Section: The Conversation (USA)
Internet of Things: when objects threaten national security
Poorly secured IoT devices could lead to attacks on national security flickr/electroluxdesignlab, CC BY-NCWe all know personal devices can be hacked, but a whole country’s security could be at risk too. The rise of the so-called Internet of Things (IoT), and against the backdrop of cyberwarfare, digital surveillance and digital subversion,...
Self-cloning Asian tick causing worry in New Jersey
The female longhorned tick, _Haemaphysalis longicornis_, crawling on a leaf. Jim Occi, Rutgers Center for Vector Biology, CC BY-NC-NDNew Jersey has a new visitor, and it’s not welcome. No one is quite sure how the longhorned tick Haemaphysalis longicornis, an invasive bug originally from East Asia arrived in New Jersey and where, exactly,...
How populism can be turned into an opportunity, not a threat
Around the world, populism is on the march. The election of Donald Trump and the UK’s vote for Brexit triggered a crisis of faith in democratic institutions. And populists have been victorious in other countries including Rodrigo Duterte in the Philippines, Andrej Babiš in the Czech Republic, and Recep Tayyib Erdoğan in Turkey. Italy has...
The US overtakes Hong Kong to rank first among world’s most competitive economies
The US has broken back into the lead. shutterstock.comThe US has leapfrogged Singapore and Hong Kong to top IMD’s latest World Competitiveness Rankings. The top five most competitive economies in the world remain the same since 2016, but their order has changed. With the US at the top, Hong Kong has dropped one spot to second and Singapore...
One-third of the world’s nature reserves are under threat from humans
People transporting gasoline by boat in Indonesia’s Kayan Mentarang National Park. ESCapade/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SAIn the 146 years since Yellowstone National Park in the northwestern United States became the world’s first protected area, nations around the world have created more than 200,000 terrestrial nature reserves. Together...
The Editor, on a landmark for The Conversation
View from the London office, with a Conversation logo superimposed over some of our local flora. Khalil A. Cassimally, Author providedFive years ago, the first content commissioned by The Conversation in the UK went live. At the time, the project attracted some attention from other media. Most was pretty welcoming and positive. But not all of it...
What I learned about Eastern European democracy from Lithuania’s youth
Lithuania’s soldiers are seen during a celebration of Lithuanian Independence Day in Vilnius, Lithuania, on March 11, 2018. The country was marking the 28th anniversary of its declaration of independence from the Soviet Union. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)The term transition economies is what we now use to describe Eastern European countries...
How one early 20th-century performer defanged her fat-shamers
Sophie Tucker defiantly embraced her fuller figure. AP Photo/Remo NassiIt’s all-too-common for women – especially those in the public spotlight – to be criticized for their weight. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Lena Dunham and Rihanna have borne the brunt of fat-shamers. Amy Schumer’s recent film “I Feel Pretty” takes on the outsize role...
Chernobyl brought Italy and Belarus closer together – their approach could do the same for other nations
Teach a child about other cultures and we can form bonds around the world. jenspie3, CC BYFollowing the Chernobyl nuclear power plant disaster in Ukraine, in the former Soviet Union on April 26, 1986, humanitarian programmes were launched in the West that arranged for children from areas affected by radiological contamination to stay with...
Touch forms the foundation of the powerful human-horse relationship
The unique bond between humans and horses is explored in the film ‘Lean on Pete.’ A24 FilmsTwo recent films, “Lean on Pete” and “The Rider,” explore the transformative quality of human-horse relationships. Both films center on young men: One deals with the trauma of poverty and loneliness, the other struggles to rebuild his life after...
