tag:theconversation.com,2011:/institutions/clarkson-university-4276/articlesClarkson University2024-03-18T12:30:59Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2228472024-03-18T12:30:59Z2024-03-18T12:30:59ZHow do airplanes fly? An aerospace engineer explains the physics of flight<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/578175/original/file-20240227-28-cejldv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C7668%2C4449&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">U.S. airlines carry more than 800 million passengers per year.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/airplane-isolated-on-sky-3d-rendering-royalty-free-image/1147868750?phrase=airplanes">Lasha Kilasonia/iStock via Getty Images Plus</a></span></figcaption></figure><figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=293&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=293&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=293&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/us/topics/curious-kids-us-74795">Curious Kids</a> is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to <a href="mailto:curiouskidsus@theconversation.com">curiouskidsus@theconversation.com</a>.</em></p>
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<p><strong>How do airplanes fly? – Benson, age 10, Rockford, Michigan</strong></p>
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<p>Airplane flight is one of the most significant technological achievements of the 20th century. The <a href="https://airandspace.si.edu/explore/stories/wright-brothers">invention of the airplane</a> allows people to travel from one side of the planet to the other in less than a day, compared with weeks of travel by boat and train.</p>
<p>Understanding precisely why airplanes fly is an ongoing challenge for <a href="https://www.clarkson.edu/people/craig-merrett">aerospace engineers, like me</a>, who study and design airplanes, rockets, satellites, helicopters and space capsules. </p>
<p>Our job is to make sure that flying through the air or in space is safe and reliable, by using tools and ideas from science and mathematics, like computer simulations and experiments. </p>
<p>Because of that work, flying in an airplane is <a href="https://usafacts.org/articles/is-flying-safer-than-driving/">the safest way to travel</a> – safer than cars, buses, trains or boats. But although aerospace engineers design aircraft that are stunningly sophisticated, you might be surprised to learn there are still some details about the physics of flight that we don’t fully understand.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/577439/original/file-20240222-28-v3tjb4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A diagram of an airplane that shows the four forces of flight." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/577439/original/file-20240222-28-v3tjb4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/577439/original/file-20240222-28-v3tjb4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=381&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/577439/original/file-20240222-28-v3tjb4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=381&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/577439/original/file-20240222-28-v3tjb4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=381&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/577439/original/file-20240222-28-v3tjb4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=479&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/577439/original/file-20240222-28-v3tjb4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=479&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/577439/original/file-20240222-28-v3tjb4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=479&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">The forces of weight, thrust, drag and lift act on a plane to keep it aloft and moving.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www1.grc.nasa.gov/beginners-guide-to-aeronautics/airplane-cruise-balanced-forces/">NASA</a></span>
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<h2>May the force(s) be with you</h2>
<p>There are <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/stem-content/four-forces-of-flight/#:%7E">four forces</a> that aerospace engineers consider when designing an airplane: weight, thrust, drag and lift. Engineers use these forces to help design the shape of the airplane, the size of the wings, and figure out how many passengers the airplane can carry. </p>
<p>For example, when an airplane takes off, the thrust must be greater than the drag, and the lift must be greater than the weight. If you watch an airplane take off, you’ll see the wings change shape using flaps from the back of the wings. The flaps help make more lift, but they also make more drag, so a powerful engine is necessary to create more thrust. </p>
<p>When the airplane is high enough and is cruising to your destination, lift needs to balance the weight, and the thrust needs to balance the drag. So the pilot pulls the flaps in and can set the engine to produce less power.</p>
<p>That said, let’s define what force means. According to <a href="https://ca.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/4079abf0-7a4b-4f49-80ad-c69cd06a80f9/newtons-second-law-of-motion/">Newton’s Second Law</a>, a force is a mass multiplied by an acceleration, or F = ma. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/579678/original/file-20240304-22-jrh9mr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A black and white historical photograph of the first flight of the Wright brothers." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/579678/original/file-20240304-22-jrh9mr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/579678/original/file-20240304-22-jrh9mr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=381&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/579678/original/file-20240304-22-jrh9mr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=381&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/579678/original/file-20240304-22-jrh9mr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=381&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/579678/original/file-20240304-22-jrh9mr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=479&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/579678/original/file-20240304-22-jrh9mr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=479&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/579678/original/file-20240304-22-jrh9mr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=479&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">On Dec. 17, 1903, the Wright brothers made their first flight at Kitty Hawk, N.C. Orville Wright is at the controls, while Wilbur looks on.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/the-flyer-takes-off-from-kill-devil-hill-with-orville-news-photo/517389284?adppopup=true">Bettmann via Getty Images</a></span>
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<p>A force that everyone encounters every day is <a href="https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/what-is-gravity/en/#:%7E">the force of gravity</a>, which keeps us on the ground. When you get weighed at the doctor’s office, they’re actually measuring the amount of force that your body applies to the scale. When your weight is given in pounds, that is a measure of force. </p>
<p>While an airplane is flying, gravity is pulling the airplane down. That force is the weight of the airplane. </p>
<p>But its engines push the airplane forward because they create <a href="https://www1.grc.nasa.gov/beginners-guide-to-aeronautics/what-is-thrust/">a force called thrust</a>. The engines pull in air, which has mass, and quickly push that air out of the back of the engine – so there’s a mass multiplied by an acceleration. </p>
<p>According to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-wh3fJRdjo">Newton’s Third Law</a>, for every action there’s an equal and opposite reaction. When the air rushes out the back of the engines, there is a reaction force that pushes the airplane forward – that’s called thrust.</p>
<p>As the airplane flies through the air, the shape of the airplane pushes air out of the way. Again, by Newton’s Third Law, this air pushes back, <a href="https://www1.grc.nasa.gov/beginners-guide-to-aeronautics/what-is-drag/#:%7E">which leads to drag</a>. </p>
<p>You can experience something similar to drag when swimming. Paddle through a pool, and your arms and feet provide thrust. Stop paddling, and you will keep moving forward because you have mass, but you will slow down. The reason that you slow down is that the water is pushing back on you – that’s drag. </p>
<h2>Understanding lift</h2>
<p><a href="https://www1.grc.nasa.gov/beginners-guide-to-aeronautics/what-is-lift/">Lift</a> is more complicated than the other forces of weight, thrust and drag. It’s created by the wings of an airplane, and the shape of the wing is critical; that shape is <a href="https://howthingsfly.si.edu/media/airfoil#:%7E">known as an airfoil</a>. Basically it means the top and bottom of the wing are curved, although the shapes of the curves can be different from each other. </p>
<p>As air flows around the airfoil, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UO75jDwGCdQ">it creates pressure</a> – a force spread out over a large area. Lower pressure is created on the top of the airfoil compared to the pressure on the bottom. Or to look at it another way, air travels faster over the top of the airfoil than beneath. </p>
<p>Understanding why the pressure and speeds are different on the top and the bottom is <a href="https://airandspace.si.edu/multimedia-gallery/lift-and-copjpg">critical to understand lift</a>. By improving our understanding of lift, engineers can design more fuel-efficient airplanes and give passengers more comfortable flights.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/579698/original/file-20240304-24-6df49v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A diagram that shows how the airfoil of a plane works." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/579698/original/file-20240304-24-6df49v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/579698/original/file-20240304-24-6df49v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=385&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/579698/original/file-20240304-24-6df49v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=385&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/579698/original/file-20240304-24-6df49v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=385&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/579698/original/file-20240304-24-6df49v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=484&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/579698/original/file-20240304-24-6df49v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=484&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/579698/original/file-20240304-24-6df49v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=484&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Note the airfoil, which is a specific wing shape that helps keep a plane in the air.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/illustration/how-airplanes-fly-royalty-free-illustration/1401215523?phrase=airfoil+diagram&adppopup=true">Dimitrios Karamitros/iStock via Getty Images Plus</a></span>
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<h2>The conundrum</h2>
<p>The reason why air moves at different speeds around an airfoil remains mysterious, and <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/video/no-one-can-explain-why-planes-stay-in-the-air/">scientists are still investigating</a> this question. </p>
<p>Aerospace engineers have measured these pressures on a wing in both wind tunnel experiments and during flight. We can create models of different wings to predict if they will fly well. We can also change lift by changing a wing’s shape to create airplanes that fly for long distances or fly very fast. </p>
<p>Even though we still don’t fully know why lift happens, aerospace engineers work with mathematical equations that recreate the different speeds on the top and bottom of the airfoil. Those equations describe a process <a href="https://howthingsfly.si.edu/media/circulation-theory-lift">known as circulation</a>. </p>
<p>Circulation provides aerospace engineers with a way to model what happens around a wing even if we do not completely understand why it happens. In other words, through the use of math and science, we are able to build airplanes that are safe and efficient, even if we don’t completely understand the process behind why it works.</p>
<p>Ultimately, if aerospace engineers can figure out why the air flows at different speeds depending on which side of the wing it’s on, we can design airplanes that use less fuel and pollute less.</p>
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<p><em>Hello, curious kids! Do you have a question you’d like an expert to answer? Ask an adult to send your question to <a href="mailto:curiouskidsus@theconversation.com">CuriousKidsUS@theconversation.com</a>. Please tell us your name, age and the city where you live.</em></p>
<p><em>And since curiosity has no age limit – adults, let us know what you’re wondering, too. We won’t be able to answer every question, but we will do our best.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/222847/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Craig Merrett receives funding from the Office of Naval Research and L3Harris. He is affiliated with the American Institute for Aeronautics and Astronautics, and is a licensed professional engineering in Ontario, Canada. Dr. Merrett is an associate professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Clarkson University, Potsdam, NY. </span></em></p>People have been flying airplanes for well over a century. Engineers know how to balance all the forces at play, but still aren’t exactly sure how some of the physics of flight actually works.Craig Merrett, Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Clarkson UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2229442024-03-14T12:43:02Z2024-03-14T12:43:02ZProteins in milk and blood could one day let doctors detect breast cancer earlier – and save lives<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/581419/original/file-20240312-28-8qcsls.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=18%2C91%2C5398%2C3982&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">What if a simple blood test could diagnose otherwise undetected breast cancer?</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/vascular-testing-in-research-laboratories-royalty-free-image/1443155227">Srinophan69/Moment via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Doctors may someday be able to use bodily fluids to noninvasively detect breast cancer in patients earlier than is possible now.</p>
<p>Breast cancer is the <a href="https://doi.org/10.3322/caac.21763">most commonly diagnosed cancer among women</a> in the U.S. and is currently one of the leading <a href="https://www.cancer.org/cancer/risk-prevention/understanding-cancer-risk/cancer-facts/cancer-facts-for-women.html">causes of cancer deaths</a>. Earlier diagnosis and treatment <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/cncr.32887">lead to better prognoses</a> for breast cancer patients. But mammograms have proved to be <a href="https://www.cancer.org/cancer/types/breast-cancer/screening-tests-and-early-detection/mammograms/limitations-of-mammograms.html">less effective for those under age 40</a>, as their breast tissue is denser and screening and biopsies can be unpleasant to endure.</p>
<p><iframe id="Nf0up" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/Nf0up/2/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<p>In breast milk and blood serum, researchers, including <a href="https://people.clarkson.edu/%7Ecdarie/">those in my lab group</a>, have identified proteins that are involved in tumor development. Eventually, biochemists like my colleagues <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=GH2M7ZEAAAAJ&hl=en">and I</a> hope we can use these cancer-related proteins to create a <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/proteomes10040036">biomarker panel</a> that physicians can use to detect breast cancer earlier, therefore aiding in diagnosis and treatment.</p>
<h2>Proteins as biomarkers for what’s happening</h2>
<p>Researchers can analyze the proteins present in a variety of tissues, from biopsies of tumors to biological fluids including blood, saliva, urine, tears or breast milk. This technique is an example of studying a sample’s proteome – all the proteins in a particular cell, organism or species. The field is called <a href="https://doi.org/10.4331/wjbc.v12.i5.57">proteomics</a>. </p>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/S1672-0229(07)60018-7">Proteomics can be a powerful tool</a> when researchers compare the proteomes of individuals from different groups, such as in blood from healthy people versus those with breast cancer. This kind of case-control comparison can identify a single protein or a group of proteins and their variants that are specific to one condition.</p>
<p>That’s what my colleagues and I are looking for: proteins that are present only in the samples from people who have breast cancer. Scientists call them <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/biomarker">biomarkers</a> because they signal that a patient has a particular condition. Once our candidates are verified by large-scale clinical trials that include many patients, we hope that particular proteins can then be used to assess someone’s future risk of developing the disease.</p>
<p>Doctors can currently use <a href="https://doi.org/10.5493/wjem.v2.i5.86">biomarkers for breast cancer</a> to gauge a patient’s response to treatment. For instance, the molecules cancer antigen 15-3 (CA 15-3) and carcinoemybronic antigen (CEA) are elevated in breast cancer patients, so monitoring their levels can let physicians know whether treatment is working. </p>
<p>Inherited variants of the BRCA1/2 genes can increase the likelihood of developing cancer; they can act as biomarkers in screening for cancer risk. </p>
<p>None of these biomarkers aid in diagnosis of breast cancer, though.</p>
<p>Researchers prefer proteins as cancer biomarkers over the genetic materials DNA and RNA because proteins provide a snapshot of what is happening in a patient’s body at the time a sample is collected. DNA and RNA can tell you whether a certain gene is turned on or off, but not the active form of the protein it codes for or the relative abundance of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e13323">proteins</a>. Protein analysis can also reveal changes the protein has undergone and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/S1672-0229(07)60018-7">protein-protein interactions</a> that can alter the way a protein functions.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/581402/original/file-20240312-18-og1u88.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="diagram showing nursing mother and breast milk bag, and a blood draw and test tube" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/581402/original/file-20240312-18-og1u88.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/581402/original/file-20240312-18-og1u88.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581402/original/file-20240312-18-og1u88.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581402/original/file-20240312-18-og1u88.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581402/original/file-20240312-18-og1u88.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=463&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581402/original/file-20240312-18-og1u88.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=463&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581402/original/file-20240312-18-og1u88.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=463&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Looking for biomarker proteins in breast milk or blood serum could detect the presence or absence of cancer.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Danielle Whitham</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
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<h2>Benefits of milk and serum biomarkers</h2>
<p>Breast milk and blood serum are two bodily fluids that can be collected noninvasively and that give information about what is happening in the body when collected.</p>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/elps.201700123">Breast milk contains</a> secreted proteins, immune cells and sloughed cells of the milk ducts. During lactation, the breast is actively working to create milk to feed an infant. Any abnormalities in the breast milk reflect the current situation in the body. Some proteins in breast milk also circulate throughout the body and can be found in blood serum as well.</p>
<p>Serum is the <a href="https://www.cancer.gov/publications/dictionaries/cancer-terms/def/serum">liquid part of the blood</a> after red blood cells have been removed. It contains all the same proteins found in the blood, minus the clotting factors, therefore allowing circulating protein levels to be monitored. Narrowing in on a serum-based biomarker would mean it could be used to screen every woman, not just one who is currently lactating.</p>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/proteomes10040036">The proteins we’ve found</a> <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/proteomes10040036">in breast milk and identified as being</a> <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/elps.202300040">out of whack in breast cancer</a> are involved in the cancer cells’ ability to divide, multiply and spread throughout the body. They all promote disease progression.</p>
<p>My colleagues and I currently consider these breast milk proteins to be <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/14789450.2024.2320158">a draft biomarker for breast cancer</a>. Our group is currently working on using blood serum to identify proteins that could be involved with breast cancer. Moving from breast milk to blood serum would allow people of any age and reproductive status to be screened for the disease, rather than just those who are lactating.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/222944/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The Biochemistry and Proteomics Laboratories at Clarkson University receives funding from National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number R15CA260126.</span></em></p>Identifying proteins that are only present in bodily fluids when a patient has breast cancer could provide a way to screen healthy people for the disease.Danielle Whitham, Ph.D. Candidate in Chemistry and Biochemistry, Clarkson UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2208182024-02-02T13:17:06Z2024-02-02T13:17:06ZHow can I get ice off my car? An engineer who studies airborne particles shares some quick and easy techniques<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/572255/original/file-20240130-29-7n5wna.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C3%2C1024%2C763&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Condensation and cold combine to create that layer of ice on car windshields in winter. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Oblodzone_szyby_samochodu,_zima_2009_%28ubt%29.jpeg">Tomasz Sienicki/Wikimedia Commons</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>If you live somewhere that gets cold in the winter, you’ve probably seen cars parked outdoors covered in a thin layer of ice on a chilly morning. But what causes this frost, and how can you get rid of it quickly?</p>
<p>I’m a <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=xcpTqRYAAAAJ&hl=en">mechanical engineering professor</a> who studies how water vapor interacts with airborne particles under different atmospheric conditions. Frosty windshields are similar to some of the thermodynamic questions I study in the lab, and they’re also a pesky issue that I deal with every winter on my way to work. </p>
<h2>Windshield condensation</h2>
<p>The air in Earth’s atmosphere always contains a certain amount of water vapor, but there’s only so much water vapor the air can hold. Scientists call that limit 100% <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/humidity">relative humidity</a>. <a href="https://www.weather.gov/arx/why_dewpoint_vs_humidity">The dew point</a> refers to the temperature at which relative humidity reaches 100%. </p>
<p>Wet air has high dew point temperature, while dry air has a low dew point temperature. With each degree drop in temperature, the air gets closer to its dew point temperature – or its water vapor carrying capacity. Any cooling after the dew point temperature has been reached causes <a href="https://sealevel.jpl.nasa.gov/ocean-observation/understanding-climate/air-and-water/">water to condense onto surfaces</a>, or form into fog.</p>
<p>Overnight, car windshields facing the cold dark sky are <a href="https://www.energy.gov/energysaver/principles-heating-and-cooling">radiatively cooled</a>, meaning they release heat out into their surrounding area in the form of visible and invisible light. As air comes in contact with the cold windshield, it can reach its dew point temperature. Then, the water vapor condenses onto the windshield.</p>
<p>When this radiative cooling drops the temperature on the windshield’s surface to <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/freezing-point">below the freezing point</a>, 32 degrees Fahrenheit (zero degrees Celsius), the layer of condensed water on the windshield turns to frost. </p>
<h2>Defrosting your car</h2>
<p>To defrost an icy windshield, you can follow a few different approaches, some of which take longer and require more effort than others.</p>
<p>One option is to directly spray a small amount of warm liquid on the layer of frost to help melt it. For this approach to work, the spray liquid must be hot enough to raise the overall temperature of the frost layer to above <a href="https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/ptable/melting-point/">the melting point</a>. But the temperature can’t be way hotter than the temperature of the glass or you’ll crack your windshield. </p>
<p>A better way to melt the ice without damaging your car is to spray your windows with a warm liquid that has a lower freezing point than water, like a mixture of rubbing alcohol and water. This warm mixture will melt the frost layer without heating up the glass, and the resulting liquid layer on the windshield will have a lower freezing point than water. It will remain liquid, and you can wipe it away with your windshield wipers. </p>
<p>Similar alcohol and water mixtures – <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/glycol">glycol, for example</a> – are commonly used to maintain the <a href="https://mayekawa.es/images/pdf/ASHRAE_ENERGY_EFFICIENT_ICE_RINK_2015.pdf">icy surface of skating rinks</a>.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/A2Kl04dHm4k?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">A mix of water and rubbing alcohol can melt ice on your windshield.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This approach can melt the ice reasonably quickly and easily, without too much effort. You don’t even have to turn on your car. </p>
<p>If you have a little more time, you can start the car and run <a href="https://www.lifewire.com/how-do-car-defrosters-work-534663">the air defrost system</a> to blow hot air – aim for above 80 degrees Fahrenheit – onto the inside of the windshield. This warms the windshield and will eventually melt the frost layer. Once you see some melting, you can use the windshield wipers to wipe the rest of the ice away. </p>
<p>This option consumes more energy, as your car will have to heat up the windshield, but it doesn’t require you to do much. </p>
