The Conversation

The politics of fear: How fear goes tribal, allowing us to be manipulated

Written by Arash Javanbakht, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, Wayne State University

White nationalists clash with protesters at the Aug. 12, 2017 Charlottesville, Va. rally that turned deadly violent.Steve Helber/AP Photo

Fear is arguably as old as life. It is deeply ingrained in the living organisms that have survived extinction through billions of years of evolution. Its roots are deep in our core psychological and biological...

The forgotten legacy of gay photographer George Platt Lynes

Written by Rebecca Fasman, Manager of Traveling Exhibitions at the Kinsey Institute, Indiana University

A self-portrait of George Platt Lynes from 1952. Gelatin silver print, 7-5/8 × 9 in. From the Collections of the Kinsey Institute, Indiana University. © Estate of George Platt Lynes.

From the late 1920s until his death in 1955, George Platt Lynes was one of the world’s most successful commercial and fine art photographers.

His work...

How a government shutdown affects the economy

Written by Scott R. Baker, Assistant Professor of Finance, Northwestern University

Federal employees rally to call for an end to the partial government shutdown.AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais

Parts of the federal government have been closed since midnight on Dec. 22, making it the second-longest shutdown on record. It’s also the third since President Donald Trump took office.

The immediate and most visible impact of a...

Hearing hate speech primes your brain for hateful actions

Written by Arthur Glenberg, Professor of Psychology, Arizona State University

Inflammatory words can prime a mind.Elijah O'Donnell/Unsplash, CC BY

A mark on a page, an online meme, a fleeting sound. How can these seemingly insignificant stimuli lead to acts as momentous as participation in a racist rally or the massacre of innocent worshippers? Psychologists, neuroscientists, linguists and philosophers are developing a new...

Renewed space rivalry between nations ignores a tradition of cooperation

Written by Scott Shackelford, Associate Professor of Business Law and Ethics; Director, Ostrom Workshop Program on Cybersecurity and Internet Governance; Cybersecurity Program Chair, IU-Bloomington, Indiana University

A composite image of a satellite firing an energy weapon at a target on Earth. Marc Ward/Shutterstock.com

The annals of science fiction are full of visions of the future. Some are techno-utopian like “Star Trek” in which humanity has joined together in peace to explore the cosmos. Others are dystopian, like the World State in...

Remembering American saint Elizabeth Seton's legacy and how it continues to inspire work with immigrants

Written by Catherine O'Donnell, Associate Professor of History, Arizona State University

Elizabeth Ann Seton shrine.Pam Broviak, CC BY-NC-ND

January marks the feast of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton. Born in New York City in 1774, Seton became the first person born in what would soon become the United States to be canonized as a saint in the Roman Catholic Church. Since then, she has been celebrated as an “American saint.”

As...

With the right guiding principles, carbon taxes can work

Written by Gilbert E. Metcalf, John DiBiaggio Professor of Citizenship and Public Service; Professor of Economics, Tufts University

Wind power can create jobs for workers like these while cutting carbon pollution.AP Photo/Steven Senne

Like most economists, I favor taxing carbon dioxide to cut carbon pollution.

A carbon tax makes fossil fuels like oil and coal more expensive. That, in turn, leads consumers and industries to use less of them. At the same time, it boosts demand...

With foreign bureaus slashed, freelancers are filling the void – at their own risk

Written by Bill Gentile, Journalist in Residence, American University School of Communication

Documentary filmmaker Janet Jarman works on her film about midwives in Mexico.Matt Cipollone, CC BY

When Time magazine named journalists who faced persecution, arrest or murder as their 2018 Person of the Year, it described them as “The Guardians” in the “War on Truth.”

It was a forceful rebuke to those who demean journalists...

Who's more compassionate, Republicans or Democrats?

Written by Meri T. Long, Lecturer, American Politics, University of Pittsburgh

An anti-abortion advocate in Jackson, Mississippi, March 2018.AP/Rogelio V. Solis

It’s a common refrain of American voters: How can your party be so heartless?

Democrats want to know how Republicans can support President Trump’s policy of separating babies from refugee families. Republicans want to know how Democrats can sanction...