By Kim Honey, CEO|Editor-in-Chief, The Conversation
The Conversation Canada is thrilled to announce Heather Walmsley, one of the founding editors who helped us launch in 2017, is returning to the fold. She was instrumental in establishing The Conversation Canada as an independent source of news and views from the academic and research community. Over the next three years, she edited science, education and health articles and helped grow our news coverage, audience and university membership.
Heather will be our Science & Technology editor, and these two beats are a key part of our mission to share trusted academic knowledge…
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By John Coxhead, Visiting Professor in Solution Oriented Policing, De Montfort University
The government has announced a massive shake-up of policing in England and Wales, with the aim to balance providing a local police service across the country while also facing national threats. It involves the creation of a new National Police Service (touted as a “British FBI”) and reducing the number of forces across England and Wales from 43 to a possible 12 bigger, regional forces.
Elected police and crime commissioners will be replaced by regional mayors, or police and crime boards from 2028. And Whitehall will be given refreshed powers to intervene in failing forces.
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By Adam Taylor, Professor of Anatomy, Lancaster University
For most people, cold weather is an inconvenience, requiring an extra layer of clothing or the thermostat to be turned up. For others, exposure to cold can trigger an allergic reaction severe enough to cause them to collapse.
Cold urticaria is a rare but potentially dangerous condition in which contact with cold temperatures causes the immune system to misfire. The results can be hives, swelling, pain and in some cases, life-threatening anaphylaxis.
The condition was first…
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By Duncan Sayer, Professor in Archaeology, University of Lancashire
Four early Anglo-Saxon swords uncovered during a recent archaeological excavation I took part in each tell a story about how weapons were viewed at the time. There was also a striking discovery of a child buried with spear and shield. Was the child an underage fighter? Or were weapons more than mere tools of war to these people?
Weapons are embedded with values. Would, for example, the Jedi knights in the Star Wars franchise have as much nobility if they were armed with knives instead of light sabres? Today,…
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By Jay Silverstein, Senior Lecturer in the Department of Chemistry and Forensics, Nottingham Trent University
When Aztec emissaries arrived in 1520 to Tzintzuntzan, the capital of the Tarascan Kingdom in what is now the Mexican state of Michoacán, they carried a warning from the Aztec emperor, Cuauhtémoc.
They cautioned that strange foreigners – the Spaniards – had invaded the land and posed a grave threat. The emissaries requested an audience with the Tarascan ruler, known as the Cazonci, King Zuanga. But Zuanga had recently died, most likely from smallpox brought by the Spaniards.
Relations between the…
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By Hafiz Muhammad Usman Rana, Senior Lecturer in Finance, Birmingham City University
The price of gold has risen to over US$5,000 (£3,662) an ounce for the first time ever, after doubling in value over the course of a very strong 2025 for the precious metal.
The usual explanation for such strong rises is that gold is considered a safe bet for investors when other options look a little shaky. High inflation for example, when cash quickly loses value, is often linked to gold price rises. Trade wars and actual wars usually have a similar effect.
A common view then, is that gold…
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By James Brassett, Reader in International Political Economy, University of Warwick
The rapid responses of netizens to political news with memes means that comedy formats like Mock the Week will always be trailing behind
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By Michelle Spear, Professor of Anatomy, University of Bristol
Many women recognise the pattern. A routine procedure takes longer than expected. It’s more uncomfortable than promised. The doctor reassures them that this sometimes happens, or suggests anxiety or muscle tension might be playing a role. But often the explanation is simpler – and anatomical.
This mismatch between bodies and procedures isn’t related to rare conditions or specialist care. It reflects a recurring problem in everyday medicine. Many routine procedures were designed around male anatomy, and they…
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By Kerry Brown, Professor of Chinese Politics; Director, Lau China Institute, King's College London
Zhang Youxia, a top military general and vice-chairman of the body in overall command of China’s military forces, was removed from office on January 23. His departure means all but one of the seven members of the central military commission (CMC), which is chaired by Chinese president Xi Jinping, have lost their positions in the last three years.
Xi has an established record of purging senior officials. Back at the dawn of his tenure as head of the Chinese Communist party in the early 2010s, there were a series…
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By Angus Nurse, Professor of Law and Environmental Justice, Anglia Ruskin University
Our perception of animal welfare as a nation of animal lovers is out of step with policy and law that still allows differential animal treatment.
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