The Conversation

5 lessons from the coronavirus about inequality in America

Written by Jonathan J.B. Mijs, Lecturer on Sociology, Harvard University

Small businesses in Brooklyn closed during the coronavirus epidemic.AP Photo/Mark Lennihan

The coronavirus is a global threat, but the pandemic has an uneven impact across the U.S. It exacerbates existing inequalities and creates new challenges.

I think this crisis can teach several important lessons about inequality in America: how it hurts, who...

A global mask shortage may leave farmers and farm workers exposed to toxic pesticides

Written by Melanie Bateman, Lecturer in Integrated Crop Management, University of Neuchâtel

Applying insecticide to a cotton field in Colfax, La.Education Images/Getty Images

As the COVID-19 pandemic spreads around the world, vital N95 masks and other personal protective equipment have been hard to come by, even for those who need them most.

The World Health Organization estimates that the crisis has driven demand for this equipment, known...

From pews to patients – churches have long served as hospitals, particularly in times of crisis

Written by Adam J. Davis, Professor of History , Denison University

A volunteer sets up beds in what would have been a field hospital in the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine, New York. Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Churches are looking to open up their doors to groups beyond their usual congregants during the coronavirus crisis: doctors, nurses and patients.

The Cathedral of St. John the Divine, the seat of the...

Jewish history explains why some ultra-Orthodox communities defy coronavirus restrictions

Written by Joyce Dalsheim, Associate Professor of Global Studies, University of North Carolina – Charlotte

An Ultra-Orthodox Jewish man is arrested by Israeli security forces for resisting efforts to shut down a synagogue in the Me’a She’arim neighborhood in Jerusalem, April 17, 2020. AHMAD GHARABLI/AFP via Getty Images

Most prominent rabbis around the world support government health regulations intended to curb the spread of coronavirus,...

Coronavirus bailouts will cost taxpayers hundreds of billions of dollars – unlike past corporate rescues that actually made money for the US Treasury

Written by Scott Newsome, Ph.D. candidate in Politics, University of California, Santa Cruz

Fire up the printing presses.Nerthuz/Getty Images

The U.S. government has now pledged almost US$3 trillion to save the economy and Americans from the coronavirus recession.

Most of that is aimed at individual Americans in the form of additional unemployment insurance or the so-called economic impact checks. About $1.2 trillion – and counting...

The coronavirus genome is like a shipping label that lets epidemiologists track where it's been

Written by Bert Ely, Professor of Biological Sciences, University of South Carolina

The steady rate of genetic changes lets researchers recreate how a virus has travelled.nextstrain.org, CC BY

Following the coronavirus’s spread through the population – and anticipating its next move – is an important part of the public health response to the new disease, especially since containment is our only defense so far.

Just...

Are people with pets less likely to die if they catch the coronavirus?

Written by Clarissa M. Uttley, Associate Professor of Educational Leadership, Learning, and Curriculum, Plymouth State University

Even in quarantine, people around the world have to walk their dogs.AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis

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.

Are people with pets less likely to die if they catch COVID-19? – Mika, age 13, Alexandria,...

How to listen to your loved ones with empathy when you yourself are feeling the strain of social distancing

Written by Annmarie Caño, Professor of Psychology and Associate Provost for Faculty Development and Faculty Success, Wayne State University

Social distancing is challenging couples in an unprecedented way.Witthaya Prasongsin/Moment via Getty Images

COVID-19 has revealed a great many things about our world, including the vulnerabilities inherent in our economic, health care and educational institutions. The pandemic and the resulting orders to shelter in place have also uncovered...

Tomanowos, the meteorite that survived mega-floods and human folly

Written by Daniel Garcia-Castellanos, Earth scientist, Instituto de Ciencias de la Tierra Jaume Almera (ICTJA - CSIC)

Surface detail of the Tomanowos meteorite, showing cavities produced by dissolution of iron. Eden, Janine and Jim/Wikipedia, CC BY

The rock with arguably the most fascinating story on Earth has an ancient name: Tomanowos. It means “the visitor from heaven” in the extinct language of Oregon’s Clackamas Indian tribe.

The Clackamas...

Coronavirus drifts through the air in microscopic droplets – here's the science of infectious aerosols

Written by Shelly Miller, Professor of Mechanical and Environmental Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder

From your lungs into the air around you, aerosols carry coronavirus. Peter Dazeley/The Image Bank via Getty Images

During the 1970s when I was growing up in Southern California, the air was so polluted that I was regularly sent home from high school to “shelter in place.” There might not seem to be much in common between staying home...