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Prosecuting ex-presidents for corruption is trending worldwide – but it's not always great for democracy

  • Written by Victor Menaldo, Professor of Political Science, Co-founder of the Political Economy Forum, University of Washington
imageAdoring fans celebrated Brazilian ex-President Luiz Inacio 'Lula' da Silva before he began a prison sentence for corruption in 2018. Lula's conviction was recently annulled.Miguel Schincariol/AFP via Getty Images)

Former presidents are being investigated, prosecuted and even jailed worldwide.

In Bolivia, ex-President Jeanine Áñez was ar...

Read more: Prosecuting ex-presidents for corruption is trending worldwide – but it's not always great for...

Patent system often stifles the innovation it was designed to encourage

  • Written by Michael J. Meurer, Professor of Law, Boston University
imageAttorneys for Apple heading to court during the so-called smartphone patent wars.AP Photo/Jeff Chiu

Over his career Thomas Edison garnered more U.S. patents than anyone in his time. Edison profited from his patents, but he was also exposed to the dark side of the patent system. He had to contend with lawsuits by other patentees who sought –...

Read more: Patent system often stifles the innovation it was designed to encourage

Sperm from older rats passes on fewer active genes to offspring because of epigenetic changes

  • Written by Alexander Suvorov, Assistant Professor of Environmental Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts Amherst
imageIf the same mechanism exists in humans, it may explain health differences in children conceived by older fathers.fotografixx/E+ via Getty Images

The Research Brief is a short take about interesting academic work.

The big idea

The sperm of older rats differs from that of younger rats in ways that may affect embryo development, according to recently...

Read more: Sperm from older rats passes on fewer active genes to offspring because of epigenetic changes

When Americans recall their roots, they open up to immigration

  • Written by Claire L. Adida, Associate Professor, Political Science, University of California San Diego
imageMigrants pray at a March 2 demonstration at San Ysidro crossing port in Tijuana, Mexico, to demand clearer U.S. migration policies.Guillermo Arias/AFP via Getty Images

Which was the first generation in your family to arrive in America? Do you know why your family came to the United States?

Members of President Joe Biden’s administration...

Read more: When Americans recall their roots, they open up to immigration

How do mRNA vaccines work – and why do you need a second dose? 5 essential reads

  • Written by Daniel Merino, Assistant Editor: Science, Health, Environment; Co-Host: The Conversation Weekly Podcast
imageNew mRNA vaccines use genes from the coronavirus to produce immunity. Andriy Onufriyenko/Moment via Getty Images

Tens of millions of people across the U.S. have received a coronavirus vaccine. So far, the majority of doses have been either the Moderna or Pfizer vaccine, both of which use mRNA to generate an immune response. These gene-based...

Read more: How do mRNA vaccines work – and why do you need a second dose? 5 essential reads

The African roots of Swiss design

  • Written by Audrey G. Bennett, Program Director and Professor, Stamps School of Art & Design, University of Michigan
imageThe golden ratio, which has been a key tenet of modernist design, may have origins in Africa.tatadonets via Getty Images

Design remains a largely white profession, with Black people still vastly underrepresented – making up just 3% of the design industry, according to a 2019 survey.

This dilemma isn’t new. For decades, the field’s...

Read more: The African roots of Swiss design

Ancient leaves preserved under a mile of Greenland's ice – and lost in a freezer for years – hold lessons about climate change

  • Written by Andrew Christ, Postdoctoral Fellow and Lecturer in Geology, University of Vermont
imageRemnants of ancient Greenland tundra were preserved in soil beneath the ice sheet.Andrew Christ and Dorothy Peteet, CC BY-ND

In 1963, inside a covert U.S. military base in northern Greenland, a team of scientists began drilling down through the Greenland ice sheet. Piece by piece, they extracted an ice core 4 inches across and nearly a mile long....

Read more: Ancient leaves preserved under a mile of Greenland's ice – and lost in a freezer for years – hold...

US could save tens of thousands of lives and tens of billions of dollars with 3 weeks of strict COVID-19 measures

  • Written by Anna Scherbina, Associate Professor of Finance, Brandeis University
imageTexas recently eased all coronavirus restrictions, including mask-wearing. AP Photo/LM Otero

President Joe Biden commemorated the COVID-19 pandemic’s one-year anniversary by giving Americans an ambitious goal: Return to a semblance of normalcy by the Fourth of July.

“But to get there we can’t let our guard down,” he added.

Un...

Read more: US could save tens of thousands of lives and tens of billions of dollars with 3 weeks of strict...

After the insurrection, America's far-right groups get more extreme

  • Written by Matthew Valasik, Associate Professor of Sociology, Louisiana State University
imageThe U.S. Capitol remains on lockdown, defended by the National Guard.Olivier Douliery/AFP via Getty Images

As the U.S. grapples with domestic extremism in the wake of the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, warnings about more violence are coming from the FBI Director Chris Wray and others. The Conversation asked Matthew Valasik, a sociologist...

