The Conversation U.S. - News written by researchers and scientists to help you understand

Two plastic figurines depicting men in suits.

Trump-Xi summit will be no ‘Nixon in China’ moment – that they are talking is enough for now

Rana Mitter, Harvard Kennedy School

The missing link in America’s critical minerals push isn’t mining – it’s processing expertise

Hélène Nguemgaing, University of Maryland and Alan Collins, West Virginia University

Racial gerrymandering may be here to stay

Claire B. Wofford, College of Charleston and Jordan Ragusa, College of Charleston

A large white, columned building shadowed by red and blue and the US Capitol building.

‘Devil Wears Prada 2’ shows how Christian imagery circulates in unusual ways through the fashion industry

Lynn S. Neal, Wake Forest University

Meryl Streep smiles as she poses in a bright red cape-style gown, paired with black sunglasses and long black gloves.

What makes a good teacher? Ask a Republican and a Democrat, and they are likely to agree

Gustavo E. Fischman, Arizona State University; Eric Haas, California State University, East Bay, and Margarita Pivovarova, Arizona State University

A woman holds up her hands in a high five, as a group of young children look and smile at her.

When you don’t have the facts, argue the law: How Trump’s EPA is limiting its own ability to protect public health far into the future

Janet McCabe, Indiana University

A tangle of highway interchanges filled with vehicles forms an X shape with curved lines in and around it.

We studied what happened when financially struggling artists received $1,000 a month, no strings attached, for 18 months

Joanna Woronkowicz, Indiana University and Doug Noonan, Indiana University Indianapolis

A young man wearing a red t-shirt paints a mural of a horse.

How AI can lead to false arrests and wrongful convictions

Maria Lungu, University of Virginia and Steven L. Johnson, University of Virginia

Delta-8, delta-9, THCA? What sets the different THC forms available in regulated cannabis products apart

Aaron W. Harrison, Trinity University

A table with a variety of THC products displayed in boxes and canisters.

What to do if someone you know in Philadelphia or elsewhere is detained by ICE

Jennifer J. Lee, Temple University

Armed man with jacket that says 'Police Federal Agent' pats down person in sweatshirt and jeans as other people stand watching

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Illustration of person standing in the middle of a maze with arrows drawn on the walls

How does your brain decide between the road not taken or the same old route? Resolving conflicting memories is key to navigation

Paulina Maxim, Georgia Institute of Technology

Artist's rendition side view of a T. rex dinosaur baring its large teeth.

Why did Tyrannosaurus rex have such short arms?

Sarah Sheffield, Binghamton University, State University of New York

Why Trump’s $2 billion buyoff to cancel offshore wind farms is a bad deal for American taxpayers and the US energy supply

Christopher Niezrecki, UMass Lowell; Ben Link, Johns Hopkins University, and Zoe Getman-Pickering, UMass Amherst

A ship with crane carries blades for constructing wind turbines.

Ted Turner didn’t just revolutionize television − he changed the way we see our world

Michael J. Socolow, University of Maine

A man in a black and white photo stands at a lectern outdoors.

The cost of toxic leadership in the workplace – and how to avoid it

Kristina Shea, RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences; Christian van Nieuwerburgh, RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences, and Kim Cameron, University of Michigan

An older man shouting at a younger man in an office setting.

Health authorities work to contain cruise ship hantavirus outbreak

Daniel Pastula, University of Colorado Anschutz

A view of the cruise ship MV Hondius stationary off the port of Praia, the capital of Cape Verde, on May 5, 2026.

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Standing in his white vehicle, Pope Leo XIV smiles and waves to a large crowd gathered around him.

Themes of peace and human dignity have been central to Pope Leo as he marks his first year in office

Mathew Schmalz, College of the Holy Cross

Conspiracy theorists are building AI interfaces to the Epstein files – and presenting their views as data analysis

Matthew N. Hannah, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Photo of a white-haired man with redacted documents in the background.

Why a landmark Supreme Court ruling has failed to keep racial bias out of jury selection

Austin Sarat, Amherst College

The U.S. Supreme Court building in Washington

How Pennsylvania’s new paid leave bill leaves the sandwich generation behind

Kate Perepezko, Miami University

A little girl looking out a window while standing next to a man in a wheelchair and an adult woman.

Black, Hispanic, female and low-income elementary students are less likely to be identified with autism

Paul L. Morgan, University at Albany, State University of New York

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U.S.-Iran war

The shadow of a man in seen pointing at a map

The method in Iran’s madness? Closure of Strait of Hormuz echoes a centuries-old Danish play − and is a tragedy for the world order

Vivek Krishnamurthy, University of Colorado Boulder

Can the nearly $1 trillion-a-year US military really be depleting key weapons in Iran?

