menu_open Columnists

The Conversation

We use cookies to provide some features and experiences in QOSHE

More information  .  Close

‘Epic’ blue wave helps Democrats take Congress in overwhelming rebuke to President Trump

‘Epic’ blue wave helps Democrats take Congress in overwhelming rebuke to President Trump

Election Day turned into a massive rebuke of President Donald Trump: a blue wave not seen in 20 years that was built on transforming the economy and...

yesterday 0

The Conversation

Charlie Hunt

Democrats in House poised to investigate the Trump Administration, taking up a long‑standing power GOP‑led Congress ignored for the past two years

Democrats in House poised to investigate the Trump Administration, taking up a long‑standing power GOP‑led Congress ignored for the past two years

Oversight has played an important role in American democracy. House Democrats – who are set to be the majority party in that chamber in 2027 – aim...

yesterday 0

The Conversation

Drew Kurlowski

Midterms proceeded without chaos, despite unprecedented Justice Department interference in recent days

Midterms proceeded without chaos, despite unprecedented Justice Department interference in recent days

The Trump administration is fighting one battle after another in the nation’s courts over its power – or lack thereof – in the 2026 midterm elections.

yesterday 0

The Conversation

John E. Jones Iii

Meta’s $25B fine left out accountability for harm from the Cambridge Analytica data privacy scandal

Meta’s $25B fine left out accountability for harm from the Cambridge Analytica data privacy scandal

A New Mexico judge’s fine hit Meta for deception about the data privacy violations, not for the harm they caused. A researcher who helped uncover...

yesterday 1

The Conversation

Emma L. Briant

Nearly 7 in 10 professors report being bullied, often by students over grades

Nearly 7 in 10 professors report being bullied, often by students over grades

The rates are similar to high-stress workplaces like emergency services.

yesterday 2

The Conversation

Jason Walker

As it gets harder to figure out what to eat, some Americans are turning to religion for answers

As it gets harder to figure out what to eat, some Americans are turning to religion for answers

A scholar spent time with 4 alternative food movements to explore how religious Americans are choosing a ‘moral’ diet.

yesterday 2

The Conversation

Adrienne Krone

Menopause can quietly weaken bones – here’s what research reveals about protecting them

Menopause can quietly weaken bones – here’s what research reveals about protecting them

Bone loss can accelerate before the final menstrual period. Understanding risk, exercise, nutrition and treatment options can help protect bone...

yesterday 1

The Conversation

Priya Bhardwaj

Pediatric palliative care addresses the unique needs of seriously ill children and their families

Pediatric palliative care addresses the unique needs of seriously ill children and their families

This specialty offers healing and comfort where a cure is not possible, but many who need this care don’t have access to it.

yesterday 1

The Conversation

Khaliah Johnson

Meta’s $25B fine left out accountability for the Cambridge Analytica data privacy scandal

Meta’s $25B fine left out accountability for the Cambridge Analytica data privacy scandal

A New Mexico judge’s fine hit Meta for deception about the data privacy violations, not for the harm they caused. A researcher who helped uncover...

yesterday 1

The Conversation

Emma L. Briant

US wildfire damage is on pace to triple by mid‑century, but there are affordable ways to lower the risk

US wildfire damage is on pace to triple by mid‑century, but there are affordable ways to lower the risk

Dry land and little snow helped fuel a destructive 2026 fire season. New research shows active fire seasons are becoming the norm, and communities...

yesterday 1

The Conversation

Virginia Iglesias

How to prepare your online life for your death

How to prepare your online life for your death

Handing your heirs a list of passwords is only the first step in ensuring they can access and manage your digital affairs after you die.

previous day 1

The Conversation

Jenny Tang

Why do galaxies rotate?

Why do galaxies rotate?

