The Conversation

Why the Puritans cracked down on celebrating Christmas

Written by Peter C. Mancall, Andrew W. Mellon Professor of the Humanities, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences

'Going To Church,' N.C. Wyeth (1941).Archival photograph, Brandywine River Museum library, Edward J. S. Seal Collection.

When winter cold settles in across the U.S., the alleged “War on Christmas” heats up.

In recent years, department store greeters and Starbucks cups have sparked furor by wishing customers “happy holidays.”...

Cuba redobla el acoso a quienes piden libertades creativas después de diálogo 'inédito' con artistas

Written by María Isabel Alfonso, Professor of Spanish, St. Joseph's College of New York

Los manifestantes fuera del Ministerio de Cultura en la Habana, Cuba, 27 de noviembre, 2020. Yamil Lage/AFP via Getty Images

Artistas e intelectuales cubanos lograron sentarse a dialogar con el gobierno en inusual reclamo de libertades. Fueron escuchados, pero a esto ha seguido una fuerte ola de control represivo.

Desde las 10:45 am del 27 de...

Black candidates can win in swing districts

Written by Jacob Smith, Assistant Research Professor of Statistical Science and Political Science, Duke University

U.S. Reps. Jahana Hayes and Lauren Underwood attend the first day of the 116th Congress in January 2019. Both won reelection in 2020.AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite

During the 2020 presidential election, there was a lot of discussion about what makes an electable candidate. Is it someone who is moderate? A candidate who can turn out the base? Do other...

Wildfire smoke changes dramatically as it ages, and that matters for downwind air quality – here's what we learned flying through smoke plumes

Written by Brett B. Palm, Postdoctoral Researcher in Atmospheric Chemistry, University of Washington

Sampling wildfire smoke sometimes means sticking a tube out the window of an airplane.Brett Palm/University of Washington, CC BY-ND

The year 2020 will be remembered for many reasons, including its record-breaking wildfires that turned San Francisco’s skies an apocalyptic shade of red and blanketed large parts of the West in smoke for weeks on...

President Trump's use of the authoritarian playbook will have lasting consequences

Written by Lena Surzhko Harned, Assistant Teaching Professor of Political Science, Penn State

U.S. President Donald Trump greets Russian President Vladimir Putin during their bilateral meeting in Osaka, Japan, June, 28, 2019.Mikhail Svetlov/Getty Images

Six weeks after the U.S. election, President Donald Trump had still not accepted defeat. This behavior is not typical in mature democracies. And it’s reminiscent of countries with what...

Cuba cracks down on artists who demanded creative freedoms after 'unprecedented' government negotiations

Written by María Isabel Alfonso, Professor of Spanish, St. Joseph's College of New York

A group of young intellectuals and artists demonstrates at the doors of the Ministry of Culture during a protest in Havana on Nov. 27. Yamil Lage/AFP via Getty Images

Leer en español.

Cuban artists and intellectuals want more rights – and, in an unusual show of dissent, they demanded the government sit down with them to negotiate.

At...

US nonprofits raised $2.5 billion on Giving Tuesday in 2020

Written by Abhishek Bhati, Assistant Professor of Political Science, Bowling Green State University

Quarterback Patrick Mahomes gave $5,000 to the Dick's Sporting Goods Sports Matter program on Giving on Tuesday in 2018.Colin Braley/AP Images for DICK'S Sporting Goods

CC BY-SA

Some 35 million Americans gave a total of US$2.5 billon on Giving Tuesday to causes of all kinds, including $808 million in donations made online.

Donations increased...

4 signs that food pantries improve the diets of low-income people

Written by Heather Eicher-Miller, Associate Professor of Nutrition Science, Purdue University

Food pantries can be a source of fresh produce.SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

The nation has thousands of food pantries, places that give cash-strapped people free food with few questions asked. These organizations can occupy everything from an entire building to a literal pantry – as in a few shelves in a church basement.

Most of...

5 ways MacKenzie Scott’s $5.8 billion commitment to social and economic justice is a model for other donors

Written by Elizabeth J. Dale, Assistant Professor of Nonprofit Leadership, Seattle University

The philanthropist is giving away billions of dollars quickly to help people like these Floridians seeking donated food.Paul Hennessy/NurPhoto via Getty Images

The author and philanthropist MacKenzie Scott announced on Dec. 15 that she had given almost US$4.2 billion to hundreds of nonprofits. It was her second announcement of this kind since she...

Museum specimens could help fight the next pandemic – why preserving collections is crucial to future scientific discoveries

Written by Jocelyn P. Colella, Assistant Professor of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology and Assistant Curator of Mammals, University of Kansas

Behind the scenes, natural history museums store biological samples from the field.Ryan Stephens, CC BY-ND

Imagine yourself as the first naturalist to stand in a place where little recorded scientific knowledge exists, like Alfred Russel Wallace in the Malay Archipelago or Alexander von Humboldt in the Americas in the early 1800s. The notes you...