entrusting Secretary of State nominee Antony Blinken to set U.S. foreign policy on a different course.Mark Makela/Getty Images

Donald Trump’s foreign policy has, in the judgment of many analysts, damaged U.S. moral standing around the world. During four years of “America First,” the Trump administration has gotten cozy...

What is a neural network? A computer scientist explains

Written by Tam Nguyen, Assistant Professor, University of Dayton

Neural networks try to simulate the brain by processing data through layers of artificial neurons.MF3d / E+ via Getty Images

Editor’s note: One of the central technologies of artificial intelligence is neural networks. In this interview, Tam Nguyen, a professor of computer science at the University of Dayton, explains how neural networks,...