The Conversation

'Trade wars are good'? 3 past conflicts tell a very different story

Written by Marc-William Palen, Lecturer in History, University of Exeter

These German steel coils may soon become more expensive for U.S. manufacturers.AP Photo/Martin Meissner

President Donald Trump renewed fears of a global trade war after he vowed to slap steep tariffs on foreign aluminum and steel.

The tariffs haven’t even been formally proposed, yet other countries are already threatening countermeasures. The...

Could there be another Billy Graham?

Written by Andrew Dole, Professor of Religion, Amherst College

Several thousand people gather at a rally in Washington in 1952 to hear Evangelist Billy Graham preach.AP Photo

At this time of Billy Graham’s passing, American evangelical Christianity looks to be in steep decline, at least judging by numbers. The proportion of white Americans who identify as evangelical has fallen from 23 percent of the...

Will the United States ever get back on a bipartisan 'Middle Way?'

Written by Lou Galambos, Professor of History, Johns Hopkins University

Bipartisan laughter: Eisenhower with GOP Sen. William Knowland and Democratic Sen. Lyndon Johnson.

Our nation has been ripped apart by political discord, ad hominem attacks and deep rifts between the dominant political parties.

But history provides a lesson about how the United States can return to bipartisanship and more civil political discourse.

T...

How historical disease detectives are solving mysteries of the 1918 flu

Written by Gerardo Chowell, Professor of Mathematical Epidemiology, Georgia State University

It can be difficult to find records from epidemics long past.U.S. National Library of Medicine

One hundred years ago, a novel pandemic influenza virus spread rapidly around the world. It killed about 1 to 2 percent of the human population, primarily young and often healthy adults.

The centennial of the 1918 pandemic is a good time to take stock of...

When can you buy a gun, vote or be sentenced to death? Science suggests US should revise legal age limits

Written by Laurence Steinberg, Professor of Psychology, Temple University

Vietnam War protests led to a lower voting age. The Parkland shooting could push similar reevaluations.AP Photo/Gerald Herbert

Societies have long grappled with where to draw the chronological age boundary between adolescence and adulthood. The United States stands apart from most of the world in that it uses different ages for different rights and...

In Italy, fake news helps populists and far-right triumph

Written by Filippo Trevisan, Assistant Professor, American University

Silvio Berlusconi, left, arrives to vote as a bare-breasted woman protests in backgroundAP Photo/Luca Bruno

Although there were no outright winners in Italy’s parliamentary election on March 4, there were two clear losers – the European Union and immigrants.

No one party or coalition won a majority and negotiations to form a new...

#MeToo on the 1930s silver screen

Written by Marsha Gordon, Professor of Film Studies, North Carolina State University

In 'Three Wise Girls' (1932), Cassie (Jean Harlow) has to fend off her handsy boss.Columbia Pictures Corporation, Author provided

Time’s 2017 Person of the Year was “The Silence Breakers,” a growing contingent of women who have been speaking out about sexual harassment by men in positions of power.

But the sexual exploitation of...

Will holding the cheese and chocolate milk on Happy Meals make a difference?

Written by Jennifer Harris, Professor of Allied Health Sciences, University of Connecticut

A Happy Meal with chocolate milk and cheeseburger at a Brandon, Miss., McDonald's.AP Photo/Rogello V. Solis

McDonald’s recently announced a major commitment to improve the nutrition quality of its kids’ meals. Globally, at least 50 percent of Happy Meal bundles, which include a main dish, side and drink, will meet nutrition limits on...

The hidden threat of teacher stress

Written by Brandis M. Ansley, Graduate Research Assistant, Georgia State University

Nearly half of all teachers report experiencing a lot of daily stress.AlenKadr/Shutterstock

When a traumatic event such as the Florida school shooting takes place, often the focus afterward is on finding ways to make sure students and teachers are safe from violence and physical harm.

But there’s another danger that threatens teacher...

Friend or food? Why Venus flytraps don't eat their pollinators

Written by Clyde Sorenson, Professor of Entomology, North Carolina State University

Flowers above, traps below.Clyde Sorenson, CC BY-ND

The Venus flytrap, Dionaea muscipula, lives in a tough neighborhood. It only grows in 12 counties in coastal North and South Carolina, in soils that are very nutrient-poor and often waterlogged. To augment these starvation resources, it captures and digests insects and other animal prey.

Of the...