The Conversation

Reagan called America a 'city on a hill' because taxpayers funded the humanities

Written by Abram Van Engen, Associate Professor of English, Washington University in St Louis

President Ronald Reagan on stage with his wife Nancy, 1984.AP Photo/Reed Saxon

When Ronald Reagan called the United States a “city on a hill,” in 1974, it encapsulated an expansive, optimistic vision of America.

The phrase comes from a Puritan sermon by John Winthrop called “A Model of Christian Charity.” But no one knew...

What's behind phantom cellphone buzzes?

Written by Daniel J. Kruger, Research Assistant Professor, University of Michigan

This is your brain on plugs.'Brain' via www.shutterstock.com

Have you ever experienced a phantom phone call or text? You’re convinced that you felt your phone vibrate in your pocket, or that you heard your ring tone. But when you check your phone, no one actually tried to get in touch with you.

You then might plausibly wonder: “Is my...

A serious and often overlooked issue for patients with brain diseases: Swallowing

Written by Don Bolser, Professor, University of Florida

People with brain diseases, particularly older people, have trouble swallowing. Via Shutterstock.www.Shutttertock.com

Recall that last time you had something “go down the wrong pipe”? You spent the next several minutes coughing, choking and feeling like something bad was in your throat.

It may seem strange to say this, but count...

Sky-high drug prices for rare diseases show why Orphan Drug Act needs reform

Written by Dana Goldman, Director, Leonard D. Schaeffer Center for Health Policy & Economics, University of Southern California

The FDA headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland.AP/Andrew Harnick

When Marathon Pharmaceuticals announced in February it would market a drug for treating Duchenne muscular dystrophy for US$89,000 a year, the negative reaction was so intense that the company immediately suspended the rollout. (On Thursday, March 16, Marathon announced it was...

Bypassing encryption: 'Lawful hacking' is the next frontier of law enforcement technology

Written by Ben Buchanan, Postdoctoral Fellow, Cyber Security Project, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard University

How can investigators get into digital files?Sherlock Holmes and computer via shutterstock.com

The discussion about how law enforcement or government intelligence agencies might rapidly decode information someone else wants to keep secret is – or should be – shifting. One commonly proposed approach, introducing what is called a...

The old, dirty, creaky US electric grid would cost $5 trillion to replace. Where should infrastructure spending go?

Written by Joshua D. Rhodes, Postdoctoral Researcher of Energy, University of Texas at Austin

Old school: Much of the power plant and transmission network we rely on has been around for decades. andrewfhart/flickr, CC BY-SA

The electric grid is an amazing integrated system of machines spanning an entire continent. The National Academy of Engineering has called it one of the greatest engineering achievements of the 20th century.

But it is...

Trump's planned military buildup is based on faulty claims, not good strategy

Written by Daniel Wirls, Professor of Politics, University of California, Santa Cruz

President Donald Trump just released a budget plan intended to fulfill a promise to rebuild the military with “one of the largest increases in national defense spending in American history.”

Specifically, Trump wants to boost “base” military spending by US$52.3 billion to $574 billion, an increase of 10 percent over fiscal...

Populist Wilders may have come up short, but Dutch intolerance is still real

Written by Annemarie Toebosch, Director of Dutch and Flemish Studies, University of Michigan

The Dutch elections on March 15 have received a lot of attention in the international media.

The reason for the attention is clear: A Trump lookalike populist, Geert Wilders, was rumored to win big as part of a Western populist movement that some call the “Patriotic Spring.”

His rise has the liberal West confused and concerned, because...

Donald Trump and Enda Kenny celebrate a tense St. Patrick's Day

Written by David Brundage, Professor and Graduate Program Director, History Department, University of California, Santa Cruz

Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny in March.AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert

On March 16, political leaders from the Irish Republic and Northern Ireland, along with a number of Irish-American politicians, will attend a gala St. Patrick’s Day event at the White House.

Though the White House celebration originated in the Truman era, it took on...

North Korea and the dangers of Trump's diplomacy-free Asia strategy

Written by Flynt L. Leverett, Professor of International Affairs and Asian Studies, Pennsylvania State University

North Korea’s missile launches last week are an early warning that the Trump administration’s Asia strategy could end up triggering the world’s next major war.

Spurred by the launches, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is touring Japan, South Korea and China this week. But Pyongyang’s nuclear and missile activities are not...