<p>Using the defrost system to blow warm air toward the windshield will also help to clear the inside of the windshield when it gets fogged up from condensation. Otherwise, if it’s dry outside, you can also clear up windshield fog by opening the car window and letting in outside air.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/572257/original/file-20240130-23-r3f30r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A person wearing a winter jacket uses a scraper on their frost-covered windshield." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/572257/original/file-20240130-23-r3f30r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/572257/original/file-20240130-23-r3f30r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=396&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/572257/original/file-20240130-23-r3f30r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=396&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/572257/original/file-20240130-23-r3f30r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=396&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/572257/original/file-20240130-23-r3f30r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=497&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/572257/original/file-20240130-23-r3f30r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=497&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/572257/original/file-20240130-23-r3f30r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=497&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">You can use an ice scraper to break the ice on your windshield into chunks, so your wiper blades can clean them off.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/ColoradoWeather/c8d71e03eb5144afad7c01e72eccf5c2/photo?Query=windshield%20wipers&mediaType=photo&sortBy=&dateRange=Anytime&totalCount=296&digitizationType=Digitized&currentItemNo=17&vs=true&vs=true">AP Photo/David Zalubowski</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>If you are in a hurry or need some exercise, you can use an ice scraper to break up frost on your windshield, creating smaller islands of ice. The windshield wiper can then mechanically dislodge the chunks by moving them around and melting them. This requires more energy on your part, but it doesn’t require much from your car.</p>
<p>If you have a relaxed start to your day, you can let the Sun warm the windshield and slowly melt the frost layer for you. This technique saves energy in every way imaginable.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/220818/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Suresh Dhaniyala does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>When you’re running late in the winter, you don’t want to have to spend time scraping frost off your windshield. Try some expert-recommended techniques instead.Suresh Dhaniyala, Bayard D. Clarkson Distinguished Professor of Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering, Clarkson UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2091942023-09-01T12:42:33Z2023-09-01T12:42:33ZOverly flexible connective tissue causes problems in joints and throughout the body − and is often missed by doctors<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/544068/original/file-20230822-16-nvs17b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=24%2C4%2C3184%2C2130&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Extreme flexibility can be an asset, but in some people it can be a liability.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/qi-ruohan-of-china-competes-with-the-ribbon-during-the-all-news-photo/1417912031">Lintao Zhang/Staff via Getty Images Sport</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Connective tissue is found throughout the human body, within and between structures as varied as muscles, nerves and internal organs. Like an elaborate web, it holds everything together – providing the body shape and promoting proper movement. </p>
<p>Many people, especially young women, have very flexible connective tissue. While flexibility is essential for childbirth – and an advantage to dancers and gymnasts – fragile and stretchy connective tissue can sometimes lead to a variety of health problems. </p>
<p>Overly mobile joints are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.msksp.2021.102465">prone to injuries</a> like sprained ankles, dislocated shoulders and chronic neck pain. Hypermobile connective tissue can also cause <a href="https://doi.org/10.1097/01.TPM.0000924780.91929.b3">serious health problems throughout the body</a>, including the gut, nerves, skin, urinary tract and even immune system. </p>
<p>Many health care providers, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/2333794X22111284">especially in the U.S.</a>, have not been trained to look for problems related to hypermobility, which means it often takes people with hypermobile connective tissue disorders <a href="https://doi.org/10.17226/26431">a decade or more to be diagnosed</a>. Although many clinicians were taught that connective tissue disorders are rare, current estimates suggest that as much as <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clindermatol.2006.07.013">2% of the overall population experiences symptoms</a> related to hypermobility, and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.msksp.2021.102465">around a third of people treated</a> in pain management or rheumatology clinics may be hypermobile.</p>
<p>I’m a <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=GktALVEAAAAJ&hl=en">physical therapist and researcher</a> who specializes in treating conditions arising from hypermobility. When I tell patients their years of symptoms are real, can be explained and are potentially manageable, some have cried with relief.</p>
<h2>Wide range of symptoms</h2>
<p>Symptomatic generalized joint hypermobility is the most inclusive term for conditions caused by hypermobile connective tissue. While some forms have genetic markers, more than <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/ajmg.c.31538">90% of hypermobility conditions</a> – including hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome and hypermobility spectrum disorder – do not. They are diagnosed by a physical exam using a <a href="https://www.ehlers-danlos.com/healthcare-professionals/">diagnostic checklist</a>. Symptoms and severity can differ greatly from person to person and vary over time.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542179/original/file-20230810-27-6qtm2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Two pie chart graphics, one labeled Person 1, the other Person 2. Each depicts a very different profile of symptoms - and severity of symptoms." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542179/original/file-20230810-27-6qtm2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542179/original/file-20230810-27-6qtm2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542179/original/file-20230810-27-6qtm2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542179/original/file-20230810-27-6qtm2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542179/original/file-20230810-27-6qtm2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542179/original/file-20230810-27-6qtm2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542179/original/file-20230810-27-6qtm2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Two people with hypermobility syndrome disorder may experience very different symptoms. One person may have severe joint instability, fatigue and autonomic dysfunction. Another person may have mild joint instability but severe headaches and gastrointestinal issues.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.ehlers-danlos.com/what-is-hsd/">The Ehlers-Danlos Society</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Symptoms can include widespread pain and frequent injury, irritable bowel syndrome, indigestion, hernias, frequent bruising and poor skin healing, trouble breathing, migraines and headaches, dizziness, fatigue, insomnia, anxiety and trouble concentrating. </p>
<p>Some of these problems are purely mechanical, such as <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijwd.2021.01.020">fragile skin</a> that tears easily and heals poorly, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/jgh.15927">stretchy gut tissue</a> that doesn’t move along digesting food as quickly as it should and excessive mobility between the skull and top vertebra that can compress the brain stem and lead to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/ajmg.c.31549">central nervous system problems</a>. </p>
<p>Additionally, people with hypermobility conditions have problems that scientists don’t yet understand. For example, the autonomic nervous system – which regulates functions like digestion, breathing and heart rate – <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/ajmg.c.31951">is out of balance</a>. Similarly, research has not fully explained the connection between hypermobility and mast cells, which are part of the immune system protecting against viruses and other invaders. One hypothesis is that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s12026-022-09280-1">overactive mast cells</a> may release chemicals affecting surrounding connective tissue.</p>
<p>Often, multiple factors contribute to a given symptom. For example, the <a href="https://doi.org/10.5664/jcsm.7058">problem of insomnia</a> is due, in part, to pain that keeps people awake. But lax tissue in the throat can cause sleep apnea, as well. What’s more, an overactive nervous system and anxiety about unexplained health issues can also lead to poor sleep. </p>
<p>Ehlers-Danlos syndrome is the most common heritable connective tissue disorder. It was <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2141.2008.06994.x">first described by Hippocrates in 400 BCE</a> but was formally defined by doctors Edvard Ehlers and Henri-Alexandre Danlos in the early 1900s. About <a href="https://doi.org/10.1097/01.TPM.0000924780.91929.b3">90% of all Ehlers-Danlos</a> patients have the hypermobile type. </p>
<p>Doctors have traditionally considered hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome a rare condition, which is how people with hypermobility came to be <a href="https://www.ehlers-danlos.com/why-the-zebra/">called zebras</a>. Medical students are taught, “When you hear hoofbeats, look for horses, not zebras,” as a reminder that rare conditions are seldom seen, and virtually all hoofbeats indicate horses. Hypermobility experts now believe Ehlers-Danlos syndrome is not as rare as previously thought – and <a href="https://www.ehlers-danlos.com/is-eds-rare-or-common/">many people are misdiagnosed or undiagnosed</a>. </p>
<h2>Difficulties with diagnosis</h2>
<p>Lack of a diagnosis can be frightening and discouraging for people with hypermobility spectrum disorder. Patients are often told nothing is wrong with them and they are just complaining too much or have low pain tolerance. Many may be considered difficult patients, because they see multiple health care providers trying to understand their symptoms – and often present with complaints that vary from day to day. </p>
<p>Some providers believe their patients but simply do not know how to manage their problems. Other patients report being subjected to <a href="https://www.chronicpainpartners.com/mastering-appointments-successfully-with-eds">medical gaslighting</a>, being told repeatedly, “It’s all in your head.” <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/15299732.2020.1869657">Women are more likely</a> to be told that their problems are psychiatric rather than physiologic. Hypermobile patients frequently feel <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/15299732.2020.1869657">abandoned by the health care system</a>.</p>
<p>Even once diagnosed, hypermobile patients often struggle to find knowledgeable providers who can help rather than make problems worse. A <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/2333794X221112841">2022 study</a> showed only 9% of physicians were familiar with the diagnostic criteria for hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome – and only 4% reported feeling comfortable treating it.</p>
<p>Failure to diagnose underlying hypermobility can lead to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/15299732.2020.1869657">inappropriate treatments</a>, such as unhelpful medications, surgeries that might be less effective for hypermobile patients or even inappropriate psychiatric diagnoses. A delayed diagnosis leads to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/09638288.2019.1608595">worse function, increased pain and disability</a>. </p>
<h2>How physical therapy can help hypermobility</h2>
<p>There is no cure for the actual connective tissue abnormality. So, treatment strives to minimize pain and injury while improving joint stability, overall health and daily function. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/543091/original/file-20230816-27-nvaook.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A woman's arm is flexed beyond straight at the elbow." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/543091/original/file-20230816-27-nvaook.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/543091/original/file-20230816-27-nvaook.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=291&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/543091/original/file-20230816-27-nvaook.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=291&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/543091/original/file-20230816-27-nvaook.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=291&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/543091/original/file-20230816-27-nvaook.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=366&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/543091/original/file-20230816-27-nvaook.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=366&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/543091/original/file-20230816-27-nvaook.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=366&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A hyperextended elbow.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/sleeplessnights/3836760292">Veronica Foale/Flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/">CC BY-NC-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Joints normally provide sensory information about where the body is in space, but this system <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s00296-013-2790-4">does not function properly</a> in hypermobile people, who often do not realize joints are moving in ways they should not. Although research is limited, existing research suggests that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.arrct.2022.100189">physical therapy can improve</a> sensory awareness and motor control – and help patients identify, activate and strengthen stabilizing muscles.</p>
<p>Since many hypermobile patients have sensitive nervous systems, systemic calming is an important part of pain relief. Patient education, movement, sleep, mind-body training and nutrition can also <a href="https://doi.org/10.1097/01.TPM.0000933968.28098.59">help manage pain</a> with minimal medication. </p>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/07380577.2021.1975200">Occupational therapy</a> can also benefit hypermobile patients through environmental modifications, activity pacing and assistive and mobility devices like splints, braces and wheelchairs. </p>
<p>Other management approaches include <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s13668-021-00373-1">nutrition</a>, psychosocial support and <a href="https://doi.org/10.2217/pmt-2022-0050">medical management</a> through medications and surgery. Orthopedic surgeries appear to be <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apmr.2011.01.016">less successful in hypermobile people</a> compared with nonhypermobile people, so nonsurgical options should be explored before considering surgery.</p>
<p>Symptomatic generalized joint hypermobility is a complicated condition that is not yet fully understood. Once it has been identified, though, many strategies can help decrease pain and injuries – and improve function and quality of life.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/209194/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Leslie Russek does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Hypermobility can be painful and lead to frequent injuries and systemic health problems. Unfortunately, many doctors aren’t familiar with these conditions, and patients can go years undiagnosed.Leslie Russek, Professor Emeritus of Physical Therapy, Clarkson UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1997312023-03-06T13:35:14Z2023-03-06T13:35:14ZWhy Meta’s embrace of a ‘flat’ management structure may not lead to the innovation and efficiency Mark Zuckerberg seeks<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/513403/original/file-20230303-28-d3gxfj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=227%2C191%2C3005%2C1852&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Who's the boss? </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/all-together-royalty-free-image/172413137?phrase=paper%20cutouts%20people">timsa/E+ via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Big Tech, under pressure from dwindling profits and falling <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/qai/2023/01/19/why-were-tech-stocks-down-in-2022-and-how-long-will-the-slump-last/?sh=fc815f37f160">stock prices</a>, is seeking some of that old startup magic.</p>
<p>Meta, the parent of Facebook, recently became the latest of the <a href="https://fortune.com/2023/02/06/middle-managers-tech-layoffs-efficiency-zuckerberg-facebook-google/">industry’s dominant players</a> to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/06/technology/meta-layoffs.html">lay off thousands of employees</a>, particularly middle managers, in an effort to return to a <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/williamcraig/2018/10/23/the-nature-of-leadership-in-a-flat-organization/?sh=72c5f6605fe1">flatter, more nimble organization</a> – a structure more typical when a <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesbusinesscouncil/2022/06/17/how-flat-businesses-can-still-scale-despite-their-structure/?sh=250e81bb4d1c">company is very young or very small</a>.</p>
<p>Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg joins <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/tesla-ceo-musk-says-company-is-flattening-management-structure-inreorganization-1526308678">Elon Musk</a> and other business leaders in betting that eliminating layers of management will boost profits. But is flatter better? Will getting rid of managers improve organizational efficiency and the bottom line?</p>
<p>As <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=hAchnpgAAAAJ">someone who has studied</a> and taught organization theory as well as leadership and organizational behavior for nearly a decade, I think it’s not that simple. </p>
<h2>Resilient bureaucracies</h2>
<p>Since the 1800s, management scholars have sought to understand how organizational structure influences productivity. Most early scholars focused on bureaucratic models that promised managerial authority, rational decision-making and <a href="https://doi.org/10.5465/annals.2019.0059">efficiency, impartiality and fairness</a> toward employees.</p>
<p>These centralized bureaucratic structures still reign supreme today. Most of us have likely worked in such organizations, with a boss at the top and clearly defined layers of management below. Rigid, written rules and policies dictate how work is done.</p>
<p>Research shows that some hierarchy correlates with <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.3333">commercial success</a> – even in startups – because adding just one level of management helps prevent directionless exploration of ideas and damaging conflicts among staff. Bureaucracies, in their pure form, are viewed as the <a href="https://doi.org/10.5465/annals.2019.0059">most efficient</a> way to organize complex companies; they are reliable and predictable.</p>
<p>While <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198288787.001.0001">adept at solving routine problems</a>, such as coordinating work and executing plans, hierarchies do less well adapting to rapid changes, such as increased competition, shifting consumer tastes or new government regulations.</p>
<p>Bureaucratic hierarchies can stifle the development of employees and limit entrepreneurial initiative. They are slow and inept at tackling complex problems beyond the routine.</p>
<p>Moreover, they are thought to be very costly. Management scholars Gary Hamel and Michele Zanini estimated in 2016 that waste, rigidity and resistance to change in bureaucratic structures <a href="https://hbr.org/2016/09/excess-management-is-costing-the-us-3-trillion-per-year#:%7E:text=Yet%20there's%20compelling%20evidence%20that,or%20about%2017%25%20of%20GDP.">cost the U.S. economy US$3 trillion in lost output</a> a year. That is the equivalent of about 17% of all goods and services produced by the U.S. economy at the time of the study.</p>
<p>Even with the mounting criticisms, bureaucratic structures have shown resilience over time. “The formal managerial hierarchy in modern organizations is as persistent as are calls for its replacement,” Harvard scholars <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.riob.2017.10.002">Michael Lee and Amy Edmondson wrote</a> in 2017.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="billboard showing an infinity loop in blue on a white background sits next to a road as a person walks past with trees in distance" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/513301/original/file-20230302-28-3ya8ir.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/513301/original/file-20230302-28-3ya8ir.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513301/original/file-20230302-28-3ya8ir.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513301/original/file-20230302-28-3ya8ir.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513301/original/file-20230302-28-3ya8ir.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513301/original/file-20230302-28-3ya8ir.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513301/original/file-20230302-28-3ya8ir.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Flatness is a matter of perspective.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/MetaLayoffs/932925e2a79e4fc78d79ce7dc85ecf18/photo?Query=zuckerberg&mediaType=photo&sortBy=arrivaldatetime:desc&dateRange=Anytime&totalCount=2479&currentItemNo=10">AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Fascinatingly flat</h2>
<p>Flat structures, on the other hand, aim to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.riob.2017.10.002">decentralize authority</a> by reducing or eliminating hierarchy. The structure is harnessed to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.riob.2017.10.002">flexibility and agility</a> rather than efficiency, which is why flat organizations adapt better to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198288787.001.0001">dynamic and changing environments</a>.</p>
<p>Flat structures vary. Online retailer Zappos, for example, <a href="https://www.zapposinsights.com/about/holacracy">adopted one of the most extreme versions</a> of the flat structure – known as holacracy – when it eliminated all managers in 2014. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108884891.010">Computer game company Valve</a> has a president but no formal managerial structure, leaving employees free to work on projects they choose.</p>
<p>Other companies, such as Gore Tex maker <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/aee67fe0-ac63-11e9-b3e2-4fdf846f48f5">W. L. Gore & Associates</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2014.0105">film-streaming service Netflix</a>, have instituted structures that empower employees with wide-reaching autonomy but still allow for some degree of management.</p>
<p>In general, flat structures rely on <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/williamcraig/2018/10/23/the-nature-of-leadership-in-a-flat-organization/?sh=72c5f6605fe1">constant communication</a>, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1186/s41469-019-0062-9">decentralized decision-making</a> and the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s41469-022-00109-7">self-motivation</a> of employees. As a result, flat structures are <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1073/pnas.2200927119">associated with innovation</a>, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.3333">creativity</a>, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s41469-022-00109-7">speed</a>, resilience and improved employee morale.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://doi.org/10.1186/s41469-019-0062-9">promises of going flat</a> are understandably enticing, but flat organizations are <a href="https://www.inc.com/minda-zetlin/8-reasons-flat-organizations-dont-work-according-to-a-turnaround-ceo.html">tricky to get right</a>.</p>
<p>The list of companies succeeding with flat structures is <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.3333">noticeably short</a>. Besides the companies mentioned above, the list typically includes social media marketing organization Buffer, online publisher Medium and tomato processing and packing company Morning Star Tomatoes.</p>
<p>Other organizations that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.3333">attempted flatter structures</a> have encountered conflicts between staff, ambiguity around job roles and the emergence of unofficial hierarchies – which undermines the whole point of going flat. They eventually reverted back to hierarchical structures.</p>
<p>“While people may lament the proliferation of red tape,” management scholars <a href="https://doi.org/10.5465/annals.2019.0059">Pedro Monteiro and Paul Adler explain</a>, “in the next breath, many complain that ‘there ought to be a rule.’”</p>
<p>Even Zappos, often cited as the case study for flat organizations, <a href="https://qz.com/work/1776841/zappos-has-quietly-backed-away-from-holacracy">has slowly added</a> back managers in recent years.</p>
<h2>Right tool</h2>
<p>In many ways, flat organizations <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s41469-022-00109-7">require even stronger management</a> than hierarchical ones. </p>
<p>When managers are removed, the span of control for those remaining increases. Corporate leaders must delegate – and track – tasks across greater numbers of employees and constantly communicate with workers.</p>
<p>Careful planning is needed to determine how work is organized, information shared, conflicts resolved and employees compensated, hired and reviewed. It is not surprising that as <a href="https://hbr.org/2021/06/how-to-successfully-scale-a-flat-organization">companies grow</a>, the complexity of bigger organizations poses barriers to flat models.</p>
<p>In the end, organizational structure is a tool. History shows that business and economic conditions determine which type of structure works for an organization at any given time.</p>
<p>All organizations navigate the trade-off between <a href="https://hbr.org/2016/07/beyond-the-holacracy-hype">stability and flexibility</a>. While a hospital system facing extensive regulations and patient safety protocols may require a stable and consistent hierarchy, an online game developer in a competitive environment may need an organizational structure that’s more nimble so it can adapt to changes quickly.</p>
<p>Business and economic conditions <a href="https://www.jpmorgan.com/insights/research/future-of-big-tech">are changing for Big Tech</a>, as digital advertising declines, new competitors surface and emerging technologies demand risky investments. Meta’s corporate flattening is one response.</p>
<p>As <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2023/02/01/metas-year-of-efficiency-everything-wall-street-needed-to-hear.html">Zuckerberg noted</a> when explaining recent changes, “Our management theme for 2023 is the ‘Year of Efficiency,’ and we’re focused on becoming a stronger and more nimble organization.”</p>
