The Conversation

This course teaches how to judge a book by its cover - and its pages, print and other elements of its design

Written by Lynda Kachurek, Head of Book Arts, Archives, & Rare Books, University of Richmond

Books have shaped societies throughout the ages.normallens via Getty Images

Unusual Courses is an occasional series from The Conversation U.S. highlighting unconventional approaches to teaching.

Course Title:

“For the Love of Books”

What prompted the idea for the course?

The idea for the class came from seeing University of Richmond...

How to design clean energy subsidies that work – without wasting money on free riders

Written by Eric Hittinger, Associate Professor of Public Policy, Rochester Institute of Technology

How long should a solar subsidies, or any subsidy, last?Artur Debat/Moment via Getty Images

The planet is heating up as greenhouse gas emissions rise, contributing to extreme heat waves and once-unimaginable flooding. Yet despite the risks, countries’ policies are not on track to keep global warming in check.

The problem isn’t a lack of...

People don't mate randomly – but the flawed assumption that they do is an essential part of many studies linking genes to diseases and traits

Written by Richard Border, Postdoctoral Researcher in Statistical Genetics, University of California, Los Angeles

Statistical pitfalls in GWAS can result in misleading conclusions about whether some traits (like long horns or spotted skin, in the case of dinosaurs) are genetically linked.@meanymoo, CC BY-NC-ND

The idea that correlation does not imply causation is a fundamental caveat in epidemiological research. A classic example involves a hypothetical link...

Air pollution harms the brain and mental health, too – a large-scale analysis documents effects on brain regions associated with emotions

Written by Clara G. Zundel, Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, Wayne State University

As the planet heats up, air pollution is getting worse.Westend61/Getty Images

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

The big idea

People who breathe polluted air experience changes within the brain regions that control emotions, and as a result, they may be more likely to develop anxiety and depression than those who...

6 feet of snow in Buffalo: What causes lake-effect storms like this?

Written by Michael A. Rawlins, Associate Director, Climate System Research Center, UMass Amherst

Parts of the Buffalo area saw more than 6 feet of snow over three days in November 2022.AP Photo/Joshua Bessex

It’s hard for most people to imagine 6 feet of snow in one storm, like the Buffalo area saw over the weekend, but such extreme snowfall events occasionally happen along the eastern edges of the Great Lakes.

The phenomenon is called...

What to watch for when you are watching the World Cup: Essential reads for on and off the field

Written by Matt Williams, Senior Breaking News and International Editor

The Qatar World Cup is moving the goalposts.Christopher Lee/Getty Images

Whether you call it “soccer” or “football,” the beautiful game is enjoyed by fans around the world. And every four years, it is celebrated in a monthlong spectacle: the World Cup.

This time around, proceedings will start on Nov. 20 in host nation Qatar...

What the world would lose with the demise of Twitter: Valuable eyewitness accounts and raw data on human behavior, as well as a habitat for trolls

Written by Anjana Susarla, Professor of Information Systems, Michigan State University

Twitter itself produces a lot of data that's available nowhere else.STR/NurPhoto via Getty Images

What do a cybersecurity researcher building a system to generate alerts for detecting security threats and vulnerabilities, a wildfire watcher who tracks the spread of forest fires, and public health professionals trying to predict enrollment in health...

How medieval Catholic traditions of thanksgiving prayers and feasting shaped the Protestant celebration of Plymouth's pilgrims

Written by Joanne M. Pierce, Professor Emerita of Religious Studies, College of the Holy Cross

The Catholic hymn, "Te Deum" -- which says, “You, God, we praise” -- has been used for centuries in Catholic worship for thanksgiving.Iconotheca Valvasoriana Author Jean Marot via Wikimedia Commons.

President Abraham Lincoln instituted the celebration of Thanksgiving as a national holiday in 1863 after the Union victory at the battle...

Why I teach a course connecting Taylor Swift's songs to the works of Shakespeare, Hitchcock and Plath

Written by Elizabeth Scala, Professor of English, The University of Texas at Austin College of Liberal Arts

Literary devices abound in Taylor Swift's body of work.John Shearer/TAS18 via Getty Images

Unusual Courses is an occasional series from The Conversation U.S. highlighting unconventional approaches to teaching.

Title of course:

“The Taylor Swift Songbook”

What prompted the idea for the course?

This class is part of a group of introductory...

World Cup: This year's special Al Rihla ball has the aerodynamics of a champion, according to a sports physicist

Written by John Eric Goff, Professor of Physics, University of Lynchburg

Every World Cup, Adidas introduces a new ball, and this year's is called the Al Rihla.Joern Pollex/FIFA via Getty Images

As with every World Cup, at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar the players will be using a new ball. The last thing competitors want is for the most important piece of equipment in the most important tournament in the world’s...