The Conversation

Why are so many languages spoken in some places and so few in others?

Written by Marco Túlio Pacheco Coelho, Ph.D. Student in Ecology, Universidade Federal de Goias

What factors contribute to some places having many, while other places have few?VLADGRIN/Shutterstock.com

People across the world describe their thoughts and emotions, share experiences and spread ideas through the use of thousands of distinct languages. These languages form a fundamental part of our humanity. They determine whom we communicate...

A brief astronomical history of Saturn's amazing rings

Written by Vahe Peroomian, Associate Professor of Physics and Astronomy, University of Southern California – Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences

With giant Saturn hanging in the blackness and sheltering Cassini from the Sun's blinding glare, the spacecraft viewed the rings as never before.

Many dream of what they would do had they a time machine. Some would travel 100 million years back in time, when dinosaurs roamed the Earth. Not many, though, would think of taking a telescope with them,...

Fifty years ago, Jimi Hendrix's Woodstock anthem expressed the hopes and fears of a nation

Written by Mark Clague, Associate Professor of Musicology, University of Michigan

Hendrix's version of the National Anthem combined reverence and revolution.nelag0/pixabay, CC BY

One of the most powerful, searing renditions of the national anthem ever recorded, Jimi Hendrix’s iconic Woodstock anthem, almost never happened.

In his memoir, Hendrix’s drummer, Mitch Mitchell, admitted that the band “hadn’t...

50 years ago, Jimi Hendrix's Woodstock anthem expressed the hopes and fears of a nation

Written by Mark Clague, Associate Professor of Musicology, University of Michigan

Hendrix's version of the National Anthem combined reverence and revolution.nelag0/pixabay, CC BY

One of the most powerful, searing renditions of the national anthem ever recorded, Jimi Hendrix’s iconic Woodstock anthem, almost never happened.

In his memoir, Hendrix’s drummer, Mitch Mitchell, admitted that the band “hadn’t...

One budget line Congress can agree on: Spending billions on the US military

Written by Rebecca U. Thorpe, Associate Professor of Political Science, University of Washington

Since WWII, there's been strong partisan support for military spending.Mircea Moira/Shutterstock.com

The two-year budget deal signed into law in July marks a rare bipartisan agreement.

The deal adds US$320 billion over current spending levels spread across defense and non-defense programs, averting the threat of debt default until after the 2020...

Huge wildfires in the Arctic and far North send a planetary warning

Written by Nancy Fresco, SNAP Coordinator, Research Faculty, University of Alaska Fairbanks

Smoke from wildfires in Siberia drifts east toward Canada and the U.S. on July 30, 2019.NASA

The planet’s far North is burning. This summer, over 600 wildfires have consumed more than 2.4 million acres of forest across Alaska. Fires are also raging in northern Canada. In Siberia, choking smoke from 13 million acres – an area nearly the...

Mexico wants to run a tourist train through its Mayan heartland — should it?

Written by Gabriel Diaz Montemayor, Assistant Professor of Landscape Architecture, University of Arkansas

President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has a dream for the Yucatan Peninsula. He wants to build a train that will leverage the tourism economy of Cancun by bringing more visitors inland to the colonial cities, Mayan villages and archaeological sites that dot the region.

The Yucatan is a unique Mexican cultural crossroads. Many Maya...

Surprising volunteers with awards is one way to keep them on board

Written by Marlene Walk, Assistant Professor of Public and Environmental Affairs, IUPUI

Cub Scouts outings aren't possible without dedicated volunteers.Karin Hildebrand Lau/Shutterstock.com

The United States has a long tradition of volunteering. Back in 1737, for instance, Benjamin Franklin co-founded the nation’s first volunteer fire brigade in Philadelphia.

And this custom is still going strong. About 77.4 million Americans...

We use satellites to measure water scarcity

Written by Emad Hasan, Postdoctoral Researcher in Geography, Binghamton University, State University of New York

Visualization of the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission satellite in space over a tropical cyclone.NASA

Today, more than 700 million people around the world drink water from unsafe or untreated sources, such as wells, springs and surface water.

About half of these people live in sub-Saharan Africa. In fact, in more than 30 African countries,...

Want better sleep? Try a warm bath or shower 1-2 hours before bedtime, study suggests

Written by Shahab Haghayegh, Doctoral candidate, biomedical engineering, University of Texas at Austin

There's a biological reason why a warm bath before bedtime can improve sleep quality.iordani/Shutterstock.com

Do you struggle trying to fall asleep? Do you feel you don’t get enough sleep and you feel sleepy during the day? You are not alone. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine has found that one in three American adults have symptoms of...