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

$Trains wait in a railyard as a truck passes on a road.$

Trump speculates on diesel fuel export ban as high prices ripple across US economy

Vidya Mani, University of Virginia; Cornell University

Russia-Ukraine war is accelerating the dangerous race toward fully autonomous drones

Amy McAuliffe, University of Notre Dame

$A soldier's hands are on a remote driving control.$

Fiber is both diet fad and fixture for good health – a doctor explains why there is no one-size-fits-all way to increase your intake

Jean Liew, Boston University

$Wooden cutting board with the word 'FIBER' written in flour, surrounded by various high-fiber fruits, vegetables, nuts, legumes, grains$

$An older man sits on a couch with a younger woman, looking at a photo album together.$

Dementia caregiving can expose hidden family tensions – but early planning can ease the strain

Sarah E. Patterson, University of Michigan

$A satellite image shows temperatures of a hurricane seen from above$

Why AI has trouble predicting the fury of hurricane intensity

Chanh Kieu, Indiana University

$Two men in army fatigues hold heavy guns while walking past rubble.$

Mosque attack highlights evolving extremism landscape that has brought Pakistan-Afghanistan ties to crisis point

Saif Tahir, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington and Amira Jadoon, Clemson University

Lessons for the 21st century from a 200-year-old book by ‘Frankenstein’ author Mary Shelley

Eileen Hunt, University of Notre Dame

$A person stands alone next to a lone tree in a murky foggy landscape.$

Election officials are fighting wavering voter trust by making mundane processes visible and recruiting citizens to help

Robert Glover, University of Maine

$People standing at voting machines, some voting, some waiting to vote.$

How the US gave up its edge to China in processing vital rare earth minerals – and what that’s costing

Charles Edward Gehrke, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

$Round pools and mined walls at a rare earths mine in the desert.$

Finding homes for whales and dolphins when parks like Marineland Canada close isn’t easy – a biologist explains why sea sanctuaries aren’t the answer

Jason Bruck, Stephen F. Austin State University

$Four belugas whales underwater look directly at the photographer$

$A man speaks at a podium.$

Lula’s UN address points to two starkly different visions of Brazilian nationalism ahead of crucial election

Andre Pagliarini, Louisiana State University

$A black-and-white photo of three men dressed in black.$

2 midterm elections that brought on new eras in US politics

Robert A. Strong, University of Virginia

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$Two men in suits stans side byu side$

Three Ts will dominate Trump-Xi summit – trade, Taiwan and tech

Rana Mitter, Harvard Kennedy School

$A woman in a black dress standing on a street corner, waiting for something.$

When presidents ban journalists from the White House, the First Amendment is not the only constitutional right at stake

Wayne Unger, Quinnipiac University

$More than a dozen white smokeless tobacco pouches scattered on a reflective black surface next to an open round container in indoor lighting.$

How the pro-nicotine ‘wellness’ movement rebranded an addictive drug

Hasmeena Kathuria, University of Wisconsin-Madison

No cheery time for election pollsters in run-up to US midterms

W. Joseph Campbell, American University School of Communication

$A blck map of the U.S. shattered into pieces.$

It’s OK if managers step in to help their sales staff – but not too much

Daniel E. Chavez, University of Tennessee

$A couple considers buying fruit at a grocery store, with bananas in the background, while a smiling manager offers help.$

The SAT has changed since it debuted 100 years ago – but questions remain about its relevance

Beth Kania-Gosche, Missouri University of Science and Technology

$A multiple choice exam shows the words SAT written into different bubbles, near a pencil.$

EPA says repealing power plant emissions rules will save billions – but its estimate leaves out health and climate costs

Akshaya Jha, Carnegie Mellon University

$A cooling tower looms above a house and grove of trees.$

When your child asks if they’ll be harmed like the people on the news, what do you say?

Anahi Collado, University of Colorado Boulder and Colleen Cummings, Georgetown University

$Parent holding child's head against chest with hand threaded through hair.$

Noise pollution is a serious but often forgotten public health problem

Laura Coco, San Diego State University

$woman wearing ear protection works with drill press$

Other presidents have let white-collar criminals dodge financial penalties – but not like Trump

Caren Morrison, Georgia State University

$A man in a suit sits at a desk in front of flags and holds up an open folder with a signed document inside.$

How red went from the color of revolution to the color of Republicans in US politics

Andrew Latham, Macalester College

$A map of states colored red or blue.$

Latest videos

$Bright yellow taxis packed closely together, appearing to be stuck in traffic.$

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Why taxi drivers rarely die of Alzheimer’s

Dengue fever on the rise in the US

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$A health worker wearing white protective gear that covers from head to toe and a yellow mask fumigates for mosquitoes inside a home with a green wall.$

How do ice cubes cool a drink?

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$Four tall cocktail glasses with colorful drinks. In order from right: green, red, orange, and purple. Classes also contain mint leaves, ice, lemons and limes.$

How heat in Tibet fuels storms in California

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$Brown Tibetan Plateau is on the left and the gray Himalyas mountains are in the middle. Photo is taken from space.$

How important is SCOTUS vote-by-mail decision?

