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The Conversation

Genes and genealogy and making the most of famous relations

  • Written by Lynn T. Kozlowski, Professor, Department of Community Health and Health Behavior, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York
Genealogy is the second most popular hobby in the United States. Steve Allen/Shutterstock.com

Digging up one’s genealogical roots is second only to gardening in popularity as a hobby and can be much more exciting. I have known the joy of discovery and the pleasure of sharing the news.

Portrait of Sir John Harington (1561-1612).Hieronymus...

Read more: Genes and genealogy and making the most of famous relations

As climate change erodes US coastlines, an invasive plant could become an ally

  • Written by Judith Weis, Professor Emerita of Biological Sciences, Rutgers University Newark
Phragmites, an invasive species, line this marsh at Sachuest Point in Middletown, Rhode island. Tom Sturm/USFWS

Many invasive species are found along U.S. coasts, including fishes, crabs, mollusks and marsh grasses. Since the general opinion is that invasives are harmful, land managers and communities spend a lot of time and resources attempting...

Read more: As climate change erodes US coastlines, an invasive plant could become an ally

The Trump administration's attempts to defund the Special Olympics, explained

  • Written by Derrick L. Cogburn, Professor of International Service and Professor of Information Technology & Analytics at the Kogod School of Business, American University School of International Service
A Special Olympics basketball clinic in Charlotte, N.C. in January 2019AP Photo/Chuck Burton

The federal government has long covered about a tenth of the Special Olympics’ budget. This nonprofit that gives athletes with intellectual disabilities a chance to train and compete in a wide variety of sports gets most of the rest of its funding...

Read more: The Trump administration's attempts to defund the Special Olympics, explained

Pollen is getting worse, but you can make things better with these tips from an allergist

  • Written by Kara Wada, Clinical Assistant Professor, Allergy/Immunology, The Ohio State University
A girl in a field of flowers.Alex Cofaru/Shutterstock.com

Blooming spring flowers signal the beginning of spring, but for millions of people, they also signal the onset of the misery: allergy and asthma season. Itchy, watery eyes; sneezing, runny nose; cough and wheezing are triggered by an overreaction of the body to pollen.

Every spring, trees and...

Read more: Pollen is getting worse, but you can make things better with these tips from an allergist

What your pet's microchip has to do with the Mark of the Beast

  • Written by Jordan Frith, Associate Professor of Technical Communication, University of North Texas

An almost invisible electronic device used all over the world – best known to much of the public for helping reunite lost pets and their owners, but also found in subway cards, electronic tolling, luggage tags, passports and warehouse inventory systems – has alarmed some evangelical Christian communities, who see in this technology the...

Read more: What your pet's microchip has to do with the Mark of the Beast

How Twitter and other social media can draw the US into foreign interventions

  • Written by Eleonora Mattiacci, Assistant Professor of Political Science, Amherst College

Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika has promised to resign by the end of the month. That announcement came after thousands of Algerians took to the streets in March to protest his decision to run for a fifth term.

Social media played a crucial role in those demonstrations, allowing protesters to coordinate the place and time of the mass...

Read more: How Twitter and other social media can draw the US into foreign interventions

New York gets serious about traffic with the first citywide US congestion pricing plan

  • Written by John Rennie Short, Professor, School of Public Policy, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
Traffic flows into Manhattan from Brooklyn over the Williamsburg Bridge. AP Photo/Mary Altaffer

After years of debate, New York state has adopted congestion pricing to deal with traffic problems in New York City. Starting in 2021, fees will be imposed on all vehicles entering a pricing zone that covers lower Manhattan, from 60th Street at the...

Read more: New York gets serious about traffic with the first citywide US congestion pricing plan

3 times political conflict reshaped American mathematics

  • Written by Della Dumbaugh, Professor of Mathematics, University of Richmond
International forces advancing toward Boxer soldiers outside the Imperial Palace in Beijing, China, during the Boxer Rebellion.Library of Congress

Wars. Politics. Dynasties. Nationalism.

Although mathematics isn’t typically associated with these ideas, they have combined to yield a tremendous impact on its development in the U.S. Political...

Read more: 3 times political conflict reshaped American mathematics

Laws are chipping away at democracy around the world

  • Written by Chrystie Flournoy Swiney, Doctoral Fellow at Georgetown and Human Rights Attorney, Georgetown University
US demonstrators who favor and oppose stricter gun laws, in 2018AP Photo/Steven Senne

Democracy seemed ascendant after the rivalry between communist and democratic states subsided in the wake of the Soviet Union’s collapse in 1991. As elected governments replaced many toppled totalitarian and authoritarian regimes, the number of democracies...