<p>But context matters. So does planning. All the evidence I’ve seen indicates that embracing flatness by cutting middle management will not, by itself, do much to make a company more efficient.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/199731/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Amber Stephenson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Meta is among companies in recent years that have embraced becoming a ‘flatter’ organization – with fewer managers – to become more nimble and innovative.Amber Stephenson, Associate Professor of Management and Director of Healthcare Management Programs, Clarkson UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1967682023-01-13T13:31:00Z2023-01-13T13:31:00ZWhat does ESG mean? Two business scholars explain what environmental, social and governance standards and principles are<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/503135/original/file-20230104-12-wg7bnv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C11%2C6575%2C4140&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">There are many environmental, social and governance principles worth considering.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/illustration/investing-concept-sustainable-and-socially-royalty-free-illustration/1398247435?phrase=esg&adppopup=true">ArtemisDiana/iStock via Getty Images Plus</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><a href="https://www.investopedia.com/terms/e/environmental-social-and-governance-esg-criteria.asp">Environmental, social and governance</a> business standards and principles, often referred to as ESG, are becoming both more commonplace and controversial. </p>
<p>But what does “ESG” really mean?</p>
<p>It’s shorthand for the way that many corporations operate in accordance with the belief that their long-term survival and their ability to generate profits require accounting for the impact their decisions and actions have on the environment, society as a whole and their own workforce.</p>
<p>These practices grew out of long-standing efforts to <a href="https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/investing/socially-responsible-investing">make businesses more socially</a> and environmentally responsible. </p>
<p>ESG investing, sometimes called <a href="https://www.blackrock.com/ch/individual/en/themes/sustainable-investing">sustainable investment</a>, also takes these considerations into account.</p>
<h2>Zeroing in on the E, S and G</h2>
<p>ESG priorities vary widely, but there are some common themes.</p>
<p>These priorities usually emphasize environmental sustainability – the E in ESG – with a focus on contributing to efforts to <a href="https://www.sec.gov/sec-response-climate-and-esg-risks-and-opportunities">slow the pace of climate change</a>.</p>
<p>There’s also an effort to uphold high ethical standards through corporate operations. These <a href="https://www.onetrust.com/blog/esg-101-what-does-social-in-esg-mean">social concerns</a> – the S – can include, for example, ensuring that a company doesn’t buy goods and services from exploitative suppliers, or treats its employees well. Or it might entail taking care to hire and retain a diverse workforce and taking steps to reduce social injustices in the communities where a corporation operates.</p>
<p>Companies embracing ESG principles should also have <a href="https://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/corporategovernance.asp">high-quality governance</a> – the G. Governance includes oversight, handled by a competent and qualified board of directors, regarding the hiring and firing of top corporate leaders, executive compensation and any dividends paid to shareholders.</p>
<p>Governance also pertains to whether a company’s leadership operates fairly and responsibly, with transparency and accountability.</p>
<h2>Why ESG matters</h2>
<p>By 2026, the total amount invested globally according to these principles will <a href="https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/news-room/press-releases/2022/awm-revolution-2022-report.html">nearly double to US$34 trillion</a> from $18.4 trillion in 2021, the accounting firm PwC estimates. However, <a href="https://www.spglobal.com/marketintelligence/en/news-insights/latest-news-headlines/even-as-esg-market-narrows-money-managers-in-the-space-prioritize-climate-73499895">increasing scrutiny</a> of which investments really qualify as ESG could mean it takes longer to reach that volume.</p>
<p>This corporate concept is becoming a political touchstone in the U.S. because some states, like <a href="https://www.pionline.com/esg/political-fight-against-esg-continues-3-states">Florida and Kentucky</a>, arguing that these practices divert from the focus on maximizing profits and can be detrimental to investors by making other considerations a priority, have barred their pension funds from using ESG principles as part of their investment considerations. Some very <a href="https://www.spglobal.com/marketintelligence/en/news-insights/latest-news-headlines/a-year-of-acrimonious-esg-battles-comes-to-a-close-with-more-in-store-for-2023-73372554">large asset managers, including BlackRock,</a> aren’t allowed to work with those pension funds anymore.</p>
<p>Many of the <a href="https://realreturns.blog/2021/05/31/the-good-the-bad-and-the-false-addressing-9-arguments-against-esg/">arguments against embracing these principles</a> hold that they reduce profits by taking other factors into account. But how do ESG practices affect financial performance?</p>
<p>A team of New York University scholars looked at the <a href="https://www.stern.nyu.edu/experience-stern/about/departments-centers-initiatives/centers-of-research/center-sustainable-business/research/research-initiatives/esg-and-financial-performance">results of 1,000 different studies</a> that had sought to answer this question. It found mixed results: Some of the studies found that ESG principles increased returns, others found that they weakened performance, and a third group determined that these principles made no difference at all.</p>
<p>It’s possible that the disparities among results could be due largely to the lack of clarity regarding what counts and does not count as ESG, which has been a <a href="https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2007.25275520">long-standing discussion</a> and makes it hard to assess how ESG investments perform.</p>
<p>The NYU scholars also found two consistent results regarding ESG strategies. First, they help protect investors against risks such as losses resulting from the failure of a supply chain due to environmental or geopolitical issues, and they can protect companies from volatility during periods of economic instability and downturns. Second, investors and companies benefit more from ESG strategies in the long term than in the short term.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/196768/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Many investors and corporations believe that accounting for the impact that businesses have on the environment, society as a whole and their own workforces benefits their bottom line.Luciana Echazú, Associate Dean of Undergraduate Education; Associate Professor of Economics, University of New HampshireDiego C. Nocetti, Dean, School of Business; Professor of Economics and Financial Studies, Clarkson UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1900512022-10-13T06:19:59Z2022-10-13T06:19:59ZCurious Kids: apakah manusia benar-benar membutuhkan spesies lain?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/483294/original/file-20220907-9311-6xdmsq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Sains menunjukkan bahwa manusia lebih bahagia dan lebih sehat jika berada di sekitar spesies hewan dan tumbuhan lain.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/hiker-with-yellow-coat-walking-in-the-deep-forest-royalty-free-image/1323397248?adppopup=true">Artur Debat/Moment via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><blockquote>
<p><strong>Apakah manusia bisa hidup tanpa spesies tumbuhan atau hewan lain? – Arunima S., umur 14, Chhindwara, Madhya Pradesh, India</strong></p>
</blockquote>
<hr>
<p>Manusia pastinya tidak dapat bertahan hidup tanpa spesies lain.</p>
<p><a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=0ePGCP8AAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">Sebagai ahli ekologi</a> - ilmuwan yang mempelajari interaksi tumbuhan, mikroorganisme, jamur, dan hewan, termasuk manusia - saya mengetahui setidaknya tiga alasan kita membutuhkan organisme lain.</p>
<h2>Manusia membutuhkan spesies lainnya untuk menghasilkan makanan</h2>
<p>Pertama, tanpa adanya spesies lain, manusia tidak akan memiliki apapun untuk dimakan.</p>
<p>Manusia dan semua organisme membutuhkan makanan sebagai energi dan bahan untuk membangun tubuh mereka dan bereproduksi atau berkembang biak. Hanya beberapa mikroorganisme dan tumbuhan yang memiliki cara untuk <a href="https://www.nature.com/scitable/knowledge/library/terrestrial-primary-production-fuel-for-life-17567411/">menggunakan energi dari sinar matahari, air, dan karbon dioksida</a> untuk membuat molekul dasar yang memberi persediaan makanan. <a href="https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/photosynthesis">Proses inilah yang disebut fotosintesis</a>.</p>
<p>Tanpa organisme-organisme ini, manusia tidak akan memiliki makanan untuk dikonsumsi. Hampir semua makanan kita adalah tumbuhan atau organisme fotosintesis lainnya, hewan yang memakannya, atau hewan yang memakan hewan pemakan rumput.</p>
<p>Makanan olahan mungkin tidak terlihat seperti terbuat dari mikroba, tumbuhan, jamur, atau hewan, tetapi hampir semuanya begitu. Beberapa vitamin dan bahan makanan lainnya adalah hasil buatan manusia, tetapi mereka hanyalah sebagian kecil dari yang kita makan.</p>
<p>Para ahli kimia telah menemukan cara untuk menggunakan berbagai sumber energi untuk <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcou.2021.101726">membuat molekul yang dapat dimanfaatkan sebagai makanan</a>. Molekul yang dihasilkan melalui cara ini disebut “sintesis.” Namun, proses ini sangat sulit dan mahal, sehingga saat ini masih tidak mungkin untuk memberi makanan sintesis ini kepada manusia.</p>
<p>Produksi makanan sintetis <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fufo.2021.100025">menggunakan bakteri yang dimodifikasi secara genetik atau kultur sel</a> menjadi semakin penting. Di masa depan, ketergantungan pola makan manusia pada tubuhan dan hewan mungkin akan berkurang. Namun, makhluk hidup akan tetap menjadi komponen inti dari makanan ini.</p>
<p>Berbagai organisme yang tak terhitung jumlahnya - besar, kecil, dan mikroskopis - sangat dibutuhkan untuk menciptakan <a href="https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detailfull/soils/health/biology/?cid=nrcs142p2_053868">tanah</a> dan <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tplants.2018.03.004">udara yang sehat</a>, menjernihkan air dan mencegah erosi, menghancurkan bahan kimia beracun untuk dijadikan bentuk yang tidak berbahaya, dan mengubah bahan kimia lain menjadi sumber makanan yang dibutuhkan makhluk hidup lainnya untuk tumbuh dan berkembang.</p>
<p>Banyak tanaman pangan kita - lebih dari 1.200 spesies - <a href="https://www.pollinator.org/pollinators">bergantung pada penyerbuk untuk menghasilkan buah atau biji</a> yang dimakan manusia dan hewan lain. Penyerbukan, yaitu proses yang memungkinkan tumbuhan untuk bereproduksi, terjadi saat hewan membawa serbuk sari dari satu tumbuhan ke tumbuhan lainnya. Lebah adalah penyerbuk utama, tetapi banyak hewan lain juga melakukan hal tersebut, termasuk serangga, burung, dan kelalawar. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Burung kuning, coklat, dan hijau hinggap di bunga merah." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476537/original/file-20220728-11927-udlpwj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476537/original/file-20220728-11927-udlpwj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476537/original/file-20220728-11927-udlpwj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476537/original/file-20220728-11927-udlpwj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476537/original/file-20220728-11927-udlpwj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476537/original/file-20220728-11927-udlpwj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476537/original/file-20220728-11927-udlpwj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Burung dan hewan lain menyuburkan tanaman dengan mengangkut serbuk sari di antara tanaman-tanaman tersebut – memungkinkan tanaman untuk menghasilkan buah dan biji yang menjadi makanan manusia.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/little-spiderhunter-bird-royalty-free-image/858993576?adppopup=true">krisanapong detraphiphat/Moment via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Hewan dengan berbagai ukuran, dari semut kecil hingga gajah yang sangat besar, juga <a href="https://theconversation.com/with-fewer-animals-to-spread-their-seeds-plants-could-have-trouble-adapting-to-climate-change-174516">memindahkan benih untuk menyebarkan tumbuhan</a> yang menghasilkan ekosistem yang sehat dan produktif. Beragam spesies, dari mikroba kecil hingga burung besar dan hiu, <a href="https://www.pbs.org/video/natureworks-decomposers-and-scavengers/">mengurai organisme yang telah mati</a> yang kemudian menjadi bahan kimia yang dapat digunakan untuk menghasilkan lebih banyak makanan.</p>
<p>Jumlah spesies yang berkontribusi dalam menghasilkan setiap gigitan dari makanan kita sangatlah luar biasa.</p>
<h2>Tubuh manusia membutuhkan spesies lain untuk tetap sehat</h2>
<p>Banyak fungsi tubuh manusia bergantung pada ekosistem spesies mikroba yang kompleks dan sangat beragam. Spesies mikroba ini hidup di kulit dan di sistem pernapasan, pencernaan, dan reproduksi. Bakteri, jamur, dan mikroba lainnya ini dikenal dengan “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1X8p0vhsWRE">mikrobioma</a>.”</p>
<p>Setiap orang memiliki mikrobiomanya sendiri untuk mencegah infeksi,<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-human-microbiome-is-a-treasure-trove-waiting-to-be-unlocked-118757">mencerna dan menyerap nutrisi dalam makanan</a>, dan mensintesis vitamin. </p>
<p>Misalnya, mikrobioma pada usus memiliki peran penting untuk memecah makanan menjadi energi dan nutrisi yang berguna, dan mengubah zat lain yang tidak dapat dicerna atau beracun menjadi bentuk yang dapat dikeluarkan. </p>
<p>Mikrobioma ini terus berubah sepanjang kehidupan kita berdasarkan makanan yang kita konsumsi, lingkungan, tempat tinggal, dan kondisi kesehatan kita. Faktanya, tubuh manusia <a href="https://www.sciencealert.com/how-many-bacteria-cells-outnumber-human-cells-microbiome-science">terdiri dari lebih banyak sel bakteri daripada sel manusia</a>. </p>
<p>Pola makan dan obat-obatan sangat berpengaruh pada 300 hingga 500 spesies bakteri <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3983973/">yang merupakan komponen utama dari ekosistem usus yang sehat</a>. </p>
<p>Mikrobioma juga sangat penting dalam pencegahan infeksi. Banyak penyakit terkait dengan kumpulan mikroba yang <a href="https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.k2179">didominasi hanya oleh beberapa spesies</a>. Beberapa dokter <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2021.519836">melakukan transplantasi dari kotoran orang yang sehat ke orang yang sakit</a> untuk membentuk komunitas mikroba dan menyembuhkan penyakit.</p>
<h2>Manusia lebih bahagia saat berada di sekitar spesies lain</h2>
<p>Terakhir, penelitian menunjukkan bahwa manusia lebih sehat dan lebih bahagia <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1GqdShUJNSA">ketika mereka berada di sekitar spesies tumbuhan dan hewan lain</a>. Manusia perlu <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/biophilia#how-nature-improves-well-being">melihat, mendengar, mencium, merasa, dan mengecap</a> makhluk hidup lain untuk menjaga kesehatan mental dan fisik mereka. </p>
<p>Sebagai contoh, melihat dan mendengar suara burung menimbulkan perasaan yang positif. Dua penelitian terkini di Kanada dan Jerman menemukan bahwa <a href="https://www.audubon.org/news/more-birds-bring-more-happiness-according-science">semakin banyak spesies burung</a> yang berada di suatu lingkungan, <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/land10020153">orang-orang di lingkungan tersebut juga semakin bahagia</a>. Hal ini mungkin karena orang-orang dapat merasakan kehadiran burung itu sendiri, atau karena lingkungannya yang sehat, seperti yang ditunjukkan oleh keberadaan burung.</p>
<p>Dalam sebuah eksperimen lain di Kanada, para peneliti memutar kicauan burun dari sebuah pengeras suara di sepanjang jalur pendakian. Orang-orang mengatakan bahwa <a href="https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2020.1811">mereka merasa lebih cepat pulih dan puas </a> ketika mendaki begitu mereka mendengar suara spesies burung yang beragam daripada hanya mendengar sedikit atau tidak sama sekali.</p>
<p>Saat ini, <a href="https://news.un.org/en/story/2014/07/472752-more-half-worlds-population-now-living-urban-areas-un-survey-finds">lebih dari separuh populasi dunia tinggal di perkotaan</a>, bukan pedesaan. Karena ini, perencana kota dan arsitek lanskap sedang mencari <a href="https://eos.org/features/growing-equity-in-city-green-space">cara untuk membangun lebih banyak ruang hijau dan infrastruktur hijau</a> di perkotaan. </p>
<p>Penelitian menunjukkan bahwa <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s40572-021-00321-9">keanekaragaman satwa liar, ruang terbuka hijau yang luas, dan tumbuh-tumbuhan</a> di sepanjang jalan dan gedung di perkotaan dapat mendorong orang-orang menjadi lebih aktif, mengurangi stres, dan membuat mereka lebih sehat dan bahagia. Kondisi ini memberikan kesempatan bagi <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s42949-021-00027-9">manusia untuk merasakan kehadiran dan berinteraksi dengan makhluk hidup lain</a>, serta mendapatkan manfaat dari hal-hal lain yang dilakukan tumbuhan, hewan, dan mikroba agar lingkungan menjadi sehat dan nyaman.</p>
<p>Para ilmuwan sekarang mengetahui bahwa kehidupan manusia membutuhkan ribuan spesies lainnya. Namun, kami baru mulai memahami <a href="https://www.nature.com/scitable/knowledge/library/biodiversity-and-ecosystem-stability-17059965/">peran penting yang dimiliki oleh berbagai spesies dalam ekosistem</a>, termasuk yang perkotaan. Kami masih perlu belajar lebih tentang mengapa dan bagaimana spesies lain diperlukan untuk kelangsungan hidup manusia. Jika manusia ingin berumur panjang atau membangun kehidupan di ruang angkasa, kita harus memahami jenis spesies yang perlu kita bawa untuk bertahan hidup dan sejahtera.</p>
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<hr>
<p><em>Zalfa Imani Trijatna dari Universitas Indonesia menerjemahkan artikel ini dari bahasa Inggris.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/190051/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tom Langen tidak bekerja, menjadi konsultan, memiliki saham, atau menerima dana dari perusahaan atau organisasi mana pun yang akan mengambil untung dari artikel ini, dan telah mengungkapkan bahwa ia tidak memiliki afiliasi selain yang telah disebut di atas.</span></em></p>Manusia tidak akan bertahan hidup dengan lama tanpa mengandalkan spesies lain yang tak terhitung jumlahnya.Tom Langen, Professor of Biology, Clarkson UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1879672022-09-02T12:21:48Z2022-09-02T12:21:48ZBirds migrate along ancient routes – here are the latest high-tech tools scientists are using to study their amazing journeys<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/482351/original/file-20220901-15-dnl1i1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=46%2C0%2C5184%2C3437&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Migrating waterbirds over South Dakota's Huron Wetland Management District on North America's Central Flyway.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://flic.kr/p/2n6ioDf">Sandra Uecker, USFWS/Flickr</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Although it still feels like beach weather across much of North America, <a href="https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2018/09/more-4-billion-birds-stream-overhead-during-fall-migration">billions of birds have started taking wing</a> for one of nature’s great spectacles: fall migration. Birds fly south from the northern U.S. and Canada to wintering grounds in the southern U.S., Caribbean and Latin America, sometimes covering thousands of miles. Other birds leave temperate Eurasia for Africa, tropical Asia or Australia. </p>
<p>Using observation records and data collected through <a href="https://nationalzoo.si.edu/migratory-birds/what-bird-banding">bird banding</a>, 20th-century ornithologists roughly mapped general migration routes and timing for most migratory species. Later, using radar at airports and weather stations, they discovered how weather and other factors affect when birds migrate and how high they fly. </p>
<p>Today, technological advances are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1890/080179">providing new insights into bird migration</a> and showing that it is more complex and wonderful than scientists ever imagined. These new and constantly improving technologies are key aids for protecting migratory birds in the face of <a href="https://www.fws.gov/library/collections/threats-birds">habitat loss and other threats</a>.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/WhwBDjfWr_M?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Migratory flyways are paths that birds have traveled for centuries. Scientists are working to better understand how birds use these routes.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Birding across borders</h2>
<p>The power of the internet has greatly aided migratory bird research. Using the popular <a href="https://ebird.org/home">eBird network</a>, birders all over the world can <a href="https://science.ebird.org/en/status-and-trends/abundance-animations">upload sightings to a central database</a>, creating a real-time record of the ebb and flow of migration. Ornithologists have also learned to use <a href="https://www.faa.gov/air_traffic/weather/nexrad/">NEXRAD</a>, a national network of Doppler weather radars, to visualize <a href="https://birdcast.info/">birds migrating down the North American continent</a>.</p>
<p>Now, scientists are setting up a global network of receiver stations called the Motus Network, which currently has <a href="https://motus.org/">1,500 receivers in 31 countries.</a> Each receiver constantly records the presence of any birds or other animals within a nine-mile (15-kilometer) radius that scientists have fitted with small, lightweight radio transmitters, and shares the data online. The network will become increasingly useful for understanding bird migration as more receiver stations become active along migration tracks. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1522288020128468992"}"></div></p>
<h2>Tracking individual birds via satellite</h2>
<p>Three new technologies are rapidly expanding what we know about bird migration. The first is satellite telemetry of bird movement. Researchers fit birds with small solar-powered transmitters, which send data on the birds’ locations to a satellite and then on to a scientist’s office computer. The scientist can learn where a bird is, the route it took to get there and how fast it travels. </p>
<p>For example, the <a href="https://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/bar-tailed-godwit">bar-tailed godwit</a>, a pigeon-sized shorebird, breeds in Alaska and then migrates to New Zealand. Satellite transmitters show that godwits often fly nonstop from Alaska to New Zealand. Recently, a godwit set the record for the longest nonstop flight by a land bird: 8,100 miles (13,000 kilometers) in 10 days, <a href="https://www.audubon.org/news/these-mighty-shorebirds-keep-breaking-flight-records-and-you-can-follow-along">from Alaska to Australia</a>. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ljr79wpG3L8?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Bar-tailed godwits have the ability to correct course if they are blown off track on their epic migratory journey.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Satellite telemetry studies show how much individual birds, even those from the same breeding location, vary in their migratory behavior. Individual differences in migratory behavior are probably due to differences in physical condition, learning, experience and personal preferences. </p>
<p>Another shorebird, the <a href="https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Whimbrel/overview">whimbrel</a>, also makes a phenomenally long journey over the ocean. Satellite telemetry has shown that some whimbrels travel from northwest Canada, across the North American continent to Canada’s east coast, then set off over the Atlantic Ocean on a 3,400-mile (5,400-kilometer), six-day nonstop flight to the coast of Brazil. In total, they may travel <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-92429-z">6,800 miles (11,000 kilometers)</a>. </p>
<p>Sadly, hunters kill some of these birds when they land to rest on <a href="https://www.wm.edu/news/stories/2011/machi-the-whimbrel-survives-hurricanes-to-die-of-gunfire-123.php">islands in the Lesser Antilles</a>. The unfortunate fate of two satellite-tracked whimbrels has catalyzed a campaign to tighten regulations on <a href="https://www.wm.edu/news/stories/2013/machi-and-goshens-legacy-increased-shorebird-hunting-regulations123.php">shorebird hunting in the Caribbean</a>.</p>
<h2>Geotagging small birds</h2>
<p>Many birds are too small to carry a satellite transmitter. Given the energetic effort required for migration, a device must weigh less than 5% of a bird’s body weight, and many migratory songbirds weigh under 0.7 ounces (20 grams). </p>
<p>An ingenious solution for small birds is a <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.1166664">geolocator tag, or geologger</a> – a tiny device that simply records <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/jofo.12011">time, location and presence or absence of sunlight</a>. Scientists know the timing of sunrise and sunset on a given date, so they can calculate a bird’s location on that date to within about 125 miles (200 kilometers). </p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/482340/original/file-20220901-6551-9rbk6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Colorful songbird with a small geolocation tag attached to its back." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/482340/original/file-20220901-6551-9rbk6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/482340/original/file-20220901-6551-9rbk6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=415&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/482340/original/file-20220901-6551-9rbk6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=415&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/482340/original/file-20220901-6551-9rbk6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=415&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/482340/original/file-20220901-6551-9rbk6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=522&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/482340/original/file-20220901-6551-9rbk6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=522&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/482340/original/file-20220901-6551-9rbk6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=522&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A painted bunting equipped with a 0.024-ounce (0.7-gram) solar geolocation datalogger.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1525/bio.2011.61.9.7">Jeffrey F. Kelly</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Birds carrying geologgers must be recaptured to download the data. That means the bird must survive a migration round trip and return to the same place where it was first captured and tagged. Amazingly, many geologger-tagged small birds do.</p>
