The Conversation

Making a difference without millions – how Americans give

Written by Thalia Plata, Editorial Intern

How do regular people participate in philanthropy? fotosipsak/iStock/Getty Images Plus

Can everyday people make a difference in their communities without millions of dollars? Lucy Bernholz, a senior research scholar at Stanford University’s Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society, believes that philanthropy is far more multifaceted than...

In the fight against climate change, China is doing more than you think – but still not enough

Written by Phillip Stalley, Endowed Professor of Environmental Diplomacy & Associate Professor of Political Science, DePaul University

China has more solar power capacity than any other country and makes many of the world's solar cells, but coal is still its top energy source.Yang Min/Costfoto/Barcroft Media via Getty Images

When it comes to climate change, no nation is more important than China. It consumes more coal than the rest of the world combined, and it is the leading...

California's water supplies are in trouble as climate change worsens natural dry spells, especially in the Sierra Nevada

Written by Roger Bales, Distinguished Professor of Engineering, University of California, Merced

Several of California's reservoirs were at less than one-third of their capacity in early December 2021.Martha Conklin, CC BY-ND

California is preparing for a third straight year of drought, and officials are tightening limits on water use to levels never seen so early in the water year. Most of the state’s water reservoirs are well below...

How Christmas became an American holiday tradition, with a Santa Claus, gifts and a tree

Written by Thomas Adam, Associate Professor of International and Global Studies, University of Arkansas

The pagan tradition of celebrating the winter solstice with bonfires on Dec. 21 inspired the early Christian celebrations of Christmas.Gpointstudio/ Image Source via Getty Images

Each season, the celebration of Christmas has religious leaders and conservatives publicly complaining about the commercialization of the holiday and the growing lack of...

Modern-day culture wars are playing out on historic tours of slaveholding plantations

Written by Kelley Fanto Deetz, Visiting Scholar, University of California, Berkeley

These statues of enslaved young boys are part of a modern-day depiction of southern plantation life at the Whitney Museum in Louisiana. AP Photo/Gerald Herbert

Located on nearly 2,000 acres along the banks of the Potomac River, Stratford Hall Plantation is the birthplace of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee and the home of four generations of the Lee...

How did Uncle Sam become a symbol for the United States?

Written by Paul Bruski, Associate Professor of Graphic Design, Iowa State University

You never know where Uncle Sam will make an appearance.David McNew/Getty Images

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.

How did Uncle Sam become a symbol for the United States? Henry E., age 10, Somerville, Massachusetts

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Why addressing racism against Black women in health care is key to ending the US HIV epidemic

Written by Nabila El-Bassel, Professor of Social Work, Director of Social Intervention Group, Columbia University

When Black patients are treated by Black doctors, they have better health outcomes – but fewer than 6 in 100 American doctors are Black.The Good Brigade/Digital Vision via Getty Images

Forty years into the HIV/AIDS epidemic, Black women continue to bear the highest burden of HIV among women.

Although Black women represent only 13% of the...

An expert draws 7 lessons about US gun laws from the murder of Ahmaud Arbery and the Rittenhouse verdict

Written by John Donohue, C. Wendell and Edith M. Carlsmith Professor of Law, Stanford University

A Kenosha, Wisconsin, jury found Kyle Rittenhouse not guilty of murder on Nov. 19, 2021. His trial sparked a national debate over gun rights and self-defense.Mark Hertzberg/Pool/Getty Images News via Getty Images

As the country awaits a U.S. Supreme Court decision in a New York state case that may create a federal constitutional right to carry guns...

Consumers value a product viewed online more if they see it being virtually touched

Written by Andrea Luangrath, Assistant Professor of Marketing, University of Iowa

Apple reportedly has policies designed to encourage consumers to touch its products. AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez

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

The big idea

Consumers who see a product on sale being virtually touched are more engaged and willing to pay more than if the item is displayed on its own, according to a...

How dual loyalties created an ethics problem for Chris Cuomo and CNN

Written by Jane E Kirtley, Silha Professor of Media Ethics and Law, University of Minnesota

Former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, left, and his brother, former CNN anchor, Chris Cuomo.(Mike Groll/Office of Governor of Andrew M. Cuomo via AP, left, and Evan Agostini/Invision/AP

CNN anchor Chris Cuomo conceded in March, 2021 that he could not, ethically, cover the sexual harassment allegations against his brother, New York Gov. Andrew...