The Conversation

How a troop drawdown in Afghanistan signals American weakness and could send Afghan allies into the Taliban's arms

Written by Brian Glyn Williams, Professor of Islamic History, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth

Afghan security forces gather near the site of an attack in Jalalabad in August 2020.AP Photo/Rahmat Gul

President Donald Trump’s recent call to withdraw just over half of the 4,500 U.S. troops in Afghanistan has been condemned as an act that “would hurt our allies and delight, delight, the people who wish us harm” by members of...

A better way for billionaires who want to make massive donations to benefit society

Written by Andrew J. Hoffman, Professor of Management & Organizations; Professor of Environment & Sustainability; Holcim (US), Inc. Professor of Sustainable Enterprise at the Ross School of Business and School of Environment and Sustainability, University of

Jeff Bezos is pouring $10 billion into the fight against climate change.Eric Baradat/AFP via Getty Images

Jeff Bezos, the world’s wealthiest person, announced on Instagram in November 2020 that he was giving 16 organizations a total of about US$800 million for a wide array of climate-protecting work.

This money will help pay to restore and...

Cicely was young, Black and enslaved – her death during an epidemic in 1714 has lessons that resonate in today's pandemic

Written by Nicole S Maskiell, Assistant Professor of History Peter and Bonnie McCausland Fellow of History, University of South Carolina

Over 1.4 million people have died from COVID-19 so far this year. How history memorializes them will reflect those we most value.Author provided, CC BY-ND

What I believe to be the oldest surviving gravestone for a Black person in the Americas memorializes an enslaved teenager named Cicely.

Cicely’s body is interred across from Harvard’s...

Tribes mount organized responses to COVID-19, in contrast to state and federal governments

Written by Lisa Hardy, Associate Professor of Anthropology and Director of the Social Science Community Engagement Lab, Northern Arizona University

The Native nations have fought hard to keep the pandemic out of their communities. grand river via Getty Images

As the months roll by, the pandemic continues to hit Indigenous nations hard. But this phenomenon is not new. Epidemics have been part of colonialism since settlers arrived. Health inequities tell us that illnesses have different outcomes...

AI makes huge progress predicting how proteins fold – one of biology's greatest challenges – promising rapid drug development

Written by Marc Zimmer, Professor of Chemistry, Connecticut College

A simple chain of amino acids folds into a complex three-dimensional structure.

Takeaways

A “deep learning” software program from Google-owned lab DeepMind showed great progress in solving one of biology’s greatest challenges – understanding protein folding.
Protein folding is the process by which a protein takes its shape...

The morality of canceling student debt

Written by Kate Padgett Walsh, Associate Professor of Philosophy, Iowa State University

Students pulling a heavy ball representing the total outstanding student debt in the U.S. at over $1.5 trillion.PAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP via Getty Images

President-elect Joe Biden promised to forgive at least some student debt during his campaign, and he now supports immediately canceling US$10,000 per borrower as part of COVID-19 relief measures.

Such...

Global disabilities map visualizes the strength and power of millions of athletes around the world

Written by Sarah Hillyer, Director, Center for Sport, Peace, & Society, University of Tennessee

Qaphela Dlamini, educator, wheelchair basketball player and disability rights advocate from South Africa.globalsportsmentingprogram/flickr, CC BY-ND

When the Americans with Disabilities Act was signed into law in 1990, it became illegal to restrict access – to employment, education or federally funded institutions – based on disability....

Socialism is a trigger word on social media – but real discussion is going on amid the screaming

Written by Robert Kozinets, Jayne and Hans Hufschmid Chair in Strategic Public Relations and Business Communication, USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism

'Tug-of-words' posts debating the merits of socialism versus capitalism are all over social media platforms.pxfuel

The word “socialism” has become a trigger word in U.S. politics, with both positive and negative perceptions of it split along party lines.

But what does socialism actually mean to Americans? Although surveys can ask...

Your brain's built-in biases insulate your beliefs from contradictory facts

Written by Jay Maddock, Professor of Public Health, Texas A&M University

These psychological tendencies explain why an onslaught of facts won't necessarily change anyone's mind.Francesco Carta fotografo/Moment via Getty Images

A rumor started circulating back in 2008 that Barack Obama was not born in the United States. At the time, I was serving as chair of the Hawaii Board of Health. The director and deputy director of...

Peru's democracy faces greatest trial since Fujimori dictatorship after two presidents are ousted in one week

Written by Gisselle Vila Benites, Adjunct Researcher at the Center for Mining and Sustainability Studies at the Universidad del Pacífico (Peru) and PhD Candidate in Geography, University of Melbourne

Riot police face off against protesters in Lima, Peru, Nov. 12, 2020.Ernesto Benavides/AFP via Getty Images

Peru’s new interim president took office on Nov. 17 under unenviable circumstances.

Francisco Sagasti became the South American country’s third president in a week after President Martin Vizcarra was impeached for “moral...