The Conversation

How 'Game of Thrones' became TV's first global blockbuster

Written by Amanda Lotz, Fellow at the Peabody Media Center and Professor of Media Studies, University of Michigan

On July 16, viewers around the world will eagerly tune into the premiere of the seventh season of “Game of Thrones.”

That phrase – “viewers around the world” – hasn’t applied to television premieres before. For most of its history, television has been a profoundly national medium. While shows like...

On land or ship, port chaplains offer comfort to seafarers of the world

Written by Wendy Cadge, Professor of Sociology and Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies, Brandeis University

Port chaplains provide much-needed services for those who make their living at sea.Randall Armor, CC BY-NC-ND

Boston celebrated its maritime heritage in June by welcoming tall ships from around the world into Boston Harbor for the celebratory event, Sail Boston. Thousands of people visited the magnificent vessels at anchor to learn about...

Death as a social privilege? How aid-in-dying laws may be revealing a new health care divide

Written by Jill D. Weinberg, Assistant Professor of Sociology, Tufts University

Debbie Ziegler, mother of the late Brittany Maynard, in Sacramento in September 2015, encouraging the passage of California's End-of-Life Options Act. Maynard, who had brain cancer, had to move to Oregon so she could end her life legally in 2014. AP Photo/Carl Costas

The California Department of Public Health has just released a report that...

Why can't we fix our own electronic devices?

Written by Sara Behdad, Assistant Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York

Fixing electronics devices doesn't need to be difficult.Krashenitsa Dmitrii/Shutterstock.com

Traditionally, when a car breaks down, the solution has been to fix it. Repair manuals, knowledgeable mechanics and auto parts stores make car repairs common, quick and relatively inexpensive. Even with modern computer-equipped vehicles, regular people have...

Would impeaching Trump restore the rule of law? Lessons from Latin America

Written by Rachel E. Bowen, Associate Professor of Political Science, The Ohio State University

Some Americans and members of Congress have called for the impeachment of President Donald Trump.

What happens after a president is impeached?

The vice president would take his place, but other parts of the government continue unchanged. That may not be a bad thing. However, partisan polarization can be magnified in the process. Many Americans...

How do fire ants form amazing towers and rafts without a master plan?

Written by Craig Tovey, Professor of Industrial & Systems Engineering and Co-Director of the Center for Biologically Inspired Design, Georgia Institute of Technology

How do they each know what to do?Tim Nowack, CC BY-ND

Drop a clump of 5,000 fire ants in a pond of water. In minutes the clump will flatten and spread into a circular pancake that can float for weeks without drowning the ants.

Drop the same clump of ants near a plant on solid ground.

Hundreds of thousands of ants creating a tower together – but...

How daughters can repair a damaged relationship with their divorced dad

Written by Linda Nielsen, Professor of Education, Wake Forest University

How can dads and daughters reconnect after a divorce?Marie Linner/Shutterstock.com

In a 2002 study involving nearly 2,500 children, researchers found that daughters’ relationships with their fathers were more damaged than sons’. What’s more, estranged daughters are more likely than estranged sons to suffer negative effects from...

Is the world ready for a strong German leader?

Written by Johanna Schuster-Craig, Assistant Professor of German and Global Studies, Michigan State University

U.S. President Donald Trump is welcomed by German Chancellor Angela Merkel on the first day of the G-20 summit.AP Photo/Jens Meyer

What does it take to be elected chancellor of the most populous country in Europe four times in a row?

Germany does not have a system of term limits for heads of state. Candidates for chancellor can seek reelection as...

Cleaning up toxic sites shouldn't clear out the neighbors

Written by Lindsey Dillon, Assistant Professor of Sociology, University of California, Santa Cruz

Abandoned industrial buildings at San Francisco's Pier 70, with a smokestack in the background.Lindsey Dillon, CC BY-NC-ND

San Francisco has embarked on a project to transform its industrial southeast waterfront into a bike-friendly destination called the Blue Greenway. When completed, the Blue Greenway will be a 13-mile network of parks, bike...

CNN-Reddit saga exposes tension between the internet, anonymity and power

Written by Bree McEwan, Assistant Professor of Communication and Technology, DePaul University

It originated as a Reddit post. The president tweeted it. Then all hell broke loose.HanAssholeSolo/Reddit

On July 2, President Trump tweeted a video of himself fighting Vince McMahon in a WWE match with a CNN logo superimposed over McMahon’s head.

By July 5, CNN political reporter Andrew Kaczynski had tracked down the identity of the...