The Conversation
A unique collaboration between academics and journalists.
Arsenal might be choking again in England’s Premier League. Here are 4 psychological fixes
Arsenal is still on the top of the English Premier League ladder, but as in previous years, the Gunners might be crumbling just when a first title since 2003–04 is within touching distance. In early April, Arsenal had a commanding grip on the title – nine points ahead of nearest rivals Manchester City. Now it’s just three (and City has played...
Synthetic biology promised to rewrite life – with the death of its pioneer, J. Craig Venter, how close are scientists?
First came the Human Genome Project, then came the field of synthetic biology. Alena Butusava/iStock via Getty Images PlusWhen scientist J. Craig Venter and his team announced in 2010 that they had created the first cell controlled by a fully synthetic genome, it marked a turning point in how scientists think about life. For the first time, ...
In Colombia and Brazil, presidential candidates offer old solutions to old problems
On May 31st, Colombian voters will go to the polls with Abelardo de la Espriella – criminal lawyer, self-styled outsider, and self-described “Tiger” – securing his place in the runoff against left-wing Iván Cepeda. In Brazil, Senator Flávio Bolsonaro – the son of incarcerated former President Jair Bolsonaro – is also busy, touring Washington, ...
‘Executive power is subject to checks and balances’: why King Charles cited Magna Carta in the US Congress
In his speech to Congress during a trip to the US to mark the country’s 250th anniversary, King Charles made repeated references to Magna Carta, the medieval English charter that laid the foundations for the modern rule of law. Dating back to 1215, Magna Carta also established for the first time that the monarch was not above the law. Charles ...
What alternatives do Gulf states have to the Strait of Hormuz?
The Gulf states have built a variety of emergency pipelines over the years to bypass the Strait of Hormuz. Md. Raihan Uddin Rafi / ShutterstockTwo months into the Iran war and the Strait of Hormuz is still mostly shut. Vessel traffic is running at a fraction of pre-war levels, with the patchwork of ceasefires, blockades and re-closures since F...
Seeing an eclipse from Earth is awe-inspiring – for astronauts seeing one from space, the scene was even more grand
During a total solar eclipse, the Sun is barely visible behind the Moon. Roger SorensenThe astronauts on Artemis II’s trip to the Moon in April 2026 didn’t just have an amazing journey through space. They also saw something extraordinary. They were the first humans to see a total solar eclipse from space. A solar eclipse happens when the M...
The US has long used economic coercion to achieve foreign policy goals — the war in Iran shows how that power has declined
The Iranian closure of the Strait of Hormuz has largely brought oil traffic to a halt, hitting petroleum-exporting countries hard. Asghar Besharati / Getty ImagesTwo months after the United States, along with Israel, launched a war against Iran, that conflict appears far from a lasting resolution. Much commentary on the protracted nature of ...
Our study looked at teens’ social media behaviour in 43 countries – those from disadvantaged backgrounds face greater harms
EF Stock/ShutterstockAs social media becomes a central part of young people’s lives, concerns are growing about its impact on their mental health. Yet public debates and measures tend to treat adolescents as one homogeneous group. We frequently ignore the fact that social media use does not affect all young people in the same way – nor does i...