<p>Geologgers have shown that <a href="https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Blackpoll_Warbler/overview">Blackpoll warblers</a> – small songbirds that breed in the boreal forests of North America – fly long distances over the Atlantic in fall, heading to the Amazon basin. Birds breeding in eastern North America head out over the Atlantic in maritime Canada or the northeastern U.S. and make a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2014.1045">60-hour, nonstop, 1,500-mile (2,500-kilometer) flight</a> to the Greater Antilles. There they rest and recuperate, then continue across the Caribbean to South America. </p>
<p>Blackpolls breeding in Alaska fly across the North American continent before leaving shore on the Atlantic coast and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/ecy.2651">flying to South America</a>. In total, they journey 6,600 miles (10,700 kilometers) over 60 days.</p>
<p>Even more amazing, geologgers show that another small songbird, <a href="https://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/northern-wheatear">the northern wheatear</a>, migrates from North America to sub-Saharan Africa. Wheatears that breed in Alaska fly 9,100 miles (14,600 kilometers) across Asia to East Africa, taking three months to do so. Those breeding in eastern Canada journey 4,600 miles (7,400 kilometers) across the Atlantic to Europe and then on to West Africa – including <a href="https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2011.1223">a 2,100-mile (3,400-kilometer), four-day nonstop overwater flight.</a></p>
<h2>Recording birds’ night migration calls</h2>
<p>Two hours after sunset in fall, I like to sit outside and listen to birds migrating overhead. Most birds migrate at night, and many give a species-specific “chit,” “zeep” or other call-note while in flight. The calls may serve to keep migrating flocks together, including <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/evo.14167">different species heading to the same destination</a>. </p>
<p>Ornithologists are using <a href="https://doi.org/10.5751/ACE-00974-120114">automated passive acoustic recording</a> to study these nocturnal calls and identify the species or group of related species that make each sound. The technology is a microphone directed at the sky, connected to a computer that continuously records the sound stream and is aided by sound recognition software. Sometimes it reveals migrants overhead that are rarely seen on the ground. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/seG9otqyvRs?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Scientists use infrared cameras and birds’ nocturnal migration calls to assess the risks birds face from colliding with buildings.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Nick Kachala, an honors student in my lab, set up recording units on three university properties in the fall of 2021. One of the most common migrants recorded was the <a href="https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Gray-cheeked_Thrush/overview">gray-cheeked thrush</a>, a shy bird of the northern boreal forest that is rarely seen in the northeast U.S. during fall migration. He also detected the <a href="https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Dickcissel/overview">dickcissel</a>, a grassland bird that I have never seen in our area. </p>
<p>Many birdwatchers are now building <a href="https://www.audubon.org/news/how-birders-are-boosting-their-yard-lists-while-they-sleep">do-it-yourself backyard recording units</a> to identify the birds flying over their homes during migration.</p>
<h2>Conserving migratory birds</h2>
<p>Radar monitoring indicates that the number of North American migratory birds <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.aaw1313">declined by 14% between 2007 and 2017</a>. There probably are multiple causes, but habitat loss is likely the principal culprit. </p>
<p>Satellite telemetry and geologgers show that there are special stopover sites along migration routes where migrants rest and refuel, such as <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13618">the Texas Gulf Coast, the Florida Panhandle</a> and Mexico’s <a href="https://doi.org/10.1017/S0959270917000296">Yucatan Peninsula</a>. Conservation experts widely agree that to protect migratory birds, it is critical to <a href="https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/bottlenecks-refueling-stations-and-fire-escapes-3-types-of-stopover-sites-migrants-really-need/">conserve these sites</a>. </p>
<p>Effective conservation measures require knowing where and how birds migrate, and what dangers they face during migration. Ornithologists, using these new technologies, are learning things that will help to stop and reverse <a href="https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aac9180">the global decline in migratory birds</a>.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/187967/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tom Langen does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Satellite telemetry, tiny geolocation tags and passive acoustic recording are providing new insights into bird migration and vital data for conservation.Tom Langen, Professor of Biology, Clarkson UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1851712022-08-29T12:40:26Z2022-08-29T12:40:26ZDo humans really need other species?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476534/original/file-20220728-1306-a2vwxp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=30%2C0%2C6679%2C4456&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Science shows that humans are happier and healthier around other animal and plant species.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/hiker-with-yellow-coat-walking-in-the-deep-forest-royalty-free-image/1323397248?adppopup=true">Artur Debat/Moment via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=293&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=293&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=293&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/us/topics/curious-kids-us-74795">Curious Kids</a> is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to <a href="mailto:curiouskidsus@theconversation.com">curiouskidsus@theconversation.com</a>.</em></p>
<hr>
<blockquote>
<p><strong>Can humans live without any other species of plants or animals? – Arunima S., age 14, Chhindwara, Madhya Pradesh, India</strong></p>
</blockquote>
<hr>
<p>People definitely cannot survive without other species.</p>
<p><a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=0ePGCP8AAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">As an ecologist</a> – a scientist who studies the interactions of plants, microorganisms, fungi and animals, including humans – I know there are at least three reasons we need other organisms.</p>
<h2>Humans need other species to produce food</h2>
<p>First, without other species people would have nothing to eat.</p>
<p>Humans and all organisms require food for energy and the materials to build their bodies and reproduce. Only some microorganisms and plants have a way to <a href="https://www.nature.com/scitable/knowledge/library/terrestrial-primary-production-fuel-for-life-17567411/">use energy from sunlight, water and carbon dioxide</a> to make the basic molecules that provide that food. <a href="https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/photosynthesis">This process is called photosynthesis</a>. </p>
<p>Without these organisms, humans wouldn’t have food to eat. Almost everything we eat is either a plant or other photosynthetic organism, an animal that grazes on them, or an animal that feeds on animals that graze. </p>
<p>Processed foods may not look like they come from microbes, plants, fungi or animals, but nearly all do. Some vitamins and other food ingredients are manufactured, but they are only a very small component of the human diet. </p>
<p>Chemists have discovered ways to use various sources of energy to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcou.2021.101726">make molecules that could be used for food</a>. Molecules produced this way are called “synthetic.” However, these processes are so difficult and expensive that it is currently impossible to feed people with these synthetic foods. </p>
<p>Production of synthetic food <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fufo.2021.100025">using genetically modified bacteria or cultured cell lines</a> is growing in importance. In the future, the human diet may become a little less dependent on consuming plants and animals. Still, living organisms will remain a core component of these foods. </p>
<p>It takes countless different organisms – big, small and microscopic – to <a href="https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detailfull/soils/health/biology/?cid=nrcs142p2_053868">create healthy soil</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tplants.2018.03.004">breathable air</a>. To break down and recycle waste. To purify water and prevent erosion. To break down toxic chemicals into harmless forms, and convert other chemicals into sources of nourishment <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BCH1Gre3Mg0">that other organisms need to grow and thrive</a>.</p>
<p>And many of our food plants – over 1,200 species – <a href="https://www.pollinator.org/pollinators">depend on pollinators to produce the fruit or seed</a> that humans and other animals eat. Pollination, the process that allows plants to reproduce, happens when animals carry pollen from one plant to another. Bees are the main pollinators, but many other insects, birds, bats and other animals also transport pollen between plants.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Yellow, brown and green bird perching on a red flower." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476537/original/file-20220728-11927-udlpwj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476537/original/file-20220728-11927-udlpwj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476537/original/file-20220728-11927-udlpwj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476537/original/file-20220728-11927-udlpwj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476537/original/file-20220728-11927-udlpwj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476537/original/file-20220728-11927-udlpwj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476537/original/file-20220728-11927-udlpwj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Birds and other animals fertilize plants by transporting pollen between them – enabling them to produce fruits and seeds that humans eat.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/little-spiderhunter-bird-royalty-free-image/858993576?adppopup=true">krisanapong detraphiphat/Moment via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
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<p>Animals of all sizes, from tiny ants to enormous elephants, also <a href="https://theconversation.com/with-fewer-animals-to-spread-their-seeds-plants-could-have-trouble-adapting-to-climate-change-174516">move seeds, spreading plants</a> that make for healthy and productive ecosystems. Diverse species, from tiny microbes to huge vultures and sharks, <a href="https://www.pbs.org/video/natureworks-decomposers-and-scavengers/">break down dead organisms</a> into chemicals that can be used to grow more food.</p>
<p>The number of species that contribute to creating each bite of the average meal is mind-boggling.</p>
<h2>Human bodies need other species to stay healthy</h2>
<p>Many functions of the human body itself rely on a complex and highly diverse ecosystem of microbial species that live on the skin and in the respiratory, digestive and reproductive systems. These bacteria, fungi and other microbes are called a “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1X8p0vhsWRE">microbiome</a>.”</p>
<p>Each person has a unique personal microbiome to protect against infection, <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-human-microbiome-is-a-treasure-trove-waiting-to-be-unlocked-118757">digest and extract nutrients in food</a> and synthesize vitamins. </p>
<p>For example, the gut microbiome is important for breaking down food into usable energy and nutrients, and converting other indigestible or toxic substances into forms that can be excreted. </p>
<p>This microbiome changes over people’s lifetimes based on what they eat, what’s around them, where they live and how healthy they are. In fact, human bodies <a href="https://www.sciencealert.com/how-many-bacteria-cells-outnumber-human-cells-microbiome-science">are made up of more bacterial cells than human cells</a>. </p>
<p>Diet and drugs strongly affect the 300 to 500 bacteria species <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3983973/">that are the core of a healthy gut ecosystem</a>.</p>
<p>The microbiome also plays an important role in preventing infection. Many diseases are associated with microbial communities that are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.k2179">dominated by just a few species</a>. Some physicians <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2021.519836">transplant poop from healthy to ill people</a> to establish a healthy community of microbes and hopefully cure the disease.</p>
<h2>Humans are happier around other species</h2>
<p>Finally, research shows that people are healthier and more content <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1GqdShUJNSA">when they are around other species</a> of plants and animals. They need to <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/biophilia#how-nature-improves-well-being">experience the sights, sounds, smells, feel and taste</a> of other organisms for mental and physical health. This drive is called “biophilia,” meaning love of living things.</p>
<p>For example, seeing and hearing birds creates positive feelings. Two recent studies in Canada and Germany found that <a href="https://www.audubon.org/news/more-birds-bring-more-happiness-according-science">the more species of birds</a> in a neighborhood, <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/land10020153">the happier people are</a>. This may be due to experiencing the birds themselves, or due to a healthy environment, as indicated by the presence of birds.</p>
<p>In a different Canadian experiment, researchers played birdsong from hidden speakers along hiking trails. People reported that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2020.1811">they felt more restored and were more satisfied</a> about the hike when they heard a diversity of birds species than when they heard few or none. </p>
<p>Today, <a href="https://news.un.org/en/story/2014/07/472752-more-half-worlds-population-now-living-urban-areas-un-survey-finds">more than half the world’s population lives in cities</a> instead of the countryside. So urban planners and landscape architects are exploring <a href="https://eos.org/features/growing-equity-in-city-green-space">ways to include more green spaces and green infrastructure</a> in cities.</p>
<p>Research shows that when a city has <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s40572-021-00321-9">diverse wildlife, ample open green space and vegetation</a> along streets and on buildings, people are more active, less stressed, healthier and happier. These conditions provide opportunities for <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s42949-021-00027-9">people to experience and interact with other organisms</a>, as well as benefit from the other things that plants, animals and microbes do to make the environment healthy and pleasant.</p>
<p>Scientists now know that it takes thousands of species to support human life. Yet we are only just beginning to understand the <a href="https://www.nature.com/scitable/knowledge/library/biodiversity-and-ecosystem-stability-17059965/">important roles different species play in ecosystems</a>, including urban ones. We still need to learn much more about why and how other species are necessary for human survival. And if people are to successfully travel for long periods in space or establish space colonies, we will have to understand what species we need to take along with us to survive and prosper. </p>
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<p><em>Hello, curious kids! Do you have a question you’d like an expert to answer? Ask an adult to send your question to <a href="mailto:curiouskidsus@theconversation.com">CuriousKidsUS@theconversation.com</a>. Please tell us your name, age and the city where you live.</em></p>
<p><em>And since curiosity has no age limit – adults, let us know what you’re wondering, too. We won’t be able to answer every question, but we will do our best.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/185171/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tom Langen does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>People wouldn’t last long without the countless other species we depend on for survival.Tom Langen, Professor of Biology, Clarkson UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1878952022-07-29T12:22:14Z2022-07-29T12:22:14ZA new third party for US politics – 3 essential reads on what that means<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476572/original/file-20220728-33778-3g1vdk.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=4%2C8%2C2991%2C1980&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Andrew Yang, losing candidate for president and New York City mayor, is one of the founders of the Forward Party.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/andrew-yang-new-york-city-mayoral-candidate-talks-with-a-news-photo/1324433973?adppopup=true">Rob Kim/Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>In June 2022, Gallup asked participants in a U.S. survey about their party membership. “In politics,” pollsters asked, “as of today, do you consider yourself a Republican, a Democrat or an independent?”</p>
<p>The largest segment of participants – 43% – said they were independent. Republicans and Democrats represented 27% each.</p>
<p>Note the lower case “i” in independent. That means it’s not a party, as the Democrats and Republicans are. Actual political parties have policies, they have big bank accounts, they have organizations in every state, and they have a place on the ballot in elections. </p>
<p>But if the leaders of a new, <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us/exclusive-former-republicans-democrats-form-new-third-us-political-party-2022-07-27/?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email">centrist political party whose formation was announced on July 28, 2022,</a> accomplish their goal, the “Forward Party” will attract many voters who no longer identify as Democrats or Republicans and it will become a force for moderation - and an institution - in U.S. electoral politics. </p>
<p>“How will we solve the big issues facing America?” the founders said at a news conference. “Not Left. Not Right. Forward.”</p>
<p>Here are three stories from The Conversation’s archives that analyze the chances of third-party success at changing the U.S. political system.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476581/original/file-20220728-14976-h14lje.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Four men from the 18th century, with three sitting at a table and one standing up near a fireplace." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476581/original/file-20220728-14976-h14lje.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476581/original/file-20220728-14976-h14lje.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=427&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476581/original/file-20220728-14976-h14lje.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=427&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476581/original/file-20220728-14976-h14lje.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=427&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476581/original/file-20220728-14976-h14lje.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=537&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476581/original/file-20220728-14976-h14lje.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=537&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476581/original/file-20220728-14976-h14lje.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=537&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">The Founding Fathers didn’t think highly of political parties, with Alexander Hamilton, second from right, saying they were a ‘most fatal disease.’</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/illustration-of-four-of-the-united-states-foundign-fathers-news-photo/145890547?adppopup=true">Stock Montage/Getty Images</a></span>
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<h2>1. Don’t count on it</h2>
<p>Political scientist <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=m_RGUrgAAAAJ&hl=en">Alexander Cohen</a> of Clarkson University acknowledges that <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-two-party-system-is-here-to-stay-132423">the U.S. two-party system has long been “besieged</a>.” Critics of party politics in general date to the country’s founding.</p>
<p>“Alexander Hamilton called political parties a ‘most fatal disease,’” Cohen writes. “James Madison renounced the ‘violence of faction,’ and George Washington feared that an overly successful party would create ‘frightful despotism.’”</p>
<p>Still, parties persisted as the vehicles of electoral politics in the country, evolving into the current two-party system from a variety of parties that emerged and died over the past 200 years. An upstart third party is unlikely to dislodge the status quo, Cohen says.</p>
<p>“The modern Republicans and Democrats are unlikely to go the way of the Whigs, Federalists and Anti-Federalists, regardless of recent political earthquakes.”</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-two-party-system-is-here-to-stay-132423">The two-party system is here to stay</a>
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</em>
</p>
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<h2>2. It’s hard to end the party</h2>
<p>A third party, writes Indiana University political scientist <a href="https://polisci.indiana.edu/about/faculty/hershey-marjorie.html">Marjorie Hershey</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-trump-is-more-likely-to-win-in-the-gop-than-to-take-his-followers-to-a-new-third-party-156001">simply doesn’t have an advantage in the U.S. political system</a>.</p>
<p>“The American electoral system is the primary reason why the U.S. is the sole major democracy with only two parties consistently capable of electing public officials,” writes Hershey. “Votes are counted in most American elections using plurality rules, or ‘winner take all.’ Whoever gets the most votes wins the single seat up for election.” </p>
<p>But in many other democracies, Hershey says, multiple political parties can thrive because of a different system of electing representatives. For example, Hershey writes, there are widely used systems that award seats proportionally to the percentage of votes a party wins. </p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/317863/original/file-20200228-24651-5vdkjx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/317863/original/file-20200228-24651-5vdkjx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/317863/original/file-20200228-24651-5vdkjx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=873&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/317863/original/file-20200228-24651-5vdkjx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=873&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/317863/original/file-20200228-24651-5vdkjx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=873&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/317863/original/file-20200228-24651-5vdkjx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1097&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/317863/original/file-20200228-24651-5vdkjx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1097&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/317863/original/file-20200228-24651-5vdkjx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1097&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">The 1852 Whig Party presidential campaign poster. Within 10 years, the party was no more.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.loc.gov/resource/cph.3b50367/">Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division</a></span>
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<p>“In the Netherlands, for instance,” writes Hershey, “even a small ‘third’ party called the Party for the Animals – composed of animal rights supporters, not dogs and cats – won 3.2% of the legislative vote in 2017 and earned five seats, out of 150, in the national legislature.”</p>
<p>If that system existed in the U.S., that would mean even a small party would be smart to run Congressional candidates, because even if the party only got 5% of the vote, “they could win 5% of the state’s U.S. House seats.”</p>
<p>But a caveat: Those voters who call themselves “independent,” or say they’re disappointed by or disillusioned with political parties, are still influenced by vestigial party sentiment. Pollsters find, writes Hershey, “that most of these ‘independents’ actually lean toward either the Democrats or the Republicans, and their voting choices are almost as intensely partisan as those who do claim a party affiliation.”</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/why-trump-is-more-likely-to-win-in-the-gop-than-to-take-his-followers-to-a-new-third-party-156001">Why Trump is more likely to win in the GOP than to take his followers to a new third party</a>
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</em>
</p>
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<h2>3. Winning isn’t everything</h2>
<p>Not everyone sees failure at the ballot box as the final judgment on U.S. third parties. Winning elections isn’t necessarily the goal.</p>
<p>“The most successful third parties in U.S. politics don’t typically rise to dominance but instead <a href="https://theconversation.com/us-third-parties-can-rein-in-the-extremism-of-the-two-party-system-162403">challenge the major parties enough to force them to change course</a>,” writes political scientist <a href="https://www.valdosta.edu/about/directory/profile/bitamas">Bernard Tamas</a> of Valdosta State University.</p>
<p><iframe id="sX4JK" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/sX4JK/1/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<p>Tamas, who has written a book on U.S. third parties, says that they tend to emerge when Democrats and Republicans are politically polarized – something that has happened periodically since the Civil War. That polarization between parties means “larger groups of voters end up being not represented by either one, and the intense contention between them also increases political dissatisfaction.”</p>
<p>For the 50 years after the Civil War, the two parties were very polarized. Third parties were “aggressive and strong” during that period, Tamas writes.</p>
<p>But their aim wasn’t to make themselves an institution in a new, multiparty democracy – as the Forward Party’s leaders hope now.</p>
<p>For example, the Greenback Party in the 1870s and the Populist Party in the 1890s both aimed, via electoral victories, to force the major parties to adopt policies supporting “poor farmers and opposing business monopolies.” The Populist Party was especially successful in pressing the Democrats to embrace those positions. </p>
<p>Tamas predicted in 2021 that a new, centrist third party would emerge – very much like the party that made its debut on July 28. He noted that challenging the Trump-influenced GOP would be a main focus of such a party.</p>
<p>“The new party could gain strategic advantages by fielding candidates in local and state elections in more moderate places where some Republican candidates have nevertheless chosen to follow their party to the extreme,” he writes. </p>
<p>But even if the Forward Party raises money and fields successful candidates, it may not be long in the U.S. political landscape.</p>
