Gutting NOAA will harm US fisheries, coastal health

Texas records first US measles death in 10 years – a medical epidemiologist explains how to protect yourself and your community from this deadly, preventable disease

Daniel Pastula, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

As public health officials try to tame the outbreak, declining vaccination rates draw concern.

As flu cases break records this year, vaccine rates are declining, particularly for children and 65+ adults

Annette Regan, University of California, Los Angeles

So far, fewer than half of US children and older adults have been vaccinated during this year’s high-severity flu season.

Just having a pet doesn’t help mental health – but pet-owners with secure relationships with their pets are less depressed

Brian N. Chin, Trinity College

Do you have a secure or anxious attachment with your pet?

As the Kremlin eyes a thaw with the White House, Russia’s pro-war hawks aren’t too happy

Adam Lenton, Wake Forest University

A majority of Russians are in favor of peace talks, but a very vocal minority eye US overtures with suspicion and contempt.

Why Trump really wants Ukraine’s minerals – China has put theirs off limits

Dafydd Townley, University of Portsmouth

Donald Trump is demanding Ukraine do a deal to hand over some of its critical minerals.

What’s a constitutional crisis? Here’s how Trump’s recent moves are challenging the Constitution’s separation of powers

Jeffrey Schmitt, University of Dayton

Legal experts are concerned that President Donald Trump is expanding executive powers beyond the law – creating what they call a constitutional crisis.

What are conflicts of interest and what can be done about them?

Archon Fung, Harvard Kennedy School

At a time of low trust in government, conflicts of interest can further erode Americans’ confidence in officials.

Francis − a pope who has cared deeply for the poor and opened up the Catholic Church

Mathew Schmalz, College of the Holy Cross

A scholar of global Catholicism writes how Francis has opened the church to the outside world in ways no pope had done before.

Maple seeds’ unique spinning motion allows them to travel far even in the rain, a new study shows

Andrew Dickerson, University of Tennessee

Spinning maple seeds can shed raindrops in the blink of an eye to regain their helicopter-like flight.

The science behind airplane deicing – a mechanical engineer explains how chemistry and physics make flying a more uplifting experience

Andrew Sommers, Miami University

Waiting for your plane to get deiced may be annoying, but it’s an essential safety step in chilly conditions.

‘It seemed like a good job at first’: how people are trafficked, trapped and forced to scam in Southeast Asia – Scam Factories podcast, Ep 1

Gemma Ware, The Conversation

The first episode of Scam Factories, a three part podcast series from The Conversation Weekly taking you inside Southeast Asia’s brutal fraud compounds.

Trump administration sets out to create an America its people have never experienced − one without a meaningful government

More Americans of all political stripes support government benefits for low-income people − and Black Lives Matter could be a big reason why

What’s the shape of the universe? Mathematicians use topology to study the shape of the world and everything in it

The Conversation U.S. weekly news quiz

Fritz Holznagel, The Conversation

Here’s the first question of this week’s edition:

Gene Hackman will be remembered as ________________.

1. A. a five-time winner of the Academy Award
2. B. the Hollywood actor's actor
3. C. the beloved 'Hick from French Lick'
4. D. the star of 'The Conversation,' naturally

Test your knowledge