The Conversation

How to combat racial bias: Start in childhood

Written by Gail Heyman, Professor of Psychology, University of California, San Diego

Computer training can decrease children's biases.Jeff Inglis, CC BY-ND

Racial bias can seem like an intractable problem. Psychologists and other social scientists have had difficulty finding effective ways to counter it – even among people who say they support a fairer, more egalitarian society. One likely reason for the difficulty is that...

Trump administration's zeal to peel back regulations is leading us to another era of robber barons

Written by Jeremi Suri, Professor of History and Public Affairs, Mack Brown Distinguished Chair, University of Texas at Austin

EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt is an unabashed ally of the fossil fuels – industry his agency is supposed to regulate. AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar

The Trump administration has a clear economic objective: deregulate. Loosening regulations on industries, the White House believes, will lead to faster growth and more jobs. This is the stated reason f...

In Mexico, undocumented migrants risk deportation to aid earthquake victims

Written by Luis Gómez Romero, Senior Lecturer in Human Rights, Constitutional Law and Legal Theory, University of Wollongong

Undocumented migrants are among those helping to rebuild the hardest-hit areas of Oaxaca state, where federal aid has been slow to trickle down.Presidencia de la República Mexicana CC-by-2.0, CC BY-SA

After two earthquakes that left more than 450 dead and 150,000 houses damaged, my home country of Mexico faces huge challenges in recovery.

Acc...

Marketing a devastated Puerto Rico should not be the priority

Written by Carlos A Suárez Carrasquillo, Lecturer in Political Science, University of Florida

President Donald Trump’s recent visit to Puerto Rico in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria added one more moment of infamy to Puerto Rico’s 119 years as a colonial territory.

Trump was taken to Muñoz Rivera, a middle-class neighborhood in Guaynabo. Most homes there are made of concrete and saw little impact from Hurricane Maria....

In Las Vegas, excess and fantasy bleed into tragedy

Written by Mark Gottdiener, Professor Emeritus of Sociology, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York

Tourists play slot machines at the Paris Las Vegas hotel and casino in Las Vegas, Nevada.Jae C. Hong/AP Photo

In Sin City, people often do bad things to themselves.

Rather than deal with their lapses – moral, financial, marital – there’s a ready-made marketing slogan to fall back on: “What happens in Vegas stays in...

How closing the door on the estate tax could reduce American giving

Written by Patrick Rooney, Executive Associate Dean for Academic Programs, Professor of Economics and Philanthropic Studies, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis

Taxing inherited wealth builds in an incentive for the rich to give more and splurge less. 1000 Words/Shutterstock.com

Soon after the U.S. gained independence, Uncle Sam began to tax inherited wealth. These levies applied only intermittently, however, until 1916, when Congress and the Wilson administration established the modern estate tax in time...

Can you be hacked by the world around you?

Written by Jeremy Straub, Assistant Professor of Computer Science, North Dakota State University

Could scanning a QR code be an invitation to malware?Zapp2Photo/Shutterstock.com

You’ve probably been told it’s dangerous to open unexpected attachment files in your email – just like you shouldn’t open suspicious packages in your mailbox. But have you been warned against scanning unknown QR codes or just taking a picture...

How a growing Christian movement is seeking to change America

Written by Brad Christerson, Professor of Sociology, Biola University

Adam Rozanas, CC BY-NC-ND

Last week, from Oct. 6 to 9, the National Mall in Washington, D.C. was filled with tents, worship music and prayer for the “Awaken the Dawn” rally. The purpose of the event, according to organizer Lou Engle, was to “gather around Jesus,” to pray for the nation and its government. It ended with a day...

How to ensure the fourth industrial revolution is 'Made in the USA'

Written by Kemper E. Lewis, Professor and Chair of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York

Without investment, fewer products will bear this 'Made in the USA' logo in the future. AP Photo/M. Spencer Green

President Donald Trump has long talked about reinvigorating American manufacturing, which has suffered heavy job losses as a result of automation, trade deals and other factors.

In July, the Trump administration even celebrated “ma...

Do people like government 'nudges'? Study says: Yes

Written by Cass Sunstein, University Professor, Harvard University

A product's calorie label is a common form of nudging behavior. AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin

On Oct. 9, Richard Thaler of the University of Chicago won the Nobel Prize for his extraordinary, world-transforming work in behavioral economics. In its press release, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences emphasized that Thaler demonstrated how nudging...