The Conversation

Why the Native American pipeline resistance in North Dakota is about climate justice

Written by Kyle Powys Whyte, Timnick Chair in the Humanities / Associate Professor of Philosophy and Community Sustainability, Michigan State University

Over the past months, hundreds of indigenous persons and their allies have gathered near the crossing of the Missouri and Cannon Ball rivers in the ancestral territories of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe. Using nonviolent means, their goal is to stop the building of the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) that would connect production fields in North...

As climate change alters the oceans, what will happen to Dungeness crabs?

Written by Paul McElhany, Research Ecologist, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Live crab at a Seattle marketShutterstock.com

Many travelers visit the Pacific Northwest to eat the region’s famous seafood – particularly Dungeness crabs, which are popular in crab cakes or wrestled straight out of the shell. Locals also love catching and eating the feisty creatures. One of my favorite ways to spend an afternoon is...

Clinton and Trump 2016: A battle to win over ambivalent voters

Written by Judd Thornton, Professor of Political Science, Georgia State University

This presidential campaign has two historically unpopular candidates. Both nominees are viewed unfavorably by more than 50 percent of the electorate.

Given their relative unpopularity, it seems reasonable to wonder if many voters possess mixed feelings about their party’s nominee this year. In other words, many voters may be experiencing...

Memetics and the science of going viral

Written by Shontavia Johnson, Professor of Intellectual Property Law, Drake University

WHO LET THE DOGS OUT? WHO-WHO-WHO-WHO-WHO? WHO LET THE DOGS OUT? WHO-WHO-WHO-WHO-WHO?

If you’ve ever heard the Baha Men’s 2000 hit “Who Let the Dogs Out,” you probably have also experienced its somewhat-annoying-but-very-catchy hook being stuck in your head for several hours.

The official video for ‘Who Let the Dogs...

Why do the Paralympics get so little media attention in the United States?

Written by John Affleck, Knight Chair in Sports Journalism and Society, Pennsylvania State University

Have you heard about the 1500-meter world championship run in which each of the top four competitors crossed the line faster than the winner of the Olympic men’s final?

Or about the guy who is the most accurate distance shooter in the history of archery?

Or the woman who may win seven medals?

If the answer is no to any or all of these...

How a volcano in Indonesia led to the creation of Frankenstein

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

Frankensteinfrankie stickers/Flickr, CC BY-NC-ND

As the summer of 2016 draws to a close, we mark the 200th anniversary of the birth of one of the most famous novels in the English language, a work that also recounts the creation of perhaps the most monstrous character in English literature. The story of how it came to be is no less extraordinary...

What exactly does 'instantaneous' mean?

Written by Kevin Knudson, Professor of Mathematics, University of Florida

Lightning moves pretty quickly; would you call it instantaneous?Steven Vanderburg, NOAA

How short is an “instant”? Is it a second? A tenth of a second? A microsecond? You might think all of these qualify. What about 100 years? That certainly doesn’t seem like an instant, and to a human being, it isn’t, since we’d be...

Millions rely on cheap cloth masks that may provide little protection against deadly air pollution

Written by Richard E. Peltier, Associate Professor of Environmental Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts Amherst

Anyone who has stepped off an airplane in one of the major cities of the developing world has encountered profound and noxious air pollution. In New Delhi, Jakarta, Accra, Kathmandu and many other cities, diesel exhaust and burning garbage foul the air. The most serious concern is particulate matter (PM) – microscopic particles, much...

What do the Clinton charities actually do and where does their money go?

Written by Brian Mittendorf, Fisher College of Business Distinguished Professor of Accounting, The Ohio State University

Charities tied to the Clinton family have received seemingly endless scrutiny throughout the presidential campaign. They’ve been accused of wasting funds, offering access to donors and even serving as a personal “piggy bank” for the Clinton family. As a result, the largest arm of their charitable organization this week said it...

With 10,000 Syrian refugees resettled in the US, are more on the way?

Written by Jeffrey H. Cohen, Professor of Anthropology, The Ohio State University

On Sept. 12, a new cease-fire took effect in Syria.

With a lull in fighting, some are hopeful for an end to the nation’s ongoing civil war. Yet, even if the war ends soon, rebuilding the country will take time. As many refugees anxiously wait and hope for peace and the opportunity to return to their homeland, the U.S. government has revised...