The Conversation

The Wanamaker organ has been part of a treasured holiday tradition in Philly for over 100 years − a historian explains its illustrious past and uncertain future

Written by Whitney Martinko, Associate Professor of History, Villanova University

After Macy’s announced in November 2023 its plans to close approximately 150 locations across the United States, some Philadelphians fretted – not so much about the fate of the Center City department store, but about a local treasure housed inside.

What would happen to the 120-year-old Wanamaker organ and annual Christmas light show?

As...

What are pharmacy benefit managers? A health economist explains how lack of competition drives up drug prices for everyone

Written by James B. Rebitzer, Wexler Professor of Management, Economics and Public Policy, Boston University

PBMs control which drugs insurers cover, for how much and for whom.cagkansayin/iStock via Getty Images Plus

Wegovy and Ozempic are weight loss drugs that promise to transform the treatment of obesity, heart disease and other chronic conditions that afflict millions of Americans. But while everyone agrees these drugs have the potential to transform...

How a small Brazilian town became an unlikely battleground over Confederate memory

Written by Jordan Brasher, Visiting Assistant Professor of Geography, Macalester College

A Confederate Festival attendee visits the American cemetery in Santa Barbara d'Oeste, Brazil, on April 24, 2016. Mario Tama/Getty Images

There were no antebellum hoop skirts at the site of Brazil’s annual “Festa Confederada,” or Confederate Festival, in 2024. Flag poles that once flew the Brazilian flag alongside the red, white...

The moral dimension to America’s flawed health care system

Written by Nicole Hassoun, Professor of Philosophy, Binghamton University, State University of New York

A nurse peers through a small window in a COVID-19 unit of Mission Hospital in Mission Viejo, Calif., on Dec. 21, 2020. AP Photo/Jae C. Hong

The killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson has set off soul-searching among many Americans. Part of that reflection is about the public reaction to Thompson’s death and the sympathy the suspect...

How to avoid the latest generation of scams this holiday season

Written by Shaila Rana, Professor of Information Technology, Purdue University

Imagine this: Two days before your family holiday party, you get a text about an online order you placed a week ago, saying the package is at your door. It comes with a photo – of someone else’s door. When you click the attached link, it takes you to the online store, where you enter your username and password. Somehow that...

Federal protection for monarch butterflies could help or harm this iconic species, depending on how it’s carried out

Written by William E. Snyder, Professor of Entomology, University of Georgia

Monarch caterpillars and a mature butterfly.NCTC Creative Imagery/USFWS/Flickr

Monarch butterflies are among the most beloved insects in North America. They are brightly colored and unique, both as caterpillars and later as mature insects. Monarchs are found in every U.S. state except Alaska, so nearly everyone has seen a monarch flutter by on a...

Parents and caregivers: How to stop feeling like a Grinch and be more present with your kids this holiday season

Written by Julia Felton, Assistant Professor of Public Health, Michigan State University

Expectations of perfection on special occasions can add to the normal stress of parenting. skynesher/E+ via Getty Images

Holidays are often depicted as picture-perfect moments: families blissfully united around a table filled with seasonal food favorites against an immaculate backdrop. For many parents, attempting to meet such unrealistic...

For enslaved people, the holiday season was a time for revelry – and a brief window to fight back

Written by Ana Lucia Araujo, Professor of History, Howard University

Adolphe Duperly's painting depicting the destruction of the Roehampton Estate in Jamaica during the Baptist War in January 1832.Wikimedia Commons

During the era of slavery in the Americas, enslaved men, women and children also enjoyed the holidays. Slave owners usually gave them bigger portions of food, gifted them alcohol and provided extra days...

The Moon might be older than scientists previously thought − a new study shines light on its history

Written by Francis Nimmo, Professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of California, Santa Cruz

Rock samples from the lunar surface are important tools for scientists studying how old the Moon is. AP Photo/NASA

A physicist, a chemist and a mathematician walk into a bar. It sounds like the start of a bad joke, but in my case, it was the start of an idea that could reshape how scientists think about the history of the Moon.

The three of us...

Yes, Philadelphia is a sanctuary city − but that offers undocumented immigrants little protection from mass deportations

Written by Jennifer J. Lee, Associate Professor of Law, Temple University

Immigrant rights advocates call on Philadelphia officials to strengthen the city's sanctuary policies at a rally on Dec. 10, 2024. Manuel Vasquez/Juntos, CC BY-NC-ND

Philadelphia is what’s known as a sanctuary city. While the term has no fixed definition, it usually refers to a city that has declared its refusal to cooperate – or even...