Many Americans are moving away from congregations, but not necessarily from religion – movies, plays, art and social media fill the gap
The Conversation (US)by Sharon Avni, Professor of Academic Literacy and Linguistics, Borough of Manhattan Community College, CUNY·4h ago
“Emma,” a young Jewish woman who we met in 2019, didn’t belong to a synagogue. She didn’t have a Jewish partner. She didn’t observe Jewish rituals regularly.
Most Westerners know Buddhism through meditation, but everyday Buddhist life looks quite different in Thai temples
The Conversation (US)by Brooke Schedneck, Associate Professor of Religious Studies, Rhodes College·4h ago
I recently returned from leading an educational program in Thailand focusing on how Buddhists practice the religion in their day-to-day lives.
Fish DNA in Ozark streams reveals region’s complex geologic history
The Conversation (US)by David Duvernell, Professor of Biological Sciences, Missouri University of Science and Technology·4h ago
My students and I encountered a mystery. We were partnering with the Missouri Department of Conservation to monitor for fish presence and abundance in the Missouri Ozarks.
How do ice cubes cool a drink?
The Conversation (US)by Matthew Koss, Professor of Physics, College of the Holy Cross·4h ago
Curious Kids is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to CuriousKidsUS@theconversation.com. How do ice cubes cool a drink?
Just as the world appears to be losing its appetite for books, William T. Vollmann pens a 3,000-page novel
The Conversation (US)by Christopher Coffman, Master Lecturer in Humanities, Boston University·4h ago
With forecasters of doom debating the end of reading, of publishing and of literacy in general, what should we make of William T. Vollmann’s forthcoming novel, “A Table for Fortune”?
Using thunderquakes to X-ray Earth – a new study shows urban seismology in action
The Conversation (US)by Tieyuan Zhu, Associate Professor of Geophysics, Penn State·2d ago
When lightning strikes, it superheats the air around it and creates a shock wave that we hear as thunder. But thunder doesn’t just travel through the atmosphere to our ears.
More protein in your breakfast or snacks won’t give you more muscle without more work – a biologist separates the science from the marketing
The Conversation (US)by Linda M. Boland, Professor of Biology, University of Richmond·3d ago
Growing up, my brothers were fascinated by the first “Rocky” movie. They were trying to get stronger and excel in sports, so one scene stood out almost as much as Rocky sprinting up the museum...
The importance of teaching students what AI can’t do
The Conversation (US)by Billy J. Stratton, Professor of English and Literary Arts, University of Denver·3d ago
It’s disconcerting to envision human thought becoming redundant or deemed inferior due to advancements in artificial intelligence. But for all its ills, AI cannot be ignored or wished away.
Antarctic krill fishing is now concentrated in the exact pattern conservation rules were designed to prevent
The Conversation (US)by Kim S. Bernard, Professor of Biological Oceanography, Oregon State University·3d ago
The companies fishing for Antarctic krill have harvested so much so quickly that the season had to close in August 2026, three months before it was scheduled to end.
A seemingly technical change to international student visas could disrupt teaching and research at US universities
The Conversation (US)by Abigail Boggs, Assistant Professor of Sociology and Education Studies, Wesleyan University·3d ago
The Trump administration is revising a visa rule for international students that in part determines how long, and under what conditions, they can stay in the country. The change sounds technical.
16% of Pennsylvania teens have considered suicide – but everyday connection may help
The Conversation (US)by Jonathan Wright, Assistant Research Professor of Health and Human Development, Penn State·3d ago
What comes to mind when you think about preventing teen suicide? Crisis hotlines, maybe. Emergency interventions.
Jason Arday and the new politics of plagiarism
The Conversation (US)by Roger J. Kreuz, Associate Dean and Feinstone Interdisciplinary Research Professor, University of Memphis·3d ago
After a meteoric rise to the top ranks of British academia, scholar Jason Arday was found dead at his London home on Aug. 14, 2026. Arday had spent weeks fighting plagiarism accusations.
Is it illegal for the president to spend ‘patriotic’ donations on a White House ballroom or anything else?
The Conversation (US)by Ellen P. Aprill, Senior Scholar in Residence at the UCLA Law School's Lowell Milken Center For Philanthropy And Nonprofit Law, University of California, Los Angeles·3d ago
The fate of President Donald Trump’s estimated US$400 million White House ballroom may hinge on the little-known and somewhat surprising rules as to when the federal government and its agencies can...
Darline Graham’s inherited Senate seat revives the ‘widow’s mandate’ with a sibling twist
The Conversation (US)by Christopher A. Cooper, Professor of Political Science & Public Affairs, Western Carolina University·3d ago
South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster’s July 2026 appointment of Darline Graham to fill the remainder of her late brother Lindsey Graham’s Senate term – and her subsequent decision to run for the seat...
Puerto Rico is rationing water, but many residents stopped trusting the tap long before the drought
The Conversation (US)by Ivis García, Associate Professor of Landscape Architecture and Urban Planning, Texas A&M University·4d ago
Imagine turning on your kitchen faucet and nothing comes out. Not for an hour, but for two full days. Then the water returns, only to stop again two days later.
Why working-class people account for around 1% of lawmakers in the US – and only 2% in the average democracy around the world
The Conversation (US)by Nicholas Carnes, Professor of Public Policy and Political Science, Duke University·4d ago
Both major U.S. political parties regularly tout their commitment to working-class Americans and claim to be the party of the working class.
Colorado River water conservation efforts get only halfway to a solution
The Conversation (US)by Sarah Porter, Director of the Kyl Center for Water Policy, ASU Morrison Institute for Public Policy, Arizona State University·4d ago
In August 2026 the nation’s two largest reservoirs, Lake Mead and Lake Powell, both on the Colorado River, hit their lowest levels since they first began to be filled in 1936 and 1963...
New therapies help people with schizophrenia – but access is woefully inadequate
The Conversation (US)by Matthew Kurtz, Professor of Psychology, Neuroscience and Behavior, Wesleyan University·4d ago
It’s common to hear casual descriptions of “schizophrenic” behavior, describing a person oscillating between two extremes.
Why social media algorithms send you posts you don’t like
The Conversation (US)by Michael Bernstein, Professor of Computer Science, Stanford University·4d ago
Do your social media accounts feed you content that reflects your core beliefs and guiding principles?
Christian nationalists’ professed support for religious pluralism is often drowned out by perceptions that Christians are under threat
The Conversation (US)by Paul Djupe, Director of the Data for Political Research Program, Denison University·4d ago
Christian nationalism, a worldview that sees the United States as a Christian nation and believes that Christianity should have a privileged role in American civic life, has been shown to be...
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