The Conversation

How to improve public health, the environment and racial equity all at once: Upgrade low-income housing

Written by Jonathan Levy, Professor and Chair, Department of Environmental Health, Boston University

Residents of the Jacob Riis Settlement in New York City hold photographs of leaks, mold, peeling paint and other issues during a community town hall meeting on March 7, 2019. AP Photo/Kathy Willens

During a presidential election debate on Oct. 22, 2020, former President Donald Trump railed against Democratic proposals to retrofit homes. “They...

Living with a disability is very expensive – even with government assistance

Written by Zachary Morris, Assistant Professor of Social Welfare, Stony Brook University (The State University of New York)

People with disabilities may need larger cars or specially modified ones to be able to get themselves around.Maskot/DigitalVision via Getty Images

Edward Mitchell is 34 years old and lives in Jackson, Tennessee, with a spinal cord injury caused by a hit-and-run accident that happened when he was 17. He has plenty of expenses that all Americans...

Purity culture and the subjugation of women: Southern Baptist beliefs on sex and gender provide context to spa suspect's 'motive'

Written by Susan M. Shaw, Professor of Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, Oregon State University

Southern Baptist purity culture teaches that women are to blame for men's sexual urges.AP Photo/Mike Stewart

Even before a member of a Southern Baptist church was accused of the Georgia spa massacre, motivated, he told police, by guilt over a “sex addiction,” the Southern Baptist Convention was under scrutiny over its teachings on...

People gave up on flu pandemic measures a century ago when they tired of them – and paid a price

Written by J. Alexander Navarro, Assistant Director of the Center for the History of Medicine, University of Michigan

Armistice Day celebrations on Nov. 11, 1918, worried public health experts as people crowded together in cities across the U.S.AP Photo

Picture the United States struggling to deal with a deadly pandemic.

State and local officials enact a slate of social-distancing measures, gathering bans, closure orders and mask mandates in an effort to stem the...

Privacy may be under threat, but its protection alone isn’t enough to preserve civil liberties

Written by Firmin DeBrabander, Professor of Philosophy, Maryland Institute College of Art

Demonstrators shine their cellphones during a protest in St. Louis in 2020.Michael B. Thomas/Getty Images

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

The big idea

While the battle over privacy is everywhere in American life, it’s actually a relatively new concept that didn’t become grounded in law until over a...

Chivalry is not about opening doors, but protecting society's most vulnerable from attack

Written by Jennifer Wollock, Professor of English, Texas A&M University

The chivalrous peasant teenager Joan of Arc is a hero of French independence.De Agostini/G. Dagli Orti via Getty Images

Modern society is in dispute over the value of chivalry. Chivalry originally referred to the medieval knight’s code of honor but today references a range of – usually male – behaviors, from courtesy to...

Vaccination passport apps could help society reopen – first they have to be secure, private and trusted

Written by Laurin Weissinger, Lecturer in Cybersecurity, Tufts University

In many cases, getting on a plane, attending a show or going to a store requires an app that proves you've been vaccinated.AP Photo/Amr Nabil

You might soon have an additional app on your phone: a digital vaccination passport that allows people who have been vaccinated against COVID-19 to travel, enter business establishments and attend events. Not...

How good is the AstraZeneca vaccine – and is it really safe? 5 questions answered

Written by Maureen Ferran, Associate Professor of Biology, Rochester Institute of Technology

The AstraZeneca vaccine is already in use in many places. AP Photo/Christophe Ena

On March 22, AstraZeneca released results from its U.S. clinical trial showing that its vaccine is 79% effective and with no serious side effects. Overnight, the National Institutes of Health issued a statement, saying the board charged with ensuring the accuracy of...

Citizenship for the 'Dreamers'? 6 essential reads on DACA and immigration reform

Written by Catesby Holmes, International Editor | Politics Editor, The Conversation US

The American Dream and Promise Act, also known as House Resolution 6, would create a path to citizenship for immigrant 'Dreamers' – but it has to pass the Senate first. Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

The United States could eventually grant citizenship to roughly 2.5 million undocumented immigrants brought to the country as children.

The Ameri...

So-called 'good' suburban schools often require trade-offs for Latino students

Written by Gabriel Rodriguez, Assistant Professor, Iowa State University

A majority of Americans – including people of color – live in suburbs.Mindy Schauer/Digital First Media/Orange County Register via Getty Images

Many Americans think of the suburbs as exclusive enclaves for white, middle-class people. Yet reality paints a different picture. In recent decades suburbs across the country have rapidly...