Michael A. Allen, Boise State University

One-way attack drones: Low-cost, high-tech weapons ‘democratize’ precision warfare

Michael C. Horowitz, University of Pennsylvania and Lauren Kahn, Georgetown University

a small delta-wing aircraft flies against a blue sky

Iran’s military forces combine state-of-the-art drones and hackers with out-of-date conventional weapons

Paul J. Springer, Air University

People stand under an unmanned aerial vehicle.

Strait of Hormuz: Why the US and Iran are sailing in very different legal waters

Elizabeth Mendenhall, University of Rhode Island

250th anniversary of American revolution

Black and white illustration of large crowd in colonial dress gathered outside of stately building

The American Revolution’s triumphant story of democracy and freedom overlooks loyalists who paid a steep price for allegiance to Britain

Kimberly Nath, San Juan College

1776’s Declaration of Independence inspired Washington’s troops to fight against the odds – and also helped bring in powerful allies

Christopher Magra, University of Tennessee

Declaration of Independence with a feather quill on wood surface.

What the Declaration of Independence does – and doesn’t – say about God

Thomas Tweed, University of Notre Dame

A black and white illustration shows a crowd of well-dressed people in 18th century garb milling outside a stately building.

What James Madison can teach Americans about religious freedom today

Corey D. B. Walker, Wake Forest University

A historical painting shows a group of formally dressed men in long coats, breeches and white wigs gathered in discussion, with one seated at a table while others stand around having conversations.

What Betsy Ross’ real story tells us about women’s work in the Revolution − and why it still matters 250 years later

Marla Miller, UMass Amherst

An illustration of a group of men and women in colonial dress with the man in the center holding a U.S. flag with 13 stars

Philosophy and ethics

A digitally generated image of a young man wearing a suit, standing within a multicolored circular data pattern against a blue background.

Americans care more about future generations than many think – and that gap could matter for policy

Kyle Fiore Law, Arizona State University and Stylianos Syropoulos, Arizona State University

How much should politics influence science, and vice versa? National Science Board’s ousting resurrects an existential debate

Caroline Wagner, The Ohio State University and James Olds, George Mason University

Illustration of microscope silhouette in the center of a gear, surrounded by molecular structures against an American flag backdrop

America’s founding promise of religious freedom has long coexisted with prejudice, even as many Christians have worked to confront it

David Mislin, Temple University

Several people view artwork displayed on screens outside a brick building.

‘Just war’ has guided Catholic thinking on conflict for centuries – including criticism of Iran war

Valerie Morkevičius, Colgate University

A man in ornate white robes and a tall gold-colored hat waves and holds a staff.

Meekness isn’t weakness – once considered positive, it’s one of the ‘undersung virtues’ that deserve defense today

Timothy J. Pawl, University of St. Thomas

A bearded man seems to speak gently as he holds an upset, angry-looking toddler.

Extreme weather and natural disasters

An aerial view of the landslide area and glacier

Alaska’s near-record landslide tsunami sent a wave 1,580 feet up the fjord walls – and left clues for building a warning system

Michael E. West, University of Alaska Fairbanks and Ezgi Karasözen, University of Alaska Fairbanks

Your local storm forecast is likely based on weather miles away – we’re trying to bring it closer to home

Chris Vagasky, University of Wisconsin-Madison

A dramatic storm cloud lit up by lightning over a rural area.

Fire is transforming the US West’s public lands – research shows overlooked cost to recreation

Kyle Manley, University of Colorado Boulder

A man with an axe and a hard hat walks in front of bright orange red blazing fire.

Why the Southeast is burning – extreme drought is only part of the cause

Zachary Handlos, Georgia Institute of Technology

Firefighters stand on a dirt road watching smoke rise above rows of pine trees.

Heavy rain on snow is testing aging dams across Michigan and Wisconsin – this is the future in a warming world

Richard B. (Ricky) Rood, University of Michigan

A city worker in reflective clothes stands knee-deep in a flooded street.

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ICE and immigration

Two people stand in doorway of church underneath an arch with stained-glass window

Philadelphia’s 40-year history of protecting undocumented immigrants began with churches hiding refugees from El Salvador

Menika Dirkson, Morgan State University

We teach at a Florida university that agreed to cooperate with ICE – and we worry that it is making our students feel less safe

Anindya Kundu, Florida International University and Ryan W. Pontier, Florida International University

People are seen in shorts and shirts and backpacks walking along a cobblestone path with trees around them.

