The Conversation

Seeking truth among 'alternative facts'

Written by Peter Neal Peregrine, Professor of Anthropology and Museum Studies, Lawrence University

Part of what I do as an archaeologist is judge between competing claims to truth. Indeed, you could say this is the entire purpose of science. Before we make a judgment about what is true, there are facts that have to be examined and weighed against one another.

When Trump’s senior advisor Kellyanne Conway made her now infamous reference to...

How undocumented immigrants negotiate a place for themselves in America

Written by Robert F. Barsky, Professor of English and French Literatures, and Professor of Law, Vanderbilt University

Once undocumented immigrants and asylum seekers arrive on American soil, they run the risk of being stopped by law enforcement officials who are charged with investigating their status. A Feb. 17 memo released by the Department of Homeland Security reveals how great this risk will be under President Donald Trump.

The department is planning to...

Who exactly are 'radical' Muslims?

Written by Z. Fareen Parvez, Assistant Professor of Sociology, University of Massachusetts Amherst

Indian Muslim woman Shagufta Sayyd prays in Mumbai, India.AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool

The Trump administration has been using the phrase “radical Islam” when discussing the “war on terror.” From his inauguration address to remarks to military leaders, President Trump has been warning against “Islamic terrorists.”

Many...

Decades into diabetes, insulin therapy still hard to manage

Written by Israel Hodish, Associate Professor, University of Michigan

Insulin syringes.From www.shutterstock.com

So, your doctor told you that you need insulin therapy for your Type 2 diabetes.

This is a common problem and likely to be more so in the coming years. About 29 million people in the U.S. have Type 2 diabetes, and another 86 million have prediabetes. About one in four people with Type 2 diabetes is on...

Broadband internet can help rural communities connect – if they use it

Written by Brian Whitacre, Professor and Extension Economist, Oklahoma State University

Using the internet is what matters.Woman on laptop via shutterstock.com

Being able to connect to the internet is crucial for many rural Americans. It allows them to buy goods and services that may not be available locally; market their own goods and services to a much larger area; connect remotely with health services that previously required...

Uber's dismissive treatment of employee's sexism claims is all too typical

Written by Elizabeth C. Tippett, Assistant Professor, School of Law, University of Oregon

Uber has suffered a spate of bad publicity in recent days after allegations of harassment and discrimination from a former software engineer.

In a blog post, Susan Fowler described being propositioned by her supervisor within weeks of starting her job. She complained to the human resources (HR) team. According to Fowler, the supervisor received a...

Want a stronger economy? Give immigrants a warm welcome

Written by Kevin Shih, Assistant Professor of Economics, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Immigrants have long been a scapegoat when economies are sputtering, jobs are being lost or security is a concern.

President Donald Trump’s planned wall along the Mexican border, for example, is premised on the notion that immigrants are pouring across the border (they’re not), taking Americans’ jobs (they haven’t) and...

How the 'guerrilla archivists' saved history – and are doing it again under Trump

Written by Morgan Currie, Lecturer at Woodbury University, University of California, Los Angeles

Both sea ice and government data are disappearing.U.S. Geological Survey, flickr

On Inauguration Day, a group of students, researchers and librarians gathered in a nondescript building on the north side of the University of California, Los Angeles campus, against a backdrop of pelting rain.

The group had organized in protest against the new U.S....

Threats of violent Islamist and far-right extremism: What does the research say?

Written by William Parkin, Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice, Seattle University

On a Tuesday morning in September 2001, the American experience with terrorism was fundamentally altered. Two thousand, nine hundred and ninety-six people were murdered in New York, Virginia and Pennsylvania. Thousands more, including many first responders, lost their lives to health complications from working at or being near Ground Zero.

The 9/11...

Red state rural America is acting on climate change – without calling it climate change

Written by Rebecca J. Romsdahl, Professor of Environmental Science & Policy, University of North Dakota

One primary concern in rural areas: higher temperatures put strain on water and energy sources. AP Photo/Robert Ray

President Donald Trump has the environmental community understandably concerned. He and members of his Cabinet have questioned the established science of climate change, and his choice to head the Environmental Protection Agency,...