The Conversation

To defuse political violence across US, conflict mediators apply lessons from gang disputes and foreign elections

Written by Joseph G. Bock, Director, School of Conflict Management, Peacebuilding and Development, Kennesaw State University

The U.S. isn't the first country to suffer election-related violence. Activists are learning from other countries how to keep the peace. Roberto Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images

After a violent American election season, activists are trying to keep the peace using technologies and techniques more often applied in unstable democracies.

As inflamed...

What The Weeknd's changing face says about our sick celebrity culture

Written by Alvaro Jarrin, Assistant Professor of Anthropology, College of the Holy Cross

The Weeknd performs at the 2020 American Music Awards on Nov. 22 in Los Angeles.AMA2020 via Getty Images

You might have seen The Weeknd’s altered face on the internet lately – either bloodied and covered in bandages or transformed by faux plastic surgery. With the 30-year-old singer set to perform at the Super Bowl LV halftime show on...

Loss of muscle mass among elderly can lead to falls, and staying put during the pandemic doesn't help

Written by Roger Fielding, Lab Director and Senior Scientist, Tufts University

Falls are the No. 1 cause of accidental death among people 65 and older. A loss of muscle mass contributes. Real People Group via Getty Images

Older adults are at much higher risk of death from COVID-19 than their younger counterparts, but many also face another, less recognized health risk associated with the pandemic: loss of muscle mass. This...

How Bezos and Amazon changed the world

Written by Venkatesh Shankar, Coleman Chair Professor of Marketing and Director of Research, Texas A&M University

Jeff Bezos reshaped retail as CEO of Amazon.AP Photo/John Locher

Amazon announced Jeff Bezos is stepping down as CEO almost 27 years after he founded the company to sell books to customers over dial-up modems.

Amazon wasn’t the first bookstore to sell online, but it wanted to be “Earth’s biggest.” When it first launched, a...

How food banks help Americans who have trouble getting enough to eat

Written by David Himmelgreen, Professor of Anthropology, University of South Florida

Food banks are busier than ever during the COVID-19 pandemic.AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall

Food banks, nonprofits that collect and distribute food to hunger relief organizations, have played an essential role in the distribution of emergency food relief throughout the United States for more than 50 years.

They have been more visible than ever before...

What is food insecurity?

Written by Caitlin Caspi, Professor of Public Health, University of Connecticut

U.S. reliance on food assistance is rising during the coronavirus pandemic as more people grapple with economic hardship.Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Among the many striking images from the pandemic is an aerial photo showing cars in seemingly endless rows lined up at a food bank in San Antonio, Texas.

A jarring awareness of food insecurity in the...

The Biden administration can eliminate food insecurity in the United States – here's how

Written by Craig Gundersen, Professor of Agricultural and Consumer Economics, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Will President Biden achieve something no other president has: an end to food insecurity?Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

The Biden administration faces many challenges, some of which may prove to be intractable. But in one key area affecting tens of millions of Americans, it is well-positioned to attain a truly monumental achievement – the near...

Coronavirus variants, viral mutation and COVID-19 vaccines: The science you need to understand

Written by Richard Kuhn, Professor of Biological Sciences, Purdue University

The SARS-CoV-2 virus is mutating.Aitor Diago/Moment via Getty Images

The SARS-CoV-2 virus mutates fast. That’s a concern because these more transmissible variants of SARS-CoV-2 are now present in the U.S., U.K. and South Africa and other countries, and many people are wondering whether the current vaccines will protect the recipients from...

How Connecticut's schools have managed to maintain lunch distribution for kids who need it most during the COVID-19 pandemic

Written by Marlene B. Schwartz, Professor of Human Development and Family Sciences, University of Connecticut

When they moved instruction online, many schools began distributing grab-and-go lunches.AP Photo/Lynne Sladky

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

The big idea

Connecticut schools ensured that low-income students were still getting enough to eat after the pandemic first shuttered buildings in March because of a swift...

3 ways Black people say their white co-workers and managers can support them and be an antidote to systemic racism

Written by Jennifer R. Joe, Professor of Accounting, University of Delaware

People of color say they want office allies who offer honest feedback.10'000 Hours/DigitalVision via Getty Images

President Joe Biden committed the U.S. government to racial equity by issuing four executive orders on Jan. 26 that seek to curb systemic racism. In the orders, he cited the killing of George Floyd in 2020, which sparked months of...