The Conversation

• Glacial lake flood hits Juneau, Alaska, reflecting a growing risk as mountain glaciers melt around the world
  Suicide Basin, an ice-dammed lake on an arm of Mendenhall Glacier, has filled up with meltwater and sent destructive surges of water into Juneau for 3 straight summers.
• Climate models reveal how human activity may be locking the Southwest into permanent drought
  The drought has been linked to the Pacific Decadal Oscillation, a natural climate pattern. A new study finds global warming is now influencing that natural phenomenon.
• COVID-19 vaccines for kids are mired in uncertainty amid conflicting federal guidance
  Abrupt policy changes and confusing public messaging have injected confusion in back-to-school vaccine protocols.
• Don’t write off the Putin-Trump summit just yet – its outcome might confound critics
  Judging by much mainstream commentary, the meeting has little chance of resolving the war in Ukraine. But a few signs suggest that outcome is not foreordained.
• Where America’s CO emissions come from – what you need to know, in charts
  Carbon dioxide emissions trap heat in the atmosphere, warming the planet. Too much CO2 can disrupt the climate and oceans.
• Mindfulness is gaining traction in American schools – but it isn’t clear what students are learning
  Understanding the nuances of what mindfulness can look like in a classroom can help educators, parents and policymakers decide whether it belongs in their schools.
• Spiderweb silks and architectures reveal millions of years of evolutionary ingenuity
  7 distinct types of silk allow different spider species to build webs with various jobs – including to catch prey, tether themselves and protect their eggs.
• How poisoned data can trick AI − and how to stop it
  Data poisoning corrupts AI systems by teaching them with bad data. There’s no silver bullet to protect against it, but researchers are building defenses.
• 4 out of 5 US troops surveyed understand the duty to disobey illegal orders
  As National Guard troops head to the streets of Washington, and likely civilian encounters, a new survey reveals service members’ understanding of the distinction between legal and illegal orders.
• Labor Day and May Day emerged from the movement for a shorter workday in industrial America
  Both holidays arose at the same time, nearly 150 years ago, in the midst of an explosive labor uprising.
• AI is making reading books feel obsolete – and students have a lot to lose
  Even before generative AI went mainstream, fewer people were reading books.
• Grief feels unbearable, disorienting and chaotic – a grief researcher and widow shares evidence-based ways to face the early days of loss
  Grief affects the mind, body, emotions, nervous system and even deeply held beliefs – a reality many only grasp once loss arrives.
• The new NextGen Acela trains promise faster travel and more seats – but arrive as US rail faces an uncertain future
  The French-designed, American-manufactured NextGen arrives years late and in a moment when federally sponsored trains are fighting for their lives.
• Getting beyond answers like ‘fine’ and ‘nothing’: 5 simple ways to spark real talk with kids
  Kids have a lot to say. Sometimes they just need a little help to feel confident speaking up.
• The dark history of forced starvation as a weapon of war against Indigenous peoples
  An Indigenous scholar explains how starvation was used to acquire the lands of Indigenous peoples. Her great-grandparents experienced ‘starvation winter’ on the Blackfeet reservation.
• 4 laws that could stymie the Trump EPA’s plan to rescind the endangerment finding, central to US climate policies
  The 2009 finding that greenhouse gases endanger public health underpins many U.S. climate policies. A new report meant to challenge it may run afoul of several laws.
• Women in STEM face challenges and underrepresentation – this course gives them tools to succeed
  Women still face discrimination and underrepresentation in STEM fields; receiving mentoring and tools to navigate male-dominated fields can help them succeed.
• San Francisco and other cities, following a Supreme Court ruling, are arresting more homeless people for living on the streets
  More than one year after the Supreme Court’s Grants Pass v. Johnson ruling, a geographer who researches homelessness finds that the ruling is leading to more places criminalizing homelessness.
• US has slashed global vaccine funding – if philanthropy fills the gap, there could be some trade-offs
  Now that the US has stopped funding Gavi, the vaccine alliance will likely become more dependent on philanthropy than ever before.
• My research team used 18 years of sea wave records to learn how destructive ‘rogue waves’ form – here’s what we found
  Researchers have used lab models to study how rogue waves form, but these don’t always transfer over to the natural world.
• This isn’t how wars are ended − a veteran diplomat explains how Trump-Putin summit is amateurish and politically driven
  A former US ambassador and career diplomat says that history indicates that the possibilities for a lasting peace coming out of the Trump-Putin summit are pretty low.
• Moose have lived in Colorado for centuries – unpacking the evidence from history, archaeology and oral traditions
  During much of the last century, moose were apparently rare in Colorado. But lately, encounters with humans are becoming more common as the population increases.
• What is rust? A materials scientist explains metal’s crusty enemy
  Water and oxygen can make metals oxidize and rust, but researchers have found many ways to prevent this damage.
• Inside an urban heat island, one street can be much hotter than its neighbor – new tech makes it easier to target cooling projects
  New technologies are making it easier to find these urban heat islets, opening the door to new strategies for efficiently improving community health.
• Inside the search for sustainable aviation fuels, which are on the federal chopping block
  Exciting as it sounds, most of this technology is still locked away in labs, not available in airports.
