The Conversation

Veterans have fought in wars – and fought against them

Written by Michael Messner, Professor of Sociology and Gender Studies, University of Southern California – Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences

A member of Veterans for Peace marches during the annual Veterans Day parade in New York, Nov. 11, 2017. AP/Andres Kudacki

If President Donald Trump had his way, the nation would be celebrating the centennial of the World War I armistice on Nov. 11 with a massive military parade in Washington, D.C.

But that won’t be happening. When the...

On the 100th anniversary of WWI's end, lessons on life in health care's trenches

Written by Richard Gunderman, Chancellor's Professor of Medicine, Liberal Arts, and Philanthropy, Indiana University

World War I soldiers in a trench. Trenches led to monotony, malnutrition and shellshock.Everett Historical/Shutterstock.com

It is common these days to hear physicians, nurses and other health professionals refer to their daily work as “life in the trenches.” The phrase usually contrasts the experiences of patient-facing professionals...

Elecciones EEUU: Población latina puede ser una fuerza electoral en 2020

Written by Lisa Garcia Bedolla, Chancellor's Professor of Education and Political Science, University of California, Berkeley

Las encuestas de salida indican que el demócrata Beto O’Rourke consiguió el 63% del voto latino en Texas, y parece que los latinos han votado hasta alcanzar cifras históricas. Pero no fue suficiente para ganar.AP Photo/Eric Gay

Los latinos participaron de forma muy activa en las elecciones legislativas intermedias de...

Blasphemy law is repealed in Ireland, enforced in Pakistan – and a problem in many Christian and Muslim countries

Written by Steve Pinkerton, Lecturer in English, Case Western Reserve University

Pakistani religious groups protest against a Supreme Court decision that acquitted Asia Bibi, who was accused of blasphemy, in Islamabad, Pakistan.AP Photo/B.K. Bangash

The citizens of Ireland voted recently, in a nationwide referendum, to remove a clause from their constitution that had made blasphemy a criminal offense.

Ireland’s...

What is public service loan forgiveness? And how do I qualify to get it?

Written by Robert Kelchen, Assistant Professor of Higher Education, Seton Hall University

Public Service Loan Forgiveness can be difficult to get if you don't know the rules.Rawpixel.com/www.shutterstock.com

The first group of borrowers who tried to get Public Service Loan Forgiveness – a George W. Bush-era program meant to provide relief to those who went into socially valuable but poorly paid public service jobs, such as...

How a self-powered glucose-monitoring device could help people with diabetes

Written by Gymama Slaughter, Executive Director, Frank Reidy Research Center for Bioelectrics, Old Dominion University

People with diabetes must monitor their glucose levels throughout the day, but doing so is a challenge. sirtavelalot/Shutterstock.com

Diabetes is the seventh-leading cause of death in the U.S., with about 30.3 million adults having the disease. One in 4 adults does not even know he or she has diabetes.

In addition, 84.1 million adults have...

How the ‘wave of women’ entering congress could turn the #MeToo movement into concrete action

Written by Elizabeth C. Tippett, Associate Professor, School of Law, University of Oregon

The 2018 midterm elections represented the first electoral referendum of the #MeToo era.

More than 500 women ran in primaries for federal office, a pipeline that ultimately led to a record number of women set to take office.

Even so, it also reveals how far women are from achieving parity in politics – they are projected to hold barely more...

The other 2018 midterm wave: A historic 10-point jump in turnout among young people

Written by Kei Kawashima-Ginsberg, Director, Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement in the Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life, Tufts University

Nine months after Parkland, students like David Hogg have joined the youth voter wave.AP Photo/John Raoux

Voter turnout among 18 to 29-year-olds in the 2018 midterm elections was 31 percent, according to a preliminary estimate by The Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement at Tufts University.

That’s the highest...

#MeToo could become a national reckoning – if the new House treats it like a financial crisis

Written by Elizabeth C. Tippett, Associate Professor, School of Law, University of Oregon

The 2018 midterm elections represented the first electoral referendum of the #MeToo era.

More than 500 women ran in primaries for federal office, a pipeline that ultimately led to a record number of women set to take office.

Even so, it also reveals how far women are from achieving parity in politics – they are projected to hold barely more...

Driving autonomous cars off the beaten path

Written by Matthew Doude, Associate Director, Center for Advanced Vehicular Systems; Ph.D. Student in Industrial and Systems Engineering, Mississippi State University

A self-driving car heads into the woods.Matthew Doude, CC BY-ND

Autonomous vehicles can follow the general rules of American roads, recognizing traffic signals and lane markings, noticing crosswalks and other regular features of the streets. But they work only on well-marked roads that are carefully scanned and mapped in advance.

Many paved roads,...