Galaxies act a little bit like figure skaters twirling on the ice – but at an astronomical scale.

previous day 1

The Conversation

Edwin Alexani

Getting a big head start on holiday shopping can benefit retailers and consumers alike

Getting a big head start on holiday shopping can benefit retailers and consumers alike

But before you buy gifts long before you plan to give them away, be sure to read vendors’ fine print and get familiar with their return policies.

previous day 2

The Conversation

James Malm

Students who attended Miami‑Dade public school pre‑K outperformed peers in 18‑year study

Students who attended Miami‑Dade public school pre‑K outperformed peers in 18‑year study

A new longitudinal study followed kids from pre-K through grade 12 and found that those who attended public school pre-K programs had an academic...

previous day 1

The Conversation

Charles Bleiker

Disaster aid has become a political lottery – libraries, schools and places of worship are stepping into the breach

Disaster aid has become a political lottery – libraries, schools and places of worship are stepping into the breach

Libraries, synagogues, parks and local businesses are becoming the real front line of recovery.

previous day 2

The Conversation

Daniel P. Aldrich

Not in a FEMA flood zone? Your home could still be at risk – and you could suffer more than your neighbor

Not in a FEMA flood zone? Your home could still be at risk – and you could suffer more than your neighbor

Your home’s true flood risk is far more complex than FEMA flood maps reflect.

previous day 3

The Conversation

Yilei Yu

Parents, let your kids eat as much candy as they want – less restriction could help reduce the urge to overeat

Parents, let your kids eat as much candy as they want – less restriction could help reduce the urge to overeat

Restricting access to candy is one way parents try to teach their kids moderation. But this can backfire and harm a child’s relationship to food and...

sunday 5

The Conversation

Bryn Beeder

Zombies are real – just ask the parasites taking over the bodies and brains of insects and rodents, leading them to their doom

Zombies are real – just ask the parasites taking over the bodies and brains of insects and rodents, leading them to their doom

Parasitic fungi, wasps, worms and amoeba can control the behavior of their hosts in various horrifying ways.

30.10.2026 4

The Conversation

Tara Deans

From 18th‑century false ballots to the second JFK and double Dan Sullivans, a brief history of spoiler candidates and the unsuccessful legal challenges to them

From 18th‑century false ballots to the second JFK and double Dan Sullivans, a brief history of spoiler candidates and the unsuccessful legal challenges to them

The spoiler candidate is one of the oldest tricks in the American campaign toolbox, and the law has rarely touched it.

30.10.2026 10

The Conversation

Drew Kurlowski

From 18th‑century false ballots to the second JFK to double Dan Sullivans, a brief history of spoiler candidates and the unsuccessful legal challenges to them

From 18th‑century false ballots to the second JFK to double Dan Sullivans, a brief history of spoiler candidates and the unsuccessful legal challenges to them

The spoiler candidate is one of the oldest tricks in the American campaign toolbox, and the law has rarely touched it.

30.10.2026 50

The Conversation

Drew Kurlowski

What the Cornell 7 sexual assault allegations reveal about how parents talk to their kids about rape

What the Cornell 7 sexual assault allegations reveal about how parents talk to their kids about rape

Repeatedly talking about consent with teenagers and young adults is necessary to help them understand the risks of sexual assault.

30.10.2026 7

The Conversation

Kathleen J Fitzgerald

Philadelphia’s Academy of Natural Sciences just closed – a blow for budding young scientists like me

Philadelphia’s Academy of Natural Sciences just closed – a blow for budding young scientists like me

Generations of young Philadelphians experienced science firsthand by wandering through Dinosaur Hall, examining dozens of wildlife dioramas or...

30.10.2026 5

The Conversation

Lili Mei Granda Argianas

Presidents of both parties defended libraries as allies of democracy for a century – until Trump

Presidents of both parties defended libraries as allies of democracy for a century – until Trump

An information science scholar analyzed statements by 17 presidents and found that Trump has rarely spoken of libraries at all – and when he has,...

30.10.2026 8

The Conversation

Alex H. Poole

Fascism mixed into cringey online content is easy to mock – but no less dangerous

Fascism mixed into cringey online content is easy to mock – but no less dangerous

Cringe can generate enthusiasm among conservative voters by trolling the left while reducing serious policy debates to the level of online memes.

30.10.2026 7

The Conversation

Matthew N. Hannah

Are American voters actually gloomy about the economy, or is something else going on?

Are American voters actually gloomy about the economy, or is something else going on?

Many standard measures of economic health are strong, but voters in both parties are increasingly pessimistic.