Read more: Laws are chipping away at democracy around the world

Kids exposed to flame retardant PBDE are at risk for lifelong liver or cardiovascular problems

  • Written by Alexander Suvorov, Assistant Professor, University of Massachusetts Amherst
Most baby clothes, toys, bedding and furniture are treated with flame-retardant chemicals.vkuslandia/SHutterstock.com

What factors determine if you will experience healthy and cheerful aging or if it will turn into an endless chain of suffering from numerous health conditions?

Many factors shape our health, including genetics, diet, physical...

Read more: Kids exposed to flame retardant PBDE are at risk for lifelong liver or cardiovascular problems

More Articles ...

  1. Did a censored female writer inspire Hemingway's famous style?
  2. So you want to tax the rich – here's which candidate's plan makes the most sense
  3. Brain scan evidence in criminal sentencing: A blessing and a curse
  4. Anti-vaxxers appear to be losing ground in the online vaccine debate
  5. 7 unexpected things that libraries offer besides books
  6. The unique vulnerabilities and needs of teen survivors of mass shootings
  7. Is it the end of 'statistical significance'? The battle to make science more uncertain
  8. As its ruling dynasty withers, Gabon – a US ally and guardian of French influence in Africa – ponders its future
  9. Atheism has been part of many Asian traditions for millennia
  10. Is doing your taxes making you crazy? Here's why it shouldn't
  11. Citizen science shows that climate change is rapidly reshaping Long Island Sound
  12. How state power regulators are making utilities account for the costs of climate change
  13. Rail travel is cleaner than driving or flying, but will Americans buy in?
  14. Microbes that live in fishes' slimy mucus coating could lead chemists to new antibiotic drugs
  15. Last of the giants: What killed off Madagascar's megafauna a thousand years ago?
  16. Data reveals the value of an assist in basketball
  17. What happens to rural and small-town Trump voters after Trump is gone?
  18. Medicaid work requirements: Is there a path forward that could help the poor, not harm them?
  19. Jessie Simmons: How a schoolteacher became an unsung hero of the civil rights movement
  20. For a flooded Midwest, climate forecasts offer little comfort
  21. Want to fix gerrymandering? Then the Supreme Court needs to listen to mathematicians
  22. What Oklahoma's opioid settlement means for other states, cities and counties suing Purdue Pharma
  23. Why pay transparency alone won't eliminate the persistent wage gap between men and women
  24. How single women are driving gentrification in Hong Kong and elsewhere
  25. Net price calculators were supposed to make it easier to understand the cost of college – instead, many are making it more difficult
  26. Do you have a moral duty to pay taxes?
  27. Nonprofits that scrimp on overhead aren't necessarily better than those spending more
  28. When Ebola and other epidemics strike, a dysfunctional 'outbreak culture' hinders adequate response
  29. What you need to know about the Mueller report: 4 essential reads
  30. When medical workers behave badly during disease outbreaks, everyone suffers
  31. Attacks against elections are inevitable – Estonia shows what can be done
  32. The surprising (and Long) story of the first use of ether in surgery
  33. Fending off new Sackler money is easier for museums and schools than returning old gifts
  34. An unexpected pathway to treating neurodegenerative diseases
  35. How the 1869 Cincinnati Red Stockings turned baseball into a national sensation
  36. Principle behind Google's April Fools' pigeon prank proves more than a joke
  37. Extreme weather news may not change climate change skeptics' minds
  38. You'll hear these 4 arguments in defense of the Electoral College – here's why they're wrong
  39. DOJ efforts to kill Obamacare, the cat with 9 lives, could cause health care havoc for millions
  40. Supreme Court to rule on use of religious symbols in war memorials
  41. The science and politics of genetically engineered salmon: 5 questions answered
  42. How higher ed can earn the public's trust after the admissions scandal
  43. Statistics ruined baseball by perfecting it
  44. Beyond 'Bandersnatch,' the future of interactive TV is bright
  45. How social media is helping Big Tobacco hook a new generation of smokers
  46. Trump and obstruction of justice: An explainer
  47. Russia responds to Mueller report: Moscow wins, Putin is stronger than Trump and US is a 'global pain in the a--'
  48. Russia responds to Mueller report: Moscow wins, Putin is stronger than Trump and US is a 'pain in the a - -'
  49. Romney's Mormon religion helps explain his criticism of Trump
  50. In the future, everyone might use quantum computers