The Conversation

Jan. 6 hearings highlight problems with certification of presidential elections and potential ways to fix them

Written by Derek T. Muller, Professor of Law, University of Iowa

Former Vice President Mike Pence is seen presiding over the counting of the votes on Jan. 6, 2021, during a hearing of the House January 6 committee in Washington, D.C., on June 16, 2022.Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)

Lack of clarity in how Congress counts presidential electoral votes was highlighted in recent public hearings held by the Select...

Let's spare a few words for 'Silent Cal' Coolidge on July 4, his 150th birthday

Written by Chris Lamb, Professor of Journalism, IUPUI

President Calvin Coolidge stands with members of a nonprofit group called the Daughters of 1812. Library of Congress/Corbis/VCG via Getty Images

A woman sitting next to President Calvin Coolidge at a dinner party once told him she had made a bet that she could get him to say more than two words.

“You lose,” replied Coolidge, who served...

WNBA star Brittney Griner's release still uncertain as her trial begins in a Russian court

Written by Rokeshia Renné Ashley, Assistant Professor of Communication, Florida International University

Brittney Griner appears at a hearing at the Khimki Court outside Moscow on June 27, 2022.Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP via Getty Images

Although a Russian court ruled that WNBA star Brittney Griner’s detention may be extended for six more months, her trial on alleged drug charges begins on July 1, 2022, and gives her supporters a glimmer of hope...

Climate change is putting food safety at risk more often, and not just at picnics and parties

Written by Elena N. Naumova, Professor of Epidemiology and Data Science, Tufts University

Dairy, meats and eggs can get risky when left in warm conditions.Westend61 via Getty Images

Every year, almost 1 in 6 Americans gets a foodborne illness, and about 3,000 people die from it, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates. Picnics and parties where food sits out for hours are a common source, but heat waves and...

Putin’s propaganda is rooted in Russian history – and that's why it works

Written by Julia Khrebtan-Hörhager, Associate Professor of Critical Cultural & International Studies, Colorado State University

Russia’s war against Ukraine is pressing into its fifth month – despite several rounds of failed peace talks, and Western countries’ issuing severe economic sanctions against Russia.

The war isn’t happening just on Ukrainian soil. President Vladimir Putin’s propaganda is propelling the Ukraine war through Russia media,...

Russia's antisemitism aimed at Ukraine's Zelenskyy is just the Kremlin variant of a very old European virus

Written by Michael Brenner, Professor of Jewish History and Culture at Ludwig Maximilian University and Abensohn Chair in Israel Studies, American University

Rosa Luxemburg, the Polish-born German revolutionary and co-founder of the German Communist Party, addressing a meeting in Stuttgart, Germany, in 1907. She was assassinated in January 1919.Universal History Archive/Getty Images

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, was asked in May 2022 how Russia could claim...

American gun culture is based on frontier mythology – but ignores how common gun restrictions were in the Old West

Written by Pierre M. Atlas, Senior Lecturer, Paul H. O'Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs, Indiana University

Reenactments of Old West gunfights, like this one at a tourist attraction in Texas in 2014, are part of the mythology underpinning the United States' gun culture.Carol M. Highsmith via Library of Congress

In the wake of the Buffalo and Uvalde mass shootings, 70% of Republicans said it is more important to protect gun rights than to control gun...

5 drawbacks to following your passion

Written by Erin A. Cech, Associate Professor of Sociology, University of Michigan

Employees are more likely to put in long hours when they're passionate about their work.sturti / Getty Images

After earning bachelor’s degrees in engineering and sociology, I was determined to do what I love. I headed straight to graduate school to investigate the social problems that frightened and fascinated me.

For almost a decade, I told...

The FDA and Juul are fighting over a vape ban, but the role of e-cigarettes in the world of tobacco abuse is not clear-cut

Written by Lynn T. Kozlowski, Professor of Community Health and Health Behavior, University at Buffalo

It is illegal for people under 21 to smoke e-cigarettes like Juuls, but adult use has come under scrutiny, too.Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images

On June 23, 2022, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced that all Juul products must be removed from U.S. markets. This decision essentially broadened an existing ban on teen use of the...

An online life coaching program for female physicians decreases burnout, increases self-compassion and cures impostor syndrome, according to a new study

Written by Tyra Fainstad, Associate Professor of Internal Medicine, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

Physician burnout is more prevalent in women than men. ER Productions Limited/DigitalVision via Getty Images

The Research Brief is a short take about interesting academic work.

The big idea

An online group coaching program that normalizes vulnerability and emotional processing can help fix burnout in female physicians, our study found. The doctors...