The Conversation

Enzymes versus nerve agents: Designing antidotes for chemical weapons

Written by Ian Haydon, Doctoral Student in Biochemistry, University of Washington

Enzymes, the catalysts of biology, can engulf and break down hundreds of nerve agent molecules per second.Image: Pymol. PDB 4E3T rcsb.org, CC BY-ND

A chemical weapons attack that killed more than 80 people, including children, triggered the Trump administration’s recent missile strikes against the Syrian government. The use of illegal nerve...

An electric fix for removing long-lasting chemicals in groundwater

Written by Jens Blotevogel, Research Assistant Professor of Environmental Engineering, Colorado State University

Without knowing it, most Americans rely every day on a class of chemicals called per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFASs. These man-made materials have unique qualities that make them extremely useful. They repel both water and grease, so they are found in food packaging, waterproof fabric, carpets and wall paint.

PFASs are also handy when...

The sound of inclusion: Why teachers' words matter

Written by Christine Mallinson, Associate Professor of Language, Literacy, and Culture, University of Maryland, Baltimore County

Language matters in every class: English, math, history and science.Rawpixel / Shutterstock.com

There isn’t just one way to sound like a scientist, or to sound like a scholar. Scientists and scholars come from a wide variety of backgrounds and speak in different ways, in different accents, dialects and languages.

In classrooms across the U.S.,...

Three reasons for optimism in Somalia

Written by Eleanor Zeff, Associate Professor of Political Science, Drake University

In 2016, Somalia was declared the most fragile state in the world – worse off than Syria.

In February 2017, the United Nations issued an early famine warning for the country, which is suffering from drought, clan warfare, government corruption and attacks from the Islamic militant group, al-Shabab. Adding to the misery, President Trump has...

San Francisco is using a Montana sheriff's playbook to sue Trump on sanctuary cities

Written by Anthony Johnstone, Professor of Constitutional Law, The University of Montana

A rally outside of City Hall in San Francisco in January.AP Photo/Jeff Chiu

San Francisco is suing over President Donald Trump’s executive order against “sanctuary cities.” A federal court hearing is set for April 14, and a decision is expected soon after.

The order, signed in January, defined “sanctuary jurisdictions”...

The key to writing a Pulitzer Prize-winning story? Get emotional

Written by Karin Wahl-Jorgensen, Professor; Director of Research Development and Environment, School of Journalism, Cardiff University

A bust of newspaper magnate Joseph Pulitzer looks on as reporters look through a box containing the announcements of the 1996 Pulitzer Prizes at Columbia University.AP Photo/Wally Santana

The 2017 Pulitzer Prizes have just been announced, and this year’s winners of the prestigious award include Charleston Gazette-Mail reporter Eric Eyre for...

Who wears the pants in a relationship matters – especially if you're a woman

Written by Laina Bay-Cheng, Associate Professor of Social Work, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York

In most relationships, one partner wields more power than the other.'Hands' via www.shutterstock.com

When it comes to power in romantic relationships, men are often cast as dominant and women as deferential. But working against this are caricatures of domineering women with their “hen-pecked husbands” and “whipped...

Maximizers vs. minimizers: The personality trait that may guide your medical decisions – and costs

Written by Laura Scherer, Assistant Professor, Psychology, University of Missouri-Columbia

A suitable disposition helps the medicine go down. Cropped from charlesonflickr/flickr, CC BY

Do certain people want more medical care than others do? And, does that matter?

To consider this idea, start by answering the following question: Which of the paragraphs below describes you best?

“I prefer active medical interventions and being...

Using randomness to protect election integrity

Written by Eugene Vorobeychik, Assistant Professor of Computer Science and Computer Engineering, Vanderbilt University

Inspecting election results is best done with a dash of randomness.Boonyen/shutterstock.com

Democratic societies depend on trust in elections and their results. Throughout the 2016 presidential election, and since President Trump’s inauguration, allegations of Russian involvement in the U.S. presidential campaign have raised concerns about how...

Melding mind and machine: How close are we?

Written by James Wu, Ph.D. Student in Bioengineering, Researcher at the Center for Sensorimotor Neural Engineering, University of Washington

A noninvasive brain-computer interface based on EEG recordings from the scalp.Center for Sensorimotor Neural Engineering (CSNE), Photo by Mark Stone, CC BY-ND

Just as ancient Greeks fantasized about soaring flight, today’s imaginations dream of melding minds and machines as a remedy to the pesky problem of human mortality. Can the mind...