<p>“The Progressive Party existed for less than a decade, for example,” Tamas writes. “But by strategically winning the votes of moderate conservatives and thereby undermining Republicans’ electoral goals, even if briefly, a new third party could stop the GOP from hurtling farther down an extreme and undemocratic path.”</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/us-third-parties-can-rein-in-the-extremism-of-the-two-party-system-162403">US third parties can rein in the extremism of the two-party system</a>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/187895/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
There’s a new party in town – but it may not last long.Naomi Schalit, Senior Editor, Politics + Democracy, The Conversation USLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1820282022-05-10T12:05:05Z2022-05-10T12:05:05ZRussia is being made a pariah state – just like it and the Soviet Union were for most of the last 105 years<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/462088/original/file-20220509-15-nixqyr.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=9%2C19%2C6437%2C4224&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Smoke rises on April 15, 2022, above 400 new graves in the town of Severodonetsk, Ukraine. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/bulldozer-excaves-new-graves-in-yalovshchina-cemetery-for-news-photo/1240267875?adppopup=true">Carolyn Cole/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The U.S. and its European allies recently said they planned to take a new approach in their relations with Russia: <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2022/04/16/us-nato-isolate-russia/">They would isolate and contain the country</a> in the aftermath of its invasion of Ukraine. Doing so would keep Russia out of international organizations, restrict imports and exports, and prevent further military moves, ultimately <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/25/briefing/russia-ukraine-war-us.html">weakening it</a>. </p>
<p>This treatment of Russia is nothing new for Western countries. While Russia is more <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2022/03/09/ukraine-russia-iron-curtain/">economically and politically isolated</a> now than it has ever been, it is no stranger to isolation and containment.</p>
<p>Looking back over the last 100 years, it’s clear that the period <a href="https://carnegieendowment.org/2019/06/20/thirty-years-of-u.s.-policy-toward-russia-can-vicious-circle-be-broken-pub-79323">between 1992 and 2001, when Russia embraced the West and was largely embraced by it</a>, is the exception. For most of the <a href="https://www.state.gov/u-s-relations-with-russia/#:%7E:text=U.S.%2DRUSSIA%20RELATIONS,following%20the%201917%20Bolshevik%20Revolution.">20th century and the early 21st century</a>, Russia has been a fearsome power that the West has wanted to hobble. </p>
<p>The West is now returning to a strategy that was effective before in containing Russia.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/462094/original/file-20220509-17-2wk01a.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Five men in dark suits standing and talking in front of a flag display." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/462094/original/file-20220509-17-2wk01a.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/462094/original/file-20220509-17-2wk01a.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/462094/original/file-20220509-17-2wk01a.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/462094/original/file-20220509-17-2wk01a.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/462094/original/file-20220509-17-2wk01a.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/462094/original/file-20220509-17-2wk01a.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/462094/original/file-20220509-17-2wk01a.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">NATO leaders during a break at a NATO summit on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, at the alliance’s headquarters, on March 24, 2022, in Brussels.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/italys-prime-minister-mario-draghi-nato-secretary-general-news-photo/1239466016?adppopup=true">Photo by Henry Nicholls - Pool/Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Russia stands alone – mostly</h2>
<p>Following the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/Russian-Revolution">Russian Revolution in 1917</a>, Russia, as part of the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Soviet-Union/The-Russian-Revolution">newly formed Soviet Union</a>, found itself isolated from other nations. A revolutionary state that <a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/Russian-Revolution">espoused an ideology of worldwide revolution</a> threatened other powers.</p>
<p>That isolation took many forms. The country was not a signatory to the <a href="https://history.state.gov/milestones/1914-1920/paris-peace">Treaty of Versailles</a>, the most important of several treaties that ended World War I. It was not a member of the <a href="https://history.state.gov/milestones/1914-1920/league">League of Nations</a>, the organization founded after World War I to resolve disputes between nations, until 1934. Russia had no <a href="https://soviethistory.msu.edu/1921-2/trade-pacts-with-the-west/">foreign trade agreements before 1921</a> and was <a href="https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/russian-federation/1924-12-15/britains-recognition-soviet-government">not fully recognized in diplomacy by non-Russian powers before 1924</a>.</p>
<p>As a revolutionary pariah state that saw itself <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/01402390701343490">encircled by enemies</a>, the Soviet Union hardened its view of the world. While the so-called <a href="https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/big-three">Grand Alliance of the U.S., Great Britain and Soviet Union</a> found common cause against Nazi Germany during World War II, the relationship was never comfortable. <a href="https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/yalta-conference-foreshadows-the-cold-war">It crumbled swiftly after the war</a> as the three powers focused on their respective spheres of vital interest and expressed differing views for the postwar world.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/462083/original/file-20220509-5956-isojmw.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="People in long, dark coats during the winter in front of the ruins of a multi-story building." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/462083/original/file-20220509-5956-isojmw.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/462083/original/file-20220509-5956-isojmw.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=462&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/462083/original/file-20220509-5956-isojmw.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=462&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/462083/original/file-20220509-5956-isojmw.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=462&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/462083/original/file-20220509-5956-isojmw.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=581&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/462083/original/file-20220509-5956-isojmw.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=581&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/462083/original/file-20220509-5956-isojmw.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=581&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">People crowd the street in front of the ruins of the Nikitsky Gate to the Imperial Palace in Petrograd (St. Petersburg and Leningrad) shortly after the outbreak of the Russian Revolution in February 1917.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/SovietRevolution1917/fa6a4781bb9141738999e75c8711608d/photo?Query=Russian%20Revolution&mediaType=photo&sortBy=arrivaldatetime:asc&dateRange=Anytime&totalCount=794&currentItemNo=4">AP Photo</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Containment’s beginnings</h2>
<p>After World War II, the U.S. wanted to ensure that democratic governments were established in Europe. <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/10/how-communism-took-over-eastern-europe-after-world-war-ii/263938/">The Soviets were intent on establishing communist regimes</a> in Eastern Europe. </p>
<p>To frustrate Russia’s ambitions, what was called “the doctrine of containment” became postwar policy. It was most famously articulated by U.S. diplomat George Kennan in <a href="https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/russian-federation/1947-07-01/sources-soviet-conduct">a cable in 1946, later published in Foreign Affairs in 1947</a>. </p>
<p>“It is clear that the main element of any United States policy toward the Soviet Union must be that of a long-term, patient but firm and vigilant containment of Russian expansive tendencies,” wrote Kennan. </p>
<p>“The United States has it in its power to increase enormously the strains under which Soviet policy must operate … to promote tendencies which must eventually find their outlet in either the break-up or the gradual mellowing of Soviet power,” he wrote.</p>
<p>Kennan wrote that the West would not find a way to live with the Soviet Union and that Soviet power could not be controlled by logic or reason, but could be influenced by the logic of force. He argued that political and economic means could be used to contain Soviet power and potentially force it to retreat in its ambitions.</p>
<h2>Iron Curtain entrenches</h2>
<p>Kennan’s calls for containment of the Soviet Union were followed by concrete actions by the U.S. government. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/truman-doctrine">Truman Doctrine</a> in 1947 advocated for the U.S. to help rebuild shattered postwar economies in Europe so communism would not become an attractive proposition. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://history.state.gov/milestones/1945-1952/marshall-plan">Marshall Plan</a> implemented this approach and extended economic assistance to postwar Europe. It helped reinvigorate European industry and laid a pathway for European integration. Marshall Plan assistance, which ultimately totaled US$155 billion in current dollars, was offered to all European countries, including the Soviet Union. But the Soviets rejected the offer and forced Eastern European countries under their influence to do the same. </p>
<p>The Soviets answered these Western moves with the <a href="https://soviethistory.msu.edu/1947-2/cominform-and-the-soviet-bloc/">creation in 1947 of the Cominform</a>, a Soviet-led bloc of Communist parties aimed at defeating what it saw as U.S.-led Western imperialism and cementing party rule in member countries. Further moves came in 1949 with the creation of the economic organization of Communist countries <a href="https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/oi/authority.20110803095626480">known as COMECON</a>. </p>
<p>The result was the clear division of Europe into two economic and political spheres, isolating the Soviet bloc from the West. The “<a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/Iron-Curtain">Iron Curtain</a>” – the ideological, military and economic divide between democratic Western countries and the Soviet Union, along with the communist countries in its orbit – had solidified.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/462090/original/file-20220509-11-gy45no.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A man in academic robe and cap introduces a chubby man wearing a bow tie as he approaches a lectern." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/462090/original/file-20220509-11-gy45no.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/462090/original/file-20220509-11-gy45no.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=606&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/462090/original/file-20220509-11-gy45no.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=606&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/462090/original/file-20220509-11-gy45no.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=606&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/462090/original/file-20220509-11-gy45no.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=762&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/462090/original/file-20220509-11-gy45no.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=762&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/462090/original/file-20220509-11-gy45no.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=762&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">President Harry Truman, right, introduces Winston Churchill, former Prime Minister of Great Britain, before Churchill’s speech on March 5, 1946, in Fulton, Missouri, in which he coined the phrase ‘Iron Curtain.’</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/president-harry-truman-introduces-winston-churchill-who-a-news-photo/515578388?adppopup=true">Bettmann/Contributor/Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Containment’s militarization</h2>
<p>Concern grew among the Western countries about potential military confrontation with the Soviet Union. That led in 1949 to the formation of the <a href="https://www.nato.int/nato-welcome/index.html">North Atlantic Treaty Organization</a>, or NATO, as part of the move to contain the Soviet Union militarily.</p>
<p>Following NATO’s creation, in 1950 the U.S. State Department <a href="https://digitalarchive.wilsoncenter.org/document/116191.pdf">proposed a new policy</a> – <a href="https://history.state.gov/milestones/1945-1952/NSC68#:%7E:text=National%20Security%20Council%20Paper%20NSC,Staff%20on%20April%207%2C%201950.">a top-secret report referred to as “NSC-68”</a> – that emphasized the use of military force over diplomacy in dealing with Soviet power. As the <a href="https://history.state.gov/milestones/1945-1952/NSC68#:%7E:text=National%20Security%20Council%20Paper%20NSC,Staff%20on%20April%207%2C%201950.">State Department Historian writes</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“Its authors argued that one of the most pressing threats confronting the United States was the ‘hostile design’ of the Soviet Union. The authors concluded that the Soviet threat would soon be greatly augmented by the addition of more weapons, including nuclear weapons, to the Soviet arsenal. They argued that the best course of action was to respond in kind with a massive build-up of the U.S. military and its weaponry.”</p>
</blockquote>
<p>More aggressive than Kennan’s ideas of containment, <a href="https://history.state.gov/milestones/1945-1952/NSC68">this policy called for a massive buildup of U.S. conventional and nuclear arsenals</a>. Soviet ambition would thus be restricted because its leaders would not likely seek a hot war with the West. </p>
<p>President Harry Truman signed off on NSC-68 in September 1950. It remained U.S. policy until the end of the Cold War in 1991. </p>
<h2>Containment’s effects</h2>
<p>By the early 1950s, The Soviet Union was isolated and contained by economic, political and military means in Europe. Yet Soviet leaders <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/10/how-communism-took-over-eastern-europe-after-world-war-ii/263938/">sought to consolidate and maintain power over Eastern Europe</a>, using force at times. The Soviets also exercised cautious ambitions in other regions, provoking Western fears of a spread of Soviet power to the Far East, the developing world and Latin America. </p>
<p>The U.S. and its partners worked to isolate Soviet power beyond Europe with the creation of the <a href="https://history.state.gov/milestones/1953-1960/seato">Southeast Asia Treaty Organization</a> in 1954 and through attempts to support noncommunist regimes in Latin America, Asia, the Middle East and the developing world during the ensuing decades.</p>
<p>[<em>Understand key political developments, each week.</em> <a href="https://memberservices.theconversation.com/newsletters/?nl=politics&source=inline-politics-understand">Subscribe to The Conversation’s politics newsletter</a>.]</p>
<p>The effects of the isolation of the Soviet Union during the Cold War era became clear as Soviet and Eastern Bloc economies <a href="https://www.fraserinstitute.org/blogs/russia-and-its-former-satellites-lag-behind-rest-of-europe-on-per-capita-gdp">lagged behind those of the West</a>, particularly in the production of consumer goods, as early as the 1950s. The <a href="https://www.crf-usa.org/bill-of-rights-in-action/bria-19-1-a-life-under-communism-in-eastern-europe">democratic freedoms of the West were largely absent</a>. </p>
<p>Isolation also led to the <a href="https://www.loc.gov/exhibits/archives/intn.html">Soviet closed state</a>, with propaganda, the stifling of dissent, censorship, a state-controlled media, suspicion of foreigners and a society that was intended to be impervious to foreign influence. </p>
<p>Additionally, the West’s militarized containment of the Soviet Union drove <a href="https://www.cfr.org/timeline/us-russia-nuclear-arms-control">a costly arms race</a>, both nuclear and conventional, which had damaging effects on the <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/3131928">Soviet economy by the late 1970s</a>. That contributed to other societal challenges to Soviet power, such as rising nationalism and disillusionment with the Soviet project, which became clear <a href="https://nsarchive2.gwu.edu/NSAEBB/NSAEBB298/Document%204.pdf">in the 1980s as Soviet society faced food and consumer good shortages</a><a href="https://www.jec.senate.gov/reports/97th%20Congress/Soviet%20Economy%20in%20the%201980s%20-%20Problems%20and%20Prospects%20Part%20I%20%281185%29.pdf">and dissent rose</a>. All served as contributing factors to the <a href="https://history.state.gov/milestones/1989-1992/collapse-soviet-union#:%7E:text=Gorbachev's%20decision%20to%20loosen%20the,Communist%20rule%20throughout%20Eastern%20Europe.">fall of the Soviet Union</a> in 1991.</p>
<p>In 2022, the West is responding to Russian aggression as it has done so before – through implementing policies of isolation and containment to curb and weaken Russian power.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/182028/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Alastair Kocho-Williams does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The West’s new approach to Russia – bar it from international organizations, restrict international trade, prevent further military moves – looks just like how it treated Russia in the 20th century.Alastair Kocho-Williams, Professor of History, Clarkson UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1788842022-03-17T12:10:38Z2022-03-17T12:10:38ZFrom healthy births to sustainable management, 5 essential reads on the fascinating and complex vagina<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/451962/original/file-20220314-25-1bubqwt.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=373%2C0%2C3132%2C2144&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The vagina is a muscular tube that can maintain itself and be beneficial to babies.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/female-reproductive-system-anatomy-royalty-free-image/864445868">magicmine/iStock via Getty Images Plus</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>As the most common route for arriving into the world, the human vagina has, of course, existed for as long as there have been people. Despite the name, however, it’s not so much a “sheath” – the <a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/vagina">Latin meaning of “vagina”</a> – as it is a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/humrep/del022">muscular tube</a> of varying shapes and lengths, contained unseen within the pelvis. The vagina is actually a hardworking organ in its own right, with <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/6582587/">its own ecosystem</a>. </p>
<p>So The Conversation presents a selection of stories from the archive that offer insights into the once mysterious, often maligned and still misunderstood vagina.</p>
<h2>1. Passing through a vagina can make you healthier</h2>
<p>If you’re a baby, that is. Newborns traveling the birth canal to their parents’ homes instead of the hospital are exposed to more bacteria in the vagina, which could be beneficial to them, suggested <a href="https://nursing.yale.edu/faculty-research/faculty-directory/joan-combellick-phd-mph-msn-cnm-facnm">Joan Combellick</a>, an assistant clinical professor of midwifery at Yale.</p>
<p>Hospital sterility measures eliminate a lot of the potentially helpful bacteria, Combellick suggested in her research, which showed that <a href="https://theconversation.com/home-birth-may-start-babies-off-with-health-promoting-microbes-119045">babies born at home</a> have more opportunity for exposure to their moms’ vaginal microbiomes. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/home-birth-may-start-babies-off-with-health-promoting-microbes-119045">Home birth may start babies off with health-promoting microbes</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>2. Other species’ vaginas can be just as beneficial</h2>
<p>Researchers have observed that the offspring of mice and other animals <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-a-pregnant-mouses-microbes-influence-offsprings-brain-development-new-study-offers-clues-146521">derive other health benefits</a> from passing through the vagina. <a href="https://www.helenvuongphd.com">Helen Vuong</a>, a postdoctoral scholar studying integrative biology and physiology at UCLA, shared her research on maternal microbiology.</p>
<p>“Specifically, my study identified how a mouse mother’s microbiome influences the formation of axons – long nerve fibers that project from a neuron – in her offspring, affecting its ability to sense its environment,” Vuong wrote. Axons are important for relaying sensory information, such as sounds and scents, allowing the mice to hear a potential predator approaching or to smell when food is nearby. The study does not indicate whether humans benefit in the same way.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-a-pregnant-mouses-microbes-influence-offsprings-brain-development-new-study-offers-clues-146521">How a pregnant mouse's microbes influence offspring's brain development – new study offers clues</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Black and white magnetic resonance images showing the female reproductive system with the vagina at center." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/451956/original/file-20220314-16-4mo0r9.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=443%2C903%2C2687%2C1417&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/451956/original/file-20220314-16-4mo0r9.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=489&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451956/original/file-20220314-16-4mo0r9.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=489&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451956/original/file-20220314-16-4mo0r9.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=489&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451956/original/file-20220314-16-4mo0r9.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=614&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451956/original/file-20220314-16-4mo0r9.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=614&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451956/original/file-20220314-16-4mo0r9.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=614&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">This MRI of the vagina shows it connected to the uterus via the cervix. The vagina aids the uterus in menstruation and likely gets assistance in providing sexual pleasure because of nerves in the cervix.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/magnetic-resonance-images-of-woman-pelvis-with-royalty-free-image/1320679094">Paul Biris/Moment via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>3. Vaginal role in menstruation can be managed sustainably</h2>
<p>When the body finds that there’s no baby on board this month, that in-case-of-pregnancy uterine buildup of blood and other material isn’t needed after all. At that point the uterus tosses it all, quite literally, down the chute. Assisting with menstruation is one of the vagina’s messier duties. Containing the mess, however, doesn’t have to take a <a href="https://theconversation.com/menstrual-cups-are-a-cheaper-more-sustainable-way-for-women-to-cope-with-periods-than-tampons-or-pads-165513">toll on the environment</a>, wrote <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=JJ9zqt8AAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">Susan Powers</a>, a professor of sustainable environmental systems at Clarkson University. </p>
<p>Using numbers from a <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/period-cost-lifetime_n_7258780?guccounter=1">media survey</a>, Powers determined the average woman responding to the survey uses 240 tampons or maxi pads in a year, which is only 10% of a menstrual cup’s 10-year lifespan. In addition to being reusable, however, the cup also has one-tenth of the overall manufacturing and disposal impact of tampons or pads.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/menstrual-cups-are-a-cheaper-more-sustainable-way-for-women-to-cope-with-periods-than-tampons-or-pads-165513">Menstrual cups are a cheaper, more sustainable way for women to cope with periods than tampons or pads</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>4. Vaginas don’t work alone</h2>
<p>At the internal end of the vagina is the cervix, which could be <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-cervix-is-sensitive-and-surgeons-need-to-acknowledge-the-part-it-plays-in-some-womens-pleasure-131618">a major source of vaginal sexual pleasure</a>, wrote Rutgers University-Newark psychologist <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=M5zDkkAAAAAJ">Barry Komisaruk</a>. He and psychobiology professor <a href="http://portal.uned.es/portal/page?_pageid=93,705020&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL">María Cruz Rodríguez del Cerro</a> highlighted the 1953 book “Sexual Behavior in the Human Female” by Alfred Kinsey.</p>
<p>Komisaruk and del Cerro pointed to one of the Kinsey researchers’ lesser-known findings: When investigators stimulated women’s cervixes with “distinct pressure” using “an object larger than a probe,” 84% of those women said they could feel it. The scholars suggested that nerve connections in the cervix and vagina could be the reason that women whose cervixes had been surgically altered or removed reported losing erotic feeling in their vaginas. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-cervix-is-sensitive-and-surgeons-need-to-acknowledge-the-part-it-plays-in-some-womens-pleasure-131618">The cervix is sensitive, and surgeons need to acknowledge the part it plays in some women's pleasure</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>5. ‘Vagina’ is not the final word on gender identity</h2>
<p>Lots of people have vaginas. But not all vagina owners think of themselves as girls, women or even female, according to Boston University professor of medicine <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=Rv-dZJ4AAAAJ">Carl Streed</a> and Harvard University assistant professor of gynecology <a href="https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/sogie/sogie-team/frances-grimstad-md-ms/">Frances Grimstad</a>. </p>
<p>They wrote that some people born with vaginas also have testes, or that they “produce significant amounts of testosterone,” the hormone associated with male sexual development. Such cases, the professors wrote, suggest that sex designation <a href="https://theconversation.com/not-everyone-is-male-or-female-the-growing-controversy-over-sex-designation-172293">exists on a spectrum</a> and that binary categories of male and female are “incomplete and inaccurate” for determining gender.
