The Conversation

Democrats revive the Equal Rights Amendment from a long legal limbo -- facing an unlikely uphill battle to get it enshrined into law

Written by Deana Rohlinger, Professor of Sociology, Florida State University

U.S. Rep. Carolyn Maloney speaks during a press conference in December 2022, calling to affirm the Equal Rights Amendment to the Constitution. Alex Wong/Getty Images

Democrats in Congress are making a new push to get the long-dormant proposed Equal Rights Amendment enshrined into law. As legislation, it would guarantee sex equality in the...

How I learned to stop worrying and love the doll – a feminist philosopher's journey back to Barbie

Written by Carol Hay, Professor of Philosophy, UMass Lowell

The film's cast includes lesbian icon Kate McKinnon.Matt Winkelmeyer/WireImage via Getty Images

As a mama trying to raise a daughter free from the gendered stereotypes of my own childhood, I steered her clear of Barbie dolls.

I felt compelled to nudge my now 11-year-old away from the Mattel mainstay for the same reasons I tried to avoid the shallow...

As a summer heat wave pummels the US, an expert warns about the dangers of humidity – particularly for toddlers, young athletes and older adults

Written by W. Larry Kenney, Professor of Physiology, Kinesiology and Human Performance, Penn State

Symptoms of heatstroke include a throbbing headache, dizziness, confusion and nausea.milan2099/E+ via Getty Images

Because of climate change, summers are getting hotter and more humid – much more humid. SciLine interviewed Dr. W. Larry Kenney, professor of physiology and kinesiology at Penn State University, who discussed why humid heat can...

Hollywood on the picket line – 5 unsung films that put America’s union history on the silver screen

Written by Peter Dreier, E.P. Clapp Distinguished Professor of Politics, Occidental College

Actors Emily Blunt, Robert Downey Jr., Matt Damon, Cillian Murphy and Florence Pugh were among those who walked out of the premiere of 'Oppenheimer.'Henry Nicholls/AFP via Getty Images

Some of Hollywood’s top stars are joining screenwriters on the picket line after the main U.S. actors union voted to take part in an ongoing strike.

SAG-AFTRA,...

A US-Russia prisoner swap for reporter Evan Gershkovich could be tricky: 3 essential reads on the recent history

Written by Lorna Grisby, Senior Politics & Society Editor

President Joe Biden claps for Evan Gershkovich at the White House correspondents’ dinner.Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

The parents of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who is being detained in Russia where he has been accused of espionage, said in multiple July 12, 2023, news reports that President Joe Biden promised to do...

Corals are starting to bleach as global ocean temperatures hit record highs

Written by Ian Enochs, Research Ecologist, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Mass coral bleaching in 2014 left the Coral Reef Monitoring Program monitoring site at Cheeca Rocks off the Florida Keys a blanket of white.NOAA

The water off South Florida is over 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 Celsius) in mid-July, and scientists are already seeing signs of coral bleaching off Central and South America. Particularly concerning is how...

Curing America's loneliness epidemic would make us healthier, fitter and less likely to abuse drugs

Written by Clay Marsh, Chancellor and Executive Dean for Health Sciences, West Virginia University

Loneliness increases the risk of chronic disease and mental health challenges.An Kirillova/500px Prime via Getty Images

A national health advisory issued by U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy on May 3, 2023, sheds light on the urgent public health issues of loneliness and isolation.

The report reflects Dr. Murthy’s personal and professional...

Drugs and religion have been a potent combination for millennia, from cannabis at ancient funerary sites to psychedelic retreats today

Written by Gary Laderman, Goodrich C White Professor of Religion, Emory University

Getting high to get spiritual insight isn't a new pursuit.bestdesigns/iStock via Getty Images

Psychedelics are all the rage. Well-known figures like quarterback Aaron Rodgers, singer Miley Cyrus and boxer Mike Tyson testify to their transformative impact. Less visible consumers are “microdosing” or signing up for retreats with shamanic...

Is the US being hypocritical in taking years to destroy its chemical weapons, while condemning other nations for their own chemical weapons programs? A political philosopher weighs in

Written by Michael Blake, Professor of Philosophy, Public Policy and Governance, University of Washington

Technicians working to destroy the United States' chemical weapons stockpile at the U.S. Army Pueblo Chemical Depot on June 8, 2023, in Pueblo, Colo. AAP Photo/David Zalubowski

The United States has finished destroying the last of its stock of chemical weapons, marking the end of a 26-year period during which it frequently condemned other states for...

Female physicists aren't represented in the media – and this lack of representation hurts the physics field

Written by Carl Kurlander, Senior Lecturer, Film and Media Studies, University of Pittsburgh

Lise Meitner, in the front row, sits alongside many male colleagues at the Seventh Solvay Physics Conference in 1933. Corbin Historical via Getty Images

Christopher Nolan’s highly-anticipated movie “Oppenheimer,” set for release July 21, 2023, depicts J. Robert Oppenheimer and his role in the development of the atomic bomb. But...