The Conversation

How seeing problems in the brain makes stigma disappear

Written by David Rosenberg, Professor, Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Wayne State University

A pair of identical twins. The one on the right has OCD, while the one on the left does not.Brain Imaging Research Division, Wayne State University School of Medicine, CC BY-SA

As a psychiatrist, I find that one of the hardest parts of my job is telling parents and their children that they are not to blame for their illness.

Children with emotional...

I teach ethics at the university where Richard Spencer spoke

Written by Anna L. Peterson, Professor of Religion, University of Florida

Once in a while, life provides us with the kind of dramatic moral dilemma that even the most imaginative ethics textbook writer couldn’t think up.

My community – the University of Florida and the city of Gainesville – faced a dangerous and complicated series of dilemmas as a result of a visit from white supremacist Richard...

Why is Saudi Arabia suddenly so paranoid?

Written by James L. Gelvin, Professor of Modern Middle Eastern History, University of California, Los Angeles

Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud on Oct. 5, 2017. AP Photo/Pavel Golovkin

In the past, Saudi Arabia depended upon its enormous oil wealth and the United States for its security. It used the former to buy friends and pay off enemies and potential enemies. It used the latter to guarantee its survival. With a few exceptions, Saudi...

'Geostorm' movie shows dangers of hacking the climate – we need to talk about real-world geoengineering now

Written by Jane A. Flegal, Ph.D. Candidate, Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, University of California, Berkeley

Is this the endgame for any geoengineering scenario?'Geostorm' still

Hollywood’s latest disaster flick, “Geostorm,” is premised on the idea that humans have figured out how to control the Earth’s climate. A powerful satellite-based technology allows users to fine-tune the weather, overcoming the ravages of climate change....

Teens are sleeping less – but there's a surprisingly easy fix

Written by Jean Twenge, Professor of Psychology, San Diego State University

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Something is stealing teens’ sleep.

In a newly released analysis of two large national surveys, my co-authors and I found that the number of U.S. teens who reported sleeping less than seven hours a night jumped 22 percent between 2012 and 2015. Sleep experts agree that teens need at least nine hours of sleep a night. But by 2015,...

How China's skewed sex ratio is making President Xi's job a whole lot harder

Written by David Skidmore, Professor of Political Science, Drake University

Chinese President Xi Jinping presides over the opening ceremony of the 19th Party Congress.AP Photo/Ng Han Guan

As odd as it sounds, China’s economic policy is being held hostage by its heavily skewed sex ratio.

China’s excess of young, unmarriageable males poses an acute dilemma for President Xi Jinping and other leaders as they set the...

Scientist at work: Measuring public health impacts after disasters

Written by Jennifer Horney, Associate Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatictics, Texas A&M University

Crews clean up debris in a neighborhood flooded by Hurricane Harvey in Beaumont, Texas, Sept. 26, 2017. AP Photo/David Goldman

Two months after Hurricane Harvey submerged much of metropolitan Houston, recovery is under way across the city. Residents and volunteers are gutting and restoring flooded homes. Government agencies and nonprofit...

Are many hate crimes really examples of domestic terrorism?

Written by Arie Perliger, Director of Security Studies and Professor, University of Massachusetts Lowell

Mourners embrace at a vigil for Richard Collins III, who was stabbed to death in College Park, Maryland.AP Photo/Brian Witte

A Maryland grand jury has indicted Sean Urbanski for allegedly murdering an African-American student in May.

Urbanski, a white former University of Maryland student who belonged to the racist Alt-Reich: Nation Facebook group,...

Why the European Union's hands are tied over Catalonia

Written by Garret Martin, Professorial Lecturer, American University School of International Service

A young girl wearing the Spanish flag (right) walks with another young girl wearing an 'estelada,' or independence flag.AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti

In recent weeks, the dispute over Catalonia’s quest for independence from Spain has captivated the attention of many parts of the world.

There is concern about further outbreaks of violence if the...

Is racial bias driving Trump's neglect of Puerto Rico?

Written by Lauren Lluveras, Postdoctoral Fellow at the Institute for Urban Policy Research and Analysis, University of Texas at Austin

He didn't throw paper towels in Texas. Why Puerto Rico?AP Photo/Evan Vucci

The morning after Hurricane Maria blasted through Puerto Rico, I emailed my aunt to ask if she was safe. That was Sept. 21. I heard back from her on Oct. 10. She was fine, she assured me, but “Puerto Rico is destroyed.” After that, my tia and I again lost...