The Conversation - Hooking US households on natural gas

Flood forecasts in real-time with block-by-block data could save lives – a new machine learning method makes it possible

Valeriy Ivanov, University of Michigan

The majority of flood-related deaths involve vehicles in water. What if flood models could warn of the risks street by street using real-time storm forecasts?

A librarian recommends 5 fun fiction books for kids and teens featuring disabled characters

Rebecca Weber, Oklahoma State University

Disability representation in books is an important part of diversity and inclusion.

Dozens of US schools, universities move to ban TikTok

Nir Kshetri, University of North Carolina – Greensboro

School officials are becoming increasingly wary of TikTok amid concerns that the app poses a risk to student safety and privacy and makes the nation vulnerable to spies.

Vaccination to prevent dementia? New research suggests one way viral infections can accelerate neurodegeneration

Andrew Bubak, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus; Diego Restrepo, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus; Maria Nagel, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

Inflammation and damage to the olfactory system from shingles, COVID-19 and herpes infections may contribute to Alzheimer’s disease.

Kicking off the new year by cleansing your body with a detox diet? A dietitian unpacks the science behind these fads

Taylor Grasso, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

Detox diets and cleanses supposedly clear the body of allegedly toxic substances. But the evidence suggests otherwise.

Florida Gov. DeSantis leads the GOP’s national charge against public education that includes lessons on race and sexual orientation

Jonathan Feingold, Boston University

The GOP leadership renewed its pledge to resist public education that includes painful discussions on race and racism in America.

Fictional newsman Ted Baxter was more invested in fame than in good journalism – but unlike today’s pundits, he didn’t corrupt the news

Heather Hendershot, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

Today’s anchors on politically slanted news programs feed anger and polarization with their wild claims. Their ancestor is a character from ‘The Mary Tyler Moore Show’ – with one big difference.

US military spending in Ukraine reached nearly $50 billion in 2022 – but no amount of money alone is enough to end the war

Monica Duffy Toft, Tufts University

The US is giving record-high amounts of money to Ukraine, signaling it is invested in this war for the long run – a political science scholar explains 3 important things to know.

Why aren’t there any legal protections for the children of influencers?

Jessica Maddox, University of Alabama

Some of the now-adult children of influencers are pushing back.

Sitting all day is terrible for your health – now, a new study finds a relatively easy way to counteract it

US birth rates are at record lows – even though the number of kids most Americans say they want has held steady

How the distortion of Martin Luther King Jr.‘s words enables more, not less, racial division within American society