The Conversation

Vaccination against COVID-19 supports a healthy pregnancy by protecting both mother and child – an immunologist explains the maternal immune response

Written by Matthew Woodruff, Instructor of Human Immunology, Emory University

Pregnancy poses significant risks for severe illness or death from COVID-19, for both mother and baby. ArtMarie/E+ via Getty Images

The CDC issued an urgent health advisory for those currently pregnant, planning a pregnancy or breastfeeding on Sept. 29, 2021. The statement reiterated the importance of vaccination in preventing severe illness and...

Tax or treat! State laws on candy taxation vary wildly

Written by Hayes Holderness, Associate Professor of Law, University of Richmond

While death may be a given, the certainty of taxes on candy depends on the state.AP Photo/Peter Prengaman

Halloween shoppers have many delicious decisions to make before trick-or-treaters show up at their doors. And in many states, those choices will change how much tax they pay.

In Illinois, for example, residents pay a higher state sales tax rate o...

The most powerful space telescope ever built will look back in time to the Dark Ages of the universe

Written by Chris Impey, University Distinguished Professor of Astronomy, University of Arizona

Hubble took pictures of the oldest galaxies it could – seen here – but the James Webb Space Telescope can go back much farther in time.NASA

Some have called NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope the “telescope that ate astronomy.” It is the most powerful space telescope ever built and a complex piece of mechanical...

Kids and their computers: Several hours a day of screen time is OK, study suggests

Written by Katie Paulich, PhD Student in Psychology, Neuroscience and Behavioral Genetics, University of Colorado Boulder

The findings are gleaned from the largest U.S. study ever done on the brain development of children.Julien McRoberts via Getty Images

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

The big idea

Even when kids spend five hours a day on screen – whether computers, television or text – it doesn’t appear to be...

Medical errors keep killing patients – but there are laws, incentives and mindset changes that could reduce the death toll

Written by Michael J. Saks, Regents Professor, Arizona State University

It's estimated that up to 400,000 Americans die every year from medical mistakes. Vadzim Kushniarou/iStock/Getty Images Plus via Getty Images

Dr. Christopher Duntsch was a spine surgeon so reckless, incompetent or impaired that he’s now in a Texas prison. Better known as “Dr. Death,” Duntsch severed nerves, vocal cords and...

4 reasons Americans are still seeing empty shelves and long waits – with Christmas just around the corner

Written by Kevin Ketels, Lecturer, Global Supply Chain Management, Wayne State University

Consumers are still finding bare store shelves.AP Photo/David Zalubowski

Walk into any U.S. store these days and you’re likely to see empty shelves.

Shortages of virtually every type of product – from toilet paper and sneakers to pickup trucks and chicken – are showing up across the country. Looking for a book, bicycle, baby crib...

How the climate crisis is transforming the meaning of ‘sustainability’ in business

Written by Raz Godelnik, Assistant Professor of Strategic Design & Management, The New School

Businesses tend to value profit over people and planet. Climate change is forcing them to evolve.elenabs via Getty Images

In his 2021 letter to CEOs, Larry Fink, the CEO and chairman of BlackRock, the world’s largest investment manager, wrote: “No issue ranks higher than climate change on our clients’ lists of priorities.”

His...

Rural Alaska has a bridge problem as permafrost thaws and crossing river ice gets riskier with climate change

Written by Guangqing Chi, Professor of Rural Sociology and Demography, Penn State

The Denali Highway as it crosses the Susitna River.Joe Sohm/Visions of America/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

America’s bridges are in rough shape. Of the nearly 620,000 bridges over roads, rivers and other waterways across the U.S., more than 43,500 of them, about 7%, are considered “structurally deficient.”

In Alaska,...

Reporting all biosafety errors could improve labs worldwide – and increase public trust in biological research

Written by David Gillum, Executive Director of Environmental Health and Safety and Chief Safety Officer, Arizona State University

Some institutions publish information about their mishaps, while others do not.Peter Kneffel/picture alliance via Getty Images

The origin of SARS-CoV-2 remains a mystery. One theory is that the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 was transmitted from animals to humans – a fairly common occurrence. Another is that it came from a laboratory...

Computer Space launched the video game industry 50 years ago – here's the real reason you probably haven't heard of it

Written by Noah Wardrip-Fruin, Professor of Computational Media, University of California, Santa Cruz

Computer Space was innovative, but how was it to play?Ed Fries, CC BY-ND

Before Pong there was Computer Space, the first commercial video game. The progenitor of today’s US$175 billion industry debuted on Oct. 15, 1971, at the Music Operators of America trade show in Chicago. Housed in a futuristic-looking cabinet, Computer Space took its...