The Conversation

Invading Ukraine may never have been Putin's aim – the threat alone could advance Russia's goals

Written by Ronald Suny, Professor of History and Political Science, University of Michigan

What he wants. What he really, really wants?Mikhail Klimentyev/Sputnik/AFP via Getty Images

An invasion is not the only way the crisis in Ukraine can play out.

A diplomatic solution may yet provide an off-ramp for Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose placement of tens of thousands of troops along Russia’s border with its smaller neighbor...

All American presidents have lied – the question is why and when

Written by Michael Blake, Professor of Philosophy, Public Policy and Governance, University of Washington

Critics of President Joe Biden have accused him of lying. Most American presidents have been accused of deception.Win McNamee/Getty Images

Those who dislike a president tend to emphasize the frequency or skill with which he lies.

During the Trump administration, for instance, The Washington Post kept a running database of the president’s...

The Ancient Greeks also lived through a plague, and they too blamed their leaders for their suffering

Written by Joel Christensen, Professor of Classical Studies, Brandeis University

A painting by Nicolas Poussin titled 'The Athenian Plague' shows people dying of the plague.Bettmann / Contributor via Getty Images

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, as a scholar of ancient Greek literature, I have returned again and again to the Greek historian Thucydides to try understand the historical parallels to the American...

Super Bowl ads turn up the volume on cryptocurrency buzz: 6 essential reads about digital money and the promise of blockchain

Written by Eric Smalley, Science + Technology Editor

Super Bowl 2022 was dubbed Crypto Bowl even before the game was played because of the advertising blitz cryptocurrency companies unleashed during the annual televised spectacle. The ads, featuring a bevy of celebrities and gimmicks, aimed to convince viewers that cryptocurrencies are the wave of the future.

Preying on FOMO – that is, the fear...

For bullied teens, online school offered a safe haven

Written by Hannah L. Schacter, Assistant Professor of Psychology, Wayne State University

Bullying happened more during in-person school than when schooling was online.FatCamera/E+ via Getty Images

Online school during the COVID-19 pandemic was hard on many teens, but new research I co-authored has found a potential silver lining: Students were bullied less during remote instruction than while attending classes in person.

We learned this...

Despite its disastrous effects, COVID-19 offers some gifts to medicine – an immunology expert explains what it can teach us about autoimmune disease

Written by Dario Ghersi, Associate Professor of Biomedical Informatics, University of Nebraska Omaha

Immunologists are studying how the SARS-CoV-2 virus interacts with antibodies in the immune system. Christoph Burgstedt/Science Photo Library via Getty Images

For all the misery that the pandemic has wrought, it has also opened up a vast storehouse of knowledge about medical issues beyond COVID-19. While it’s still too early to draw...

Does scaring people work when it comes to health messaging? A communication researcher explains how it's gone wrong during the COVID-19 pandemic

Written by James Dillard, Professor of Communication Arts and Sciences, Penn State

The film 'Don't Look Up' warns of the dangers of ignoring the findings of science.Marc Ward/Stocktrek Images via Getty Images

In the recent film “Don’t Look Up,” two astronomers learn that a comet is on track to collide with Earth and destroy human civilization. When they try to sound the alarm, all manner of obstacles get in...

Canadian trucker protests show how the loudest voices in the room distort democracy

Written by Matthew Jordan, Associate Professor of Media Studies, Penn State

What happens when the voices of a few drown out the views of the many?Ed Jones/AFP via Getty Images

After Canadian truckers upset with vaccination mandates made their way to Ottawa, they parked their vehicles near Parliament and started making noise – lots of it – blasting their air horns day and night, disturbing the repose of citizens...

African wild dogs cope with human development using skills they rely on to compete with other carnivores

Written by Scott Creel, Professor of Conservation Biology & Ecology, Montana State University

Wild dogs are usually with their pack mates.Scott Creel, CC BY-ND

Large carnivores in Africa are important from ecological, economic and cultural perspectives, but human activities put them at risk. Increasingly, lions, hyenas and African wild dogs are restricted to protected areas like national parks. Within these limited areas, they must compete...

Why $73 million Sandy Hook settlement is unlikely to unleash a flood of lawsuits against gun-makers

Written by Timothy D. Lytton, Distinguished University Professor & Professor of Law, Georgia State University

Sandy Hook families aimed to hold the makers of the guns used in the shooting responsible. AP Photo/Seth Wenig

Families of the victims of the 2012 shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School reached a historic US$73 million settlement with gun-maker Remington Arms. The Feb. 15, 2022, deal marks the first time a firearms manufacturer has settled a...