The Conversation

Oil isn’t just fuel: Iran conflict could disrupt markets for everything from plastics to fertilizers

Written by André O. Hudson, Dean of the College of Science, Professor of Biochemistry, Rochester Institute of Technology

Disruptions to crude oil transport could affect more than fuel supply chains. AP Photo/Hasan Jamali, File

Tensions in the Middle East often trigger concerns about rising gasoline prices. But disruptions to oil supplies could affect much more than the cost of filling up a car. That’s because crude oil is not only burned as fuel. It is also the...

Notions of ‘Christendom’ often miss the mark – medieval Europe’s ideas about faith and power were not so simple

Written by Brett Whalen, Professor of History, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

A painting in Rome's San Silvestro Chapel depicts Pope Sylvester I and Constantine the Great.Wikimedia Commons

During the National Prayer Breakfast on Feb. 5, 2026, Paula White-Cain, senior adviser to the White House Office of Faith, introduced President Donald Trump as “the greatest champion of faith that we have ever had in the executive...

US military leans into AI for attack on Iran, but the tech doesn’t lessen the need for human judgment in war

Written by Jon R. Lindsay, Associate Professor of Cybersecurity and Privacy and of International Affairs, Georgia Institute of Technology

AI is helping U.S. forces find and choose targets in Iran, like this airfield.U.S. Central Command via AP

The U.S. military was able “to strike a blistering 1,000 targets in the first 24 hours of its attack on Iran” thanks in part to its use of artificial intelligence, according to The Washington Post. The military has used Claude, the...

Universities survived Trump’s 2025 funding freeze, but the money still isn’t flowing to researchers

Written by Brendan Cantwell, Professor of Higher, Adult, and Lifelong Education, Michigan State University

Columbia University, seen in June 2025, is one of the schools that made a deal with the Trump administration last year in order to avoid losing funding. Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Several prominent universities, including Columbia University and the University of Pennsylvania, made headlines in 2025 in a dizzying back-and-forth with the federal...

Bird losses are accelerating across North America, particularly in farming regions where agriculture is most intensive

Written by François Leroy, Postdoctoral Researcher in Ecology, The Ohio State University

Eastern meadowlark populations across the U.S. grasslands have dropped by about three-quarters since 1970.lwolfartist via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY

Since the 1970s, the U.S. has lost billions of birds. We now know that those losses aren’t just growing – they are accelerating in places with intensive human activity, particularly where...

Generative AI can play a role uplifting family and community in early childhood education

Written by Andres Bustamante, Associate Professor of Education, University of California, Irvine

Use of generative artificial intelligence technology is already widespread in K-12 schools and higher education. Now, AI technologies such as conversational agents and tablet-based assessments are starting to make their way toward early childhood education.

One concern with AI in a prekindergarten setting is that the technology will replace or...

Why shadow tankers are the only ships still moving through the Strait of Hormuz

Written by Charles Edward Gehrke, Deputy Division Director of Wargame Design and Adjudication, US Naval War College

Many oil tankers aren't moving in the Middle East.DedMityay/iStock / Getty Images Plus

The Strait of Hormuz is effectively closed. Since the beginning of the conflict involving the United States, Israel and Iran on Feb. 28, 2026, oil tanker traffic through the world’s most critical oil shipping choke point has collapsed, dropping by more than...

Trump’s war against Iran is uniquely unpopular among US military actions of the past century

Written by Charles Walldorf, Professor of Politics and International Affairs, Wake Forest University

Fire breaks out at the Shahran oil depot after U.S. and Israeli attacks in Tehran on March 8, 2026.Hassan Ghaedi/Anadolu via Getty Images

It’s clear that regime change is among the biggest objectives of the U.S. war in Iran.

“I have to be involved in the appointment” of Iran’s next leader, President Donald Trump said on March...

Astrophysicists trace the origin of valuable metals in space, from colliding stars to merging galaxies

Written by Simone Dichiara, Assistant Research Professor of Astrophysics, Penn State

This artist’s impression shows two tiny but very dense neutron stars at the point at which they merge and explode.ESO/L. Calçada/M. Kornmesser, CC BY

Billions of light years away in a remote part of the universe, two neutron stars – the ultradense remnants of dead stars – collided. The catastropic cosmic event sent light...

Gifts from top 50 US philanthropists jumped to $22.4B in 2025 − Mike Bloomberg, Bill Gates and the estate of Paul Allen lead a list of the biggest givers

Written by David Campbell, Professor of Public Administration, Binghamton University, State University of New York

Home Depot co-founder Arthur Blank, one of the top 50 donors of 2025, talks with his son Josh Blank.Kara Durrette/Getty Images

The 50 American individuals and couples who gave or pledged the most to charity in 2025 committed US$22.4 billion to foundations, universities, hospitals and more. That total was 35% above an inflation-adjusted $16.6...