The Conversation

Hoda Muthana wants to come home from Syria – just like many loyalist women who fled to Canada during the American Revolution

Written by G. Patrick O'Brien, PhD Candidate in History, University of South Carolina

Hoda Muthana and child during an interview with 'CBS This Morning.'CBS News screenshot

American emigrant Hoda Muthana begged American authorities last month to let her return to the United States.

Muthana, who was 19 when she left her family in Alabama in 2014 to join the proclaimed Islamic State caliphate, married three IS fighters after her...

US takes tentative steps toward opening up government data

Written by Anjanette Raymond, Associate Professor of Business Law and Ethics; Director, Program on Data Management and Information Governance, Ostrom Workshop, Indiana University

Open data offers great promise, but also some risk.rawf8/shutterstock.com

At the beginning of this year, President Trump signed into law the Open, Public, Electronic and Necessary Government Data Act, requiring that nonsensitive government data be made available in machine-readable, open formats by default.

As researchers who study data governance and...

Are viruses the best weapon for fighting superbugs?

Written by David Pride, Associate Director of Microbiology, University of California San Diego

These are viruses called bacteriophages that infect only bacterial cells. Ewa Parylak/shutterstock.com

Antibiotics won the battle against resistant bacteria, but they may not win the war.

You probably know that antibiotic-resistant bacteria, also known as superbugs, have hampered physicians’ ability to treat infections. You may also be aware...

Sexism has long been part of the culture of Southern Baptists

Written by Susan M. Shaw, Professor of Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, Oregon State University

Southern Baptist Convention messengers hold signs during a rally protesting the convention's treatment of women in 2018. AP Photo/Jeffrey McWhorter

Recent media reports have revealed decades of abuse by Southern Baptist pastors.

Denominational leaders are offering apologies and calling the sexual abuse “evil,” “unjust”and a &...

How to distinguish a psychopath from a 'shy-chopath'

Written by John Edens, Professor of Psychology, Texas A&M University

Ted Bundy, a day before his execution in January 1989.AP Photo/Mark Foley

What makes a criminal a psychopath?

Their grisly deeds and commanding presence attract our attention – look no further than Ted Bundy, the subject of a recent Netflix documentary, and cult leaders like Charles Manson.

But despite years of theorizing and research, the...

The shutdown brought people who rely on SNAP an extra helping of economic hardship

Written by Orgul Demet Ozturk, Associate Professor of Economics, University of South Carolina

People use SNAP benefits to buy food.Kwangmoozaa/Shutterstock.com

Millions of the poorest Americans are probably feeling the aftershocks of the partial government shutdown weeks after it ended.

One big reason for that is how it disrupted the flow of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits. Florida, Ohio, Virginia and many other states are...

Ensuring racial equality – from classrooms to workplaces – depends on federal regulations Trump could roll back

Written by Derek W. Black, Professor of Law, University of South Carolina

Preventing discrimination in the classroom.Shutterstock

The Trump administration is considering eliminating one of the federal government’s most basic tools for preventing racial discrimination.

When the government runs or funds programs, those programs are obligated to ensure that everyone gets equal access and treatment. This duty comes from...

Opioid crisis shows partnering with industry can be bad for public health

Written by Jonathan H. Marks, Director of the Bioethics Program and affiliate faculty in Law and International Affairs, Pennsylvania State University

What is each partner looking to get?Africa Studio/Shutterstock.com

“Show me the bodies!” someone demanded at the end of my lecture a few years ago.

As a scholar of public health ethics, law and policy, I had just warned an audience of professors and university administrators about the perils of partnering with, or taking money from,...

#MeToo whistleblowing is upending A century-old legal precedent in US demanding loyalty to the boss

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

When was the last time you agreed to keep a secret?

Perhaps it was a personal confidence shared by a close family member or friend. Or it might have been in a contract with your employer to safeguard confidential information. Either way, you probably felt a strong sense of obligation to keep that secret.

At least when it comes to the workplace,...

4 things to know about Ash Wednesday

Written by William Johnston, Associate Professor of Religious Studies, University of Dayton

US Navy employees receive the sacramental ashes during an Ash Wednesday celebration.U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Brian May

For Christians, the death and resurrection of Jesus is a pivotal event commemorated each year during a season of preparation called Lent and a season of celebration called Easter.

The day that...