The Conversation

5 tips for college students to use final exam stress to their advantage

Written by Jennifer Wegmann, Professor of Health and Wellness Studies, Binghamton University, State University of New York

Changing the way you think about stress can help you deal with it better, research shows.sun ok from www.shutterstock.com

For the nearly 20 million college students in the U.S., one of the most stressful times of the year comes at the end of the semester, as they prepare for final exams, graduation and – for many seniors – yet another...

Why reducing carbon emissions from cars and trucks will be so hard

Written by David Keith, Assistant Professor of System Dynamics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

The race to get rid of transportation emissions is getting off to a slow start.AP Photo/Terrin Waack

A growing number of cities, states and countries aim to dramatically reduce or even eliminate carbon emissions to avert catastrophic levels of climate change.

Ideas about how to get this done as soon as possible, including those Democratic lawmakers...

Beanie Babies, the invention of CubeSat and student-designed and built satellites

Written by Supriya Chakrabarti, Professor of Physics, University of Massachusetts Lowell

Hundreds of CubeSats are now being launched into space each year.etonastenka/Shutterstock.com

The democratization of space began 20 years ago with Beanie Babies – or, more accurately, the clear acrylic box that brought them home. These 4-inch (10-cm) cubes inspired space engineer Bob Twiggs to create CubeSat, the first satellite with a...

Why the Trump administration’s Israeli-Palestinian peace plan shouldn’t be released

Written by Dov Waxman, Professor of Political Science, International Affairs and Israel Studies, Northeastern University

On the same day, May 14, 2018, Palestinians protest near the border of Israel and the Gaza Strip (left) while dignitaries applaud the opening ceremony of the new U.S. embassy in Jerusalem (right). AP/ADEL HANA, LEFT, AND SEBASTIAN SCHEINER

Dead on arrival.

That’s what almost every expert predicts will be the fate of the Trump...

Brazil's long, strange love affair with the Confederacy ignites racial tension

Written by Jordan Brasher, Doctoral candidate in Geography, University of Tennessee

Visitors and performers at Brazil's 'Confederate Party,' held each April in São Paulo state.Jordan Brasher, Author provided

The aroma of fried chicken and biscuits roused my appetite as the country sounds of Alison Krauss, Alan Jackson and Johnny Cash played over the loudspeakers.

This might have been a county fair back home in Tennessee, but...

Caster Semenya's impossible situation: Testosterone gets special scrutiny but doesn't necessarily make her faster

Written by Jaime Schultz, Associate Professor of Kinesiology, Pennsylvania State University

An arbitration court ruled that the 28-year-old runner must lower her testosterone levels in order to compete.AP Photo/Petr David Josek

A yearslong saga between a middle-distance runner and her sport’s ruling body may be nearing something that resembles a conclusion.

In 2018, the International Association of Athletics Federations dictated that...

60 days in Iceberg Alley, drilling for marine sediment to decipher Earth's climate 3 million years ago

Written by Suzanne O'Connell, Professor of Earth & Environmental Sciences, Wesleyan University

The research vessel must dodge dangerous icebergs as it drills for sediment core samples.Phil Christie/IODP, CC BY-ND

Competition is stiff for one of the 30 scientist berths on the JOIDES Resolution research vessel. I’m one of the lucky ones, granted the opportunity to work 12-hour days, seven days a week for 60 days as part of Expedition 382...

Venezuelan opposition leader Leopoldo López seeks refuge with Spain after failed uprising

Written by Marco Aponte-Moreno, Assistant Professor of Global Business and Member of the Institute for Latino and Latin American Studies, St Mary's College of California

An arrest warrant has been issued for Venezuela’s most famous political prisoner. Leopoldo López, who was released from house arrest to lead an attempted uprising against President Nicolás Maduro on April 30, has sought refuge at the residency of the Spanish ambassador to Venezuela.

The Spanish government says López...

Americans might love Cinco de Mayo, but few know what they're celebrating

Written by Kirby Farah, Lecturer of Anthropology, University of Southern California – Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences

Mexicans representing indigenous soldiers and the French army, re-enact the battle of Puebla during Cinco de Mayo celebrations in Mexico City.AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo

Many Americans celebrate Cinco de Mayo, but how many actually know the story of the holiday?

Contrary to popular belief, Cinco de Mayo doesn’t mark Mexican Independence, which...

What other countries can teach the US about raising teacher pay

Written by David Evans, Professor of Public Policy, Pardee RAND Graduate School

Students listen to their teacher, Shuma Das, at the Sahabatpur Daspara Ananda school in Sahabatpur village, Bangladesh in 2016.Dominic Chavez/World Bank, CC BY

Teacher strikes swept the United States in 2018, from West Virginia to Oklahoma, Colorado, Arizona, North Carolina and beyond.

The demands varied across states, but a raise in teacher pay...