The Conversation

Amazon deforestation, already rising, may spike under Bolsonaro

Written by Robert T. Walker, Professor of Latin American Studies, University of Florida

Munduruku tribal people are demanding that Brazil's government respect their land rights.AP Photo/Eraldo Peres

Over the past 25 years that I have been conducting environmental research in the Amazon, I have witnessed the the ongoing destruction of the world’s biggest rainforest. Twenty percent of it has been deforested by now – an area...

Sylvia Plath's new short story was never 'lost' – so why is the media saying it was 'just discovered'?

Written by Bethany Anderson, University Archivist, University of Virginia

Archivists put an immense amount of work into organizing, digitizing and maintaining repositories.AP Photo/Matt Dunham

The recent publication of Sylvia Plath’s short story “Mary Ventura and the Ninth Kingdom” has been met with much fanfare, with the media eager to highlight that the story had been “lost,” only to have...

A proposal to reduce vaccine exemptions while respecting rights of conscience

Written by Stacie Kershner, Associate Director, Center for Law, Health & Society, Georgia State University

Many parents object to vaccination for religious reasons, while others may file for exemptions for convenience. Africa Studios/Shutterstock.com

Vaccine resistance is one of the top 10 threats to global health in 2019, according to the World Health Organization. Here in the U.S., New York City is currently experiencing its worst outbreak of measles i...

Rural people with disabilities are still struggling to recover from the recession

Written by Lillie Greiman, Project Director, RTC: Rural, The University of Montana

Since the Great Recession, the employment rate has gone up — but some rural groups lag behind.Josh Sorenson, CC BY

After the devastating losses of the Great Recession, the U.S. has enjoyed one of the longest expansions in its recorded history. For nearly 100 straight months, the U.S. economy has added jobs.

But not all groups have shared...

Can you life-hack your way to love?

Written by Joseph Reagle, Associate Professor of Communication Studies, Northeastern University

True love could be hiding inside mounds of data.xtock/Shutterstock.com

There’s never been a shortage of dating advice from family, friends and self-help authors. Yet in the digital age, people are turning to nerdy hacker-types as guides.

At first, they might seem like an odd source of romantic advice, but think again: Computer programmers...

How will generations that didn't experience the Holocaust remember it?

Written by Timothy Langille, Lecturer, Arizona State University

Childhood Holocaust survivors Simon Gronowski and Alice Gerstel Weit touring the Los Angeles Holocaust Museum.AP Photo/Reed Saxon

The Soviet Red Army liberated the most notorious of the Nazi death camps, Auschwitz-Birkenau, on Jan. 27, 1945.

This year, the United Nations and 39 countries will commemorate that date with International Holocaust...

Vital economic data was likely lost during the shutdown – here's why it matters to all Americans

Written by Amitrajeet A. Batabyal, Arthur J. Gosnell Professor of Economics, Rochester Institute of Technology

Wall Street traders aren't the only ones who rely on government economic data.AP Photo/Richard Drew

The shutdown may be over – for now – but its consequences will linger on.

One of those concerns is the dizzying amount of economic data the federal government collects on everything from the state of the economy and investment to the cost...

How corruption in forensic science is harming the criminal justice system

Written by Jessica S. Henry, Associate Professor, Department of Justice Studies, Montclair State University

Television crime dramas like “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” and its many spin-offs have fostered the popular belief that forensic science, or the use of science to solve crimes, is infallible.

Yet, as forensic scandal after forensic scandal sweeps the nation, a competing truth has emerged. Forensic science is only as reliable as the...

In Haiti, climate aid comes with strings attached

Written by Keston K. Perry, Postdoctoral researcher, Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy, Tufts University

Haiti had not yet recovered from its devastating 2010 earthquake when it was hit hard by Hurricane Matthew in 2016. It is one of the world's most vulnerable nations to climate change.AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell

Perhaps no people know better than Haitians just how dangerous, destructive and destabilizing climate change can be.

Haiti – which had...

Live cargo: How scientists pack butterflies, frogs and sea turtles for safe travels

Written by Jaret Daniels, Associate Professor of Entomology; Associate Curator and Program Director, Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida

Scientists are raising Miami blue butterflies in captivity and reintroducing them in south Florida. Jeff Gage/Florida Museum of Natural History, CC BY-ND

Scientists who work with live organisms often have to move them between locations. This requires knowing what conditions creatures can tolerate well, and also can involve some unusual packing...