The Conversation

Trump's right about one thing: The US Senate should end its 60-vote majority

Written by Daniel Wirls, Professor of Politics, University of California, Santa Cruz

As the dramatic and traumatic first year of the Trump presidency nears the finish line, with major legislative struggles over tax legislation and the budget, it is easy to overlook other important political events.

One such development is essential to both the tax reform package, which would be Trump’s only significant legislative achievement...

Stinkhorns, truffles, smuts: The amazing diversity – and possible decline – of mushrooms and other fungi

Written by Alexander Weir, Professor of Environmental and Forest Biology, State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry

Autumn edible mushrooms, mostly Boletus edulis.www.shutterstock.com

“Whatever dressing one gives to mushrooms…they are not really good but to be sent back to the dungheap where they are born.”

French philosopher Denis Diderot thus dismissed mushrooms in 1751 in his “Encyclopedie.” Today his words would be dismissed in...

Harvard students and DOJ will find answers elusive in quest to learn about admissions decisions

Written by Natasha Warikoo, Associate Professor of Education, Harvard University

More and more students at Harvard are examining their admission files to try to understand how they got in. The U.S. government is also plans to examine the files as part of a discrimination case filed by 63 Asian- American groups.Shutterstock.com

After weeks of negotiation, Harvard University recently agreed to provide the Department of Justice...

You're not going to get accepted into a top university on merit alone

Written by Natasha Warikoo, Associate Professor of Education, Harvard University

After weeks of negotiation, Harvard University recently agreed to provide the Department of Justice...

Designer proteins that package genetic material could help deliver gene therapy

Written by Ian Haydon, Doctoral Student in Biochemistry, University of Washington

Delivering genetic material is a key challenge in gene therapy.Invitation image created by Kstudio, CC BY

If you’ve ever bought a new iPhone, you’ve experienced good packaging.

The way the lid slowly separates from the box. The pull tab that helps you remove the device. Even the texture of the paper inserts matters to Apple. Every aspect...

How Republican missteps turned Alabama blue

Written by David Hughes, Assistant Professor, Department of Political Science, Auburn University at Montgomery

Doug Jones supporters celebrate his stunning victory.AP Photo/John Bazemore

If there was one Republican in Alabama the Democratic Doug Jones could beat, Roy Moore was that Republican.

And in a Tuesday night nail-biter, Jones did just that, edging Moore by a mere 1.5 percentage points in a state that hasn’t elected a Democrat to the U.S....

You (and most of the millions of holiday travelers you encounter) are washing your hands wrong

Written by Michelle Sconce Massaquoi, Doctoral candidate, microbiology, University of Oregon

Not all bathrooms are clean, which poses a problem for holiday travelers trying to keep their hands clean. Seroma72/Shutterstock.com

For my fourth-grade science fair project, I tested different soaps to see which ones were the most effective at keeping my hands clean.

Now, nearly 20 years later as a microbiology doctoral candidate, I can’t...

California needs to rethink urban fire risk, starting with where it builds houses

Written by Max Moritz, Cooperative Extension Specialist, Wildland Fire, University of California, Santa Barbara

This fire season has been particularly damaging to urban areas.AP Photo/Reed Saxon

Wildfires raging across southern California are causing evacuations of many communities and have destroyed hundreds of structures this month.

These fires follow the wind-driven Tubbs fire earlier this fall that blasted through densely urbanized neighborhoods in...

Will China's crackdown on 'foreign garbage' force wealthy countries to recycle more of their own waste?

Written by Kate O'Neill, Associate Professor, Global Environmental Politics, University of California, Berkeley

Imported laptop housings, Guiyu, China.Basel Action Network, CC BY-ND

With holidays approaching, many of us are mindful of the need to collect and recycle all the additional plastic, paper and other waste that we are about to generate. This year, however, there are questions about where that waste will end up. China, the world’s largest...

What 'Last Tango in Paris' teaches my students about sexual ethics

Written by Richard Gunderman, Chancellor's Professor of Medicine, Liberal Arts, and Philanthropy, Indiana University

Director Bernardo Bertolucci, left, discusses a scene from "Last Tango in Paris" with leading actor Marlon Brando and actress Maria Schneider.AP Photo

Today’s news is awash with accounts of behind-the-scenes sexual assaults involving such prominent figures as producer Harvey Weinstein, director Brett Ratner and actor Kevin Spacey. In some...