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The technology that runs Congress lags so far behind the modern world that its flag-tracking system just caught up to 2017-era Pizza Hut

  • Written by Lorelei Kelly, Research Lead, Modernizing Congress, McCourt School of Public Policy, Georgetown University
imageTracking one of these items to your door has been possible since 2017 – tracking the other is all new.FTiare/iStock / Getty Images Plus

On a typical day, you can’t turn on the news without hearing someone say that Congress is broken. The implication is that this dereliction explains why the institution is inert and unresponsive to the...

Read more: The technology that runs Congress lags so far behind the modern world that its flag-tracking...

President Trump promises to make government efficient − and he’ll run into the same roadblocks as Presidents Taft, Roosevelt, Roosevelt, Truman, Eisenhower, Carter, Reagan, Clinton and Bush, among others

  • Written by Jennifer Selin, Associate Professor of Law, Arizona State University
imagePresident Donald Trump signs executive orders in the Oval Office of the White House on Jan. 20, 2025. Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

As President Donald Trump issued a slew of executive orders and directives on his first day of his second administration, he explained his actions by saying, “It’s all about common sense.”

For over a...

Read more: President Trump promises to make government efficient − and he’ll run into the same roadblocks as...

Navigating deepfakes and synthetic media: This course helps students demystify artificial intelligence technologies

  • Written by Mozhdeh Khodarahmi, Associate Library Director, Macalester College
imageA Macalester College course helps students navigate a rapidly evolving digital landscape.Khanchit Khirisutchalual/Getty Images

Uncommon Courses is an occasional series from The Conversation U.S. highlighting unconventional approaches to teaching.

Title of course:

AI Literacy and Building Resilience to Misinformation

What prompted the idea for the...

Read more: Navigating deepfakes and synthetic media: This course helps students demystify artificial...

As Syria ponders a democratic future: 5 lessons from the Arab Spring

  • Written by Robert Kubinec, Assistant Professor of Political Science, University of South Carolina

The fall of Bashar Assad’s dictatorship in December 2024 has ushered in a nerve-wracking time of hope and fear for Syrians concerning future governance in the long-war-torn country.

While it’s unclear what exact political path Syria will take, the dilemmas the country faces are similar to the experiences of other Arab countries more...

Read more: As Syria ponders a democratic future: 5 lessons from the Arab Spring

Harvard expands its definition of antisemitism – when does criticism of Israel cross a line?

  • Written by Joshua Shanes, Professor of Jewish Studies, College of Charleston
imageHarvard has adopted a broader definition of antisemitism.Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

As part of Harvard University’s agreement in response to two federal lawsuits filed by Jewish students alleging antisemitic discrimination, it will adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, or IHRA, “working...

Read more: Harvard expands its definition of antisemitism – when does criticism of Israel cross a line?

Health and Human Services secretary influences every aspect of America’s health

  • Written by Angela Mattie, Professor of Management & Medical Sciences, Schools of Business & Medicine, Quinnipiac University
imageDeclaring a state of public health emergency − and mobilizing resources to address it − is a power of the HHS secretary.Frank Franklin II/AP Photo

The secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, or HHS, plays a significant role in every American’s access to health care and in the nation’s overall well-being.

Unde...

Read more: Health and Human Services secretary influences every aspect of America’s health

Mark Zuckerberg thinks workplaces need to ‘man up’ − here’s why that’s bad for all employees, no matter their gender

  • Written by Adam Stanaland, Assistant Professor of Psychology, University of Richmond
imageMeta CEO Mark Zuckerberg attends a UFC match on Feb. 17, 2024.Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images

When Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg appeared on a Jan. 10, 2025, episode of “The Joe Rogan Experience,” he lamented that corporate culture had become too “feminine,” suppressing its “masculine energy” and abandoning supposedly...

Read more: Mark Zuckerberg thinks workplaces need to ‘man up’ − here’s why that’s bad for all employees, no...

10 years after the Charlie Hebdo attacks in France, conversations about free speech are still too black and white

  • Written by Armin Langer, Assistant Professor of European Studies, University of Florida
imageA special edition of French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo commemorates 10 years since an Islamist attack in 2015.Photo by Ludovic Marin/Pool/AFP via Getty Images

In January 2015, 12 people were killed at the French satirist magazine Charlie Hebdo’s office after it published controversial caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad. Ten years...

Read more: 10 years after the Charlie Hebdo attacks in France, conversations about free speech are still too...

After the fire: Rain on wildfire burn scars can trigger deadly debris flows – a geologist explains how

  • Written by Jen Pierce, Professor of Geosciences, Boise State University
imageA debris flow channel in a severely burned watershed in Idaho.Amirhossein Montazeri/Boise State University, CC BY-ND

While firefighters work to extinguish the Los Angeles-area wildfires, city officials and emergency managers are also worried about what could come next.

The potential for rain the weekend of Jan. 25-26 could help tamp down the fires....

Read more: After the fire: Rain on wildfire burn scars can trigger deadly debris flows – a geologist explains...

