The Conversation

Would you sit on a jury to review government regulations? Citizen oversight panels could make this process more open and democratic

Written by Samuel Bagg, Assistant Professor of Political Science, University of South Carolina

Juries render decisions on complex legal questions and could do the same as part of the regulatory process. image Source, via Getty Imagses

Who makes the rules that govern our daily lives? In a democracy, it’s natural to think that “the people” are in charge, or should be.

Of course, hundreds of millions of people can’t...

What is metabolism? A biochemist explains how different people convert energy differently − and why that matters for your health

Written by Travis Nemkov, Assistant Research Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

Elite athletes show researchers the upper limits of a healthy metabolism.Solskin/DigitalVision via Getty Images

If you’ve spent any time scrolling through the health and wellness corners of social media, you’ve likely come across many products claiming to improve your metabolism. But what exactly is your metabolism?

Everything you...

Online child safety laws could help or hurt – 2 pediatricians explain what’s likely to work and what isn’t

Written by Megan Moreno, Professor of Pediatrics, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Kids need to be protected online. The trick is figuring out how.Justin Lambert Creative/DigitalVision via Getty Images

Society has a complicated relationship with adolescents. We want to protect them as children and yet launch them into adulthood. Adolescents face risks from testing out independence, navigating peer relationships, developing an...

Why rural white Americans’ resentment is a threat to democracy

Written by Thomas F. Schaller, Professor of Political Science, University of Maryland, Baltimore County

Some white Americans are showing signs of disagreeing with key democratic principles.Carol Yepes/Moment via Getty Images

Rural white voters have long enjoyed outsize power in American politics. They have inflated voting power in the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House and the Electoral College.

Although there is no uniform definition of “rural,”...

Israeli strike on World Central Kitchen aid convoy shows growing danger of humanitarian work in conflict zones

Written by Elizabeth Stites, Associate Research Professor of International Relations, Tufts University

Palestinians stand near a World Central Kitchen vehicle on April 2, 2024, after three aid vehicles were targeted by Israeli strikes. Majdi Fathi/NurPhoto via Getty Images

President Joe Biden said he was “outraged” by the Israeli military’s attacks that killed seven World Central Kitchen aid workers traveling in three vehicles in...

Growing quickly helped the earliest dinosaurs and other ancient reptiles flourish in the aftermath of mass extinction

Written by Kristi Curry Rogers, Professor of Biology and Geology, Macalester College

_Eoraptor lunensis_ lived roughly 230 million years ago, at a time when dinosaurs were small and rare. Jordan Harris courtesy of Kristi Curry Rogers, CC BY-SA

It may be hard to imagine, but once upon a time, dinosaurs didn’t dominate their world. When they first originated, they were just small, two-legged carnivores overshadowed by a...

Nex Benedict’s suicide coincides with a wave of anti-LGBTQ+ laws – and some people’s misunderstanding about transgender and nonbinary individuals

Written by Marie-Amelie George, Associate Professor of Law, Wake Forest University

A woman speaks during a candlelight vigil for 16-year-old nonbinary student Nex Benedict on Feb. 24, 2024, in Oklahoma City. J Pat Carter/Getty Images

No charges will be filed in connection with a bathroom fight that happened the day before a 16-year-old nonbinary high school student, Nex Benedict, died by suicide in Oklahoma. The Tulsa County...

Even hands-free, phones and their apps cause dangerously distracted driving

Written by Shannon Roberts, Associate Professor of Industrial Engineering, UMass Amherst

Car infotainment systems are getting ever more sophisticated.AP Photo/Ryan Sun

Do you ever use your cellphone while driving? Don’t feel too guilty about saying yes – nearly 60% of drivers admit to using their phone in hands-free mode while driving.

But don’t become complacent either. Using your cellphone in hands-free mode while...

Could sharing a bedroom with your pets be keeping you from getting a good night’s sleep?

Written by Brian N. Chin, Assistant Professor of Psychology, Trinity College

Your dog may not be the best sleep partner.gollykim/E+ via Getty Images

Sleeping with your dog in the same room could be negatively affecting your sleep quality, according to my team’s recently published research in Scientific Reports.

We recruited a nationally representative sample of more than 1,500 American adults who completed...

A century after the EEG was discovered, it remains a crucial tool for understanding the brain

Written by Giridhar Kalamangalam, Professor of Neurology, University of Florida

Brain waves emblematic of generalized epilepsy.Kateryna Kon/Science Photo Library via Getty Images

Jena, Germany, 1924: Working in near-isolation and with painstaking tediousness, the psychiatrist Hans Berger observes rhythmic electrical activity from the scalp of human subjects. He is convinced the activity arises from within the brain and coins...