The Conversation

YouTube, persuasion and genetically engineered children

Written by George Estreich, Instructor, Oregon State University

In a masterfully manipulative Youtube video, He Jiankui tells the world about the first genetically edited babies.AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein

On Sunday, Nov. 25, the scientist He Jiankui claimed the birth of the world’s first genetically engineered children: twins, created by IVF, their DNA altered at fertilization. Changes like these, because...

CRISPR babies raise an uncomfortable reality – abiding by scientific standards doesn't guarantee ethical research

Written by J. Benjamin Hurlbut, Associate Professor of Life Sciences, Arizona State University

What does oversight really ensure?Ousa Chea/Unsplash, CC BY

Uncertainty continues to swirl around scientist He Jiankui’s gene editing experiment in China. Using CRISPR technology, He modified a gene related to immune function in human embryos and transferred the embryos to their mother’s womb, producing twin girls.

Many questions about...

Screening the human future: YouTube, persuasion and genetically engineered children

Written by George Estreich, Instructor, Oregon State University, Oregon State University

In a masterfully manipulative Youtube video, He Jiankui tells the world about the first genetically edited babies.AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein

George H.W. Bush understood that markets and the environment weren't enemies

Written by Matthew Kahn, Professor of Economics, University of Southern California – Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences

President George H.W. Bush (right) fishing on the Kennebunk River in Maine, Aug. 27, 1990. AP Photo/Doug Mills

Former President George H.W. Bush, who died on Nov. 30, was admirable for many reasons, from his skillful leadership through the end of the Cold War to his personal warmth and courtesy. As an environmental economist, I believe his approach...

Climate change is shrinking winter snowpack, which harms Northeast forests year-round

Written by Andrew Reinmann, Assistant Professor, CUNY Graduate Center

Snowpack protects tree roots and soil from harmful freeze/thaw cycles.Rebecca Siegel, CC BY

Climate change often conjures up images of heat, drought and hurricanes. But according to the latest U.S. National Climate Assessment, released on Nov. 23, 2018, winters have warmed three times faster than summers in the Northeast in recent years. These...

How Hanukkah came to America

Written by Dianne Ashton, Professor of Religion, Rowan University

In the United States, Hanukkah has gained much significance.Tercer Ojo Photography/Shutterstock.com

Hanukkah may be the best known Jewish holiday in the United States. But despite its popularity in the U.S., Hanukkah is ranked one of Judaism’s minor festivals, and nowhere else does it garner such attention. The holiday is mostly a domestic...

Why we'll miss George H.W. Bush, America's last foreign policy president

Written by James Goldgeier, Professor at the School of International Service and Visiting Senior Fellow, Council on Foreign Relations, American University School of International Service

Unlike every president who followed him, George H.W. Bush had a background in foreign policy. In 1972, Bush was serving as U.S. ambassador to the U.N.AP Photo/Dave Pickoff

There are many reasons to miss George H.W. Bush, the 41st president of the United States. A World War II hero, he later served his country with great distinction in a number of...

Why companies should help pay for the biodiversity that’s good for their bottom line

Written by Joanne Burgess, Assistant Professor of Economics, Colorado State University

Like Dr. Seuss' imaginary truffula trees, baobabs are endangered. Dudarev Mikhail/Shutterstock.com

In the “The Lorax,” an entrepreneur regrets wiping out all the make-believe truffala trees by chopping them down to maximize his short-term gains. As the Dr. Seuss tale ends, the Once-ler – the man responsible for this environmental...

LGBTQ caravan migrants may have to 'prove' their gender or sexual identity at US border

Written by Stefan Vogler, Chancellor's Postdoctoral Fellow, University of California, Irvine

LGBTQ migrants traveling with the migrant caravan.AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd

Among the more than 7,000 people who are part of the migrant caravan – a group of Central American refugees fleeing extreme violence in their home countries – a smaller group of about 80 LGBTQ individuals has broken off from the larger group. These individuals...

G-20 leaders descend on Buenos Aires as host Argentina battles worst economic crisis in a decade

Written by Robert H. Scott III, Professor of Economics & Finance, Monmouth University

Protesters carry a banner that reads in Spanish, 'Property of the G20? Who chose?'AP Photo/Sebastian Pani

Leaders of the world’s biggest economies have gathered in Buenos Aires for the annual Group of 20 Summit to discuss some of the most important issues facing the global economy, from the future of work and food security to U.S. President...