The Conversation UK

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Nelson Mandela
The 'Mandela effect' and the science of false memories
The Conversation UK - Neil Dagnall and Ken Drinkwater
There’s a theory doing the rounds online that nuclear research experiments caused the world to shift into an alternate reality where Donald Trump …
Health (UK)
Ebola epidemic officially declared a global health emergency
The Conversation UK - Mark Eccleston-Turner
On July 17, the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo a public health emergency of international …
Sanofi
Instagram influencers: no, having 30,000 followers does not make you a celebrity
The Conversation UK - Hayleigh Bosher
Claims that anyone with more than 30,000 social media followers is officially a celebrity have been circulating, following a recent ruling by the …
Boris Johnson
Boris Johnson lacks character, competence and credibility, say leadership experts
The Conversation UK - Michael Smets and Tim Morris
The race to become the UK’s next prime minister is challenging our usual assumptions about what is important when people choose a leader. The rule …
Culture (UK)
My book Tell it to the Bees was made into a film – but they changed the ending for a straight audience
The Conversation UK - Fiona Shaw
You’ll find the corpses of many novels left to rot in the hinterland of film adaptation – and plenty of novelists weeping over them. Films are …
Britain First
How far-right groups use Britain's extremism definition to argue they aren't extremist
The Conversation UK - Chris Allen
The government’s definition of extremism is so unfit for purpose that far-right groups with clearly dangerous ideology are using it to “prove” that …
Biodegradation
Cigarette butts are the forgotten plastic pollution – and they could be killing our plants
The Conversation UK - Dannielle Green
It’s amazing how quickly people have ditched plastic straws thanks to campaigns to discourage us from using such “pointless plastic”. Yet rarely do …
Health (UK)
Humans aren't designed to be happy – so stop trying
The Conversation UK - Rafael Euba
A huge happiness and positive thinking industry, estimated to be worth US$11 billion a year, has helped to create the fantasy that happiness is a …
Apollo Missions
How geological maps made the Apollo moon landings worthwhile
The Conversation UK - David Rothery
I still remember a cartoon in a newspaper in July 1969, just before the first Apollo moon landing. It showed the ground crew reminding the astronauts …
College & University
New wave of smart cities has arrived - and they're nothing like science fiction
The Conversation UK - James Ransom
An abandoned mine shaft beneath the town of Mansfield, England is an unlikely place to shape the future of cities. But here, researchers from the …
Brexit
No-deal Brexit: does latest parliamentary vote make it less likely?
The Conversation UK - Chris Stafford
MPs voted on July 18 to back an attempt to stop the UK government from shutting down parliament to push through a no-deal Brexit in late October. …
Xinjiang
China is building a global coalition of human rights violators to defend its record in Xinjiang – what is its endgame?
The Conversation UK - Abbas Faiz
A letter signed in early July by 22 Western countries, including the UK, Australia, Canada and France, raised serious concerns to UN officials about …
Culture (UK)
How women and the moon intertwine in literature
The Conversation UK - Sara Read and Catie Gill
In the late 17th century, the female English playwright Aphra Behn wrote a smash hit play about a man obsessed with the moon, who was constantly …
Health (UK)
Doctors as border police: what happened to 'first, do no harm'?
The Conversation UK - Anita Berlin and Victoria Koski-Karell
Building trust and acting in the patient’s best interests are guiding principles of medical practice. This is especially true when caring for …
Asia Bibi
Tehreek-e-Labbaik: how blasphemy case in Pakistan brought down hardline religious party
The Conversation UK - Abdullah Yusuf
Asia Bibi, a Pakistani Christian and farm labourer, was beaten by a mob and arrested for blasphemy in June 2009 after being accused of insulting the …
Shaving
Betting on speculative geoengineering may risk an escalating ‘climate debt crisis’
The Conversation UK - Shinichiro Asayama and Mike Hulme