30.10.2026 10

The Conversation

Erin Kay Lockwood

How moving civil rights enforcement out of the US Department of Education threatens students’ protections from race, sex and disability discrimination

How moving civil rights enforcement out of the US Department of Education threatens students’ protections from race, sex and disability discrimination

A reorganization of civil rights investigations in education likely means many complaints will never be investigated and others will take years to...

30.10.2026 7

The Conversation

Bridget Joyce

Figuring out where cosmic neutrinos come from is tricky ‑ radio telescopes could help find where these ‘ghost particles’ originate

Figuring out where cosmic neutrinos come from is tricky ‑ radio telescopes could help find where these ‘ghost particles’ originate

A researcher just won a Nobel Prize for detecting tiny particles from space. Scientists now want to get better at figuring out where in the cosmos...

30.10.2026 5

The Conversation

Yjan Gordon

Florida Department of Health considers dropping 4 school vaccine requirements – here’s what that could mean for kids

Florida Department of Health considers dropping 4 school vaccine requirements – here’s what that could mean for kids

Most parents of young children today haven’t experienced the devastating childhood diseases that used to be common before vaccines were developed.

30.10.2026 5

The Conversation

Katrine L. Wallace

Why achieving your goals can leave you feeling so empty

Why achieving your goals can leave you feeling so empty

There is an irony in Anne Carson’s Nobel win: The highest award in literature has gone to a writer who has spent her career exploring the emptiness...

30.10.2026 5

The Conversation

Stacy Keltner

Allegheny County is reassessing every property – here’s how your tax bill is calculated now

Allegheny County is reassessing every property – here’s how your tax bill is calculated now

A court has ordered Allegheny County’s first full reassessment since 2012. A finance scholar explains how assessed values and millage rates add up...

30.10.2026 5

The Conversation

Elizabeth Jane Beckett-Camarata

Federal policy helped widen rural America’s fresh food gap, but a 90‑year‑old law could help close it

Federal policy helped widen rural America’s fresh food gap, but a 90‑year‑old law could help close it

A food systems researcher shows how trucking deregulation and lax antitrust enforcement let big grocery chains grow as rural distribution thinned.

29.10.2026 4

The Conversation

Michelle Miller

How the law protecting Americans from surprise medical bills is driving up healthcare costs

How the law protecting Americans from surprise medical bills is driving up healthcare costs

A handful of providers are hijacking the arbitration process – and consumers are likely to foot the bill.

29.10.2026 10

The Conversation

Lindsey Murtagh

Who mapped Africa? Debunking the myth that Europeans alone plotted the continent

Who mapped Africa? Debunking the myth that Europeans alone plotted the continent

African guides drew lines in the sand to help Europeans understand the terrain. But they rarely got the credit.

29.10.2026 6

The Conversation

Thomas J Bassett

Faculty and students show how reporting is done when a university partners with local news

Faculty and students show how reporting is done when a university partners with local news

Some universities are developing innovative arrangements with universities where students help report and faculty provide guidance.

29.10.2026 4

The Conversation

Teri Finneman

Driverless 18‑wheelers are on a few highways, but widespread use is a long way down the road

Driverless 18‑wheelers are on a few highways, but widespread use is a long way down the road

Chaotic roads are still too difficult for automated trucks to navigate.

29.10.2026 6

The Conversation

Shannon Roberts

We discovered an organism that lives at blistering temperatures – but what allows it to take the heat?

We discovered an organism that lives at blistering temperatures – but what allows it to take the heat?

This amoeba lives at hotter temperatures than any other eukaryote previously discovered.

29.10.2026 4

The Conversation

Kristen Skruber

Democrats are the unwitting beneficiaries of Trump’s immigration policies

Democrats are the unwitting beneficiaries of Trump’s immigration policies

A quiet US-Mexico border, and the reduced urgency of undocumented immigration, has deprived Republicans of an issue that previously energized voters...

29.10.2026 10

The Conversation

Justin Gest

Political information increasingly comes from pop culture, outside of partisan silos but where male creators – and sometimes misogyny – dominate

Political information increasingly comes from pop culture, outside of partisan silos but where male creators – and sometimes misogyny – dominate

Younger Americans’ pop culture favorites have multipartisan appeal, but male creators dominate the list of top influencers, podcasters and comedians.

