NewsPronto

 

The Conversation

How a simple observation from the 1800s about patterns in big data sets can fight fraud

  • Written by The Conversation Contributor
imageWhy are some pages of a book of numbers tables more dog-eared than others?Book image via www.shutterstock.com.

Benford’s law was first mentioned by the American scientist Simon Newcomb in the 1880s, when he noticed that in books of tables of logarithms, the pages of numbers whose leading digit was 1 were more worn than the pages of numbers...

Read more: How a simple observation from the 1800s about patterns in big data sets can fight fraud

Why China and the US have found common purpose on climate change

  • Written by The Conversation Contributor
imageThe first ever 'red alert' day in Beijing: reducing air pollution is one of the primary reasons for government action on climate change. Reuters

Over the past year, the United States and China forged a climate change partnership that would have been almost unthinkable not long ago. Not only have both countries committed to emissions reduction and...

Read more: Why China and the US have found common purpose on climate change

How do we ensure the next generation of workers isn't worse off than the last?

  • Written by The Conversation Contributor
imageThe future of work is an issue on many people's minds.Reuters

Discussions about the future of work are clearly in the air.

This week, Secretary of Labor Tom Perez is convening a three-day symposium on the issue. Simultaneously, the Brookings Institution hosted a discussion about the implications of the “gig” economy for work and...

Read more: How do we ensure the next generation of workers isn't worse off than the last?

When is an aspirin a day to prevent heart attacks too risky?

  • Written by The Conversation Contributor
imageWhat's the harm?Aspirin via www.shutterstock.com.

We’ve known for a long time that aspirin can help prevent damage from a heart attack or a stroke if taken during one of those events. In fact, you might have seen ads about how aspirin can be lifesaving during a heart attack.

Research backs that up. For people who have already experienced a...

Read more: When is an aspirin a day to prevent heart attacks too risky?

It's time to repeal the gun industry's exceptional legal immunity

  • Written by The Conversation Contributor
imageA killer's use of TEC-9 assault pistols convinced Californians to repeal immunity for gunmakers. Then Congress overruled them. Reuters

Gun violence has been a problem for a long time, but the recent shootings in Paris and San Bernardino have focused new attention on the issue.

Americans no longer just worry about someone shooting up a school or...

Read more: It's time to repeal the gun industry's exceptional legal immunity

WWII treaty of 'unconditional surrender': a model to enforce climate pledges

  • Written by The Conversation Contributor
imageSevere floods in Chennai. How should developing countries hold richer countries to financial commitments to adapt to climate change? Anindito Mukherjee/Reuters

Government negotiators currently meeting in Paris are trying to lay out a course of action to avoid a global average temperature increase of more than two degrees Celsius above...

Read more: WWII treaty of 'unconditional surrender': a model to enforce climate pledges

Fed interest rate hike may have less of an impact than you think

  • Written by The Conversation Contributor
imageFor everyone, there are things to like and not like in higher interest rates.Thumbs via www.shutterstock.com

There is a very high chance the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates next week.

It would be the first time the Federal Open Monetary Committee (FOMC) – the Fed’s rate-setting team – has lifted its benchmark rate since...

Read more: Fed interest rate hike may have less of an impact than you think

More Articles ...

  1. The life-changing love of one of the 20th century’s greatest physicists
  2. Why Supreme Court case on race in admissions matters more than ever
  3. The ethics of climate change: what we owe people – and the rest of the planet
  4. Scientists tend to superspecialize – but there are ways they can change
  5. Targeting black viewers: what The Wiz Live! tells us about race and TV advertising
  6. Trump is running last in one key race
  7. Obama shows the flaws in America’s efforts to combat ISIS
  8. Do gun purchases go up after mass shootings?
  9. Why treat gene editing differently in two types of human cells?
  10. Wall Street watchdog SEC can't end violence in Congo
  11. National security experts react to President Obama's speech on ISIS
  12. Climate activists take to social media for Paris summit, but who are they reaching?
  13. If you give a man a gun: the evolutionary psychology of mass shootings
  14. How pervasive anti-millennial sentiment has hurt the cause of student protesters
  15. Total recall sounds great, but some things should be forgotten
  16. When fear is a weapon: how terror attacks influence mental health
  17. Here's how screen time is changing the way kids tell stories
  18. Can solar geoengineering be part of responsible climate policy?
  19. Forget about designer babies – gene editing won't work on complex traits like intelligence
  20. To talk or not to talk? The dilemma of suicide contagion
  21. Six things Americans should know about mass shootings
  22. The latest bad news on carbon capture from coal power plants: higher costs
  23. When families move, high school students may suffer
  24. Older adults: an untapped, renewable resource on climate action
  25. Focus on college affordability obscures real problem: we're overeducated
  26. What clues does your dog's spit hold for human mental health?
  27. Students' demand for diverse faculty is a demand for a better education
  28. How HIV became a treatable, chronic disease
  29. Here's why academics should write for the public
  30. The artist's dilemma: what constitutes selling out?
  31. Why corporate sustainability won't solve climate change
  32. Want to do something good for your health? Try being generous
  33. Why Europe will let member states opt out of GM crops
  34. Germany needs to rethink what it means to be German to resolve refugees and ISIS
  35. China's plan to put two-faced citizens on credit blacklist isn't all that foreign
  36. Purging daily demons: what's behind the popularity of exorcisms?
  37. How children with disabilities came to be accepted in public schools
  38. Russia, Turkey and the US: between the terrible and the catastrophic
  39. Locavore or vegetarian? What's the best way to reduce climate impact of food?
  40. Passeth the cranb'rry sauce! The medieval origins of Thanksgiving
  41. Machine learning and big data know it wasn't you who just swiped your credit card
  42. Why do women need special laws to protect them from violence?
  43. From the clinic to the street: how the explosion in prescription painkillers has created more heroin users
  44. Why Thanksgiving tells a story of America's pluralism
  45. Why do American cops kill so many compared to European cops?
  46. The Asian roots of umami -- the 'fifth' taste central to Thanksgiving fare
  47. Where are the voices of indigenous peoples in the Thanksgiving story?
  48. Is Black Friday a thing of the past?
  49. Expert roundtable: the psychological benefits of our Thanksgiving rituals
  50. Explainer: why does the price for turkeys fall just before Thanksgiving?