The Conversation

Alcohol is becoming more common in sexual assault among college students

Written by Mary P. Koss, Regents' Professor of Public Health, University of Arizona

Nine out of 10 college men who admitted to sexual assault say they took advantage of victims who were intoxicated.shironosov via iStock/Getty Images Plus

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

The big idea

One out of every three. That is the number of women in college who say they have been a victim of sexual assault...

Grassroots mojo and 4 other reasons Starbucks workers have been so successful unionizing

Written by John Logan, Professor and Director of Labor and Employment Studies, San Francisco State University

Activist workers have successfully formed unions at 135 Starbucks since they began organizing in Buffalo, N.Y., in 2021. AP Photo/Carolyn Thompson

Starbucks Workers United won its 100th election on May 27, 2022 – fittingly, in Seattle, the company’s hometown. And the union has notched another 46 victories in the just over two weeks...

Immigrants are only 3.5% of people worldwide – and their negative impact is often exaggerated, in the U.S. and around the world

Written by Ernesto Castañeda, Associate Professor of Sociology, American University

Academic research plays an important role in helping dispel myths and misconceptions about migration.Spencer Platt/Getty Images News via Getty Images

-Ernesto Castañeda is an associate professor in the Department of Sociology at American University and the Director of the Immigration Lab. Castañeda explains why immigration is an...

Why Muslim countries are quick at condemning defamation – but often ignore rights violations against Muslim minorities

Written by Ahmet T. Kuru, Professor of Political Science, San Diego State University

Supporters of a Pakistani religious group burn an effigy depicting the former spokeswoman of India's ruling party, Nupur Sharma, during a demonstration in Karachi, Pakistan.AP Photo/Fareed Khan

The Indian government finds itself in a diplomatic crisis following offensive remarks by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson, Nupur Sharma,...

Inflation hits fresh 40-year high, pushing Fed to get more aggressive with interest rates – and the 'Beveridge curve' should give it courage to do so

Written by Veronika Dolar, Assistant Professor of Economics, SUNY Old Westbury

Consumers are perhaps feeling inflation pain most at the pump.AP Photo/Rick Bowmer

Inflation surged at the fastest pace in over 40 years in May 2022, pushing the Federal Reserve toward a more aggressive pace of interest rate increases to slow it down. While there’s concern it could cause unemployment to spike, a little-known economics...

Why opting out of opioids can be dangerous in the operating room

Written by Mark C. Bicket, Co-Director, Opioid Prescribing Engagement Network and Assistant Professor, University of Michigan

Opioids can help reduce the amount of medication needed to achieve anesthesia.gpointstudio/iStock via Getty Images Plus

Currently, patients in seven states can tell their physicians they don’t want to be treated with opioids in any health care setting, even during surgery. While unnecessary opioid exposure is a big reason behind the opioid...

What 'grassroots humanitarians' eager to travel to Ukraine or its borders should know before dashing off

Written by Patrice McMahon, Professor of Political Science and Director of University Honors Program, University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Patrick Michael Jones, 34, a volunteer from Houston, helps Ukrainian women carry humanitarian aid in May 2022.AP Photo/Andriy Andriyenko

Most Americans want the U.S. government to aid Ukraine and pressure Russia to cease its brutal war against its neighbor. So far, more than US$1 billion in charitable funds are flowing from the U.S. to...

Give this AI a few words of description and it produces a stunning image – but is it art?

Written by Aaron Hertzmann, Affiliate Faculty of Computer Science, University of Washington

Each set of images takes less than a minute for DALL-E 2 to generate.koktaro/iStock/Getty Images

A picture may be worth a thousand words, but thanks to an artificial intelligence program called DALL-E 2, you can have a professional-looking image with far fewer.

DALL-E 2 is a new neural network algorithm that creates a picture from a short phrase or...

Decades after special education law and key ruling, updates still languish

Written by Charles J. Russo, Joseph Panzer Chair in Education in the School of Education and Health Sciences and Research Professor of Law, University of Dayton

Learning support teachers such as Sabrina Werley are common, but schools' services can vary widely.Ben Hasty/MediaNews Group/Reading Eagle via Getty Images

It has been 40 years since the U.S. Supreme Court first took up a case about special education in public schools, Board of Education of the Hendrick Hudson Central School District v. Rowley. In...

What is chronic wasting disease? A wildlife scientist explains the fatal prion infection killing deer and elk across North America

Written by Allan Houston, Professor of Forest and Wildlife Ecology, University of Tennessee

Female white-tailed deer at sunrise.Gary Gray/Getty Images

Chronic wasting disease, a deadly neurological infectious disease that affects deer, elk and moose, is spreading across North America. Most recently detected in North Carolina in March 2022, CWD has been confirmed in 30 U.S. states and four Canadian provinces, as well as Norway, Finland,...