The Conversation

Israel’s military starts drafting ultra-Orthodox Jews – but the battle over serving ‘the army of God’ vs. the army of the state isn’t over, and points to key questions for the country’s future

Written by Michael Brenner, Professor of Jewish History and Culture at Ludwig Maximilian University and Abensohn Chair in Israel Studies, American University

Ultra-Orthodox Jewish men attend a rally against army recruitment in Jerusalem on June 30, 2024. AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean

In late July 2024, the Israeli military sent out the first 1,000 conscription notices to ultra-Orthodox Jewish men, following a unanimous Supreme Court ruling that the government must stop exempting them.

But will these Haredim,...

Chinese warships off Alaska and Cambodia highlight the role of near and far waters in sea power dominance

Written by Colin Flint, Distinguished Professor of Political Science, Utah State University

Chinese warships were recently spotted sailing close to the Aleutian Islands, just off the Alaskan coast. Meanwhile, naval boats have begun to dock at a Beijing-built military port in Cambodia.

While these two events took place on different sides of the globe, they’re both part of an important geopolitical development – one that may...

Harris brings joy to the presidential campaign − and GOP mockery of ‘laughing Kamala’ is nothing new to Black women

Written by Duchess Harris, Professor of American Studies, Macalester College

Vice President Kamala Harris laughs with supporters after speaking in Jacksonville, Fla., about the implementation of Florida's abortion ban, May 1, 2024. AP Photo/John Raoux

With Vice President Kamala Harris’ ascent to the top of the Democratic ticket, Republicans are rebuilding a campaign strategy that for months focused on running against...

Filling the silences in family stories − how to think like a historian to uncover your family’s narrative

Written by Andrea Kaston Tange, Professor of English, Macalester College

Excerpt from Faith's diary: "This evening did some ironing and helped G. with her English. I have just about decided to let my hair grow for who can stand $1.25 for a hair cut? I do the girls' so save some there."Andrea Kaston Tange

Great-grandmothers. We all have them. But most of us will never know them except through glimpses of fading bits of...

Offshore wind farms connected by an underwater power grid for transmission could revolutionize how the East Coast gets its electricity

Written by Tyler Hansen, Research Associate in Environmental Studies, Dartmouth College

Each offshore wind turbine can produce large amounts of power.AP Photo/Michael Dwyer

Strong offshore winds have the potential to supply coastlines with massive, consistent flows of clean electricity. One study estimates offshore wind farms could meet 11 times the projected global electricity demand in 2040.

The U.S. East Coast is an ideal location...

Voters become more polarized when presidential candidates take positions on issues in K-12 education

Written by David M. Houston, Assistant Professor of Education, George Mason University

Education has long been a divisive topic in American politics.Getty Images

When Vice President Kamala Harris paid a visit to Florida in July 2023, she lambasted a state-approved Black history lesson that claimed “slaves developed skills which, in some instances, could be applied for their personal benefit.”

“Come on – adults...

Jewish summer camps have been evolving for a century − but 2024 is a summer like no other

Written by Jonathan Krasner, Associate Professor of Jewish Education Research, Brandeis University

Staff at Camp Massad, whose first location was in New York, pose for a photo in 1941.Camp Massad via Wikimedia Commons

In 1902, 10-year-old Isidore Itzkowitz accepted a scholarship to attend an overnight camp in upstate New York. “Izzy,” an orphan raised by his grandmother in a dingy tenement-house basement, fit the profile of children...

Rupert Murdoch’s real succession drama − why the future of his media empire could hinge on a legal effort in Nevada

Written by Naomi Cahn, Professor of Law, University of Virginia

Conservative media titan Rupert Murdoch is making news again – this time, with a secretive effort to change an irrevocable trust. That trust has important ownership interests in both Fox Corp. and News Corp., so it affects broadcast news as well as The Wall Street Journal and other publications.

Under the current terms of the trust, upon...

Deadly strike in the Golan Heights risks opening new front in long-disputed territory

Written by Mireille Rebeiz, Chair of Middle East Studies & Associate Professor of Francophone & Women's, Gender & Sexuality Studies, Dickinson College

Mourners at the site of an airstrike that killed 12 young members of the Druze community. Matteo Placucci/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

A missile strike that killed 12 children playing soccer in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights on July 27, 2024, has prompted international concern that the Middle East conflict could expand into the...

Quantum information theorists are shedding light on entanglement, one of the spooky mysteries of quantum mechanics

Written by William Mark Stuckey, Professor of Physics, Elizabethtown College

Can the theory of relativity inform quantum mechanics?koto_feja/E+ via Getty Images

The year 2025 marks the 100th anniversary of the birth of quantum mechanics. In the century since the field’s inception, scientists and engineers have used quantum mechanics to create technologies such as lasers, MRI scanners and computer chips.

Today,...