The Conversation

Disinformation campaigns are murky blends of truth, lies and sincere beliefs – lessons from the pandemic

Written by Kate Starbird, Associate Professor of Human Centered Design & Engineering, University of Washington

It's difficult by design to identify disinformation campaign instigators and their agendas.stevanovicigor/iStock via Getty Images

The COVID-19 pandemic has spawned an infodemic, a vast and complicated mix of information, misinformation and disinformation.

In this environment, false narratives – the virus was “planned,” that it orig...

Online Christian pilgrimage: How a virtual tour to Lourdes follows a tradition of innovation

Written by Samuel L. Boyd, Assistant Professor, University of Colorado Boulder

People wearing masks and social distancing at the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes on May 30, 2020.Laurent Dart/AFP via Getty Images

The Catholic Church held what is being termed as the first online pilgrimage to the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes in France. Earlier this spring, for the first time in its 162-year existence the shrine was closed...

Massive online open courses see exponential growth during COVID-19 pandemic

Written by Chris Impey, University Distinguished Professor of Astronomy, University of Arizona

Workers are seeking credentials to get an edge in the job market.Ridofranz/GettyImages

Massive open online classes, or MOOCs, have seen a surge in enrollments since March.

Enrollment at Coursera – an online platform that offers MOOCs, has skyrocketed and was 640% higher from mid-March to mid-April than during the same period last year, growing...

What are political parties' platforms – and do they matter?

Written by Marjorie Hershey, Professor Emeritus of Political Science, Indiana University

At the 2016 Democratic National Convention, a delegate holds up a copy of the Democratic Party Platform.AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite

Political parties’ platforms – their statements of where they stand on issues – get little respect. President Donald Trump mused recently that he might shrink his party’s platform from 66 pages...

How to make sure you're wearing your mask right

Written by Joy Pieper, Clinical Assistant Professor of Nursing, Purdue University

Make sure the bottom of the mask is pulled down over your chin so it covers your nose and mouth.Getty Images / andresr

Whether or not you agree with a mandate to wear a mask, many of us will do so during our daily business.

I am a professor of nursing at Purdue University, where a colleague and I teach a class detailing the history of health care...

Low-wage service workers are facing new emotional hazards in the workplace during COVID-19

Written by Lola Loustaunau, Ph.D Candidate, University of Oregon

Service workers are often tasked with enforcing company mask and social distancing policies. AP Photo/Nati Harnik

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

The big idea

Low-wage service workers increasingly are facing new physical and emotional hazards in the workplace as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, according to...

Is telehealth as good as in-person care? A telehealth researcher explains how to get the most out of remote health care

Written by Jennifer A. Mallow, Associate Professor of Nursing, West Virginia University

Telehealth is booming like never before, and many patients and health care providers across the U.S. are using it for the first time. Geber86 / E+ via Getty Images

COVID-19 has led to a boom in telehealth, with some health care facilities seeing an increase in its use by as much as 8,000%.

This shift happened quickly and unexpectedly and has left...

The Constitution doesn't have a problem with mask mandates

Written by John E. Finn, Professor Emeritus of Government, Wesleyan University

A protester during an anti-mask rally on July 19 in Indianapolis, Indiana, against the mayor's mask order and the governor's extension of the state shutdown.Jeremy Hogan/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

Many public health professionals and politicians are urging or requiring citizens to wear face masks to help slow the spread of the COVID-19...

People are dying in US prisons, and not just from COVID-19

Written by Heather Schoenfeld, Associate Professor, Boston University

Dade Correctional Institution where mentally ill prisoner Darren Rainey was locked in a shower stall and died in June 2012. AP Photo/Lynne Sladky

Randall Jordan-Aparo, Darren Rainey and Latandra Ellington are not household names. But like Michael Brown, George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, they were killed by law enforcement officers.

Not police...

Telework mostly benefits white, affluent Americans – and offers few climate benefits

Written by Cutler J Cleveland, Professor of Earth and Environment, Boston University

Back in in 2018 – in the pre-pandemic world – about 5% of the U.S. workforce teleworked from home. That changed dramatically with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic; by May 2020 that number had jumped to about 35%. Tech giants Google, Facebook, Microsoft, Amazon and Twitter announced plans to extend teleworking well into the fall and...