The Conversation

Why the first Olympic refugee team may not be the last

Written by María Cristina García, Howard A. Newman Professor of American Studies, Department of History and Latino Studies Program, Cornell University

Ten refugee athletes will march into the Maracanã Stadium in Rio de Janeiro on Friday, August 5, 2016. Unlike the other athletes there, they will not represent the countries of their birth, heritage or citizenship. These athletes will comprise the first-ever Olympic refugee team, and they will march under the Olympic flag.

“We want to...

Big data jobs are out there – are you ready?

Written by Jungwoo Ryoo, Associate Professor of Information Sciences and Technology at Altoona campus, Pennsylvania State University

Perhaps your career path is paved with big data.Steve Johnson, CC BY

Big data is increasingly becoming part of everyday life. Network security companies use it to improve the accuracy of their intrusion detection services. Dating services use it to help clients find soulmates. It can enhance the efficiency and accuracy of fraud detection, in turn...

An epidemic of children dying in hot cars: a tragedy that can be prevented

Written by David Diamond, Professor of Psychology, Molecular Pharmacology and Physiology, Director, Neuroscience Collaborative Program and Center for Preclinical and Clinical Research on PTSD, University of South Florida

Child in a car seat via ShutterstockCC BY-SA

I have been studying the brain and memory since 1980, but I was baffled when a news reporter asked me in 2004 how parents can forget that their children are in the car with them. It seemed incomprehensible that parents could leave a child in a car and then go about their daily activities, as their child...

Should ethics professors observe higher standards of behavior?

Written by Judith Stark, Professor of Philosophy, Seton Hall University

Does teaching ethics come with obligations?lentina_x, CC BY-NC-SA

This is an enduring dilemma in the area of ethics and one that has recently come to light with charges of unethical behavior brought against a prominent philosopher, Professor Thomas Pogge of Yale University. Pogge has been accused of manipulating younger women in his field into...

Cracking the mystery of the 'Worldwide Hum'

Written by Glen MacPherson, Lecturer, University of British Columbia

The author began hearing the sound at night, between the hours of 10 and 11 p.m.'Street' via www.shutterstock.com

In the spring of 2012, when I was living near the coastal village of Sechelt, on British Columbia’s picturesque Sunshine Coast, I began hearing a humming sound, which I thought were float planes.

The noise usually started later at...

Brexit backers claim U.K. is drowning in EU regulations – are Americans underwater too?

Written by Jay L. Zagorsky, Economist and Research Scientist, The Ohio State University

Code of Federal Regulations, all 175,000 pages.Wikimedia, CC BY

On June 23, the United Kingdom will decide whether to leave the European Union or stay. The vote is nicknamed Brexit, short for British Exiting. One reason the debate is important outside of the U.K. is that it is partly a referendum over the amount of government regulation voters want....

American Medical Association warns of health and safety problems from 'white' LED streetlights

Written by Richard G. 'Bugs' Stevens, Professor, School of Medicine, University of Connecticut

New LED-based streetlights are whiter than traditional ones and contain more blue light, which can disrupt people's circadian rhythms.meltedplastic/flickr, CC BY-NC-ND

The American Medical Association (AMA) has just adopted an official policy statement about street lighting: cool it and dim it.

The statement, adopted unanimously at the AMA’s an...

Low testosterone may make you a better father

Written by Brenda Volling, Professor of Psychology, University of Michigan

Caring father and baby via Shutterstock.From www.shutterstock.com

Many new parents know that a good night’s sleep is tough to come by. What the new parents probably do not know is that a crying infant can trigger a testosterone dip in some men, which turns out to be a good thing. Less testosterone may make them more empathic and less...

Is technology making us dumber or smarter? Yes

Written by Jonathan Coopersmith, Associate Professor of History, Texas A&M University

Is this happening to us? And is it good?Assembly line illustration from shutterstock.com

Editor’s note: This article is part of our collaboration with Point Taken, a new program from WGBH that will next air on Tuesday, June 21 on PBS and online at pbs.org. The show features fact-based debate on major issues of the day, without the shouting.

The...

How the Supreme Court decision on United States v. Texas will affect millions of families

Written by Heide Castañeda, Associate Professor of Anthropology, University of South Florida

“We are just waiting,” says Lisa, a 19-year-old college student, the anxiety palpable in her voice. Lisa is a U.S. citizen, born and raised in South Texas. Her parents and older brother, however, are undocumented.

The entire family’s lives may be turned upside down in just a few days.

This month, the Supreme Court will issue a...