The Conversation

When the next generation looks racially different from the last, political tensions rise

Written by Manuel Pastor, Professor of Sociology, University of Southern California – Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences

California's 1994 fight over immigration parallels the present-day U.S.AP Photo/Nick Ut

The election of Donald Trump may have surprised some observers, but many Californians felt a sense of déjà vu.

Just over 20 years ago, the state passed Proposition 187. The campaign around this ballot initiative, later deemed unconstitutional,...

Trump budget would undo gains from conservation programs on farms and ranches

Written by Ashley Dayer, Assistant Professor of Fish and Wildlife Conservation, Virginia Tech

Texas farmer Taylor Wilcox received USDA funding to flood his fallow rice fields, creating habitat for black-necked stilts and other birds.USDA, CC BY

Members of the House and Senate Agriculture Committees are starting to shape the 2018 farm bill – a comprehensive food and agriculture bill passed about every five years. Most observers...

Trying to keep up with the 'Dreamers' debate? Here are 6 essential reads

Written by Danielle Douez, Associate Editor, Politics + Society

Immigrant rights supporters in Miami.AP Photo/Lynne Sladky

The future remains uncertain for a group of young people who were brought to the U.S. as children without legal authorization.

Some of these so-called “Dreamers” were temporarily shielded from deportation through an Obama-era program called Deferred Action for Childhood...

Air pollution from industrial shutdowns and startups worse than thought

Written by Nikolaos Zirogiannis, Assistant Scientist in School of Public and Environmental Affairs, Indiana University

Because of Hurricane Harvey, refineries and other facilities released 2,000 tons of pollutants. AP Photo/LM Otero

When Hurricane Harvey struck the Texas coast in August 2017, many industrial facilities had to shut down their operations before the storm arrived and restart once rainfall and flooding had subsided.

These shutdowns and startups, as...

Why security measures won't stop school shootings

Written by Bryan Warnick, Professor of Education, The Ohio State University

When school shootings take place in the United States, often they are followed by calls for more stringent security measures.

For instance, after the Jan. 23 case in which a 15-year-old student allegedly shot and killed two students and wounded 16 others at a small-town high school in Kentucky, some Kentucky lawmakers called for armed teachers and...

Corporate America needs to get back to thinking about more than just profits

Written by Marina v. N. Whitman, Professor of Business Administration and Public Policy, University of Michigan

Larry Fink, right, shared a stage with several of the CEOs he urged to spend more time doing good.Stuart Ramson/AP Images for The Women's Forum of New York

Should companies be doing more to make the world a better place?

The world’s biggest money manager thinks so. He recently urged companies to contribute more to society if they want...

Caribbean residents see climate change as a severe threat but most in US don't — here's why

Written by Elizabeth J. Zechmeister, Cornelius Vanderbilt Professor of Political Science and Director of LAPOP, Vanderbilt University

People in the U.S. and the Caribbean share vulnerability to climate change-related disasters, but only in the Caribbean is the public truly worried. Why?US Navy, CC BY-SA

During the 2017 Atlantic basin hurricane season, six major storms – all of which were Category 3 or higher – produced devastating human, material and financial...

Why do Christians wear ashes on Ash Wednesday?

Written by Michael Laver, Department Chair, Associate professor, Rochester Institute of Technology

Worshippers at Ash Wednesday mass.AP Photo/Alan Diaz

This coming Wednesday many Christians will arrive at work with a black cross smudged on their foreheads; countless more will slip into a church or a chapel during their lunch break or after work to receive the sign that tells the arrival of Ash Wednesday, the traditional start of the Christian...

Delivering packages with drones might be good for the environment

Written by Constantine Samaras, Assistant Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University

Could drone delivery help the environment?AP Photo/Claude Paris

There are more than 1 million drones registered in the U.S. Most of them belong to people flying them for fun, but a growing number are used commercially. Companies including Amazon, UPS, Google and DHL are already exploring ways to deliver packages with drones instead of trucks. Our...

Prehistoric wine discovered in inaccessible caves forces a rethink of ancient Sicilian culture

Written by Davide Tanasi, Assistant Professor, Department of History and Center for Visualization and Applied Spatial Technologies (CVAST), University of South Florida

Deep inside Monte Kronio, hot, humid and sulfurous caves held an ancient secret.Giuseppe Savino, La Venta Esplorazioni Geografiche, CC BY-ND

Monte Kronio rises 1,300 feet above the geothermally active landscape of southwestern Sicily. Hidden in its bowels is a labyrinthine system of caves, filled with hot sulfuric vapors. At lower levels, these...