So, a vagina alone can’t determine who’s a woman. Some women don’t have vaginas, and some people who do aren’t women.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/not-everyone-is-male-or-female-the-growing-controversy-over-sex-designation-172293">Not everyone is male or female – the growing controversy over sex designation</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p><em>Editor’s note: This story is a roundup of articles from The Conversation’s archives.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/178884/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
As it debunks old myths and uncovers previously ignored facts, science is finding that the vagina is both complex and busy.Leah Samuel, Health + Equity EditorLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1761942022-03-14T12:20:05Z2022-03-14T12:20:05ZWhy do flocks of birds swoop and swirl together in the sky? A biologist explains the science of murmurations<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/450675/original/file-20220308-21-1nhx7v8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=325%2C135%2C4196%2C2542&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Murmurations can have as many as 750,000 birds flying in unison.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/murmuration-of-starlings-royalty-free-image/481428151">mikedabell/iStock via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=293&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=293&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=293&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/us/topics/curious-kids-us-74795">Curious Kids</a> is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to <a href="mailto:curiouskidsus@theconversation.com">curiouskidsus@theconversation.com</a>.</em></p>
<hr>
<blockquote>
<p><strong>Why do flocks of birds swoop and swirl together in the sky? – Artie W., age 9, Astoria, New York</strong></p>
</blockquote>
<hr>
<p>A shape-shifting flock of thousands of starlings, called a murmuration, is amazing to see. As many as 750,000 birds join together in flight. The birds spread out and come together. The flock splits apart and fuses together again. Murmurations constantly change direction, flying up a few hundred meters, then zooming down to almost crash to the ground. <a href="https://www.worldphoto.org/blogs/10-05-18/these-are-most-amazing-photos-starling-murmurations">They look like swirling blobs</a>, making teardrops, figure eights, columns and other shapes. A murmuration can move fast – starlings fly up to 50 miles per hour (80 kilometers per hour).</p>
<p>The <a href="https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/eursta/cur/introduction">European or common starling</a>, like many birds, forms groups called flocks when foraging for food or migrating. But a murmuration is different. This special kind of flock is named for the sound of a low murmur it makes from thousands of wingbeats and soft flight calls.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/V4f_1_r80RY?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">‘Flight of the Starlings’ by Jan van IJken was shot in the Netherlands; the audio lets you hear how a murmuration gets its name.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Murmurations form about an hour before sunset in fall, winter and early spring, when the birds are near where they’ll sleep. After maybe 45 minutes of this spectacular aerial display, the birds all at once drop down into their roost for the night.</p>
<h2>Why do starlings form murmurations?</h2>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/how-do-geese-know-how-to-fly-south-for-the-winter-149225">Unlike the V formations of migrating geese</a>, murmurations provide no aerodynamic advantage.</p>
<p>Scientists think a murmuration is a <a href="https://www.cell.com/current-biology/pdf/S0960-9822(11)01315-7.pdf">visual invitation to attract other starlings</a> to join a group night roost. One theory is that spending the night together <a href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0179277">keeps the starlings warmer</a> as they share their body heat. It might also reduce the chance an individual bird would be eaten overnight by a predator such as an owl or <a href="https://animalia.bio/american-marten">marten</a>.</p>
<p>This dilution effect might be part of the reason murmurations happen: The more starlings in the flock, the lower the risk to any one bird of being the one that gets snagged by a predator. Predators are more likely to catch the nearest prey, so the swirling of a murmuration could happen as individual birds try to move toward the safer middle of the crowd. Scientists call this the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/beheco/arq157">selfish herd effect</a>. </p>
<p>Of course, the more birds in a flock, the more eyes and ears to detect the predator before it’s too late.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/iRNqhi2ka9k?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">‘Murmuration’ by Sophie Windsor Clive & Liberty Smith.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>And a gigantic mass of whirling, swirling birds can make it <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-018-2609-0">hard to focus on a single target</a>. A falcon or hawk can get <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2011.07.006">confused and distracted by tricky wave patterns</a> in the murmuration’s movements. It also must be careful not to collide with the flock and get hurt. </p>
<p>Over <a href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0179277">3,000 citizen scientist volunteers reported spotting murmurations</a> in a recent study. A third of them saw a raptor attack the murmuration. That observation suggests that murmurations do form to help protect the birds from predators – but it’s also possible a huge murmuration would be what attracted a hawk, for instance, in the first place. </p>
<h2>How do starlings coordinate their behavior?</h2>
<p>Murmurations have no leader and follow no plan. Instead, scientists believe movements are coordinated by starlings observing what others around them are doing. Birds in the middle can <a href="https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1402202111">see through the flock on all sides</a> to its edge and beyond. Somehow they keep track of how the flock is moving as a whole and adjust accordingly. </p>
<p>To learn what’s happening inside murmurations, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2008.02.004">some researchers film them</a> using many cameras at the same time. Then they use computer programs to track the movements of individual starlings and create 3D models of the flock.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/450678/original/file-20220308-13-l69vf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="equally spaced group of birds flying against blue sky" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/450678/original/file-20220308-13-l69vf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/450678/original/file-20220308-13-l69vf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/450678/original/file-20220308-13-l69vf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/450678/original/file-20220308-13-l69vf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/450678/original/file-20220308-13-l69vf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/450678/original/file-20220308-13-l69vf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/450678/original/file-20220308-13-l69vf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Within the murmuration, individual birds aren’t tightly packed together.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/murmuration-of-european-starlings-in-flight-across-royalty-free-image/1368050180">K C Bailey/iStock via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The videos reveal that the birds are not as densely packed as they might appear from the ground; there is room to maneuver. Starlings are closer to their side neighbors than those in front or behind. Starlings on the edge frequently move deeper into the flock.</p>
<p>Mathematicians and computer scientists try to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s00285-021-01675-2">create virtual murmurations using rules</a> that birds might follow in a flock – like moving in the same direction as their neighbor, staying close and not colliding. From these simulations, it seems that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/beheco/arq149">each bird must keep track of seven neighbors</a> and adjust based on what they’re doing to keep the murmuration from falling apart in a chaotic mess. And they do all this while flying as fast as they can.</p>
<p>Large schools of fish can appear to behave like murmurations, as do groups of some swarming insects, including honeybees. All these synchronized movements can happen so fast within flocks, herds, swarms and schools that some scientists <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2018.08.001">once thought it required animal ESP</a>!</p>
<p>Biologists, mathematicians, physicists, computer scientists and engineers are all working to figure out how animals carry out these displays. Curiosity drives this research, of course. But it may also have practical applications too, like helping develop autonomous vehicles that can travel in tight formation and work in coordinated groups without colliding.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>Hello, curious kids! Do you have a question you’d like an expert to answer? Ask an adult to send your question to <a href="mailto:curiouskidsus@theconversation.com">CuriousKidsUS@theconversation.com</a>. Please tell us your name, age and the city where you live.</em></p>
<p><em>And since curiosity has no age limit – adults, let us know what you’re wondering, too. We won’t be able to answer every question, but we will do our best.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/176194/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tom Langen does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>These coordinated movements of a flock of starlings follow no plan or leader. Scientists used to think the animals must communicate via ESP to create these fast-moving blobs.Tom Langen, Professor of Biology, Clarkson UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1754122022-02-02T22:01:26Z2022-02-02T22:01:26ZUS troops head to Eastern Europe: 4 essential reads on the Ukraine crisis<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/444128/original/file-20220202-27-1rpv0cj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C4728%2C2689&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A US soldier at a training area in Germany.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/soldier-stands-at-a-tank-type-m1a2-sep-which-are-decorated-news-photo/530688706?adppopup=true">Christof Stache/AFP via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>American troops <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/02/02/world/ukraine-russia-news">are heading to Eastern Europe</a> in the latest countermove by the U.S. to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/28/us/politics/russia-ukraine-invasion-pentagon.html">Russia’s military buildup</a> on the country’s border with Ukraine.</p>
<p>The development, <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2022/02/02/politics/us-troops-europe-russia/index.html">announced on Feb. 2, 2022</a>, will see around 3,000 additional U.S. service personnel deployed to NATO member states Germany, Poland and Romania.</p>
<p>U.S. officials framed the move as one that would reassure countries in the NATO military alliance of U.S. support in the face of a possible invasion of Ukraine, which is not a member. But it is likely to anger President Vladimir Putin, who has demanded that NATO <a href="https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3164305/russia-wants-nato-troops-out-bulgaria-and-romania">pull back troops</a> from Eastern European countries that were once members of the Soviet Union. Putin has accused the West of ignoring Russia’s security concerns and trying to <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/ukraine-announces-plan-boost-army-foreign-leaders-rally-2022-02-01/">lure the country into a war</a>.</p>
<p>Behind the rhetoric and troop movement is a very real – and complex – crisis. The Conversation’s bank of experts has been on hand to explain what is at stake, and why Ukraine has become a flashpoint between Russia and the West.</p>
<h2>1. What it means to have US boots on the ground</h2>
<p>The deployment of thousands of American troops to Eastern Europe wasn’t unexpected. The Pentagon had already said that it was prepared to send up to 8,500 additional members of its armed services to the region.</p>
<p>It marks a reversal of a trend in Europe that has seen America’s military presence dwindle over the past few decades, say <a href="https://www.boisestate.edu/sps-politicalscience/faculty/michael-a-allen/">Michael Allen of Boise State University</a> and two scholars from Kansas State University, <a href="https://www.k-state.edu/polsci/faculty-staff/martinezmachain-carla.html">Carla Martinez Machain</a> and <a href="https://www.k-state.edu/polsci/faculty-staff/Flynn.html">Michael Flynn</a>.</p>
<p>The three scholars note that <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-us-military-presence-in-europe-has-been-declining-for-30-years-the-current-crisis-in-ukraine-may-reverse-that-trend-175595">U.S. troop numbers in Europe</a> stood at a high of over 400,000 in the 1950s. But this dropped sharply after the fall of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s.</p>
<figure>
<div class="placeholder-container" style="--aspect-ratio-percent:75.06631299734748%;--background-color:#a1665e"><img alt="" class=" ls-is-cached lazyloaded" data-src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/442365/original/file-20220124-27-1x6ja1g.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&w=754&fit=clip" data-srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/442365/original/file-20220124-27-1x6ja1g.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/442365/original/file-20220124-27-1x6ja1g.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/442365/original/file-20220124-27-1x6ja1g.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/442365/original/file-20220124-27-1x6ja1g.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/442365/original/file-20220124-27-1x6ja1g.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/442365/original/file-20220124-27-1x6ja1g.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/442365/original/file-20220124-27-1x6ja1g.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/442365/original/file-20220124-27-1x6ja1g.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/442365/original/file-20220124-27-1x6ja1g.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/442365/original/file-20220124-27-1x6ja1g.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/442365/original/file-20220124-27-1x6ja1g.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/442365/original/file-20220124-27-1x6ja1g.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/442365/original/file-20220124-27-1x6ja1g.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&w=754&fit=clip"></div>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">US military deployments to European states, 1989-2021.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In the post-Soviet era, U.S. troop presence in Europe has been a delicate matter, the scholars note: “The U.S. and Russia have historically been cautious in not placing troops in places that would be considered a provocation. They generally avoid each other’s sphere of influence, even when responding to the other’s deployments. Yet the NATO allies in Eastern Europe, many of which were once Soviet satellite states, provide a gray area that both the U.S. and Russia may view as within their own sphere of influence.”</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-us-military-presence-in-europe-has-been-declining-for-30-years-the-current-crisis-in-ukraine-may-reverse-that-trend-175595">The US military presence in Europe has been declining for 30 years – the current crisis in Ukraine may reverse that trend</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>2. What it means to be a NATO member</h2>
<p>The reason U.S. troops are heading to Germany, Poland and Romania, and not to Ukraine itself, is that the former Soviet country isn’t a member of NATO. As <a href="https://www.clarkson.edu/people/alastair-kocho-williams">Alastair Kocho-Williams at Clarkson University</a> writes, this <a href="https://theconversation.com/whats-nato-and-why-does-ukraine-want-to-join-175821">isn’t out of a lack of desire on Ukraine’s part</a>.</p>
<p>“Membership with NATO would significantly increase Ukraine’s international military backing, allowing for NATO military action within Ukraine and alongside members of its military. This guarantee of military might would act as a firm deterrent to Russian aggression,” Kocho-Williams writes.</p>
<p>In fact, NATO’s principle of “collective defense” – under which an attack on one member is considered an attack on all – is, the U.S. says, the very reason American troops are heading to Poland and Romania. It is out of the NATO commitment to protect members – the implication being that an invasion of Ukraine could possibly mean that NATO states bordering Russia could be next.</p>
<p>But Kocho-Williams cautions that allowing Ukraine to join the military alliance now may pose a problem. “The threat of an imminent conflict between Ukraine and Russia would commit NATO to take military action against Russia,” he writes.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/whats-nato-and-why-does-ukraine-want-to-join-175821">What's NATO, and why does Ukraine want to join?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>3. How the Russian media might view this troop move</h2>
<p>The U.S. stated aim in deploying troops to Eastern Europe – to reassure NATO members – was <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/biden-orders-us-troop-deployments-reassure-nato-allies/story?id=82622507">reported faithfully</a> by the American media. It is unlikely that Russian newspapers and TV news broadcasts will present it in the same way.</p>
<p>Cynthia Hooper at College of the Holy Cross says that <a href="https://theconversation.com/its-just-a-panic-attack-russian-media-blames-us-for-escalating-ukraine-crisis-175482">the Russian media</a> have portrayed the U.S. as being “hysterical” in its insistence that Putin is hell-bent on invasion. Writes Hooper, “Joe Biden, Russian reporters claim, is building up a false sense of threat from Moscow to deflect attention away from domestic problems.”</p>
<p>Whether the Russian public is buying this line from state-controlled media is, however, another matter. For many, there are bigger things to worry about. Hooper quotes a Russian friend who told her that people “are sick and tired of those endless political TV shows about the Ukraine; they are absolutely indifferent to international issues.”</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/its-just-a-panic-attack-russian-media-blames-us-for-escalating-ukraine-crisis-175482">It's just a 'panic attack' – Russian media blames US for escalating Ukraine crisis</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>4. Will deployment deter Putin?</h2>
<p>The question is whether the U.S. troop buildup in Eastern Europe will succeed where international agreements have failed; will it deter Putin from transgressing Ukraine’s border?</p>
<p>In 2014, Russia <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Ukraine/The-crisis-in-Crimea-and-eastern-Ukraine">annexed the Crimean peninsula</a>. It was an illegal military land grab – and one that contravened the Budapest Memorandum, a 1994 commitment in which Russia, the U.S. and the U.K. pledged to “respect the independence and sovereignty and the existing borders of Ukraine.”</p>
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<p>Part of the the problem, as <a href="https://www.law.indiana.edu/about/people/bio.php?name=feinstein-lee-a">Lee Feinstein of Indiana University</a> and <a href="https://www.belfercenter.org/person/mariana-budjeryn">Mariana Budjeryn at Harvard Kennedy School</a> note, is that <a href="https://theconversation.com/ukraine-got-a-signed-commitment-in-1994-to-ensure-its-security-but-can-the-us-and-allies-stop-putins-aggression-now-173481">the memorandum is not legally binding</a>. Even if it were, it might not have been enough to stay Putin’s hand.</p>
<p>“International law matters, but it does not determine what states do.
