The Conversation

A tick detective wants to understand what drives tick abundance

Written by David Allen, Assistant Professor in Biology, Middlebury

Middlebury Assistant Professor David Allen prepares to inspect a piece of canvas dragged through the forest to collect ticks. Todd Balfour/Middlebury College

The Abstract features interesting research and the people behind it.

David Allen is an assistant professor in biology at Middlebury College who studies the ecology of ticks and tick-borne...

What 1860 and 1968 can teach America about the 2020 presidential election

Written by Austin Sarat, Professor of Jurisprudence and Political Science, Amherst College

People watch the second of two Democratic presidential primary debates at Shaw's Tavern in Washington, D.C., July 31, 2019. AP/Andrew Harnik

Fresh evidence of the nastiness and divisiveness of the 2020 presidential election emerges every day.

President Trump has let loose a storm of invective over Twitter about various African American public...

French cannabis legalization debate ignores race, religion and the mass incarceration of Muslims

Written by David A Guba, Jr., History Faculty, Bard College

Evidence suggests that Muslim men in France have been disproportionately arrested and jailed for cannabis-related crimes since the drug became illegal in 1970.Francisco Osorio/flickr, CC BY-SA

Last summer in France, dozens of “CBD cafés” suddenly opened across the country.

Exploiting a legal loophole originally created for hemp...

Mass shootings aren't growing more common – and evidence contradicts common stereotypes about the killers

Written by Christopher J. Ferguson, Professor of Psychology, Stetson University

Just like the memorials after a shooting, some myths are bound to appear.AP Photo/John Locher

When 22 people were killed in El Paso, Texas, and nine more were killed in Dayton, Ohio, roughly 12 hours later, responses to the tragedy included many of the same myths and stereotypes Americans have grown used to hearing in the wake of a mass shooting.

As...

Blood tests for Alzheimer’s: Two experts on why new studies are encouraging

Written by Todd Golde, Director, Evelyn F. and William L. McKnight Brain Institute Director, 1Florida Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, Professor, Department of Neuroscience, College of Medicine University of Florida, University of Florida

Many older people and their families worry about a diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease.Nadya Chetah/Shutterstock.com

Many people who have problems with their memory, especially if they are elderly, worry that they have Alzheimer’s disease, which afflicts at least 5.5 million people in the U.S. and brings tremendous burdens to families as well....

The US-China trade war: 5 essential reads

Written by Nicole Zelniker, Editorial Researcher, The Conversation

The U.S. has placed tariffs on more than US$250 billion worth of Chinese goods and has threatened tariffs on another $300 billion.

China has retaliated, placing tariffs of their own on billions of dollars worth of U.S. goods, including alcohol, fruit and pork.

Experts call it a trade war.

These five stories from The Conversation archives will help...

How to grow human mini-livers in the lab to help solve liver disease

Written by Alejandro Soto-Gutiérrez, Associate Professor of Pathology, University of Pittsburgh

Obesity is one of the risk factors for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.Kateryna Kon/Shutterstock.com

Creating a human liver in the lab may sound a little like the work of Dr. Frankenstein. But actually, it is far from it. In my lab we’ve figured out how to control the genes and functions of that lab-grown organ and are using this tool to...

Drilling deeper wells is a band-aid solution to US groundwater woes

Written by Debra Perrone, Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies, University of California, Santa Barbara

Micha Berry of the city of Fresno, Calif., which relies heavily on groundwater for its drinking water supply, repairs a groundwater well pump in 2013. AP Photo/Gosia Wozniacka

With memories of the wettest U.S. spring on record still fresh, it seems strange to hear that in many parts of the nation, groundwater supplies – the water stored...

Everything in Mecca gets 5 stars — and online reviews of other holy sites are wildly inflated, too

Written by Tom van Laer, Associate Professor of Narratology, University of Sydney

Like any other travelers, Muslim pilgrims review their hajj trips on sites like TripAdvisor — usually with extreme enthusiasm.AP Photo/Khalil Hamra

For the millions of Muslims preparing to gather in Saudi Arabia on Aug. 9 for the hajj, an obligatory pilgrimage to the Grand Mosque in Mecca, planning is a major part of the process.

Back in...

The facts on the US children and teens killed by firearms

Written by Marc A Zimmerman, Professor of Public Health, University of Michigan

Injuries from firearms are a leading cause of death for American children and teens.Whytock/Shutterstock.com

Injury is the leading cause of death for U.S. children and adolescents, accounting for over 60% of all deaths in this group.

Many of these deaths occur during fun, everyday activities, like swimming in the backyard pool or during a family car...