The Conversation

Amid pandemic, campaigning turns to the internet

Written by Jennifer Stromer-Galley, Professor of Information Studies, Syracuse University

Joe Biden's basement bookshelf has become a familiar background for his campaign videos.Photo by JoeBiden.com via Getty Images

This feels like it could be the most revolutionary moment in U.S. campaign history: Candidates are robbed of the typical ways for connecting with supporters and changing the hearts and minds of the voting public.

The...

Why it's wrong to blame livestock farms for coronavirus

Written by Alison Van Eenennaam, Researcher, Department of Animal Science, University of California, Davis

Backyard chickens may seem free and happy, but are at increased risk of contracting diseases from wild birds.Bruce Turner/Flickr, CC BY

As part of the global response to the current pandemic, scientists are trying to identify the source of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Some commentators have promoted unsubstantiated theories suggesting that “factory...

Bankruptcy courts ill-prepared for tsunami of people going broke from coronavirus shutdown

Written by Paige Marta Skiba, Economist, Professor of Law, Vanderbilt University

The courts are sheltering in place too. 101cats/Getty Images

As more Americans lose all or part of their incomes and struggle with mounting debts, another crisis looms: a wave of personal bankruptcies.

Bankruptcy can discharge or erase many types of debts and stop foreclosures, repossessions and wage garnishments. But our research shows the...

Surprise medical bills continue during coronavirus time, and Congress still misses major points

Written by Barak Richman, Katharine T. Bartlett Professor of Law, Duke University

Surprise medical bills are the scourge of patients.Getty Images / LdF

I am a health policy scholar who became a patient last year, when I needed a surgical repair to a heart valve. My two identities united the day after my operation, when a congenial woman from the admissions department came to discuss my insurance with me.

Her intent was to make...

What is a clinical trial? A health policy expert explains

Written by Zoe McLaren, Associate Professor of Public Policy, University of Maryland, Baltimore County

Over 2,000 drugs are approved by the FDA for human use. Yulia Reznikov/Movement via Getty Images

A commonly used malaria drug was recently proposed as a treatment for COVID-19 during a White House press briefing, even though it hadn’t yet been properly evaluated in clinical trials or approved for this use. Does the urgency of the current...

'Blue state bailouts'? Some states like New York send billions more to federal government than they get back

Written by Laura Schultz, Director of Fiscal Analysis and Senior Economist, Rockefeller Institute of Government, SUNY Empire State College

Eight states send far more to the federal government through taxes than they see in annual federal spending.Noam Galai/Getty Images

When Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, expressed reluctance to fund coronavirus relief for hard-hit cities and states, suggesting they would be “blue state bailouts,” New York...

Everyday ethics: Is it OK to feed stray cats during the coronavirus crisis?

Written by Lee McIntyre, Research Fellow, Center for Philosophy and History of Science, Boston University

A cat basks in the New Jersey sunshine amid coronavirus lockdown.Mark Makela/Getty Image

A lot of people are facing ethical decisions about their daily life as a result of the coronavirus. Ethicist Lee McIntyre has stepped in to help provide advice over the moral dilemmas we face. If you have a question you’d like a philosopher to answer,...

AI tool searches thousands of scientific papers to guide researchers to coronavirus insights

Written by Amalie Trewartha, Post Doctoral Fellow, University of California, Berkeley

Artificial intelligence can do what humans can't – connect the dots across the majority of coronavirus research.baranozdemir/E+ via Getty Images

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

The big idea

The scientific community worldwide has mobilized with unprecedented speed to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic, and the...

Government cybersecurity commission calls for international cooperation, resilience and retaliation

Written by Benjamin Jensen, Professor of Strategic Studies, Marine Corps University; Scholar-in-Residence, American University, American University School of International Service

Real-time cyberattacks on a display at the 175th Cyberspace Operations Group of the Maryland Air National Guard.U.S. Air Force photo by J.M. Eddins Jr., CC BY-NC

The global commons are under assault in cyberspace. Ransomware attacks, including North Korea’s WannaCry and Russia’s NotPetya, have disrupted vital medical services and global...

Ashamed over my mental illness, I realized drawing might help me – and others – cope

Written by William Doan, Professor of Theatre, Pennsylvania State University

'Crazy Brain.'William Doan, CC BY-ND

I’ve lived much of my life with anxiety and depression, including the negative feelings – shame and self-doubt – that seduced me into believing the stigma around mental illness: that people knew I wasn’t good enough; that they would avoid me because I was different or unstable; and that I...