Read more: After the insurrection, America's far-right groups get more extreme

Is ballot collection, or 'ballot harvesting,' good for democracy? We asked 5 experts

  • Written by Nancy Martorano Miller, Associate Professor of Political Science, University of Dayton
imageRivko Knox, a volunteer with the League of Women Voters in Phoenix, and other voters sued Arizona over a law that bans the third-party collection of early mail-in ballots. The issue is now before the Supreme Court.AP Photo/Anita Snow

A 2016 Arizona state law makes the collection of ballots by third parties a felony.

The Democratic National...

Read more: Is ballot collection, or 'ballot harvesting,' good for democracy? We asked 5 experts

More Articles ...

  1. Resistance to military regime in Myanmar mounts as nurses, bankers join protests – despite bloody crackdown
  2. Federal support has shored up nonprofits during the coronavirus pandemic, but many groups are still struggling
  3. Why would anyone buy crypto art – let alone spend millions on what's essentially a link to a JPEG file?
  4. El Salvador's abortion ban jails women for miscarriages and stillbirths – now one woman's family seeks international justice
  5. Black students have far less trust in their colleges than other students do
  6. Fixing indoor air pollution problems that are raising Native Americans' COVID-19 risk
  7. How do astronauts go to the bathroom in space?
  8. 6 tips to help you detect fake science news
  9. What Alexander Hamilton's deep connections to slavery reveal about the need for reparations today
  10. Hip-hop professor looks to open doors with world's first peer-reviewed rap album
  11. ¿Por qué son tan populares las llamas y cuál es la razón por la que nos gustan mucho?
  12. Billions of cicadas may be coming soon to trees near you
  13. How the Nazis used music to celebrate and facilitate murder
  14. A concept from physics called negentropy could help your life run smoother
  15. At colleges nationwide, esports teams dominated by men
  16. Vaccine passports may be on the way – but are they a reason for hope or a cause for concern?
  17. Dementia patients are at greater risk for COVID-19, particularly African Americans and people with vascular dementia
  18. Holding on to hope is hard, even with the pandemic's end in sight – wisdom from poets through the ages
  19. Bangladesh at 50: A nation created in violence and still bearing scars of a troubled birth
  20. The gender gap in economics is huge – it's even worse than tech
  21. Debunking the myth of legislative gridlock as laws and policy are made in the nation's capital
  22. New Jersey State Police's first 100 years characterized by racial prejudice
  23. Women grow as much as 80% of India's food – but its new farm laws overlook their struggles
  24. Texas distorts its past – and Sam Houston's legacy – to defend Confederate monuments
  25. Sewage-testing robots process wastewater faster to predict COVID-19 outbreaks sooner
  26. How the quest for significance and respect underlies the white supremacist movement, conspiracy theories and a range of other problems
  27. Deaf women fought for the right to vote
  28. Millions of American parents will soon get a monthly allowance: 4 questions answered
  29. Skipping the vaccine line is not only unethical – it may undermine trust in the rollout
  30. The US delivers $1.9 trillion jolt of economic relief: 4 essential reads
  31. How a silent movie informs the current debate over the right to be forgotten
  32. It's not just a social media problem – how search engines spread misinformation
  33. Kids spending too much time staring at screens? Focus on positive goals to get them moving and reading and talking
  34. US army chaplain Emil Kapaun advancing toward sainthood
  35. I went down the 'rabbit hole' to debunk misinformation – here's what I learned about Big Ben and online information overload
  36. Netflix series 'Last Chance U' speaks to the reality of athletes I study
  37. China's 'mask diplomacy' wins influence across Africa, during and after the pandemic
  38. Biden ends policy forcing asylum-seekers to 'remain in Mexico' – but for 41,247 migrants, it's too late
  39. How 18 million Americans could move into rural areas – without leaving home
  40. Pollen can raise your risk of COVID-19 – and the season is getting longer thanks to climate change
  41. How a 'feminist' foreign policy would change the world
  42. How urban planning and housing policy helped create 'food apartheid' in US cities
  43. Traffic is down on American highways during the pandemic, but vehicle deaths are up – here’s how to stay safe on the road
  44. COVID-19 survivor's guilt a growing issue as reality of loss settles in
  45. 3 medical innovations fueled by COVID-19 that will outlast the pandemic
  46. A global semiconductor shortage highlights a troubling trend: A small and shrinking number of the world's computer chips are made in the US
  47. Biased AI can be bad for your health – here's how to promote algorithmic fairness
  48. Growing food and protecting nature don't have to conflict – here's how they can work together
  49. Vaccinated and ready to party? Not so fast, says the CDC, but you can gather with other vaccinated people
  50. New York Gov. Cuomo is the textbook example of how not to apologize