The Conversation

Unionized workers are more likely to assert their right to a safe and healthy workplace

Written by Aaron Sojourner, Associate Professor and Labor Economist, University of Minnesota

Many essential workers believe joining a union could provide more protections. AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes

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

The big idea

Unionized workers are more likely than their non-union peers to speak up about health and safety problems in the workplace, according to a just-published,...

COVID-19 lockdowns expose the digital have-nots in rural areas – here's which policies can get them connected

Written by Brian Whitacre, Professor and Neustadt Chair in Agricultural Economics, Oklahoma State University

High-speed internet is harder to come by in the country.Martin Barraud/Stone via Getty Images

The current public health emergency has shown just how critical adequate and affordable broadband infrastructure is for communities and individuals trying to work, access health care and attempt to teach kids from home.

Yet over one-fifth of rural...

Chadwick Boseman's death from colorectal cancer underscores an alarming increase in cases among younger adults as well as health gaps for African Americans

Written by Franklin G. Berger, Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Biological Sciences, University of South Carolina

Actor Chadwick Boseman at the GQ Men of the Year party at the Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles, Dec. 3, 2015. Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP

The tragic death of Chadwick Boseman at age 43 following a four-year battle against colorectal cancer underscores two important public health concerns.

First, the incidence of colorectal cancer has risen dramatically...

Nearly two centuries ago, a QAnon-like conspiracy theory propelled candidates to Congress

Written by Sophie Bjork-James, Assistant Professor of the Practice in Anthropology, Vanderbilt University

The fringe QAnon conspiracy theory has been creeping into the mainstream.Rick Loomis/Getty Images

Marjorie Taylor Greene’s Republican congressional primary win in Georgia ensures, in all likelihood, that the heavily Republican district will be represented by a QAnon conspiracy theorist in the 117th Congress.

But Greene was just one of several...

Chadwick Boseman's death underscores colorectal cancer increase in younger adults and health gaps for African Americans

Written by Franklin G. Berger, Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Biological Sciences, University of South Carolina

Actor Chadwick Boseman at the GQ Men of the Year party at the Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles, Dec. 3, 2015. Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP

The tragic death of Chadwick Boseman at age 43 following a four-year battle against colorectal cancer underscores two important public health concerns.

First, the incidence of colorectal cancer has risen dramatically...

Campus outbreaks of COVID-19 were almost guaranteed

Written by Ryan Malosh, Assistant Research Scientist, University of Michigan

Parents help students move out of Bragaw Hall at North Carolina State University on Aug. 27, 2020 in Raleigh, N.C., after COVID cases continued to rise on campus.Gerry Broome/AP Photo

Scientists have learned a few things over the past six months as the COVID-19 pandemic has continued. We’ve learned that the virus that causes COVID-19...

US punishes International Criminal Court for investigating potential war crimes in Afghanistan

Written by Susan M. Akram, Clinical Professor, School of Law, Boston University

Two detainees at Guantanamo are among those who told ICC investigators they were tortured at CIA 'black sites' in Afghanistan in 2003 and 2004.ohn Moore/Getty Images

The Trump administration has sought to weaken or abandon various international agencies since 2016. Now it’s taking aim at the International Criminal Court, a global tribunal that...

How to read coronavirus news and learn what you actually need to know about staying safe in the pandemic

Written by Thomas J. Hrach, Associate Professor, Department of Journalism and Strategic Media, University of Memphis

The news helps people navigate a complex and changing pandemic world. But they may not always remember what they need to. AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes

With COVID-19, a news story that may be 100% accurate can still unintentionally mislead readers about the greatest threats of the pandemic. The unintended outcome results from a lesson taught to every...

What college students need to know about liability waivers for COVID-19

Written by Joy Blanchard, Associate Professor of Higher Education, Louisiana State University

Waivers don't automatically mean students give up rights.Cunaplus_M.Faba/ via iStock Getty Images Plus

As college and university campuses across the United States reopen, administrators are faced with the task of protecting students while also protecting the interests of the institutions they lead. This includes reducing the risk of lawsuits. Some...

US unemployment data fail to capture COVID-19's full impact – here's how to fix it fast

Written by Julia Lane, Professor of Economics, New York University

Unemployed airline workers call for an extension of federal benefits.Joe Raedle/Getty Images

The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed dangerous weaknesses in America’s aging public data system. In one of the greatest jobs crises in the past 100 years, the labor force measures of employment and unemployment are too slow, not local and too often...