The Conversation

Satellites over the Amazon capture the choking of the ‘house of God’ by the Belo Monte Dam – they can help find solutions, too

Written by Pritam Das, Graduate Research Assistant, University of Washington

NASA's Landsat satellites have been monitoring changes on Earth's landscape for 50 years.NASA illustration

The Xingu River is revered as the “house of God” by the Indigenous people living along its Volte Grande, or Big Bend, in the Brazilian Amazon. The river is essential to their culture and religion, and a crucial source of fish,...

What do tornadoes look like on the inside?

Written by Jana Houser, Associate Professor of Geography, Ohio University

A tornado in Turkey, Texas.Jana Houser, CC BY-ND

Curious Kids is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to curiouskidsus@theconversation.com.

What do tornadoes look like on the inside? – Madison, age 7, Noblesville, Indiana

Scientists really don’t know the answer to this...

Fed hopes for ‘soft landing’ for the US economy, but history suggests it won’t be able to prevent a recession

Written by Alex Domash, Research Fellow, Harvard Kennedy School

A soft landing may be out of the Fed’s reach.Oliver Furrer/Stone Getty Images

The Federal Reserve will likely soon learn what gymnasts already know: sticking a landing is hard.

With inflation surging to a new 40-year high and continuing to accelerate, the Fed is expected to lift interest rates by a half-percentage point at the end of its next...

American Muslim women are finding a unique religious space at a women-only mosque in Los Angeles

Written by Tazeen M. Ali, Assistant Professor of Religion and Politics, Washington University in St Louis

Congregants sit in a circle at the Women's Mosque of America.Women's Mosque of America

As Ramadan draws to a close, Muslims around the world prepare to celebrate the festival of Eid al-Fitr to mark the end of a month of fasting from dusk till dawn and additional acts of worship. On Eid, as in Ramadan, community is an integral component of Islamic...

Students lead more public schools to close for Islamic holidays

Written by Amaarah DeCuir, Senior Professorial Lecturer in Education, American University

Several school districts across the country will close in observance of Eid, a holiday that marks the end of Ramadan.FatCamera/E+ via Getty Images

Some public school districts across the nation will be closed on Monday, May 2, 2022, or Tuesday, May 3, 2022, in observance of the Islamic holiday Eid al-Fitr, a festive celebration marking the end of...

New Englanders support more offshore wind power – just don’t send it to New York

Written by David Bidwell, Associate Professor, Department of Marine Affairs, University of Rhode Island

Several offshore wind farms are planned for the U.S. Northeast.Scott Eisen/Getty Images

In Rhode Island, home to the first offshore wind farm in the U.S., most people support expanding offshore wind power – with one important caveat.

Our research shows they’re less likely to support a wind power project if its energy flows to another...

Blasting out Earth’s location with the hope of reaching aliens is a controversial idea – two teams of scientists are doing it anyway

Written by Chris Impey, University Distinguished Professor of Astronomy, University of Arizona

Scientists think there are 300 million habitable planets in the Milky Way, and some may be home to intelligent life.Bruno Gilli/ESO, CC BY

If a person is lost in the wilderness, they have two options. They can search for civilization, or they could make themselves easy to spot by building a fire or writing HELP in big letters. For scientists...

Russia's weaponization of natural gas could backfire by destroying demand for it

Written by Michael E. Webber, Josey Centennial Professor of Energy Resources, University of Texas at Austin

Russian President Vladimir Putin (left) with Gazprom CEO Alexey Miller at a launch ceremony for the Nord Stream gas pipeline, Sept. 6, 2011, in Vyborg, Russia.Sasha Mordovets/Getty Images

In December 2006, The Economist magazine published a cover drawing of Russian president Vladimir Putin, dressed like a 1930s gangster in a dark suit and fedora...

Gilbert Gottfried and the mechanics of crafting one of the most memorable voices of all time

Written by Erica Tobolski, Professor of Theatre and Dance, University of South Carolina

Marlee Matlin covers her ears as Gottfried performs during the Comedy Central Roast of Donald Trump in 2011.AP Photo/Charles Sykes

Though Gilbert Gottfried’s voice has alternatively been described as “shrill,” “annoying” and “grating,” you can’t say it isn’t memorable.

Gottfried, who died on...

What's at stake for Trump, Twitter and politics if the tweeter-in-chief returns from banishment

Written by Michael Humphrey, Assistant Professor of Journalism and Media Communication, Colorado State University

Could the former tweeter-in-chief make a Twitter comeback? Alex Wong/Getty Images

Any speculation about whether Donald Trump will return to Twitter after his permanent suspension in 2021 must begin with two caveats. First, we do not know for sure if, or when, the presumed new owner of the social media platform, Elon Musk, will lift the ban. Second,...