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The Conversation

The Erie Canal: How a ‘big ditch’ transformed America’s economy, culture and even religion

  • Written by Matthew Smith, Visiting Assistant Professor of History, Miami University
imageThe Erie Canal, seen here in Pittsford, N.Y., opened up western regions to trade, immigration and social change.Andre Carrotflower via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA

Two hundred years ago, on Oct. 26, 1825, New York Gov. DeWitt Clinton boarded a canal boat by the shores of Lake Erie. Amid boisterous festivities, his vessel, the Seneca Chief, embarked...

Read more: The Erie Canal: How a ‘big ditch’ transformed America’s economy, culture and even religion

Why are women’s shoes so pointy? A fashion expert on impractical but stylish footwear

  • Written by Michael Watson, Interim Associate Chair and Instructor of Retailing, University of South Carolina
imageOne thing uniting humans across history is their willingness to suffer for fashion.Victoria Kotlyarchuk/iStock via Getty Images Plus

Curious Kids is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to CuriousKidsUS@theconversation.com.

“Why are ladies’ shoes so pointy? Feet and toes...

Read more: Why are women’s shoes so pointy? A fashion expert on impractical but stylish footwear

Space exploration in the backyard, on a budget – how NASA simulates conditions in space without blasting off

  • Written by Jordan Bretzfelder, Postdoctoral Fellow, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology
imageAnalog missions, like those conducted at NASA's CHAPEA facility at the Johnson Space Center, help scientists study human spaceflight without leaving Earth. Ronaldo Schemidt/AFP via Getty Images

Humanity’s drive to explore has taken us across the solar system, with astronaut boots, various landers and rovers’ wheels exploring the...

Read more: Space exploration in the backyard, on a budget – how NASA simulates conditions in space without...

How mobsters’ own words brought down Philly’s mafia − a veteran crime reporter has the story behind the end of the ‘Mob War’

  • Written by George Anastasia, Adjunct Professor of Law and Justice Studies, Rowan University
imageFormer mob boss John Stanfa, pictured here in 1980, waged a bloody war for control of the Philadelphia mafia in the late 1990s. Bettmann via Getty Images

The bloody mob war that is the focus of the new Netflix series “Mob War: Philadelphia vs. The Mafia,” which premieres Oct. 22, 2025, is full of the murder and mayhem, treachery and...

Read more: How mobsters’ own words brought down Philly’s mafia − a veteran crime reporter has the story...

Pharaohs in Dixieland – how 19th-century America reimagined Egypt to justify racism and slavery

  • Written by Charles Vanthournout, Ph.D. Student in Ancient History, Université de Lorraine
imageIn the American South, ancient Egypt and its pharaohs became a way to justify slavery.Stefano Bianchetti/Corbis via Getty Images

When Napoleon embarked upon a military expedition into Egypt in 1798, he brought with him a team of scholars, scientists and artists. Together, they produced the monumental “Description de l’Égypte,&rdqu...

Read more: Pharaohs in Dixieland – how 19th-century America reimagined Egypt to justify racism and slavery

Why is Halloween starting so much earlier each year? A business professor explains

  • Written by Jay L. Zagorsky, Associate Professor Questrom School of Business, Boston University

Halloween is a fun, scary time for children and adults alike – but why does the holiday seem to start so much earlier every year? Decades ago, when I was young, Halloween was a much smaller affair, and people didn’t start preparing until mid-October. Today, in my neighborhood near where I grew up in Massachusetts, Halloween decorations...

Read more: Why is Halloween starting so much earlier each year? A business professor explains

Gunboat diplomacy: How classic naval coercion has evolved into hybrid warfare on the water

  • Written by Andrew Latham, Professor of Political Science, Macalester College
imageThe USS Sampson docks at the Amador International Cruise Terminal in Panama City on Sept. 2, 2025.Daniel Gonzalez/Anadolu via Getty Images

Over the summer, the United States deployed warships to the Caribbean – ostensibly to menace drug traffickers but also as a none-too-subtle warning to Venezuela. Earlier in the year, a U.S. Navy destroyer b...

Read more: Gunboat diplomacy: How classic naval coercion has evolved into hybrid warfare on the water

How AI can improve storm surge forecasts to help save lives

  • Written by Navid Tahvildari, Associate Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Florida International University
imageA hurricane's storm surge can quickly inundate coastal areas.Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Hurricanes are America’s most destructive natural hazards, causing more deaths and property damage than any other type of disaster. Since 1980, these powerful tropical storms have done more than US$1.5 trillion in damage and killed more than 7,000...

Read more: How AI can improve storm surge forecasts to help save lives

OpenAI slipped shopping into 800 million ChatGPT users’ chats − here’s why that matters

  • Written by Yuanyuan (Gina) Cui, Assistant Professor of Marketing, Coastal Carolina University
imageAI could soon be buying things for you – maybe without even asking.Andriy Onufriyenko/Moment via Getty Images

Your phone buzzes at 6 a.m. It’s ChatGPT: “I see you’re traveling to New York this week. Based on your preferences, I’ve found three restaurants near your hotel. Would you like me to make a reservation?”

Yo...

