The Conversation

International election observers evaluating US midterm elections will face limitations

Written by Judith Kelley, Dean of the Sanford School of Public Policy, Duke University

The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, or OSCE, is sending international election observers to the 2018 U.S. midterm election.

American voters may be surprised to learn such visits are routine. In fact, this will be the seventh such visit since 2002.

This year, with the ongoing Mueller probe about election meddling and concerns...

How Sears helped make women, immigrants and people of color feel more like Americans

Written by Einav Rabinovitch-Fox, Visiting Assistant Professor, Case Western Reserve University

The Sears catalog made it easier for anyone to live the American dream.Classic Film, CC BY-SA

Sears did more than pioneer the mail-order catalog over a century ago. The iconic retailer helped make America a more inclusive place at a time when Jim Crow was rampant and women couldn’t even vote.

The news that Sears had filed for bankruptcy is a...

Thinking about borrowing against your home to send your kids to college? Think again

Written by Jacob William Faber, Assistant Professor, New York University

Many parents borrow against their homes to send their children to college.Andy Dean Photography/www.shutterstock.com

When the time comes to send their children off to college, many parents in the U.S. take out loans, draw from savings and earnings and – as some financial advisors recommend – borrow against their homes.

In a study we...

Marijuana is on the ballot in four states, but legalization may soon stall, researchers say

Written by Daniel J. Mallinson, Assistant Professor of Public Policy and Administration, School of Public Affairs, Pennsylvania State University

Utah residents show support for a ballot initiative that would legalize medical marijuana in the state.AP Photo/Rick Bowmer

The midterm elections could loosen marijuana restrictions in the United States, as four states put ballot initiatives on legalization to a vote.

Voters in Utah and Missouri will choose whether patients should gain access to...

When 'what's on your mind' is tragic, not happy – sharing sad news on social media

Written by Nazanin Andalibi, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, School of Information, University of Michigan

Sharing about tragedy online can help people feel less alone.Paulius Brazauskas/Shutterstock.com

It’s always wonderful to share happy news – in person and on social media. New jobs, weddings and becoming parents of healthy children are all commonly posted online, and often gather lots of encouraging comments and congratulations. But...

Tiroteo en Pittsburgh: La historia de las oleadas antisemitas y antimigrantes en EEUU

Written by Ingrid Anderson, Associate Director of Jewish Studies, Lecturer, Arts & Sciences Writing Program, Boston University

Personas poniendo flores en la sinagoga del Árbol de la Vida en Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, EEUU.AP Photo/Matt Rourke

El tiroteo en el centro religioso estadounidense “Árbol de la Vida”, en Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, es, posiblemente, el ataque contra los judíos más mortífero de la historia de Estados...

The Dead Sea Scrolls are a priceless link to the Bible's past

Written by Daniel Falk, Professor of Classics and Ancient Mediterranean Studies and Chaiken Family Chair in Jewish Studies, Pennsylvania State University

A conservator works with a portion of the Dead Sea Scrolls containing Psalm 145 at The Franklin Institute, in Philadelphia.AP Photo/Matt Rourke

The Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C., has removed five Dead Sea Scrolls from exhibits after tests confirmed these fragments were not from ancient biblical scrolls but forgeries.

Over the last decade,...

Illuminating the 'dark web'

Written by Robert Gehl, Associate Professor of Communication, University of Utah

It might sound scary, but the 'dark web' is not much different from the rest of the internet.Willequet Manuel/Shutterstock.com

In the wake of recent violent events in the U.S., many people are expressing concern about the tone and content of online communications, including talk of the “dark web.” Despite the sinister-sounding phrase,...

Where sexes come by the thousands

Written by Antonis Rokas, Cornelius Vanderbilt Chair in Biological Sciences and Professor of Biological Sciences and Biomedical Informatics, Vanderbilt University

The split gill mushroom _Schizophyllum commune_, a fungal species that includes more than 20,000 sexes.Bernard Spragg

By the end of every spring semester, students in my introductory biology course at Vanderbilt University have become quite familiar with natural variation in human sex chromosomes. They know, for example, that most females have two...

Bombs are part of American political history

Written by Keith Brown, Professor of Politics and Global Studies, Arizona State University

New York police officers at the Time Warner Center, Oct. 25, 2018, in New York after report of a suspicious package at CNN. AP/Craig Ruttle

The bombs allegedly sent by a passionate Trump supporter to prominent liberals last week are a reminder that American history is littered with violence, with both the left and right pursuing political ends with...