The Conversation

Women's health is better when women have more control in their society

Written by Siobhán Mattison, Associate Professor of Evolutionary Anthropology, University of New Mexico

A woman from one of the Mosuo farming communities in southwest China. The Mosuo were participants in a groundbreaking study examining gender-based health disparities. Siobhan Mattison, CC BY-SA

Gender disparities in health are not a phenomenon unique to the pandemic. Long before COVID-19, women made less money than men, had more child care...

Why COVID-19 won't kill cities

Written by John Rennie Short, Professor, School of Public Policy, University of Maryland, Baltimore County

Cities are breeding grounds for creativity – and infectious diseases. Salvator Barki/Moment via Getty Images

Editor’s note: For those of you who live in cities, ask yourself: What it is about your urban lifestyle that makes it worth it despite the pollution, the noise and the traffic? Perhaps it’s the hundreds of unique...

Yes, customers do like it when waiters and hairdressers wear a mask – especially if it's black

Written by Cihan Cobanoglu, Professor of Hospitality and Tourism, University of South Florida

The authors didn't examine diners' perceptions of polka-dot masks specifically. AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu

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

The big idea

Customers perceive a better quality of service, feel less anxious and exhibit more trust in businesses when waiters and other service workers wear a mask, according...

Biden has pledged to advance environmental justice – here's how the EPA can start

Written by David Konisky, Professor of Public and Environmental Affairs, Indiana University

'Cancer Alley' is an 80-mile stretch of chemical plants along the Mississippi River in Louisiana alongside many Black and poor communities.Giles Clarke/Getty Images

On his first day in office President Joe Biden started signing executive orders to reverse Trump administration policies. One sweeping directive calls for stronger action to protect...

Rural health care is in crisis – here are 5 innovative ways Biden can help it transform

Written by Lauren Hughes, State Policy Director, Farley Health Policy Center; Associate Professor of Family Medicine, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

COVID-19 has overwhelmed many rural hospitals in the past few months, including this one in North Dakota.Francine Orr/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

Rural hospitals have struggled with financial troubles for years. Over the past decade, more than 130 have closed, forcing residents to drive farther or delay needed care. Now, the COVID-19...

Your corner pharmacy – joining the front lines of the COVID-19 fight

Written by Sarah Lynch, Director of Skills Education and Clinical Assistant Professor of Pharmacy Practice, Binghamton University, State University of New York

A pharmacy manager at CVS Health in Massachusetts prepares to administer vaccines at a veterans center.Associated Press

The new year has brought the deadliest weeks of the U.S. COVID-19 epidemic thus far, with thousands of deaths every day. It’s been several weeks since the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued the first of two emergency...

How history textbooks will deal with the US Capitol attack

Written by Wendy Wall, Associate Professor of 20th Century American History, Binghamton University, State University of New York

Rioters clash with police as they try to enter the Capitol building. Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images

Editor’s note: The Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol represented an event unlike any other in American history. But how will it be portrayed in history textbooks used in America’s K-12 schools and colleges? Here,...

Strange costumes of Capitol rioters echo the early days of the Ku Klux Klan - before the white sheets

Written by Kenneth Ladenburg, Instructor of English, Arizona State University

Fringe groups have long understood that capturing the public's attention is the best way to spread their views.Karwai Tang/WireImage via Getty Images

After the riots at the Capitol, images of Jacob Chansley, who’s been dubbed the “QAnon Shaman,” were splashed across news outlets.

Chansley’s outlandish costume –...

Why does it take longer to fly from east to west on an airplane?

Written by Skip Bailey, Aviation Institute Flight Training Coordinator and Instructor, University of Nebraska Omaha

The jet stream can have a big impact on how long a plane ride will last.Aeroprints via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA

Curious Kids is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to curiouskidsus@theconversation.com.

Why does it take longer to fly from east to west on an airplane? – Henry...

What does the economy need now? 4 suggestions for Biden's coronavirus relief bill

Written by Steven Pressman, Professor of Economics, Colorado State University

Biden has made fixing the economy one of his top priorities. AP Photo/Evan Vucci

Editor’s note: The Biden administration has made it clear it wants to inject more money into the U.S. economy and provide more aid for priorities like vaccines, reopening schools and state governments. We asked four economists to share what’s on the top of...