The Conversation

Why Congress should let everyone deduct charitable gifts from their taxes

Written by Patrick Rooney, Associate Dean, Academic Affairs and Research; Professor, Economics and Philanthropic Studies, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis

The number of Americans who can get a tax break through their charitable contributions could tumble during the Trump administration.Helen's Photos/www.shutterstock.com

The 30 percent of American taxpayers who itemize their returns are free to deduct every dollar they donate to an IRS-approved charity from up to half of their taxable income. While...

'NotPetya' ransomware attack shows corporate social responsibility should include cybersecurity

Written by Scott Shackelford, Associate Professor of Business Law and Ethics; Director, Ostrom Workshop Program on Cybersecurity and Internet Governance; Cybersecurity Program Chair, IU-Bloomington, Indiana University

Companies need to make sure their own doors are locked.rodimov/shutterstock.com

As the “NotPetya” ransomware attack spreads around the world, it’s making clear how important it is for everyone – and particularly corporations – to take cybersecurity seriously. The companies affected by this malware include power...

4 ways the Supreme Court could rule on Trump's travel ban

Written by Anthony Johnstone, Professor of Constitutional Law, The University of Montana

The Supreme Court has decided to hear two legal challenges to President Donald Trump’s revised “travel ban.”

Among other things, the executive order Trump signed in March temporarily bars entry of nationals from six predominantly Muslim countries: Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen.

In cases arising out of Maryland and Haw...

Understanding the real innovation behind the iPhone

Written by Kalle Lyytinen, Iris S. Wolstein Professor of Management Design, Case Western Reserve University

The first iPhone was more a hand-held computer than anything else.AP Photo/Jason E. Miczek

When the iPhone emerged in 2007, it came with all the promise and pomp of a major Steve Jobs announcement, highlighting its user interface and slick design as key selling points. We know now that the iPhone transformed the mobile phone business, the internet...

How flu changes within the human body may hint at future global trends

Written by Katherine Xue, Doctoral Student in Genome Sciences, University of Washington

What can a single person's flu infection tell you about how the virus changes around the world?Xue and Bloom, CC BY-SA

Evolution is usually very slow, a process of change that takes thousands or millions of years to see.

But for influenza, evolution is fast – and deadly. Flu viruses change rapidly to escape the body’s defenses. Every few...

Is Nancy Pelosi worth the trouble?

Written by Kathryn L. Pearson, Associate Professor of Political Science, University of Minnesota

A recent poll found Nancy Pelosi's favorability at 39 percent – about on par with Trump'sREUTERS/Yuri Gripas

Democrats in Congress are struggling to keep up a unified front.

As the minority party, Democrats have spent the past six months standing by, mostly powerless, as President Donald Trump has made haphazard progress toward dismantling many...

GOP health care bill would make rural America's distress much worse

Written by Claire Snell-Rood, Assistant Professor of Public Health, University of California, Berkeley

Rural hospitals, such as this one in Wedowee, Alabama, are struggling to stay open. AP Photo/Brynn Anderson

Much has been made of the distress and discontent in rural areas during the 2016 U.S. presidential election. Few realize, however, this is also felt through unequal health.

Researchers call it the “rural mortality penalty.” While...

Elite public schools that rely on entry exams fail the diversity test

Written by Jake Murray, Faculty Director for Professional Education, BU School of Education, Boston University

Stuyvesant High School students arrive on the first day in 2015.AP Photo/Mark Lennihan

The jewels in many an urban school district’s crown are their exam schools, competitive public schools that base enrollment on test scores. With a school like New York’s Stuyvesant, Boston Latin or Walter Payton (in Chicago) on their transcript,...

Urban nature: What kinds of plants and wildlife flourish in cities?

Written by Christopher Swan, Professor of Geography and Environmental Systems, University of Maryland, Baltimore County

The High Line in New York City, a former elevated railroad trestle converted to a public park.Shinya Suzuki/Flickr, CC BY-ND

Biodiversity refers to the variety of all living things on Earth, but people often have very specific ideas of what it means. If you run an online search for images of biodiversity, you are likely to find lots of photos of...

What Jeff Bezos gets wrong (and right) with his populist philanthropy

Written by Ted Lechterman, Postdoctoral Fellow, Stanford University McCoy Family Center for Ethics in Society

Jeff Bezos, the world’s second-richest person, trails his peers when it comes to generosity. His family’s donations to hospitals, museums and universities rarely make headlines, and he hasn’t signed the Giving Pledge, a commitment by many of the world’s richest people to give away most of their wealth.

So when the Amazon...