The opening of the Oscar-winning film The Big Short, a comedy-drama on the global financial crisis of 2007-2008, begins with a famous quote: “It …
Extinction Rebellion
Extinction Rebellion uses tactics that toppled dictators – but we live in a liberal democracy
The Conversation UK - Oscar Berglund
After occupying parts of central London over two weeks in April, Extinction Rebellion’s (XR) summer uprising has now spread to Cardiff, Glasgow, …
LGBTQI
UK's LGBT teachers still scarred by the legacy of homophobic legislation more than 30 years on
The Conversation UK - Catherine Lee
“Our children, our choice,” shout the protesters outside two schools in Birmingham. Here, parents of mainly Muslim faith have taken their children …
Moon Landing
Apollo 11 made us believe we could do anything – the truth is it could hasten our downfall
The Conversation UK - Eric Olson
The Apollo project gave us the astonishing spectacle of a blue marble rising over the sterile surface of the moon. Of course, the moon was already …
Cyprus
Five countries in the eastern Mediterranean are shaking up Europe's energy map
The Conversation UK - Khaled Kesseba and Konstantinos Lagos
Discoveries of natural gas reserves in the Mediterranean Sea around Egypt, Cyprus, Israel and Greece are shaking up Europe’s energy politics. …
European Union
EU silence over British seizure of Iranian tanker is a telling glimpse of post-Brexit future
The Conversation UK - Barry Ryan
It’s rare to experience silence in this age of political anger and loudness, of bombastic tweets, insulting truths and incredible lies. It’s so …
Diversity
Social diversity is initially threatening but people do adapt over time – new research
The Conversation UK - Miguel R Ramos and Douglas Massey and Matthew Bennett and Miles Hewstone
The ethnic and religious composition of many modern societies has been dramatically changed by global modernisation. These demographic changes are …
Ursula von der Leyen
Ursula Von der Leyen: why controversial choice for EU top job may actually have been the right one
The Conversation UK - Alexandra Hennessy
In the end, the members of the European Parliament decided to swallow their pride and elected Ursula von der Leyen to succeed Jean-Claude Juncker as …
Antigua and Barbuda
Barbudans are resisting 'disaster capitalism', two years after Hurricane Irma
The Conversation UK - Gemma Sou
It’s been nearly two years since Hurricane Irma devastated the tiny Caribbean island of Barbuda. Gusts of 150mph or more damaged or destroyed almost …
Internet
The internet is surprisingly fragile, crashes thousands of times a year, and no one is making it stronger
The Conversation UK - Vasileios Giotsas
How could a small internet service provider (ISP) in Pennsylvania cause millions of websites worldwide to go offline? That’s what happened on June …
ADHD
ADHD: how race for the Moon revealed America's first hyperactive children
The Conversation UK - Matthew Smith
As the world commemorates the 50th anniversary of the first moon landing, we can appreciate the numerous technological advances that have emerged …
Naples
Mafia in Naples is still going strong – and we must not forget how it affects everyday life in the city
The Conversation UK - Felia Allum
The Italian city of Naples has long been the stronghold of its own brand of mafia known as the Camorra. But according to some, its dominance has now …
U.S. House of Representatives
US House condemns Donald Trump's racist tweets – why his language is so dangerous
The Conversation UK - Natasha Lindstaedt
President Donald Trump has been denounced by the US House of Representatives for tweets attacking four Democratic Congresswomen of colour calling on …
British Empire
Tramping artisans who marched thousands of miles a year are proof that Britain was built by migrants
The Conversation UK - David Finkelstein David Finkelstein is a Friend of The Conversation.
“If you believe you are a citizen of the world, you are a citizen of nowhere” – so said British prime minister Theresa May in a speech which captured …
Paternity Leave
New paternity leave proposals to exclude high earners could be a step backwards for gender equality
The Conversation UK - Ernestine Gheyoh Ndzi
A father’s role may have shifted massively in recent decades – from being seen as the main breadwinner or money earner in a household, to being a …

The Conversation UK

An independent news and commentary website produced by academics and journalists. Free to read and republish.