Strong deterrence, diplomacy and international solidarity can influence Russian decision-making. … Ultimately, however, the de-escalation decision is Russia’s to make,” Feinstein and Budjeryn write. All the U.S. can do is make clear to the Kremlin the consequences of its actions.</p>
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<a href="https://theconversation.com/ukraine-got-a-signed-commitment-in-1994-to-ensure-its-security-but-can-the-us-and-allies-stop-putins-aggression-now-173481">Ukraine got a signed commitment in 1994 to ensure its security – but can the US and allies stop Putin's aggression now?</a>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/175412/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
What’s the significance of the US beefing up its military presence in Europe? The Conversation provides a roundup of articles addressing the crisis in Ukraine.Matt Williams, Senior International EditorLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1758212022-01-31T13:14:36Z2022-01-31T13:14:36ZWhat’s NATO, and why does Ukraine want to join?<p>International concern about Russia’s <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-60164537">provocative stance</a> toward Ukraine continues, even as Russian President Vladimir Putin denies plans for an attack — and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/1/28/russian-fm-says-moscow-does-not-want-war-with-ukraine-liveblog">cautioned on Jan. 28, 2022, against</a> the idea that “there is war here.” </p>
<p>Putin has built up more than 100,000 troops along the Ukrainian border, and the U.S. is <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2022/01/27/pentagon-defends-its-preparation-ukraine-crisis-details-military-forces-that-could-deploy/">ready to deploy</a> thousands of troops. The U.S. <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/jan/26/uk-and-nato-allies-consider-us-request-to-send-more-troops-to-eastern-europe">has also asked</a> the United Kingdom and other NATO allies to deploy hundreds of soldiers to Eastern Europe. </p>
<p>Putin says he will stand down if NATO prohibits Ukraine from joining its alliance – a demand that has <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/26/us/politics/russia-demands-us-ukraine.html">been rejected.</a></p>
<p>Understanding NATO and its history with Ukraine offers insight into the weight of this ultimatum.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/443222/original/file-20220128-13-1rzsh81.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A faded image of Vladimir Putin is covered in snow and gun holes" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/443222/original/file-20220128-13-1rzsh81.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/443222/original/file-20220128-13-1rzsh81.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=404&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/443222/original/file-20220128-13-1rzsh81.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=404&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/443222/original/file-20220128-13-1rzsh81.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=404&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/443222/original/file-20220128-13-1rzsh81.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=507&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/443222/original/file-20220128-13-1rzsh81.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=507&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/443222/original/file-20220128-13-1rzsh81.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=507&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">A poster of Russian President Vladimir Putin is used as target practice for Ukrainian soldiers.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://media.gettyimages.com/photos/poster-of-russian-president-vladimir-putin-is-used-as-target-practice-picture-id1237904862?s=2048x2048">Anatolii Stepanov/AFP via Getty Images</a></span>
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<h2><strong>What is NATO, anyway?</strong></h2>
<p>NATO is a military alliance <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/blog/order-from-chaos/2019/03/27/a-brief-history-of-nato-from-truman-to-trump/">established in 1949</a> by the United States, Canada, France, the United Kingdom, and eight other European countries. Additional countries have since joined NATO — most recently <a href="https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/news_174589.htm">North Macedonia</a> in 2020. <a href="https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/nato_countries.htm">Thirty nations</a> are now part of the organization. </p>
<p>NATO’s 4,200 staff members and member country embassies are headquartered on the <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-nato-headquarters/new-home-but-same-worries-as-nato-moves-into-glass-and-steel-hq-idUSKBN1HR1HU">outskirts of Brussels</a>. </p>
<p>The alliance works with the United Nations, and the two are sometimes confused – including in my classroom, <a href="https://www.clarkson.edu/people/alastair-kocho-williams">where I teach history</a> of the Soviet Union and the Cold War.</p>
<p>But NATO does have some things in common with the U.N. Both are international organizations that participating countries <a href="https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/topics_67655.htm">financially support</a>. Both are dominated by the political influence of Western powers, including the U.S.<br>
But the organizations are not the same. NATO is designed to fight war, if necessary, with its military alliance. The <a href="https://www.csdr.org/95Book/Boothby.htm">U.N. works to avoid war</a> through peacekeeping, political negotiations and other means. </p>
<p>NATO’s key, traditional principle is <a href="https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/topics_110496.htm">“collective defense</a>.” This means an attack on one or more members is considered an attack on all members.</p>
<p>NATO has invoked the <a href="https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/topics_77646.htm">collective defense</a> principle only once: immediately after the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, when it deployed European military planes to patrol U.S. skies. </p>
<p>But NATO has used other political and legal means to justify engagement in the Kosovo War in former Yugoslavia during the 1990s and in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars in the 2000s. The U.S. interprets NATO’s military mandate broadly, for example, as the right to use force <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/research/nato-the-un-and-the-use-of-force/">whenever its members’ interests</a> are at stake.</p>
<p>NATO has long responded to Russian military threats and served as a bulwark to protect against potential <a href="https://history.state.gov/milestones/1945-1952/nato">Soviet aggression</a> during the Cold War. </p>
<p>Countries could vote by consensus to respond with military force to protect members in the event of any eventual Russian attack on Ukraine. But this military force would not directly protect Ukraine under the collective defense principle, as is not yet a NATO member. </p>
<h2>Why does Ukraine want to join NATO?</h2>
<p>Ukraine has had a <a href="https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/topics_80925.htm">partnership</a> with <a href="https://www.nato.int/acad/fellow/98-00/tur.pdf">NATO since 1992</a>. NATO established a <a href="https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/topics_50319.htm">Ukraine-NATO commission</a> in 1997, providing a discussion forum for security concerns and as a way to further the NATO-Ukraine relationship – without a formal membership agreement. </p>
<p>Membership with NATO would significantly increase Ukraine’s international military backing, allowing for NATO military action within Ukraine and alongside members of its military. This guarantee of military might would act as a firm deterrent to Russian aggression. </p>
<p>NATO is clear about the limits of its support to nonmember countries. While it has supported nonmember countries like Afghanistan during <a href="https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/topics_52057.htm">humanitarian emergencies</a>, NATO does not commit to deploying troops to a nonmember state. </p>
<p>Membership would draw Ukraine more firmly toward Europe, making it more likely that Ukraine could join the European Union — another <a href="https://www.iri.org/resource/iri-ukraine-poll-shows-support-eunato-membership-concerns-over-economy-and-vaccines-covid">policy goal</a> for Ukraine. Membership would also help the country build a closer relationship with the U.S. </p>
<p>Joining the alliance would also pull Ukraine further away from Russia’s <a href="https://theconversation.com/5-things-to-know-about-why-russia-might-invade-ukraine-and-why-the-us-is-involved-175371">sphere of influence</a>.</p>
<p>But regional tensions could be exacerbated if Ukraine becomes a NATO member, as Russia has said it would interpret the alliance’s expansion as a <a href="https://www.npr.org/2022/01/12/1072413634/russia-nato-ukraine">direct threat</a>.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/443224/original/file-20220128-27-174fmqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A room full of people sit around a table watching several TV screens." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/443224/original/file-20220128-27-174fmqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/443224/original/file-20220128-27-174fmqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/443224/original/file-20220128-27-174fmqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/443224/original/file-20220128-27-174fmqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/443224/original/file-20220128-27-174fmqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/443224/original/file-20220128-27-174fmqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/443224/original/file-20220128-27-174fmqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg addresses the first session of the NATO foreign ministers meeting in Riga, Latvia. on Nov. 30, 2021.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://media.gettyimages.com/photos/secretary-general-jens-stoltenberg-is-seen-on-the-screen-as-he-the-picture-id1236914962?s=2048x2048">Gints Ivuskans/AFP via Getty Images</a></span>
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<h2>So, is Ukrainian membership in NATO likely?</h2>
<p>While Ukraine is <a href="https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/topics_37750.htm">making progress toward gaining NATO membership</a>, it is unlikely to join NATO quickly, if at all. </p>
<p>All NATO members must unanimously approve a new country, based on factors like a functioning democracy and <a href="https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/official_texts_24733.htm">“unresolved external territorial disputes</a>,” so the Russian troops camped on Ukraine’s border pose a problem.</p>
<p>NATO membership is open to any European country that can <a href="https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natolive/official_texts_17120.htm">“contribute to the security of the North Atlantic area</a>.” Aspiring member countries follow a <a href="https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natolive/topics_37356.htm">Membership Action Plan</a>, an application process that involves countries detailing their security and political policies. It can take a country 20 years to complete the plan and gain admittance, as in the case of North Macedonia. </p>
<p>Former Ukrainian president Leonid Kuchma publicly announced Ukraine’s interest in NATO membership in<a href="https://www.brookings.edu/blog/order-from-chaos/2019/06/06/natos-ukraine-challenge/"> May 2002</a>. </p>
<p>Ukraine then applied for a Membership Action Plan in 2008. This process stalled in 2010 under former President Viktor Yanukovich, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jan/25/ukraine-ex-president-viktor-yanukovych-found-guilty-of-treason">a Putin-backed politician</a> who did not want to pursue a NATO relationship.</p>
<p>Ukraine has more recently re-energized its plans to join NATO, especially in the face of the building Russia-Ukraine conflict and Russia’s <a href="https://apnews.com/article/ukraine-crimea-moscow-russia-26d1c8cbf518562bf137e3febd55b164">annexation of Crimea in 2014</a>.</p>
<p>In 2017, Ukraine adopted a <a href="https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-president-signs-constitutional-amendment-on-nato-eu-membership/29779430.html">constitutional amendment</a> that committed itself to NATO membership. </p>
<p>Ukraine then adopted a <a href="https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/ukrainealert/russia-as-aggressor-nato-as-objective-ukraines-new-national-security-strategy/">National Security Strategy</a> aimed at developing its NATO partnership in 2021.</p>
<p>The NATO application process “has been dragging on for an indecently long time,” Ukraine Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/opinions/ukraine-and-nato-dont-ask-do/">said in September</a> 2021.</p>
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<p>An independent and sovereign Ukraine would support NATO’s goal of <a href="https://www.nato.int/docu/review/articles/2020/07/08/an-independent-and-sovereign-ukraine-is-key-to-euro-atlantic-security/index.html">Euro-Atlantic stability</a>, even if Ukraine has expressed <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/opinions/ukraine-and-nato-dont-ask-do/">greater urgency than NATO</a> to join the alliance. </p>
<p>But Ukraine joining NATO now would, quite simply, be a liability. The threat of an imminent conflict between Ukraine and Russia would commit NATO to take military action against Russia.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/175821/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Alastair Kocho-Williams does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>One of Putin’s demands for de-escalating conflict with Ukraine is NATO blocking Ukrainian membership. Understanding what NATO is, and why Ukraine wants to join, clarifies why Putin wants this.Alastair Kocho-Williams, Professor of History, Clarkson UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1753162022-01-27T18:56:28Z2022-01-27T18:56:28ZOttawa’s use of our location data raises big surveillance and privacy concerns<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/442544/original/file-20220125-23-1arca3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5615%2C3159&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Cellular phones track and reveal owners' movements, generating useful data for pandemic tracking.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>News recently broke that <a href="https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/canadas-public-health-agency-admits-it-tracked-33-million-mobile-devices-during-lockdown">the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC)</a> had been <a href="https://buyandsell.gc.ca/procurement-data/tender-notice/PW-21-00979277">procuring location data</a> from millions of mobile devices to study how COVID-19 lockdowns were working. </p>
<p>Appalled opposition MPs called for an emergency meeting of the ethics committee of the House of Commons, fearing that the pandemic was being used as an excuse to scale up surveillance. </p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">Global News reports on the Canadian government’s use of location data.</span></figcaption>
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<p>At the same time, <a href="https://www.dagstuhl.de/en/program/calendar/semhp/?semnr=22022">our group of interdisciplinary experts from around the world</a> convened at a research retreat on the subject of the ethics of mobility data analysis. Computer scientists, together with philosophers and social scientists, looked at the ethical challenges posed by the uses of mobility data, especially those legitimized by the pandemic. </p>
<h2>The collection and use of location data</h2>
<p>Telecommunications providers like Telus and Rogers know where cellphones are located by triangulation from the cell towers to which each phone connects. The data is a commodity and <a href="https://www.telus.com/en/about/privacy/data-for-good/">they share it, in anonymized form, with others, including academics</a>. </p>
<p>Smartphones can also use the <a href="https://electronics.howstuffworks.com/gps-phone.htm">global positioning system (GPS)</a> or their connection to Wi-Fi access points to collect location data and share it with companies to receive customized services, like navigation or recommendations. </p>
<p>Many companies are interested in gathering location data even when their services don’t require it, as selling that data to other companies is an attractive prospect. For example, <a href="https://twitter.com/TectonixGEO/status/1242628347034767361">Tectonix tweeted</a> in 2020 about a dashboard it had developed with data acquired from <a href="https://xmode.io/">X-Mode</a> to track the cellphones of <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/04/tech/location-tracking-florida-coronavirus/index.html">people who partied on a Fort Lauderdale beach</a> during spring break in March.</p>
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<h2>Not so anonymous</h2>
<p>Companies and data brokers may claim to only store or sell anonymized location data, but that’s little comfort when <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-10933-3">location data itself is so identifiable and revealing</a>. In particular, and contrary to popular belief, it’s almost impossible to make detailed location data truly anonymous. Even if a sequence of locations visited by an individual is stripped of any connection to that person’s name or other identifiers, the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcss.2014.04.024">possibility of re-identification due to the inherent information contained in this trajectory</a> must be considered. </p>
<p>It becomes quite simple to look up who lives at a given location and assume that where someone spends their days is their work, and where they are in the evenings is their home, and this can uniquely identify a person. </p>
<p>Similar to records of a person’s online activities, the places visited can also reveal sensitive data such as health (repeated visits to a particular clinic), religion, hobbies and family (where your children go to school). Location data is hard to anonymize and can be used to re-identify a person, and all sorts of other information can be inferred from patterns of movement.</p>
<p>Government agencies like PHAC want to use mobility data to understand trends in the “<a href="https://health-infobase.canada.ca/covid-19/covidtrends/?HR=1,4834&mapOpen=false">movement of populations during the COVID‑19 pandemic</a>” to study how the disease spreads and also to monitor how measures put in place, such as the confinement, are respected by the population. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/opposition-parties-team-up-to-call-emergency-house-health-ethics-committee-meetings-1.5734269">The fear expressed by Conservative and Bloc Québécois members of Parliament</a> is that the government is using the pandemic to justify a new level of surveillance of Canadians that could continue even after the pandemic is over. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/health-data-collected-during-the-coronavirus-pandemic-needs-to-be-managed-responsibly-141978">Health data collected during the coronavirus pandemic needs to be managed responsibly</a>
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<h2>Best practices</h2>
<p>If governments are going to promote contact tracing or collecting mobility data for health reasons such as transmission of COVID-19, <a href="https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2020/04/challenge-proximity-apps-covid-19-contact-tracing">best practices</a> suggest that the scope should be clearly defined, the information gathered kept to a minimum and there should be an expiry date for the project after which it’s reviewed. Some specific practices that government agencies like PHAC might consider include:</p>
<p>First, as PHAC is discovering, transparency is key: be transparent about what information is sought, how it will be stored and for how long, who will have access and what outcomes are anticipated. </p>
<p>In particular, due to its sensitivity with respect to privacy but also other ethical issues — such as the risks of stigmatization of particular groups in the population — the collection and analysis of large location datasets by governments should be made public from the beginning in a manner similar to the discussions around contact-tracing applications. </p>
<p>Location data isn’t representative since some groups, like children or the elderly, are less likely to carry smartphones, while others are more tech-savvy. Biased data needs to be accounted for, and transparency is a way for the public to audit the use of such data. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/race-based-covid-19-data-may-be-used-to-discriminate-against-racialized-communities-138372">Race-based COVID-19 data may be used to discriminate against racialized communities</a>
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<p>Second, any organization gathering or working with data should develop a <a href="https://assistant.portagenetwork.ca/">data-management plan</a> that covers how it will deal with security and privacy implications. </p>
<p>Transparency and accountability around data plans is part of ensuring long-term ethical maintenance. Mobility data can easily be misused by third parties to make inappropriate inferences about citizens, so brokers, governments and researchers need to plan for how they will share data. This is especially true for researchers who value preservation of research data to enable replication and further research. </p>
<p>Open datasets allow results to be replicated and new research to be imagined combining past datasets, but openly shared datasets can also be used to re-identify people in inappropriate ways. The way data is anonymized before being shared is of great importance. It should also be made public to be open to the scrutiny of experts or associations concerned about privacy. </p>
<p>Third, civil society organizations need to be engaged in a dialogue around government policies, regulations and bias. Public trust in government surveillance and academic research needs to be developed and maintained — before there are scandals, not after.</p>
<p>We especially need to talk about who is represented and who is excluded, and what the implications are. For example, if the elderly or economically disadvantaged are less likely to have smartphones, then mobility data may under-represent their interests. That’s detrimental if this data is used to guide public policies. </p>
<p>Finally, we all need to contribute to the development of a new consensus around surveillance whether by governments, companies or researchers. PHAC could lead a conversation around health surveillance.</p>
<p>As the pandemic has shown, public trust in health measures is important to their success. Transparency followed by dialogue could allow appropriate data gathering and use, while still enabling useful research, especially in times of crisis.</p>
<p><em>Chiara Renso of the Institute of Information Science and Technologies of National Research Council of Italy co-authored this article.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/175316/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Geoffrey M Rockwell receives funding from the Social Science and Humanities Research Council of Canada and holds a leadership role in the Canadian Society for Digital Humanities. He has also received funding from the Alberta Machine Intelligence Institute. He is affiliated with the AI, People, and Society Initiative sponsored by the ATB AI Lab. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Bettina Berendt receives funding from the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) – Nr. 16DII113f. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Florence Chee does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jeanna Matthews is affiliated with and holds leadership roles within the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) and Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sébastien Gambs receives funding from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) of Canada, through the Discovery grant program, as well as from the Canada Research Chair program. </span></em></p>In order to track the pandemic, the Public Health Agency of Canada has been using location data without explicit and informed consent. Transparency is key to building and maintaining trust.Geoffrey M Rockwell, Professor of Philosophy and Digital Humanities, University of AlbertaBettina Berendt, Professor, Internet and Society, Technische Universität BerlinFlorence M. Chee, Associate Professor of Digital Communication, Loyola University ChicagoJeanna Matthews, Professor of Computer Science, Clarkson UniversitySébastien Gambs, Professor, Computer Science, Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM)Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1735682022-01-12T13:37:30Z2022-01-12T13:37:30ZRadicalization pipelines: How targeted advertising on social media drives people to extremes<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/440885/original/file-20220114-13-1ijdnj9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=21%2C0%2C2344%2C1557&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Many people are led to conspiracy theories and extremist views from less extreme positions.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/TwitterQAnon/e863fa946b5045f19c16655cdf91ce9e/photo">AP Photo/Ted S. Warren</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Have you had the experience of looking at some product online and then seeing ads for it all over your social media feed? Far from coincidence, these instances of eerily accurate advertising provide glimpses into the behind-the-scenes mechanisms that feed an item you search for on Google, “like” on social media or come across while browsing into custom advertising on social media.</p>
<p>Those mechanisms are increasingly being used for more nefarious purposes than aggressive advertising. The threat is in how this targeted advertising interacts with today’s extremely divisive political landscape. As a <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=HC021GgAAAAJ&hl=en">social media researcher</a>, I see how people seeking to radicalize others use targeted advertising to readily move people to extreme views.</p>
<h2>Advertising to an audience of one</h2>
<p>Advertising is clearly powerful. The right ad campaign can help shape or create demand for a new product or rehabilitate the image of an older product or even of an entire company or brand. Political campaigns use similar strategies to push candidates and ideas, and historically countries have used them to wage propaganda wars. </p>
<p>Advertising in mass media is powerful, but mass media has a built-in moderating force. When trying to move many people in one direction, mass media can only move them as fast as the middle will tolerate. If it moves too far or too fast, people in the middle may be alienated. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://gizmodo.com/all-of-the-creepy-things-facebook-knows-about-you-1785510980">detailed profiles</a> the social media companies build for each of their users make advertising even more powerful by enabling advertisers to <a href="https://www.investopedia.com/terms/t/tailored-advertising.asp">tailor their messages to individuals</a>. These profiles often include the size and value of your home, what year you bought your car, whether you’re expecting a child, and whether you buy a lot of beer. </p>
<p>Consequently, social media has a greater ability to expose people to ideas as fast as they individually will accept them. The same mechanisms that can recommend a niche consumer product to just the right person or suggest an addictive substance just when someone is most vulnerable can also suggest an extreme conspiracy theory just when a person is ready to consider it. </p>
<p>It is increasingly common for friends and family to find themselves on opposite sides of highly polarized debates about important issues. Many people recognize social media as part of the problem, but how are these powerful customized advertising techniques contributing to the divisive political landscape? </p>
<h2>Breadcrumbs to the extreme</h2>
<p>One important part of the answer is that people associated with foreign governments, without admitting who they are, take extreme positions in social media posts <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-fake-accounts-constantly-manipulate-what-you-see-on-social-media-and-what-you-can-do-about-it-139610">with the deliberate goal of sparking division and conflict</a>. These extreme posts take advantage of the social media algorithms, which are <a href="https://theconversation.com/facebook-whistleblower-frances-haugen-testified-that-the-companys-algorithms-are-dangerous-heres-how-they-can-manipulate-you-169420">designed to heighten engagement</a>, meaning they reward content that provokes a response.</p>
<p>Another important part of the answer is that people seeking to radicalize others lay out trails of breadcrumbs to <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/qanon-anti-vax-coronavirus_n_5fbeb0c0c5b61d04bfa6921a">more and more extreme positions</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/440142/original/file-20220110-22-2hkpaw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="a woman speaks into a bullhorn while two people hold a banner behind her" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/440142/original/file-20220110-22-2hkpaw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/440142/original/file-20220110-22-2hkpaw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/440142/original/file-20220110-22-2hkpaw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/440142/original/file-20220110-22-2hkpaw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/440142/original/file-20220110-22-2hkpaw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=504&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/440142/original/file-20220110-22-2hkpaw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=504&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/440142/original/file-20220110-22-2hkpaw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=504&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Many people feel that they have ‘figured out’ conspiracy theories for themselves, but in many cases they’ve been deliberately led to them.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/VirusOutbreakLosAngelesSchools/85eb97d2ffa84ab8aae85b53c3ba900b/photo">AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>These social media radicalization pipelines work much the same way <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/radicalizations-path-case-studies-finding-similarities-80966358">whether recruiting jihadists or Jan. 6 insurrectionists</a>. </p>
<p>You may feel like you’re “doing your own research,” moving from source to source, but you are really following a deliberate radicalization pipeline that’s designed to move you toward more and more extreme content at whatever pace you will tolerate. For example, after analyzing over 72 million user comments on over 330,000 videos posted on 349 YouTube channels, researchers found that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1145/3351095.3372879">users consistently migrated from milder to more extreme content</a>. </p>
<p>The result of these radicalization pipelines is apparent. Rather than most people having moderate views with fewer people holding extreme views, <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2014/06/12/political-polarization-in-the-american-public/">fewer and fewer people are in the middle</a>.</p>
<h2>How to protect yourself</h2>
<p>What can you do? First, I recommend a huge dose of skepticism about social media recommendations. Most people have gone to social media looking for something in particular and then found themselves looking up from their phones an hour or more later having little idea how or why they read or watched what they just did. It is <a href="https://www.thesocialdilemma.com/">designed to be addictive</a>.</p>
<p>I’ve been trying to chart a more deliberate path to the information I want and actively trying to avoid just clicking on whatever is recommended to me. If I do read or watch what is suggested, I ask myself “How might this information be in someone else’s best interest, not mine?” </p>
<p>[<em>Over 140,000 readers rely on The Conversation’s newsletters to understand the world.</em> <a href="https://memberservices.theconversation.com/newsletters/?source=inline-140ksignup">Sign up today</a>.]</p>
<p>Second, consider supporting efforts to require social media platforms to offer users a choice of algorithms for recommendations and feed curation, including ones based on simple-to-explain rules. </p>