• Schools are looking for chaplains, but the understanding of who – and what – chaplains are varies widely
  The term ‘chaplain’ does not have a legal definition in the US at the federal or state level.
• For Syrian Druze, latest violence is one more chapter in a centuries-long struggle over autonomy
  The violence that overwhelmed Sweida in July 2025 reflects challenges under the transitional government, but also age-old tensions over Druze autonomy.
• Trump administration cuts to terrorism prevention departments could leave Americans exposed
  The elimination of offices within Homeland Security and the State Department may force US counterterrorism efforts to rely on a solely military approach, which has proven ineffective.
• 3 reasons Republicans’ redistricting power grab might backfire
  The attempt by Texas Republicans to gerrymander more GOP legislative districts could backfire and deliver the party dummymandered districts. A political scientist explains the stakes.
• Bureau of Labor Statistics tells the US what’s up with the economy – Trump firing its top official may undercut trust in its data
  President Trump’s firing of the BLS commissioner could undermine trust in the indicators the government releases.
• Authoritarian rulers aren’t new – here’s what Herodotus, an early Greek historian, wrote about them
  Herodotus showed how human beliefs and choices affected the fate of nations. His insights are still relevant.
• AI is taking hold in K-12 schools – here are some ways it can improve teaching
  Leading thinkers in the field are seeking a more nuanced understanding of how best to use AI to shape the future of education.
• Industrial pollution once ravaged the Adirondacks − decades of history captured in lake mud track their slow recovery
  Acid rain and metals from power plants, vehicles and industries reached remote mountain lakes for years. Evidence from those lakes today shows the success of the Clean Air Act.
• NASA plans to build a nuclear reactor on the Moon – a space lawyer explains why, and what the law has to say
  Nuclear reactors in space may sound like something out of science fiction, but they are likely to prove important for powering long-term space missions.
• Elon Musk’s plans for a new political party will likely be derailed by a US political system hostile to new voices
  The Republican and Democratic parties are united in protecting their chokehold on American politics, despite the view by America’s founders that parties had no legitimate place in the republic.
• Hulk Hogan and the unraveling of worker solidarity
  Pro wrestling’s failed unionization effort – and Hogan’s alleged role in undermining that campaign – is part of a broader story about the erosion of labor’s power since the 1980s.
• Vaccines hold tantalizing promise in the fight against dementia
  A prominent Nature study and related research raise the possibility that vaccines may have a broader role in experimental therapeutics outside the realm of infectious diseases.
• Gaza isn’t the first time US officials have downplayed atrocities by American-backed regimes – genocide scholars found similar strategies used from East Timor to Guatemala to Yemen
  US officials have used a number of rhetorical strategies – ways of talking about something – to distance the country from, and avoid responsibility for, atrocities committed by those it supports.
• Understanding key terms swirling around Alligator Alcatraz and immigration enforcement in the US
  The language around immigration in the US is almost as complicated as the system itself.
• ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ is attracting huge audiences worldwide – young Philadelphians told us K-pop culture inspires innocence, joy and belonging
  Researchers interviewed 30 young adults in Philadelphia about how South Korean media and culture supports their emotional health.
• As the Colorado River slowly dries up, states angle for influence over future water rights
  Long-standing water-use agreements allocate more water than the river and its basin actually contain, forcing users to cut back and face future shortages as well.
• Teen drivers face unique challenges during ‘100 deadliest days’ of summer, but safety measures can make a difference
  The summer months can be especially deadly for teenage drivers. Training, road restrictions and adult guidance can help teen drivers stay safe during the summer and beyond.
• A toxicologist’s guide to poison ivy’s itch and bee stings’ burning pain – 2 examples of nature’s chemical warfare
  Poison ivy and bees stings are among the most common outdoor menaces for people enjoying the outdoors.
• Transgender, nonbinary and disabled people more likely to view AI negatively, study shows
  Some of the marginalized groups most likely to be harmed by AI are also most wary of it. A new study’s findings raise questions about equity and consent in technology design.
• Wildfire season is starting weeks earlier in California – a new study shows how climate change is driving the expansion
  Parts of California are seeing fire season start more than 10 weeks earlier now than in the 1990s.
• How states are placing guardrails around AI in the absence of strong federal regulation
  With a potential ban of state regulation of AI soundly defeated, states are continuing to take the lead on protecting people from the technology’s potential harms – for now.
• Trump has promised to eliminate funding to schools that don’t nix DEI work – but half of the states are not complying
  Trump’s February 2025 ‘Dear Colleague’ letter instructed all schools that receive federal funding to rid their programming and policies of all DEI ideology, or else risk losing money.
• Youth athletes, not just professionals, may face mental health risks from repeated traumatic brain injuries
  The New York City shooter who sought to attack NFL offices said he had a degenerative brain disease, called chronic traumatic encephalopathy, thought to be related to playing contact sports like football.
• Iron nanoparticles can help treat contaminated water – our team of scientists created them out of expired supplements
  Researchers compared the environmental footprints of several techniques used to make magnetic nanoparticles.
• History shows why FEMA is essential in disasters, and how losing independent agency status hurt its ability to function
  States used to be on their own when a disaster hit. Then the Great Mississippi River Flood of 1927 and the Dust Bowl showed why federal coordination was essential.