The Conversation

California wildfires signal the arrival of a planetary fire age

Written by Stephen Pyne, Emeritus Professor, School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University

Wind whips embers from a tree burned by a wildfire in Riverside, Calif. Oct. 31, 2019. AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu

Another autumn, more fires, more refugees and incinerated homes. For California, flames have become the colors of fall.

Free-burning fire is the proximate provocation for the havoc, since its ember storms are engulfing landscapes. But in...

McDonald's fired its CEO for sleeping with an employee – research shows why even consensual office romances can be a problem

Written by Vanessa K. Bohns, Associate Professor of Organizational Behavior, Cornell University

More workplaces are banning employee relationships.AP Photo/Jeff Roberson

McDonald’s ousted its CEO over a consensual relationship with an employee, just a week after U.S. Rep. Katie Hill stepped down due to a similar allegation.

Both McDonald’s and the House of Representatives ban sexual relationships between supervisors and employees.

Wh...

Why doesn't the US just send Anne Sacoolas back to the UK? Here's what's at stake in this dispute over diplomatic immunity

Written by David Banks, Professorial Lecturer of International Politics, American University School of International Service

The parents of Harry Dunn spoke at a press conference in New York on October 14.AP Photo/Craig Ruttle

The U.S. and U.K. are engaged in an international dispute about the right to diplomatic immunity.

On August 27, 2019, Anne Sacoolas, wife of a U.S. diplomat resident in the U.K., allegedly struck and killed a British motorcyclist, Harry Dunn, when...

Don't make intimate violence victims look for help -- research shows they fare better when police and community organizations coordinate assistance

Written by Anne DePrince, Professor of Psychology, University of Denver

Intimate violence victims fare better with coordinated help.Shutterstock, photo illustration by Dragana Gordic

Michelle Monson’s story, reported by Rachel Louise Snyder in “No Visible Bruises,” is a haunting tale of intimate violence and missed opportunities.

Michelle tried to escape her husband’s abuse. She tried to get...

What really causes home field advantage – and why it's on the decline

Written by Konstantinos Pelechrinis, Associate Professor of Computing and Information, University of Pittsburgh

The Washington Nationals celebrate their World Series win in front of fans of the Houston Astros.AP Photo/Matt Slocum

Never before has the away team won every single game in the World Series, but that’s exactly what happened this year.

When the Washington Nationals won Game 7 in Houston to clinch the series against the Houston Astros, it...

Cada vez más universidades en EEUU rechazan los examenes estandarizados para admitir alumnos

Written by Joseph Soares, Professor of Sociology, Wake Forest University

¿Por qué debemos requerir un examen que está sesgado contra los jóvenes de bajo ingreso, las mujeres y los afrodesciendientes?Shutterstock.com

Erase una vez, en 1980, que Bates College y Bowdoin College eran prácticamente los únicos colegios de artes liberales en Estados Unidos que no requerían a los...

Website privacy options aren't much of a choice since they're hard to find and use

Written by Hana Habib, Graduate Research Assistant at the Institute for Software Research, Carnegie Mellon University

If only it were as easy as pushing a button.REDPIXEL.PL/Shutterstock.com

You’ve probably encountered a pair of shoes that won’t stop following you around the internet, appearing in advertisements on different sites for weeks.

Today, the vast majority of advertising is targeted – that is, you see an ad because an advertiser thinks...

Curious Kids: Why does pizza taste so good?

Written by Jeffrey Miller, Associate Professor, Hospitality Management, Colorado State University

One slice is never enough.Radu Bercan/Shutterstock.com

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 pizza taste so good? – Annika, age 5, Oneonta, New York

Pizza is one of the world’s most popular foods.

In the U.S., 350...

Will the NCAA's move to let college athletes get paid endorsements make a difference? 3 questions answered

Written by Jasmine Harris, Assistant Professor of Sociology, Ursinus College

The NCAA has moved to permit college athletes to seek endorsement deals. under new rules to be adopted by 2021.AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez

Editor’s note: The NCAA moved on Oct. 29 to allow student-athletes to profit from their image and likeness – something the association had opposed until California passed a law to allow the...

Monsanto wins $7.7b lawsuit in Brazil – but farmers' fight to stop its ‘amoral’ royalty system will continue

Written by Karine Eliane Peschard, Anthropologist and Research Associate, Graduate Institute – Institut de hautes études internationales et du développement (IHEID)

Soybean farmers in Brazil sued Monsanto for a royalty collection system that they say violates their planting rights. A soybean harvest in Mato Grosso, Brazil, March 27, 2012. AP Photo/Andre Penner, File)

A Brazilian appeals court has decided in favor of Monsanto, the global agribusiness conglomerate, in a landmark class-action lawsuit filed by...