The Conversation

Should you get a COVID-19 booster shot now or wait until fall? Two immunologists help weigh the options

Written by Prakash Nagarkatti, Professor of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology, University of South Carolina

Clinical studies show that mixing and matching booster vaccines can lead to a more robust immune response.SDI Productions/E+ via Getty Images

While COVID-19 vaccines continue to be highly effective at preventing hospitalization and death, it has become clear that the protection offered by the current vaccines wanes over time. This necessitates the...

First bipartisan gun control bill in a generation signed into law: 3 essential reads on what it means

Written by Howard Manly, Race + Equity Editor, The Conversation US

President Joe Biden signs the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act into law.Stefani Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images

President Joe Biden signed into law on June 25, 2022, a bipartisan bill that is the first significant change in federal gun legislation in nearly three decades.

Known as the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, the bill was written in response...

'A revolutionary ruling – and not just for abortion’: A Supreme Court scholar explains the impact of Dobbs

Written by Morgan Marietta, Associate Professor of Political Science, UMass Lowell

Anti-abortion protestors celebrate the overturning of Roe v. Wade outside the US Supreme Court on June 24.Olivier Douliery/AFP via Getty Images

The Supreme Court’s decision to reverse 50 years of constitutional protection for the right to get an abortion is more than 200 pages long. Morgan Marietta, a political scientist at the University of...

America's religious communities are divided over the issue of abortion: 5 essential reads

Written by Kalpana Jain, Senior Religion + Ethics Editor

Abortion rights advocates demonstrate in front of the U.S. Supreme Court in 2021, in Washington, D.C.AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana

Since the first indications that the U.S. Supreme Court could overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling, following a leaked draft opinion on May 2, 2022, religious leaders from many denominations have been working to...

State courts from Oregon to Georgia will now decide who – if anyone – can get an abortion under 50 different state constitutions

Written by Stefanie Lindquist, Foundation Professor of Law and Political Science, Arizona State University

Temporary security fencing surrounds the U.S. Supreme Court building, ahead of its decision on abortion.Stefani Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images

The U.S. Supreme Court’s denial of abortion rights under the federal constitution is leading pro-choice advocates to seek other legal pathways to protect reproductive rights.

Just one week after the...

Roe overturned: What you need to know about the Supreme Court abortion decision

Written by Linda C. McClain, Professor of Law, Boston University

A half-century of reproduction rights upended by the Supreme Court.Brandon Bell/Getty Images

After half a century, Americans’ constitutional right to get an abortion has been overturned by the Supreme Court.

The ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization – handed down on June 24, 2022 – has far-reaching...

5 tips for parents of new kindergartners who are younger than their classmates

Written by Gregory Fabiano, Professor of Psychology, Florida International University

In kindergarten, it can be apparent to teachers and parents alike that some students are younger than others.AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez

A good kindergarten experience sets kids up for success in school and into adulthood. Students in smaller kindergarten classes are more likely to go to college than students from larger classes. And by age 27,...

Google's powerful AI spotlights a human cognitive glitch: Mistaking fluent speech for fluent thought

Written by Kyle Mahowald, Assistant Professor of Linguistics, The University of Texas at Austin College of Liberal Arts

Words can have a powerful effect on people, even when they're generated by an unthinking machine.iStock via Getty Images

When you read a sentence like this one, your past experience tells you that it’s written by a thinking, feeling human. And, in this case, there is indeed a human typing these words: [Hi, there!] But these days, some...

Misinformation will be rampant when it comes to COVID-19 shots for young children – here's what you can do to counter it

Written by Jaime Sidani, Assistant Professor of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh Health Sciences

Talking about vaccines with trusted health care providers and with family can help wade through the sea of information – and misinformation. Morsa Images/DigitalVison via Getty Images

When the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention endorsed both the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines for all children ages 6 months to 5 years on...

How do painkillers actually kill pain? From ibuprofen to fentanyl, it's about meeting the pain where it's at

Written by Rebecca Seal, Associate Professor of Neurobiology, University of Pittsburgh Health Sciences

A variety of pain-relieving drugs are available both over the counter and by prescription.SelectStock/Vetta via Getty Images

Without the ability to feel pain, life is more dangerous. To avoid injury, pain tells us to use a hammer more gently, wait for the soup to cool or put on gloves in a snowball fight. Those with rare inherited disorders that...