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U.S.-Iran war

$A lighted sign shows diesel fuel costs $6.39 a gallon.$

Iran war pushes diesel – the economy’s lifeblood – to record high prices, with no relief on the horizon

Morgan Bazilian, Colorado School of Mines and Jamie Webster, Colorado School of Mines

Houthi advance boosts Iran’s leverage over the US and Saudi Arabia – but may cost rebel group its legitimacy back in Yemen

Mahad D. Darar, Colorado State University

$Armed men patrol in an open-top vehicle.$

Rapid Houthi advances in Yemen pose massive strategic risks for Saudi Arabia in the Gulf

Kristian Coates Ulrichsen, Rice University

$Men in military fatigues with weapons.$

A new Houthi front and expanded Iranian attacks risk sinking Gulf nations’ choke-point workaround and widening shipping risks

Kristian Coates Ulrichsen, Rice University

$Men in army fatigues stand with large guns.$

Amid grinding war, protesting Ukrainians still want their voices and values heard at home

Sarah Wilson Sokhey, University of Colorado Boulder; Gerard Toal, Virginia Tech, and John O’Loughlin, University of Colorado Boulder

$A protester holds up a sign saying 'We support Fedorov.'$

Extreme weather and natural disasters

$A man carrying several items walks through cement passage with water in it under a bridge$

As cities prepare for 2026’s super El Niño, some crucial blind spots can’t be ignored

Bethany Tietjen, Tufts University

Game delays for lightning may be annoying, but they save lives – a sports meteorologist explains the risk

Chris Vagasky, University of Wisconsin-Madison

$Lightning strikes near a soccer match, viewed from a safe angle, on Aug. 16, 2025, in Orlando, Florida.$

How heat on the Tibetan Plateau fuels powerful storms in California, half a world away

Yongkang Xue, University of California, Los Angeles

$A photos shows the flooded river.$

2026’s El Niño is shaping up to be a doozy – it’s already affecting global shipping, fish behavior and heat

Steven Paton, Smithsonian Institution

$A aerial view of a ship on the Panama Canal$

Pennsylvania’s aging levees are under pressure from scarce funding and severe weather

Kaleigh Yost, Penn State

$View of bridge over water with skyscrapers in background$

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International

$A man looks at the remains in the aftermath of flash floods. Cement structures that were once multi-story homes and businesses are covered in mud.$

Nepal isn’t the only disaster-struck country waiting for money from the global climate Loss and Damage Fund

Tarun Gopalakrishnan, Tufts University

The US sells more to Brazil than it buys – but Trump is slapping steep tariffs on its exports anyway

Filipe Mendonça, Universidade Federal de Uberlândia (UFU) and Henrique Menezes, Universidade Federal da Paraíba (UFPB)

$Shipping containers, cargo cranes and port facilities make for a colorful vista with the sea and mountains in the background.$

Putin’s United Russia will win – but vote tally, turnout and level of coercion will tell the real story of Russia’s wartime elections

Regina Smyth, Indiana University

$People walk past a large billboard with '18,19,20' written on it.$

Pardoned by Trump and escaping charges at home, ex-Honduran leader’s case shows a nation’s struggle for sovereignty

Laura Blume, University of Nevada, Reno

$A man waves to a crow of supporters.$

How South Korea is tackling its super-aging problem – and what other aging nations can learn from its experience

Jeongmin Park, Penn State and Alexis R. Santos, Penn State

$a young South Korean woman helps an elderly South Korean woman into a car$

New research in health and science

$two men putting smartwatches on a man wearing mask sitting on a bike$

The higher your body fat %, the less accurate your smartwatch is at measuring calories

Jason Kostrna, Florida International University

Why an overactive immune system attacks the bodies of people with lupus but still leaves them vulnerable to infection

Andrew Monteith, University of Tennessee

$Person looking down with eyes closed, scratching at a rash on the back of their neck$

Why does your brain mix up memories? A new study examines how memories are misplaced in your brain’s filing cabinets

Ian McDonough, Binghamton University, State University of New York

$Three generations of women look at a photo album together while behind them a wall features dozens of framed photos.$

NASA’s Roman Space Telescope will use gravity as a magnifying glass to find distant planets

Thomas Fauchez, American University

$A photo showing thousands of galaxies in a night sky.$

Physicists zoom into the birth of cosmic rainstorms with new CERN study

Jesse Liu, New York University

$An illustration of cosmic rays striking Earth's atmosphere and creating showers of particles.$

Artificial intelligence

$A female robot with four arms, in the image of the Hindu goddess Kali, stands against a dark blue background, surrounded by colorful digital graphics and glowing geometric shapes.$

Why AI resembles a charismatic religious leader

Morgan Shipley, Michigan State University

How to know if you can trust an AI’s answer to your question

Leo S. Lo, University of Virginia

$a computer screen showing a name with letters of different colors and a search field$

