The Conversation

Higher ed’s relationship with marriage? It’s complicated – and depends on age

Written by John V. Winters, Professor of Economics, Iowa State University

Education rates are rising; marriage rates are falling. But the relationship between those two trends isn't straightforward.Ugur Karakoc/E+ via Getty Images

The longer someone stays in school, the more likely they are to delay getting married – but education does not reduce the overall likelihood of being married later in life, according to...

Turbulent research landscape imperils US brain gain − and ultimately American prosperity

Written by Marc Zimmer, Professor of Chemistry, Connecticut College

International students have been a big part of American STEM.Rick Friedman/AFP via Getty Images

Despite representing only 4% of the world’s population, the United States accounts for over half of science Nobel Prizes awarded since 2000, hosts seven of The Times Higher Education Top 10 science universities, and incubates firms such as Alphabet...

Misinformation lends itself to social contagion – here’s how to recognize and combat it

Written by Shaon Lahiri, Assistant Professor of Public Health, College of Charleston

Misinformation on social media has the potential to manipulate millions of people.Pict Rider/iStock via Getty Images Plus

In 2019, a rare and shocking event in the Malaysian peninsula town of Ketereh grabbed international headlines. Nearly 40 girls age 12 to 18 from a religious school had been screaming inconsolably, claiming to have seen a...

Social media can support or undermine democracy – it comes down to how it’s designed

Written by Lisa Schirch, Professor of the Practice of Peace Studies, University of Notre Dame

A protester calls out Facebook for facilitating the spread of disinformation. AP Photo/Jeff Chiu

Every design choice that social media platforms make nudges users toward certain actions, values and emotional states.

It is a design choice to offer a news feed that combines verified news sources with conspiracy blogs – interspersed with photos...

Nations are increasingly ‘playing the field’ when it comes to US and China – a new book explains explains why ‘active nonalignment’ is on the march

Written by Jorge Heine, Outgoing Interim Director of the Frederick S. Pardee Center for the Study of the Longer-Range Future, Boston University

Brazil President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, center, flanked by India Prime Minister Narendra Modi, left, and South Africa President Cyril Ramaphosa, speaks at the summit of Group of 20 leading economies in Rio de Janeiro on Nov. 19, 2024.Mauro Pimentel/AFP via Getty Images

In 2020, as Latin American countries were contending with the triple...

Thailand’s judiciary is flexing its muscles, but away from PM’s plight, dozens of activists are at the mercy of capricious courts

Written by Tyrell Haberkorn, Professor of Southeast Asian Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra is swarmed by members of the media after a cabinet meeting at Government House on July 1, 2025.Anusak Laowilas/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra is currently feeling the sharp end of the country’s powerful judiciary.

On July 2, 2025, Thailand’s Constitutional...

From Seattle to Atlanta, new social housing programs seek to make homes permanently affordable for a range of incomes

Written by Susanne Schindler, Research Fellow at the Joint Center for Housing Studies, Harvard Kennedy School

Activists in Seattle gather signatures to put a social housing initiative on the ballot. In early 2025, voters passed the measure, which implements a payroll tax on high incomes to fund the program.House Our Neighbors, CC BY-SA

Seattle astounded housing advocates around the country in February 2025, when roughly two-thirds of voters approved a...

Are people at the South Pole upside down?

Written by Abigail Bishop, Ph.D. Student in Physics, University of Wisconsin-Madison

At the South Pole, which way is up?Abigail Bishop

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.

Are people on the South Pole walking upside down from the rest of the world? – Ralph P., U.S.

When I was standing at the South Pole, I...

Rural hospitals will be hit hard by Trump’s signature spending package

Written by Lauren S. Hughes, State Policy Director, Farley Health Policy Center; Associate Professor of Family Medicine, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

Health policy experts predict that cuts to Medicaid will push more rural hospitals to close. sneakpeekpic via iStock / Getty Images Plus

The public health provisions in the massive spending package that President Donald Trump signed into law on July 4, 2025, will reduce Medicaid spending by more than US$1 trillion over a decade and result in an...

‘Big’ legislative package shifts more of SNAP’s costs to states, saving federal dollars but causing fewer Americans to get help paying for food

Written by Tracy Roof, Associate Professor of Political Science, University of Richmond

People shop for food in Brooklyn in 2023 at a store that makes sure that its customers know it accepts SNAP benefits, also known as food stamps and EBT. Spencer Platt/Getty Images

The legislative package that President Donald Trump signed into law on July 4, 2025, has several provisions that will shrink the safety net, including the Supplemental...