The Conversation

Jaguars could return to the US Southwest – but only if they have pathways to move north

Written by Ganesh Marin, Ph.D. Candidate in Wildlife Conservation and Management, University of Arizona

A jaguar in Brazil's Patanal region.Sergio Pitamitz /VWPics/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

Jaguars are the only species of big cat found on the American continent. They range as far south as Argentina, and once roamed as far north as the Grand Canyon in the U.S. Today the northernmost breeding population is in the northwest Mexican state...

How a South African community's request for its genetic data raises questions about ethical and equitable research

Written by Dana Al-Hindi, PhD Candidate in Anthropology, University of California, Davis

Many researchers are interested in the genetic history of the Khoe-San.Dana Al-Hindi, CC BY-NC-ND

Scientists believe Africa is where modern humans first emerged. For the past decade, our team of genetic researchers from the Henn Lab have worked among the Khoe-San and self-identified “Coloured” communities in South Africa, which comprise...

Pranks and propaganda: Russian laws against 'fake news' target Ukrainians and the opposition, not pro-Putin pranksters

Written by Stanislav Budnitsky, Postdoctoral Fellow, Russian and East European Institute, Indiana University

Russian pranksters and anti-free speech advocates Vladimir "Vovan" Kuznetsov, left, and Alexei "Lexus" Stolyarov in Moscow in 2016.Yuri Kadobnovav/AFP via Getty Images

When they launched their war on Ukraine in late February 2022, Russian authorities also unleashed an all-out assault on dissent at home. Within weeks, the Kremlin blocked access to...

Pandemic decision-making is difficult and exhausting – here's the psychology that explains why

Written by Elizabeth Tricomi, Associate Professor of Psychology, Rutgers University - Newark

So much uncertainty around risk can make it extra hard to decide what to do.Richard Drury/DigitalVision via Getty Images

You want to sit down for an indoor dinner with friends. A couple of years ago, this was a simple enough activity that required minimal planning. However, that is not the case in today’s world. Many people now face a stream...

An 11-year-old Prince spoke out in support of his striking Minneapolis teachers – a historian of the city's music scene explains why

Written by Rashad Shabazz, Associate Professor at the School of Social Transformation, Arizona State University

The Minneapolis public school system helped to musically educate artists like Prince, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. John Ferguson/Mirrorpix/Getty Images

For Prince fans around the world, the recent discovery of the singer speaking out at age 11 on behalf of striking Minneapolis public schoolteachers is an exciting piece of Prince pop cultural...

Do poison pills work? A finance expert explains the anti-takeover tool that Twitter hopes will keep Elon Musk at bay

Written by Tuugi Chuluun, Associate Professor of Finance, Loyola University Maryland

Poison pills usually work, but Elon Musk appears undeterred.AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu

Takeovers are usually friendly affairs. Corporate executives engage in top-secret talks, with one company or group of investors making a bid for another business. After some negotiating, the companies engaged in the merger or acquisition announce a deal has been...

How the image of a besieged and victimized Russia came to be so ingrained in the country's psyche

Written by Gregory Carleton, Professor of Russian Studies, Tufts University

Russia sees itself as a perennial target.Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP via Getty Images

The range of anti-Russian measures taken by countries around the world since the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is virtually unprecedented and hearkens back to the darkest days of the Cold War.

They’ve assumed many forms but broadly include economic...

Climate change will transform how we live, but these tech and policy experts see reason for optimism

Written by Robert Lempert, Professor of Policy Analysis, Pardee RAND Graduate School

Solar panels have become increasingly common on homes as prices have fallen.Ben McCanna/Portland Portland Press Herald via Getty Images

It’s easy to feel pessimistic when scientists around the world are warning that climate change has advanced so far, it’s now inevitable that societies will either transform themselves or be transformed....

Health insurance coverage for kids through Medicaid and CHIP helps their moms too

Written by Sebastian Tello-Trillo, Assistant Professor of Public Policy and Economics, University of Virginia

Family stability can benefit a whole household.Thomas Barwick/DigitalVision via Getty Images

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

The big idea

When children get health insurance through Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program, known as CHIP, their families benefit too.

That’s what I found through...

Is Ukrainian a language or a dialect? That depends on whom you ask and how the war ends

Written by Joshua Holzer, Assistant Professor of Political Science, Westminster College

Whether someone's speech is a language or a dialect is a matter of both linguistics and politics.illust-monster/iStock/Getty Images Plus

Since the start of the war in Ukraine, the number of people studying Ukrainian on Duolingo, a language learning website and mobile app, has increased by more than 500%.

Most of those who are taking up Ukrainian...