Read more: OpenAI slipped shopping into 800 million ChatGPT users’ chats − here’s why that matters

10 effective things citizens can do to make change in addition to attending a protest

  • Written by Shelley Inglis, Senior Visiting Scholar with the Center for the Study of Genocide and Human Rights, Rutgers University
imageA crowd gathered for a "No Kings" protest on October 18, 2025 in Anchorage, Alaska. Hasan Akbas/Anadolu via Getty Images

What happens now?

That may well be the question being asked by “No Kings” protesters, who marched, rallied and danced all over the nation on Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025.

Pro-democracy groups had aimed to encourage large...

Read more: 10 effective things citizens can do to make change in addition to attending a protest

More Articles ...

  1. Pennsylvania’s budget crisis drags on as fed shutdown adds to residents’ hardships — a political scientist explains
  2. Pennsylvania’s budget crisis drags on as fed shutdown adds to residents’ hardships
  3. How new foreign worker visa fees might worsen doctor shortages in rural America
  4. Protein powders and shakes contain high amounts of lead, new report says – a pharmacologist explains the data
  5. Baseball returns to a Japanese American detention camp after a historic ball field was restored
  6. Antioxidants help stave off a host of health problems – but figuring out how much you’re getting can be tricky
  7. AI-generated lesson plans fall short on inspiring students and promoting critical thinking
  8. Trump administration’s layoffs would gut department overseeing special education, eliminating parents’ last resort
  9. New Pentagon policy is an unprecedented attempt to undermine press freedom
  10. Madagascar’s military power grab shows Africa’s coup problem isn’t restricted to the Sahel region
  11. Why and how does personality emerge? Studying the evolution of individuality using thousands of fruit flies
  12. Why countries struggle to quit fossil fuels, despite higher costs and 30 years of climate talks and treaties
  13. Banning abortion is a hallmark of authoritarian regimes
  14. Denver study shows removing parking requirements results in more affordable housing being built
  15. The real reason conservatives are furious about Bad Bunny’s forthcoming Super Bowl performance
  16. Stethoscope, meet AI – helping doctors hear hidden sounds to better diagnose disease
  17. HIV rates are highest in the American South, despite effective treatments – a clash between culture and public health
  18. Zombies, jiangshi, draugrs, revenants − monster lore is filled with metaphors for public health
  19. FEMA buyouts vs. risky real estate: New maps reveal post-flood migration patterns across the US
  20. When government websites become campaign tools: Blaming the shutdown on Democrats has legal and political risks
  21. Erie Canal’s 200th anniversary: How a technological marvel for trade changed the environment forever
  22. Winning with misinformation: New research identifies link between endorsing easily disproven claims and prioritizing symbolic strength
  23. Why higher tariffs on Canadian lumber may not be enough to stimulate long-term investments in US forestry
  24. Detroit parents face fines if their children break curfew − research shows the policy could do more harm than good
  25. Our team of physicists inadvertently generated the shortest X-ray pulses ever observed
  26. Focused sound energy holds promise for treating cancer, Alzheimer’s and other diseases
  27. Concerns about AI-written police reports spur states to regulate the emerging practice
  28. Yes, ADHD diagnoses are rising, but that doesn’t mean it’s overdiagnosed
  29. Jean-Jacques Dessalines: Reassessing the Haitian revolutionary leader’s legacy
  30. Flamingos are making a home in Florida again after 100 years – an ecologist explains why they may be returning for good
  31. Typhoon leaves flooded Alaska villages facing a storm recovery far tougher than most Americans will ever experience
  32. What the First Amendment doesn’t protect when it comes to professors speaking out on politics
  33. The limits of free speech protections in American broadcasting
  34. Industrial facilities owned by profitable companies release more of their toxic waste into the environment
  35. Starbucks wants you to stay awhile – but shuttering its mobile-only pickup locations could be a risky move
  36. In defense of ‘surveillance pricing’: Why personalized prices could be an unexpected force for equity
  37. New student loan limits could change who gets to become a professor, doctor or lawyer
  38. Supreme Court redistricting ruling could upend decades of voting rights law – and tilt the balance of power in Washington
  39. ‘Space tornadoes’ could cause geomagnetic storms – but these phenomena, spun off ejections from the Sun, aren’t easy to study
  40. Far fewer Americans support political violence than recent polls suggest
  41. Why are elements like radium dangerous? A chemist explains radioactivity and its health effects
  42. 3-legged lizards can thrive against all odds, challenging assumptions about how evolution works in the wild
  43. Climate tipping points sound scary, especially for ice sheets and oceans – here’s why there’s still room for optimism
  44. What are climate tipping points? They sound scary, especially for ice sheets and oceans, but there’s still room for optimism
  45. How the government shutdown is making the air traffic controller shortage worse and leading to flight delays
  46. Natural World Heritage sites under growing threat, but bright spots remain
  47. María Corina Machado’s peace prize follows Nobel tradition of awarding recipients for complex reasons
  48. From artificial atoms to quantum information machines: Inside the 2025 Nobel Prize in physics
  49. Government shutdown hasn’t left consumers glum about the economy – for now, at least
  50. Government shutdown hasn’t left US consumers glum about the economy – for now, at least