The Conversation

Speaker Johnson’s choice to lead by following the president goes against 200 years of House speakers building up the office’s power

Written by SoRelle Wyckoff Gaynor, Assistant Professor of Public Policy and Politics, University of Virginia

House Speaker Mike Johnson has given a lot of effort to pushing the agenda of President Donald Trump.Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

When the framers of what became the U.S. Constitution set out to draft the rules of our government on a hot, humid day in the summer of 1787, debates over details raged on.

But one thing the men agreed on was the power of...

Iran’s president calls for moving its drought-stricken capital amid a worsening water crisis – how Tehran got into water bankruptcy

Written by Ali Mirchi, Associate Professor of Water Resources Engineering, Oklahoma State University

Iranians pray for rain in Tehran on Nov. 14, 2025. The city is experiencing its worst drought in decades.Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu via Getty Images

Fall marks the start of Iran’s rainy season, but large parts of the country have barely seen a drop as the nation faces one of its worst droughts in decades. Several key reservoirs are nearly dry,...

Guinea-Bissau’s military takeover highlights the nation’s sorry history of coups and a deepening crisis across the region

Written by John Joseph Chin, Assistant Teaching Professor of Strategy and Technology, Carnegie Mellon University

Soldiers patrol the streets in Guinea-Bissau on Nov. 26, 2025.Patrick Meinhardt/AFP via Getty Images

Army generals in Guinea-Bissau seized power on Nov. 26, 2025 – the eve of a scheduled official declaration of the winner in the West African nation’s presidential election.

Alleging a destabilization plot by unnamed politicians and drug...

Drones, physics and rats: Studies show how the people of Rapa Nui made and moved the giant statues – and what caused the island’s deforestation

Written by Carl Lipo, Professor of Anthropology and Associate Dean for Research, Binghamton University, State University of New York

Scientists used drones to produce this 3D model of Rano Raraku, the volcanic crater where 95% of Rapa Nui's giant statues were carved.Lipo et al., 2025, PLOS One, CC BY

Rapa Nui, also known as Easter Island, is often portrayed in popular culture as an enigma. The rationale is clear: The tiny, remote island in the Pacific features nearly 1,000...

As US hunger rises, Trump administration’s ‘efficiency’ goals cause massive food waste

Written by Tevis Garrett Graddy-Lovelace, Provost Associate Professor of Environment, Development and Health, American University School of International Service

A person sits in a field of crops after a raid by U.S. immigration agents.Blake Fagan/AFP via Getty Images

The U.S. government has caused massive food waste during President Donald Trump’s second term. Policies such as immigration raids, tariff changes and temporary and permanent cuts to food assistance programs have left farmers short of...

A year on, the Israeli-Lebanese ceasefire looks increasingly fragile − could a return to cyclical violence come next?

Written by Asher Kaufman, Professor of History and Peace Studies, University of Notre Dame

Smoke rises following an Israeli airstrike in the village of Teir Debba in southern Lebanon on Nov. 6, 2025. AP Photo/Mohammad Zaatar

An already troubled ceasefire agreement between Israel and Lebanon is looking shakier than ever.

Since the truce was announced on Nov. 27, 2024, there have been more than 10,000 Israeli air and ground violations...

How does Narcan work? Mapping how it reverses opioid overdose can provide a molecular blueprint for more effective drugs

Written by Saif Khan, Ph.D. Candidate in Biology, University of Southern California

Naloxone competes with opioids for the same receptor on the surface of neurons.Matt Rourke/AP Photo

Naloxone, also known by the brand name Narcan, is one of the most important drugs in the United States’ fight against the opioid crisis. It reverses an opioid overdose nearly instantly, restarting breathing in a person who was unresponsive...

Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence – and that affects what scientific journals choose to publish

Written by Mark Louie Ramos, Assistant Research Professor of Health Policy and Administration, Penn State

Careful planning and analysis are part of trying to reduce the chance of a false-positive finding.Arnon Mungyodklang/iStock via Getty Images Plus

Should you believe the findings of scientific studies? Amid current concerns about the public’s trust in science, old arguments are resurfacing that can sow confusion.

As a statistician involved in...

George Plimpton’s 1966 nonfiction classic ‘Paper Lion’ revealed the bruising truths of Detroit Lions training camp

Written by Stephen Siff, Associate Professor of Journalism, Miami University

Green Bay Packers wide receiver Romeo Doubs (87) and Detroit Lions cornerback Terrion Arnold (6) show off their athleticism on Sept. 7, 2025.AP Photo/Matt Ludtke

As the Detroit Lions barrel toward a Thanksgiving Day game with the Green Bay Packers, some die-hard fans may be fantasizing about what it would be like to be on the field themselves:...

Pentagon investigation of Sen. Mark Kelly revives Cold War persecution of Americans with supposedly disloyal views

Written by Gregory A. Daddis, Professor and Melbern G. Glasscock Endowed Chair in American History, Texas A&M University

Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly speaks at a town hall meeting hosted by the South Carolina Democratic Party in Columbia, S.C., on Sept. 12, 2025. Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

In an unprecedented step, the Department of Defense announced online on Nov. 24, 2025, that it was reviewing statements by U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly, a Democrat, who is a...