US refugee policy for white South Africans is part of a century-long effort to keep some English-speaking nations white

John Broich, Case Western Reserve University

Dozens of people, some holding U.S. flags, listen to a man speak.

ICE buys $87M warehouse in Pennsylvania − can local officials block a detention facility?

Aaron Walayat, University of Dayton

Black woman wearing a medical mask holds sign that reads, "ICE Out Of Pennsylvania."

Why ICE’s body camera policies make the videos unlikely to improve accountability and transparency

Stephanie Lessing, UMass Boston

Trump administration

Presidents Trump and Lula greet at the White House garden

Trump and Lula at the White House: a relationship built on pragmatism and a broader regional calculus

Guilherme Casarões, Florida International University

Trump’s new ‘Coalie’ mascot and myth of ‘clean, beautiful coal’ have a long history in advertising

Annie Persons, University of Virginia

A cartoon image of a smiling Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and a chunky lump of coal with shoes and eyes. Burgum's hat reads: MINE, BABY, MINE.

What is a just war? Inside the war of words between the Trump administration and the Catholic church

Gemma Ware, The Conversation

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Pope Leo during a ceremony at the Vatican.

What Trump’s post as a Jesus-like figure tells us about political messianism

Austin Sarat, Amherst College

A light shines on a man speaking at a lectern on stage.

Supreme Court ruling: The latest in history of diminishing minority voting rights

Robert D. Bland, University of Tennessee

A large, columned white building in the dark.

International

Russia’s pared-down Victory Day parade tells a story: Away from the pomp, war in Ukraine is not going to Putin’s plan

Lena Surzhko Harned, Penn State

Canada is kicking its US booze habit as trade tensions persist

Andrew Muhammad, University of Tennessee

Rows of wine bottles are displayed on shelves with a sign that say U.S. products are no longer available at this Canadian store

UAE’s OPEC exit has been long in the works – and may mark the beginning of a Gulf realignment

Kristian Coates Ulrichsen, Rice University

A man in traditional Emirati dress looks out to a large oil pipeline.

Donkeys are a symbol of endurance for Palestinians – they are also a target of settler violence and care

Irus Braverman, University at Buffalo

How Israel’s history has shaped the way it wages war

Gemma Ware, The Conversation

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New research in health and science

A woman sits on the floor with her hands clasped around her abdomen as if uncomfortable, as she leans against a couch with her head back.

People with premenstrual dysphoric disorder have higher rates of suicidal thinking, planning and attempts

Eliza Zhitnik, UMass Amherst and Jamie Hartmann-Boyce, UMass Amherst

Can peptide injections help people recover from injuries? Here’s what you need to know

Flynn McGuire, University of Utah

Close-up of athletes holding colorful kettlebells during cross training class

Sleep apnea compromises far more than a good night’s rest – 2 neuroscientists outline the risks and the need for better diagnosis

Erika Yamazaki, Northwestern University and Ken A. Paller, Northwestern University

Down-facing view of a young woman covering her ears with a pillow while her partner snores in bed.

A quiet Alaska fault is missing the fluids scientists expected – and it’s changing what we know about earthquake zones

Yinchu Li, Georgia Institute of Technology

A map of southwest Alaska's Aleutian islands shows large earthquakes and the gap with no big earthquakes.

Syphilis cases in expectant mothers have dramatically risen since the pandemic – here’s what’s driving the trend

Casey Pinto, Penn State

Male doctor holds the arm of a pregnant woman who has a bandage on her arm from a shot.

Artificial intelligence

A rough cube with the letters 'AI' is surrounded by seven yellow floor signs bearing exclamation marks

White House wants to vet powerful AI models for risks − a computer scientist explains why AI safety is so difficult

Ahmed Hamza, University of Colorado Boulder

So your new ‘co-worker’ is an AI agent – here’s how to make the best of your human-machine relationship

Nigel Melville, University of Michigan

A man wearing glasses and blue work shirt, facing away, shakes hand of a white robot at a desk.

Using diesel generators to power the AI revolution would kill hundreds of Americans a year

Peter Adams, Carnegie Mellon University

A group of large metal boxes are lined up next to a concrete building.

AI is showing up in court cases – but only a human jury can grapple with the moral weight of assessing guilt

Sonali Chakravarti, Wesleyan University

An illustration of a blindfolded woman holding up the scales of justice, but all the images are made up of tiny 1s and 0s.

Mythos AI is a cybersecurity threat, but it doesn’t rewrite the rules of the game

Mohammad Ahmad, West Virginia University

text that says Anthropic overlaying a round seal with an eagle

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