LA gets rain, but also risk of flooding and debris flows from wildfire burn scars – a geologist explains the threat

  • Written by Jen Pierce, Professor of Geosciences, Boise State University
imageA debris flow channel in a severely burned watershed in Idaho.Amirhossein Montazeri/Boise State University, CC BY-ND

While firefighters work to extinguish the Los Angeles-area wildfires, city officials and emergency managers are also worried about what could come next.

Light rain began falling on Jan. 25, 2025, helping firefighters who have been...

Read more: LA gets rain, but also risk of flooding and debris flows from wildfire burn scars – a geologist...

More Articles ...

  1. FDA bans Red 3 dye from food and drugs – a scientist explains the artificial color’s health risks and long history
  2. Kremlin promotes ‘traditional values’ – but leaves some battles to the governors
  3. What another Lukashenko ‘victory’ will mean for Europe’s security – and that of Belarus’ citizenry
  4. Meet phosphine, a gas commonly used for industrial fumigation that can damage your lungs, heart and liver
  5. Many more older people are leaving prison and face unmet needs for housing and health care − as well as a tangle of groups trying to help
  6. As Gaza ceasefire takes hold, Israeli forces turn to Jenin – a regular target seen as a center of Palestinian resistance
  7. What is seditious conspiracy, which is among the most serious crimes Trump pardoned?
  8. Ozempic and similar weight loss drugs may lower risk of 42 health conditions, but also pose risks
  9. Warning of ‘oligarchy,’ Biden channels Andrew Jackson
  10. How the oil industry and growing political divides turned climate change into a partisan issue
  11. ‘The geezer game’ – a nearly 50-year-old pickup basketball game – reveals its secrets to longevity
  12. Attitudes toward Christian nationalism don’t just boil down to views on race, religion and history − research suggests ‘moral foundations’ play a critical role
  13. Extreme heat, flooding, wildfires – Colorado’s formerly incarcerated people on the hazards they faced behind bars
  14. What is a migrant? What is ICE? 10 terms to help you understand the debate over immigration
  15. Feeling political distress? Here are coping strategies a psychologist shares with his clients
  16. Philanthropy provides $30B annually for science and health research − funding that tends to stay local
  17. Human use of fire has produced an era of uncontrolled burning: Welcome to the Pyrocene
  18. I’m an economist. Here’s why I’m worried the California insurance crisis could trigger broader financial instability
  19. How nonprofits pitch in before, during and after disasters strike
  20. Agriculture secretary oversees food production, rural life, and nutrition programs that help millions afford healthy diets
  21. Electrolyte beverages can help your body stay balanced − but may worsen symptoms if you’re sick
  22. Luce, a cartoon mascot for Catholic Church’s 2025 Jubilee, appeals to a younger generation while embracing time-honored traditions
  23. Why is obesity linked to irregular heart rhythms? Researchers found 1 potential mechanism
  24. Learning your political opponents don’t actually hate you can reduce toxic polarization and antidemocratic attitudes
  25. Lessons from ‘stop and frisk’ can help Philly police use drones to improve safety without compromising civil liberties
  26. Trump promises to end birthright citizenship and shut down the border – a legal scholar explains the challenges these actions could face
  27. Trump’s Jan. 6 pardon order ‘flies in the face of the facts’ of violent insurrection, retired federal judge explains
  28. Trump’s executive orders can make change – but are limited and can be undone by the courts
  29. Neighbors and strangers pulled together to help LA fire survivors – 60 years of research shows these unsung heroes are crucial to disaster response
  30. Amid LA fires, neighbors helped each other survive – 60 years of research shows how local heroes are crucial to disaster response
  31. Astronauts on NASA’s Artemis mission to the Moon will need better boots − here’s why
  32. Trump’s idea to use military to deport over 10 million migrants faces legal, constitutional and practical hurdles
  33. Why is the sky blue?
  34. What’s happening on RedNote? A media scholar explains the app TikTok users are fleeing to – and the cultural moment unfolding there
  35. Texas is already policing the Mexican border − and will play an outsize role in any Trump plan to crack down on immigration
  36. Biden helped bring science out of the lab and into the community − emphasizing research focused on solutions
  37. China tech shrugged off Trump’s ‘trade war’ − there’s no reason it won’t do the same with new tariffs
  38. David Lynch exposed the rot at the heart of American culture
  39. Climate misinformation is rife on social media – and poised to get worse
  40. How do you create a workplace that people want to work in? We embedded in a company to find out
  41. News coverage boosts giving after disasters – Australian research team’s findings may offer lessons for Los Angeles fires
  42. How the literature of fire can help readers find hope among the ashes
  43. The Starbase rocket testing facility is permanently changing the landscape of southern Texas
  44. Tool of faith or digital distraction? Catholic Church offers indulgences to faithful who fast from social media
  45. Acute stress and early signs of PTSD are common in firefighters and other first responders − here’s what to watch out for
  46. Israel-Hamas deal shows limits of US influence – and the unpredictable impact of Trump
  47. How constitutional guardrails have always contained presidential ambitions
  48. MLK’s ‘beloved community’ has inspired social justice work for decades − what did he mean?
  49. Civil servants brace for a second Trump presidency
  50. How Trump could try to stay in power after his second term ends