No, AI systems don’t have a drive to survive – a developmental psychologist explains why it only looks that way

Peter J. Marshall, Temple University

$two men face eachother inside a cramped space full of lighted buttons and with an oval window$

AI is supercharging money scams – here’s what you can do to protect yourself

Pawan Jain, University of Michigan Flint

$An older man looks at a paper statement, with a confused expression, in front of his laptop.$

AI is helping ease competition for scarce space on the airwaves

Aylin Yener, The Ohio State University

$numerous disk-shaped objects attached to a metal tower at various angles$

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

Top stories

Trump speculates on diesel fuel export ban as high prices ripple across US economy

Russia-Ukraine war is accelerating the dangerous race toward fully autonomous drones

Fiber is both diet fad and fixture for good health – a doctor explains why there is no one-size-fits-all way to increase your intake

Dementia caregiving can expose hidden family tensions – but early planning can ease the strain

Why AI has trouble predicting the fury of hurricane intensity

Mosque attack highlights evolving extremism landscape that has brought Pakistan-Afghanistan ties to crisis point

Lessons for the 21st century from a 200-year-old book by ‘Frankenstein’ author Mary Shelley

Election officials are fighting wavering voter trust by making mundane processes visible and recruiting citizens to help

How the US gave up its edge to China in processing vital rare earth minerals – and what that’s costing

Finding homes for whales and dolphins when parks like Marineland Canada close isn’t easy – a biologist explains why sea sanctuaries aren’t the answer

Lula’s UN address points to two starkly different visions of Brazilian nationalism ahead of crucial election

2 midterm elections that brought on new eras in US politics

Get context to understand the news, in your inbox daily or weekly

Three Ts will dominate Trump-Xi summit – trade, Taiwan and tech

When presidents ban journalists from the White House, the First Amendment is not the only constitutional right at stake

How the pro-nicotine ‘wellness’ movement rebranded an addictive drug

No cheery time for election pollsters in run-up to US midterms

It’s OK if managers step in to help their sales staff – but not too much

The SAT has changed since it debuted 100 years ago – but questions remain about its relevance

EPA says repealing power plant emissions rules will save billions – but its estimate leaves out health and climate costs

When your child asks if they’ll be harmed like the people on the news, what do you say?

Noise pollution is a serious but often forgotten public health problem

Other presidents have let white-collar criminals dodge financial penalties – but not like Trump

How red went from the color of revolution to the color of Republicans in US politics

Latest videos

Why taxi drivers rarely die of Alzheimer’s

Dengue fever on the rise in the US

How do ice cubes cool a drink?

How heat in Tibet fuels storms in California

How important is SCOTUS vote-by-mail decision?

Join the 1,746 readers who give monthly to fund fact-based journalism

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U.S.-Iran war

Iran war pushes diesel – the economy’s lifeblood – to record high prices, with no relief on the horizon

Houthi advance boosts Iran’s leverage over the US and Saudi Arabia – but may cost rebel group its legitimacy back in Yemen

Rapid Houthi advances in Yemen pose massive strategic risks for Saudi Arabia in the Gulf

A new Houthi front and expanded Iranian attacks risk sinking Gulf nations’ choke-point workaround and widening shipping risks

Amid grinding war, protesting Ukrainians still want their voices and values heard at home

Extreme weather and natural disasters

As cities prepare for 2026’s super El Niño, some crucial blind spots can’t be ignored

Game delays for lightning may be annoying, but they save lives – a sports meteorologist explains the risk

How heat on the Tibetan Plateau fuels powerful storms in California, half a world away

2026’s El Niño is shaping up to be a doozy – it’s already affecting global shipping, fish behavior and heat

Pennsylvania’s aging levees are under pressure from scarce funding and severe weather

Are you an academic expert who wants to share your knowledge?

International

Nepal isn’t the only disaster-struck country waiting for money from the global climate Loss and Damage Fund

The US sells more to Brazil than it buys – but Trump is slapping steep tariffs on its exports anyway

Putin’s United Russia will win – but vote tally, turnout and level of coercion will tell the real story of Russia’s wartime elections

Pardoned by Trump and escaping charges at home, ex-Honduran leader’s case shows a nation’s struggle for sovereignty

How South Korea is tackling its super-aging problem – and what other aging nations can learn from its experience

New research in health and science

The higher your body fat %, the less accurate your smartwatch is at measuring calories

Why an overactive immune system attacks the bodies of people with lupus but still leaves them vulnerable to infection

Why does your brain mix up memories? A new study examines how memories are misplaced in your brain’s filing cabinets

NASA’s Roman Space Telescope will use gravity as a magnifying glass to find distant planets

Physicists zoom into the birth of cosmic rainstorms with new CERN study

Artificial intelligence

Why AI resembles a charismatic religious leader

How to know if you can trust an AI’s answer to your question

No, AI systems don’t have a drive to survive – a developmental psychologist explains why it only looks that way

AI is supercharging money scams – here’s what you can do to protect yourself

AI is helping ease competition for scarce space on the airwaves

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