Humanitarian lessons for Ukraine – from Syria

Bird flu is killing millions of chickens and turkeys across the US

Yuko Sato, Iowa State University

Bird flu is highly contagious in domestic flocks, and a major outbreak is underway in the US. A veterinary scientist explains what consumers need to know.

‘Is It Cake?’ feeds viewers visual catharsis for uncertain times

Maggie Cao, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

The ‘fool the eye’ cakes hearken back to popular paintings from another period in American history when there was anxiety over fakes, fraudsters and misinformation.

COVID-19: Mental health telemedicine was off to a slow start – then the pandemic happened

Arash Javanbakht, Wayne State University

By creating both an urgent need for mental health care and the need to prevent the spread of COVID-19, the pandemic is enabling telemedicine to go mainstream.

Mental health problems come with an added ‘cost’ of poorer cognitive function – a neuropsychologist explains

Amitai Abramovitch, Texas State University

While only about 20% of people would qualify for a formal diagnosis of a mental disorder, more than 60% express symptoms of those disorders – and those symptoms can lead to cognitive difficulties.

How QR codes work and what makes them dangerous – a computer scientist explains

Scott Ruoti, University of Tennessee

Here’s what happens when you scan one of those ubiquitous two-dimensional black-and-white patterns.

The forgotten story of Black soldiers and the Red Ball Express during World War II

Matthew Delmont, Dartmouth College

Comprised mostly of Black soldiers, the Red Ball Express transported supplies day and night and is given credit for providing a strategic advantage over the Nazi military.

What is going on in Pakistan? And why has the US been dragged into it?

Ayesha Jalal, Tufts University

Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan dissolved Parliament rather than face a no-confidence vote. The Conversation asked an expert: What happens next?

Why the best way to stop strongmen like Putin is to prevent their rise in the first place

Joseph Wright, Penn State; Abel Escribà-Folch, Universitat Pompeu Fabra

In recent years, Western governments have, in effect, aided the rise of personalist dictators in Russia, Iraq, Libya, North Korea and Venezuela.

Rape by Russian soldiers in Ukraine is the latest example of a despicable wartime crime that spans the globe

Mia Bloom, Georgia State University

An expert on rape during war examines the emerging evidence from Ukraine that Russian soldiers raped Ukrainian women and explains the role rape plays in conflicts.

Russia is sparking new nuclear threats – understanding nonproliferation history helps place this in context

Nina Srinivasan Rathbun, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences

Despite decades of progress on nonproliferation, Russia’s new threats of nuclear strikes bring to mind that convincing countries to reduce their nuclear weapons has long been very difficult.

An asteroid impact could wipe out an entire city – a space security expert explains NASA’s plans to prevent a potential catastrophe

What is aphasia? An expert explains the condition forcing Bruce Willis to retire from acting

Using lies and disinformation, Putin and his team have been building the case for a Ukraine invasion for 14 years