29.10.2026 7

The Conversation

Karrin Vasby Anderson

What is Sharia law, and why is it so controversial in the United States?

What is Sharia law, and why is it so controversial in the United States?

Ordinary Muslim religious practices can often be treated as political threats, writes a law professor.

29.10.2026 4

The Conversation

Asma Uddin

King Charles’ visit to the Caribbean evokes specter of British slavery – and local demands for justice

King Charles’ visit to the Caribbean evokes specter of British slavery – and local demands for justice

For locals, the king’s Caribbean visit is an occasion to recognize the full story of Britain’s trafficking and enslavement of millions of people...

29.10.2026 10

The Conversation

Brooke N. Newman

Israel has voted, but what comes next? Dissecting a messy ballot and coalition‑building process

Israel has voted, but what comes next? Dissecting a messy ballot and coalition‑building process

With no clear majority for the ruling coalition or main opposition bloc, working out who will form the next government could take months.

28.10.2026 5

The Conversation

Dov Waxman

3 major issues that Republican Byron Donalds or Democrat David Jolly will need to address as Florida’s next governor

3 major issues that Republican Byron Donalds or Democrat David Jolly will need to address as Florida’s next governor

Regardless of who wins the election, he’ll need to navigate these 3 major issues.

28.10.2026 6

The Conversation

Liv Coleman

Private equity is buying up more methadone clinics. Access to the lifesaving drug isn’t getting easier.

Private equity is buying up more methadone clinics. Access to the lifesaving drug isn’t getting easier.

Despite acquiring more than one-third of US methadone clinics, private equity has not significantly expanded methadone availability.

28.10.2026 7

The Conversation

Yashaswini Singh

New restrictions on purchases with SNAP benefits in some states mean fewer convenience stores are accepting them

New restrictions on purchases with SNAP benefits in some states mean fewer convenience stores are accepting them

Stores in waiver states may need to update their checkout systems and train employees to prevent purchases that are no longer allowed with SNAP...

28.10.2026 7

The Conversation

Benjamin Chrisinger

AI may quickly generate ideas, but working with people leads to more creative ones

AI may quickly generate ideas, but working with people leads to more creative ones

A recent experiment found that people working with ChatGPT generated fewer unique ideas than those who collaborated with other humans.

28.10.2026 7

The Conversation

Clin Lai

Pittsburgh’s ‘Green Man’ was a real person – why the legend outlives the facts

Pittsburgh’s ‘Green Man’ was a real person – why the legend outlives the facts

He wasn’t a monster. He was just a man who survived a terrible accident. So why won’t western Pennsylvania let go of its ‘Green Man’ legend? A...

28.10.2026 7

The Conversation

Jeffrey Tolbert

I’ve been talking to MAGA supporters for years, and here’s why some are sticking with Trump — and others are not

I’ve been talking to MAGA supporters for years, and here’s why some are sticking with Trump — and others are not

Despite the headwinds that have cratered support for Donald Trump – high prices, the Iran war, corruption – many of Trump’s MAGA loyalists still...

28.10.2026 20

The Conversation

Alex Hinton

Why over two‑thirds of Americans say their country is in decline

Why over two‑thirds of Americans say their country is in decline

A recent national survey reveals a US electorate that is unsettled, gloomy and likely looking for political change.

28.10.2026 8

The Conversation

Dante Chinni

Plans with cheaper premiums are risky business for Americans seeking lower healthcare costs

Plans with cheaper premiums are risky business for Americans seeking lower healthcare costs

Some options that might look like health insurance actually aren’t – and they may leave you stranded with large, unexpected medical expenses.

28.10.2026 9

The Conversation

Thomas Buchmueller

‘Let nothing be forgotten’: Holocaust survivors’ memorial books honored lives lost and vibrant hometowns

‘Let nothing be forgotten’: Holocaust survivors’ memorial books honored lives lost and vibrant hometowns

After the Holocaust, Eastern European survivors collaborated on memorial books called ‘yizker bikher’ – one way to reclaim their neighbors’...

28.10.2026 8

The Conversation

Jennifer Rich