TheConversationUS

joined 2 years ago
 

Preparing for a swine flu pandemic that never materialized may have inadvertently caused the reemergence of an extinct H1N1 virus, leading to the 1977 “Russian flu” pandemic.
https://theconversation.com/preparing-for-a-pandemic-that-never-came-ended-up-setting-off-another-how-an-accidental-virus-release-triggered-1977s-russian-flu-236297
#science #health #history

 

Trump’s lie about Haitian immigrants eating pets (it’s been confirmed to be a lie) wasn’t a surprise, writes a food historian.

It follows a long American history of peddling ugly rumors about immigrants stealing and eating pets. Racists have long twisted dietary rules and preferences of different groups to divide people and dehumanize immigrants.

https://theconversation.com/no-immigrants-arent-eating-dogs-and-cats-but-trumps-claim-is-part-of-an-ugly-history-of-myths-about-immigrant-foodways-239343
#USPolitics #Food #History #Immigration

 

Israel's recent attacks on Hezbollah in Lebanon mark a dangerous escalation, pushing the region closer to all-out conflict, which both sides have spent the last year trying to avoid.

A full-scale war could devastate both countries and potentially draw in Iran and the U.S. – here’s some essential background from a professor of #history and peace studies:
https://theconversation.com/a-weakened-hezbollah-is-being-goaded-into-all-out-conflict-with-israel-the-consequences-would-be-devastating-for-all-239469

#news #Israel #MiddleEast

 

#TikTok was in court today to overturn a U.S. law that would force the video app to divorce from its China-based parent company or be banned.

It’s the latest development in a lengthy saga over the app that many politicians in Washington fear is a security risk.

But why is TikTok controversial?

Here’s a quick rundown of reads from #cybersecurity, #socialmedia and legal experts:

https://theconversation.com/tiktok-ban-goes-to-the-court-5-essential-reads-on-the-case-and-its-consequences-239160
#news #technology

 

The U.S. still has an active presence in #Syria, and recent assaults by US-backed fighters marked the worst clashes there in nearly a year.

A political scientist says a continued presence risks prolonging America’s entanglement in a protracted and costly conflict with no clear end in sight, while antagonizing NATO ally Turkey.
https://theconversation.com/us-military-presence-in-syria-carries-substantial-risks-but-so-does-complete-withdrawal-235569
#USPolitics #News #WorldNews

 

The price of asthma medication has soared in the U.S. over the past decade and a half.

The pharmaceutical company Teva sells QVAR RediHaler, a corticosteroid inhaler, for $286 in the U.S.

In Germany, Teva sells that same inhaler for $9.

https://theconversation.com/asthma-meds-have-become-shockingly-unaffordable-but-relief-may-be-on-the-way-222858
#health

 

17th-century New England farmers moved a mind-staggering amount of stone to build walls – an estimated 240,000 miles of barricades, most stacked thigh-high and similarly wide.

That’s long enough to wrap Earth 10x at the equator – and is larger in volume than the Great Wall of China, Hadrian’s Wall in Britain and the Egyptian pyramids at Giza COMBINED.

https://theconversation.com/new-england-stone-walls-lie-at-the-intersection-of-history-archaeology-ecology-and-geoscience-and-deserve-a-science-of-their-own-216701
#agriculture #history @histodons #Histodons

 

The UN’s Genocide Convention, in its 75 years, has not stopped genocide.

Far from it.

But there is some value to the international treaty.

https://theconversation.com/the-landmark-genocide-convention-has-had-mixed-results-since-the-un-approved-it-75-years-ago-219296
#history @histodons #Histodons #humanrights #genocide

 

Henry #Kissinger is dead at the age of 100.

Here's one Cambodian's verdict
"I’m a scholar of the political economy of Cambodia who, as a child, escaped the brutal Khmer Rouge regime with four siblings...
In both a professional and personal sense, I am aware of the near 50-year impact Kissinger’s policies during the Vietnam War have had on the country of my birth."

That impact was destruction, death and trauma.

https://theconversation.com/henry-kissingers-bombing-campaign-likely-killed-hundreds-of-thousands-of-cambodians-and-set-path-for-the-ravages-of-the-khmer-rouge-209353
@histodons #News