<p>Third, and most important, I recommend investing more time in interacting with friends and family off of social media. If I find myself needing to forward a link to make a point, I treat that as a warning bell that I do not actually understand the issue well enough myself. If so, perhaps I have found myself following a constructed trail toward extreme content rather than consuming materials that are actually helping me better understand the world.</p>
<p><em>Editor’s note: The Conversation has replaced the lead image of this story to avoid associating any particular political viewpoint with conspiracy theorists.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/173568/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jeanna Matthews is affiliated with and holds leadership roles within the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) and Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). </span></em></p>Social media isn’t simply awash in conspiracy theories and extremism. It contains pathways designed to lead people to ever more extreme material.Jeanna Matthews, Professor of Computer Science, Clarkson UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1709042021-11-04T14:34:35Z2021-11-04T14:34:35ZAnother problem with daylight saving time: The time change raises your risk of hitting deer on the road<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/429596/original/file-20211101-13-17hk6iz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C52%2C2936%2C1964&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The likelihood of hitting a deer is highest during morning and evening twilight.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/young-deer-stands-by-a-roadside-near-treplin-germany-10-news-photo/1038049036">Patrick Pleul/Picture alliance via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Daylight saving time ends in the U.S. and Canada on Nov. 5, 2023, and <a href="https://www.timeanddate.com/time/change/usa">most of us</a> will set our clocks back an hour. There is a long-running debate about the <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2016-014319">benefit of the time change</a>, given how it <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2007.10.025">disrupts humans’ circadian rhythms</a>, causing short-term stress and fatigue. </p>
<p>Another risk accompanying the time change is on the roads: As more people drive at dusk during an active time of year for deer, the number of deer-vehicle accidents rises.</p>
<p>Deer cause over 1 million motor vehicle accidents in the U.S. each year, <a href="https://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol14/iss2/art15/">resulting in more than US$1 billion</a> in property damage, about 200 human deaths and 29,000 serious injuries. Property damage insurance claims average around $2,600 per accident, and the overall average cost, including severe injuries or death, is over $6,000.</p>
<p>While avoiding deer – as well as <a href="https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1523-1739.1996.10041059.x">moose, elk and other hoofed animals, known as ungulates</a> – can seem impossible if you’re driving in rural areas, there are certain times and places that are most hazardous, and so warrant extra caution.</p>
<p>Transportation agencies, working with scientists, have been developing ways to predict where deer and other ungulates enter roads so they can post warning signs or install fencing or wildlife passages under or over the roadway. Just as important is knowing when these accidents occur.</p>
<p>My former students <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=lwT82GcAAAAJ&hl=en">Victor Colino-Rabanal</a>, <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Wijesooriya-Arachchilage-Abeyrathna">Nimanthi Abeyrathna</a> and I have <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-017-1458-x">analyzed over 86,000</a> <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2021.112774">deer-vehicle collisions</a> involving white-tailed deer in New York state using police records over a three-year period. Here’s what our research and other studies show about timing and risk.</p>
<h2>Time of day, month and year matters</h2>
<p>The risk of hitting a deer varies by time of day, day of the week, the monthly lunar cycle and seasons of the year. </p>
<p>These accident cycles are partly a function of driver behavior – they are highest when traffic is heavy, drivers are least alert and driving conditions are poorest for spotting animals. They are also <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aap.2019.105365">affected by deer behavior</a>. Not infrequently, deer-vehicle accidents involve multiple vehicles, as startled drivers swerve to miss a deer and collide with a vehicle in another lane, or they slam on the breaks and are rear-ended by the vehicle behind.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Car on road during the start of leaf colors with road sign reading: Caution: High Hit Area" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/422438/original/file-20210921-19-1dprmmr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/422438/original/file-20210921-19-1dprmmr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/422438/original/file-20210921-19-1dprmmr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/422438/original/file-20210921-19-1dprmmr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/422438/original/file-20210921-19-1dprmmr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/422438/original/file-20210921-19-1dprmmr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/422438/original/file-20210921-19-1dprmmr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A sign warns of deer traffic on Route 16 in Franklin County, Maine.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/fall-foliage-route-16-deer-crossing-franklin-county-maine-news-photo/629562975">Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In analyzing thousands of deer-vehicle collisions, we found that these <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-017-1458-x">accidents occur most frequently</a> at dusk and dawn, when deer are most active and drivers’ ability to spot them is poorest. Only about 20% of accidents occur during daylight hours. Deer-vehicle accidents are eight times more frequent per hour of dusk than daylight, and four times more frequent at dusk than after nightfall.</p>
<p>During the week, accidents occur most frequently on days that have the most drivers on the road at dawn or dusk, so they are associated with work commuter driving patterns and social factors such as Friday “date night” traffic.</p>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-017-1458-x">Over the span</a> of a month, the most deer-vehicle accidents occur during the full moon, and at the time of night that the moon is brightest. Deer move greater distances from cover and are more likely to enter roadways when there is more illumination at night. The pattern holds for deer and other ungulates in both North America and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1523-1739.1996.10041059.x">Europe</a>.</p>
<p><iframe id="Emy0i" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/Emy0i/5/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<p>Over a year, by far the highest numbers of deer-vehicle accidents are in autumn, and particularly during the rut, when bucks search and compete to mate with does. In New York state, the peak number of deer-vehicle accidents occurs in the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2021.112774">last week of October and first weeks of November</a>. There are over four times as many deer-vehicle accidents during that period as during spring. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aap.2019.105365">Moose-vehicle accidents show a similar pattern</a>.</p>
<h2>The problem with daylight saving time</h2>
<p>We have also found that the daylight saving time clock shift of one hour <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2021.112774">affects the number of deer-vehicle accidents</a>. </p>
<p>In spring, when deer-vehicle accidents are at an annual low, the start of daylight saving time means a later sunrise and sunset. It results in a small decrease in deer-vehicle accidents. However, in fall, when deer-vehicle accidents are at an annual high because of deer rut, the earlier sunrise and sunset cause a significant increase in deer-vehicle accidents. </p>
<p>The clock shift results in more commuters on the road during the high-risk dusk hours. The consequence is more cars driving at the peak time of day and during the peak time of the year for deer-vehicle accidents. The clock shift results in a 37% reduction in deer-vehicle accidents during morning commuter hours, since fewer commuters are on the road before sunrise, but a 72% increase in accidents during evening commuter hours. Overall, there is a 19% increase in accidents during commuter hours the week after the fall time change in New York.</p>
<h2>Deer still cross roads at any time</h2>
<p>It’s important to remember that deer-vehicle accidents can occur at any time of day or night, on any day of the year – and that deer can show up in urban areas as well as rural ones.</p>
<p>The insurance company State Farm found that on average, U.S. drivers have a <a href="https://newsroom.statefarm.com/animal-collision/">1 in 116 chance of hitting an animal</a>, with much higher rates in states such as West Virginia, Montana and Pennsylvania. Over the 12 months ended in June 2020, State Farm counted 1.9 million insurance claims for collisions with wildlife nationwide. <a href="https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/publications/research/safety/08034/exec.cfm">Around 90% of those involved deer</a>.</p>
<p>Where deer or other ungulates are likely to be present, drivers should always be alert and cautious, especially at dawn, dusk, on bright moonlit nights and during the fall rut. In addition, drivers should be aware that after the fall time change, they may be more fatigued, and their evening commute from work may have shifted into the dusk hours, when risk of hitting a deer is highest, and coinciding with the rut, when the risk is at its annual peak. </p>
<p><em>This is an update to an <a href="https://theconversation.com/fall-means-more-deer-on-the-road-4-ways-time-of-day-month-and-year-raise-your-risk-of-crashes-167489">article</a> originally published on Sept. 21, 2021.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/170904/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tom Langen does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Dusk is a dangerous time of day for hitting wildlife on the road, and the one-hour time change means more drivers are out while deer are at their most active and visibility is dropping.Tom Langen, Professor of Biology, Clarkson UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1675022021-10-20T12:42:54Z2021-10-20T12:42:54ZTrailblazing women who broke into engineering in the 1970s reflect on what’s changed – and what hasn’t<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/426295/original/file-20211013-15-tv131r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C2986%2C2344&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Women who got their start in the male-dominated profession 40 years ago have advice for today's newcomers in STEM.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/kennedy-senior-wins-bridge-building-contest-lauri-news-photo/838551930">Contributor/Denver Post via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Engineering in the U.S. has long been – and continues to be – a male-dominated profession. Fifty years ago, it looked like that might change. </p>
<p>In 1970, the percentage of women majoring in engineering was less than 1%. In <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/19378629.2019.1663201">1979, that number was 9%</a>. Many hoped women would continue to enter the field at the same rate. But that’s not what happened. Today, only <a href="https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d19/tables/dt19_325.45.asp">21% of engineering majors are women</a>, a number largely unchanged since 2000. </p>
<p>I am a <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=X37gi7sAAAAJ">historian</a> who, along with my colleagues, <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=gyOl2lYAAAAJ">Nicole Conroy</a> and <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=MqaahlYAAAAJ&view_op=list_works">William Barr II</a>, surveyed 251 women engineers who graduated from college in the 1970s. These trailblazing women <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/19378629.2019.1663201">reflected on the adversity they faced</a> – and had advice for women entering the field today.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/425948/original/file-20211012-27-1q29yb8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Black and white photo of a woman speaking to six men gathered around a solar panel." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/425948/original/file-20211012-27-1q29yb8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/425948/original/file-20211012-27-1q29yb8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=408&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/425948/original/file-20211012-27-1q29yb8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=408&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/425948/original/file-20211012-27-1q29yb8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=408&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/425948/original/file-20211012-27-1q29yb8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=512&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/425948/original/file-20211012-27-1q29yb8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=512&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/425948/original/file-20211012-27-1q29yb8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=512&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Student researchers at the University of Florida, Gainesville work on a solar-powered generator, 1977.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Society of Women Engineers Photographs, Walter P. Reuther Library</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>‘Never quite one of the group’</h2>
<p>We asked about the greatest challenges our survey takers faced as women in a male-dominated field. The three obstacles they cited most frequently were not getting respect, not fitting in and struggling to achieve work/family balance.</p>
<p>One survey taker, a biomechanical engineer who now works in web engineering, explained, “The greatest challenge for me was continuing to believe in myself, when all the messages I was getting were that I would never be taken seriously or promoted or given raises – or even hired – at the same rate as men, who were clearly less qualified and not as smart as I was.”</p>
<p>A chemical engineer who worked in manufacturing concurred, “You have to prove yourself just because you are female. And you have to work twice as hard!”</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/425951/original/file-20211012-27-1pqefh5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Black and white photo of a woman using a large pipette to measure out a chemical liquid." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/425951/original/file-20211012-27-1pqefh5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/425951/original/file-20211012-27-1pqefh5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=829&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/425951/original/file-20211012-27-1pqefh5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=829&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/425951/original/file-20211012-27-1pqefh5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=829&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/425951/original/file-20211012-27-1pqefh5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1042&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/425951/original/file-20211012-27-1pqefh5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1042&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/425951/original/file-20211012-27-1pqefh5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1042&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">On the job in the Kodak lab, 1977.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Society of Women Engineers Photographs, Walter P. Reuther Library</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>A civil engineer said, “We are ‘women engineers.’ People don’t refer to a man as a ‘man engineer’ – he’s an engineer. We are constantly reminded that we don’t truly belong.” Another civil engineer stated, “On many levels, you’re never quite one of the group.”</p>
<p>Women also talked about family caregiving responsibilities. A retired vice president from a major chemical company stated, “Young women engineers are on equal footing until they have children, then they struggle to balance work and family – and compete with men who don’t have the same time constraints or busy family life.” Another woman who worked as a chemist warned that bosses assume “you will leave as soon as you start having babies.”</p>
<p>Remember, the women we surveyed are all now in their 60s and 70s. We asked them if they thought the challenges they faced had changed over time. A retired chemical and environmental engineer said, “Progress is slow” – a view echoed by many survey takers. A nuclear engineer added, “There still remains an old boys’ club … It isn’t as blatant or as crass as when I started, but it still exists.” </p>
<p>Some noted that subtle forms of discrimination and bias can be really damaging. An engineer with a long career in the auto industry said, “Bias can be quite subtle, which really hurts young women, because it can take them years to recognize it, by which time they may have lost a lot of ground.” </p>
<p>About one-quarter of survey respondents said that gender problems no longer exist. A senior project engineer said, “Today, young women engineers are more accepted mostly because there are just more of them. It’s easier to get their foot in the door. Younger male engineers are also used to working with women because they went to school with them.” </p>
<h2>Advice to young women entering engineering</h2>
<p>Despite identifying challenges, the majority of survey takers said they would tell a young woman thinking about pursuing a career in engineering to “Go for it!” </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/425936/original/file-20211012-25-iydweq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C1%2C720%2C573&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Black and white photo of a woman in a hard hat at the controls in a large control room." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/425936/original/file-20211012-25-iydweq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C1%2C720%2C573&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/425936/original/file-20211012-25-iydweq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=480&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/425936/original/file-20211012-25-iydweq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=480&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/425936/original/file-20211012-25-iydweq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=480&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/425936/original/file-20211012-25-iydweq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=603&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/425936/original/file-20211012-25-iydweq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=603&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/425936/original/file-20211012-25-iydweq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=603&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Working the Con Edison 74th St. Station control room, New York, 1975.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Society of Women Engineers Photographs, Walter P. Reuther Library</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Many of the women extolled the benefits of their chosen career. A program manager in manufacturing stated that “hands down” engineering is the best degree. A mechanical engineer who owned her own consulting company said, “It will give you the flexibility to do almost anything. It is almost impossible to point out anything tangible an engineer didn’t touch or influence in some way. It is also satisfying to see the effects of what you have done.” </p>
<p>Some survey takers suggested younger women might need to ignore obstacles. A retired aerospace engineer advised, “You can do the job. However it takes strength and perseverance to do so while ignoring the naysayers.”</p>
<p>Respondents also had practical advice for younger women starting off in the profession. They emphasized using some approaches that worked for them. These included speaking up for yourself, exiting unsupportive workplaces, seeking professional organizations that can help you, finding mentors of all genders and reaching out to other women engineers. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/425955/original/file-20211012-19-1k1fvio.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Black and white photo of six young women informally chatting while attending a conference." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/425955/original/file-20211012-19-1k1fvio.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/425955/original/file-20211012-19-1k1fvio.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=429&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/425955/original/file-20211012-19-1k1fvio.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=429&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/425955/original/file-20211012-19-1k1fvio.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=429&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/425955/original/file-20211012-19-1k1fvio.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=539&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/425955/original/file-20211012-19-1k1fvio.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=539&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/425955/original/file-20211012-19-1k1fvio.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=539&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Members discuss a session at the 1981 Society of Women Engineers National Convention in Anaheim, Calif.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Society of Women Engineers Photographs, Walter P. Reuther Library</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>A retired nuclear engineer said, “Use the ‘Old Girls’ Network’ – it does exist … Don’t isolate yourself. You are not the only one with your issue.” </p>
<h2>Part of a larger struggle</h2>
<p>Indeed, the problems our survey takers faced were and are structural. </p>
<p>Engineering remains male-dominated <a href="https://www.aauw.org/resources/research/the-stem-gap/">due to many factors</a> common in other STEM fields. They include <a href="https://worklifelaw.org/publication/climate-control-gender-racial-bias-engineering/">gender bias and stereotypes</a>, <a href="https://www.aauw.org/app/uploads/2020/03/Solving-the-Equation-report-nsa.pdf">male-dominated educational settings and workplaces</a>, and <a href="https://www.nap.edu/catalog/24994/sexual-harassment-of-women-climate-culture-and-consequences-in-academic">sexual harassment</a>. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.nap.edu/catalog/25585/promising-practices-for-addressing-the-underrepresentation-of-women-in-science-engineering-and-medicine">challenges for women from underrepresented groups</a>, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/jee.20345">such as people of color</a>, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0002764218768864">people with disabilities</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/jee.20239">people with LGBTQ identities</a>, <a href="https://worklifelaw.org/publication/climate-control-gender-racial-bias-engineering/">are even greater</a>. </p>
<p>As a chemical engineering professor put it, “Laws and attitudes have changed significantly … However, these changes are not without backlash or pushback. Learning to cope with this is ongoing, not only for women, but for all ‘strangers’ in this profession.”</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/167502/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Laura Ettinger receives funding from the National Science Foundation under grants 1734500 and 1936144.</span></em></p>A survey of 251 women engineers who graduated from college in the 1970s sheds light on the experiences of these professional pioneers.Laura Ettinger, Associate Professor of History, Clarkson UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1674892021-09-21T19:19:40Z2021-09-21T19:19:40ZFall means more deer on the road: 4 ways time of day, month and year raise your risk of crashes<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/422435/original/file-20210921-23-1p1nd4v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C4832%2C3216&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Deer cross roads whenever they wish, but some time periods are higher risk than others.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/deer-stands-on-a-road-painted-with-fire-retardant-during-news-photo/1006863216">Josh Edelson/AFP via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Autumn is here, and that means the risk of hitting deer on rural roads and highways is rising, especially around dusk and during a full moon.</p>
<p>Deer cause over 1 million motor vehicle accidents in the U.S. each year, <a href="https://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol14/iss2/art15/">resulting in more than US$1 billion</a> in property damage, about 200 human deaths and 29,000 serious injuries. Property damage insurance claims average around $2,600 per accident, and the overall average cost, including severe injuries or death, is over $6,000.</p>
<p>While avoiding deer – as well as <a href="https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1523-1739.1996.10041059.x">moose, elk and other hoofed animals, known as ungulates</a> – can seem impossible if you’re driving in rural areas, there are certain times and places that are most hazardous, and so warrant extra caution.</p>
<p>Transportation agencies, working with scientists, have been developing ways to predict where deer and other ungulates enter roads so they can post warning signs or install fencing or wildlife passages under or over the roadway. Just as important is knowing when these accidents occur.</p>
<p>My former students <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=lwT82GcAAAAJ&hl=en">Victor Colino-Rabanal</a>, <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Wijesooriya-Arachchilage-Abeyrathna">Nimanthi Abeyrathna</a> and I have <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-017-1458-x">analyzed over 86,000</a> <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2021.112774">deer-vehicle collisions</a> involving white-tailed deer in New York state using police records over a three-year period. Here’s what our research and other studies show about timing and risk:</p>
<h2>Time of day, month and year matters</h2>
<p>The risk of hitting a deer varies by time of day, day of the week, the monthly lunar cycle and seasons of the year. </p>
<p>These accident cycles are partly a function of driver behavior – they are highest when traffic is heavy, drivers are least alert and driving conditions are poorest for spotting animals. They are also <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aap.2019.105365">affected by deer behavior</a>. Not infrequently, deer-vehicle accidents involve multiple vehicles, as startled drivers swerve to miss a deer and collide with a vehicle in another lane, or they slam on the brakes and are rear-ended by the vehicle behind.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Car on road during the start of leaf colors with road sign reading: Caution: High Hit Area" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/422438/original/file-20210921-19-1dprmmr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/422438/original/file-20210921-19-1dprmmr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/422438/original/file-20210921-19-1dprmmr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/422438/original/file-20210921-19-1dprmmr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/422438/original/file-20210921-19-1dprmmr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/422438/original/file-20210921-19-1dprmmr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/422438/original/file-20210921-19-1dprmmr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A sign warns of deer traffic on Route 16 in Franklin County, Maine.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/fall-foliage-route-16-deer-crossing-franklin-county-maine-news-photo/629562975">Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In analyzing thousands of deer-vehicle collisions, we found that these <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-017-1458-x">accidents occur most frequently</a> at dusk and dawn, when deer are most active and drivers’ ability to spot them is poorest. Only about 20% of accidents occur during daylight hours. Deer-vehicle accidents are eight times more frequent per hour of dusk than daylight, and four times more frequent at dusk than after nightfall.</p>
<p>During the week, accidents occur most frequently on days that have the most drivers on the road at dawn or dusk, so they are associated with work commuter driving patterns and social factors such as Friday “date night” traffic.</p>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-017-1458-x">Over the span</a> of a month, the most deer-vehicle accidents occur during the full moon, and at the time of night that the moon is brightest. Deer move greater distances from cover and are more likely to enter roadways when there is more illumination at night. The pattern holds for deer and other ungulates in both North America and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1523-1739.1996.10041059.x">Europe</a>.</p>
<p><iframe id="Emy0i" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/Emy0i/5/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<p>Over a year, by far the highest numbers of deer-vehicle accidents are in autumn, and particularly during the rut, when bucks search and compete to mate with does. In New York state, the peak number of deer-vehicle accidents occurs in the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2021.112774">last week of October and first weeks of November</a>. There are over four times as many deer-vehicle accidents during that period than during spring. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aap.2019.105365">Moose-vehicle accidents show a similar pattern</a>.</p>
<p>That high-risk period is also when daylight saving time ends – it happens on Nov. 7, 2021, in the U.S. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2021.112774">Shifting the clock one hour back</a> means more commuters are on the road during the high-risk dusk hours. The result is more cars driving at the peak time of day and during the peak time of the year for deer-vehicle accidents.</p>
<p>Overall, given that most U.S. states and more than 70 countries have <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2016-014319">seasonal “daylight saving” clock shifts</a>, elevated ungulate-vehicle accident rates caused by clock shift may be a widespread problem. </p>
<p>[<em>Over 100,000 readers rely on The Conversation’s newsletter to understand the world.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/the-daily-3?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=100Ksignup">Sign up today</a>.]</p>
<p>There is a longstanding debate about the benefit of a daylight saving clock shift, given how it <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2007.10.025">disrupts humans’ circadian rhythms, causing short-term stress and fatigue</a>. Risk of deer-vehicle accidents may be another reason to reconsider whether clock shifts are worthwhile. </p>
<h2>Deer still cross roads at any time</h2>
<p>It’s important to remember that deer-vehicle accidents can occur at any time of day or night, on any day of the year – and that deer can show up in urban areas as well as rural ones.</p>
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<p>The insurance company State Farm found that on average, U.S. drivers have a <a href="https://newsroom.statefarm.com/animal-collision/">1 in 116 chance of hitting an animal</a>, with much higher rates in states such as West Virginia, Montana and Pennsylvania. Over the 12 months ending in June 2020, State Farm counted 1.9 million insurance claims for collisions with wildlife nationwide. <a href="https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/publications/research/safety/08034/exec.cfm">Around 90% of those involved deer</a>.</p>
<p>Where deer or other ungulates are likely to be present, drivers should always be alert and cautious, especially at dawn, dusk, on bright moonlit nights and during the fall rut.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/167489/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tom Langen does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Avoiding hitting deer on the road is as much about when you drive as where. An animal behavior expert explains why.Tom Langen, Professor of Biology, Clarkson UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.