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I had dinner last night with a former colleague, who heads up an investigative journalism collaborative called Lighthouse Reports. We shared thoughts on what we do now compared to what we did when we met 20 years ago at The Independent newspaper. One of the great pleasures of working at The Conversation, I said, was the regular engagement I have with researchers from around the world who focus on an unbelievably wide range of topics. It’s a daily learning experience.
Hopefully, as a subscriber to this newsletter, you too value being taken to areas of research you may previously have had little knowledge of. If so, please forward it to friends and colleagues and encourage them to sign up.
We’re always on the lookout for new authors, from across the academy. We seek diverse perspectives and insights, grounded in knowledge derived from study. But opportunities sometimes arise for us to work with researchers whose expertise flows both from the university sector and previous experience gained in other realms.
A fine example of such a scholar is Ian Parmeter at the centre for Arab and Islamic studies at the Australian National University. Ian is also a former Australian ambassador to Lebanon. So, he’s an ideal author as speculation mounts that the conflict in the Middle East could be about to escalate on that very front. Here’s what he has to say.
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Hussein Malla/AP
Ian Parmeter, Australian National University
Israel has cogent reasons for wanting to eliminate the threat from Hezbollah, but previous interventions in Lebanon have come at a cost.
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Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP
Daryl Sparkes, University of Southern Queensland
From M*A*S*H to the Hunger Games, Donald Sutherland, who has died at 88, always sat well in the eccentric, peculiar or ‘quirky’ roles.
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The new research into the grasping force of the two fingers at the tip of the elephant’s trunk will enhance robotics.
Manoj Shah/GettyImages
Pauline Costes, Sorbonne Université
New research has found that the two ‘fingers’ on the tip of an elephant’s trunk exert different forces. The finding will be used to improve the abilities of bio-inspired robots.
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Gemma Ware, The Conversation
Nando Sigona and Michaela Benson argue Britain’s Rwanda plan was brought about as a result of a Brexit-made policy failure. Listen on The Conversation Weekly podcast.
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Nigel Fletcher, King's College London
The Conservatives are claiming that allowing Labour a huge majority is constitutionally dangerous but in reality, it would have no extra powers.
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Jamal Barnes, Edith Cowan University
Claiming Hinduism represents India’s “true” identity, nationalists have targeted religious minorities and government critics, labelling them as threats to India.
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Audrey-Ann Deneault, Université de Montréal; Sheri Madigan, University of Calgary; Tracy Vaillancourt, L’Université d’Ottawa/University of Ottawa
Concerns surrounding cell phones and social media are grabbing headlines, but what does the science say?
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Susan Yeargin, University of South Carolina
The heat comes from everywhere when you’re active outside on hot days – the Sun’s rays, the air around you, the ground and even your own body.
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Iestyn Woolway, Bangor University; Alona Armstrong, Lancaster University
Floating solar panel systems on lakes and dams could generate much of Africa’s energy, decrease greehouse gas emissions, and stop freshwater evaporating, new research has found.
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Bianca Shuster, Universität Wien; Jennifer Cook, University of Birmingham
A lack of dopamine seems to directly cause social problems.
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Caitlin Fox-Harding, Edith Cowan University
Momentum is one of sport’s great intangibles but what exactly is it and how can it influence athletes and teams?
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