The Conversation

The Conversation is hiring a non-profit and philanthropy editor

Written by Maria Balinska, Editor, The Conversation

Are you interested in how philanthropy is influencing education and health care? Are you curious about how charities are evaluated? Do you enjoy working with scholars to translate their research for the general public?

We are looking for an experienced journalist and editor who is able to cover a range of issues – from the economic impact of...

Counting 11 million undocumented immigrants is easier than you think

Written by Jennifer Van Hook, Liberal Arts Research Professor of Sociology and Demography, Pennsylvania State University

News organizations widely report that there are 11 million unauthorized immigrants living in the United States. But where does this figure come from?

Donald Trump has falsely asserted: “It could be three million. It could be 30 million. They have no idea what the number is.”

In the third debate, Hillary Clinton said, “We have 11...

Science deconstructs humor: What makes some things funny?

Written by Alex Borgella, Ph.D. Candidate in Psychology, Tufts University

Why does that one video crack you up?Laughing image via www.shutterstock.com.

Think of the most hilarious video you’ve ever seen on the internet. Why is it so funny?

As a researcher who investigates some of the potential side effects of humor, I spend a fair bit of time verifying the funniness of the jokes, photos and videos we present to...

A 'rigged' vote? Four US presidential elections with contested results

Written by Robert Speel, Associate Professor of Political Science, Erie campus, Pennsylvania State University

In recent weeks, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has repeatedly claimed that this year’s election is rigged and has predicted rampant voter fraud.

While it’s unprecedented to call an election “rigged” before voting has even taken place, there is a history of candidates and the media crying foul after...

Urban nation: What's at stake for cities in the 2016 elections

Written by Graham Wilson, Professor of Political Science and Director, Initiative on Cities, Boston University

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio signs legislation lowering the default speed limit from 30 to 25 miles per hour, Oct. 27, 2014NYC Department of Transportation/Flickr, CC BY-NC-ND

Cities are America’s economic engines. Nearly 63 percent of Americans live in cities, while more than 75 percent of U.S. GDP is produced by the largest 100...

How hard is it to rig an election?

Written by Rachael V. Cobb, Associate Professor of Government and Chair of the Government Department, Suffolk University

How do you rig an election?

Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump claims our system of elections are rigged. He has asserted widespread voter impersonation exists. He has claimed that large numbers of dead people vote. And, he maintains that many noncitizens have successfully registered to vote and regularly do so.

Don’t believe it.

Our...

Californians backing cigarette tax boost, even though Big Tobacco spending millions

Written by Stanton Glantz, Professor of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco

Tobacco companies are spending millions to stop a cigarette tax increase in California that public health officials say would save thousands of lives a year. California Department of Health Services

Despite Big Tobacco spending US$71 million to snuff out Proposition 56, an initiative to raise cigarette taxes by $2, 56 percent of Californians said...

Restoring transparency and fairness to the FBI investigation of Clinton emails

Written by Clark D. Cunningham, W. Lee Burge Chair in Law & Ethics; Director, National Institute for Teaching Ethics & Professionalism, Georgia State University

The New York Times and other national media sources are reporting that late Sunday night, the FBI obtained a search warrant to examine email messages belonging to top Clinton aide Huma Abedin. The messages were stored on a laptop belonging to her estranged husband, Anthony Weiner. The laptop was seized by the agency in connection with an...

Why the Supreme Court matters for workers

Written by Michele Gilman, Venable Professor of Law, University of Baltimore

Donald Trump touts that as president he would be good for American workers.

Although many of his plans are vague or possibly harmful, there is one clear outcome of a Trump presidency: with the power to appoint Supreme Court justices, Trump promises to continue a conservative majority.

We usually think of the Supreme Court in terms of what it...

The myth of the disappearing book

Written by Simone Natale, Lecturer in Communication and Media Studies, Loughborough University

After years of sales growth, major publishers reported a fall in their e-book sales for the first time this year, introducing new doubts about the potential of e-books in the publishing industry. A Penguin executive even admitted recently that the e-books hype may have driven unwise investment, with the company losing too much confidence in...