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A woman. in white clasps here hands.

María Corina Machado’s peace prize follows Nobel tradition of awarding recipients for complex reasons

David Smilde, Tulane University

The Gaza ceasefire deal could be a ‘strangle contract’, with Israel holding all the cards

Marika Sosnowski, The University of Melbourne

The Gaza ceasefire deal could be a ‘strangle contract’, with Israel holding all the cards
Ethiopia has struggled to build national unity: can its big new dam deliver it?

Namhla Thando Matshanda, University of Pretoria

A line of smiling women and men dressed in white and holding small flags with green, yellow and red stripes
For war-weary Syria, potential benefits of security pact with Israel comes with big risks

Mireille Rebeiz, Dickinson College

A flag is seen in front of a damaged building.
Trump’s tragedy: the US becomes an autocracy and the presidency, a dictatorship
Trump’s tragedy: the US becomes an autocracy and the presidency, a dictatorship
Shimon Sakaguchi

Nobel laureate Shimon Sakaguchi on his immune system breakthrough

A draft of a coin depicting US President Donald Trump raising his fist.

Trump on a coin? When Julius Caesar tried that, the Roman republic crumbled soon after

Organised crime may be infiltrating Timor-Leste’s government. One minister is sounding the alarm

Organised crime may be infiltrating Timor-Leste’s government. One minister is sounding the alarm

Gaza peace plan risks borrowing more from Blair’s failures in the Middle East than his success in Northern Ireland
Displaced persons walk on a road.
Nobel prize awarded for discovery of immune system’s ‘security guards’
Portraits of the Nobel prize winners: Mary E. Brunkow, Fred Ramsdell and Shimon Sakaguchi.
Renewables have now passed coal globally – and growth is fastest in countries like Bhutan and Nepal
people riding mopeds past a solar array on highway.
Explainer: what powers does Trump actually have to deploy the military to US cities?
Explainer: what powers does Trump actually have to deploy the military to US cities?
How Donald Trump’s ‘dead cat diplomacy’ may have changed the course of the Gaza war
Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu shake hands in the Whiter House, September 29 2025.
A US startup plans to deliver ‘sunlight on demand’ after dark. Can it work – and would we want it to?
A satellite launch at night.
On a grim anniversary, an end to Gaza’s violence is suddenly clear – if both sides can make sacrifices
On a grim anniversary, an end to Gaza’s violence is suddenly clear – if both sides can make sacrifices
Around the world, migrants are being deported at alarming rates – how did this become normalised?
Around the world, migrants are being deported at alarming rates – how did this become normalised?
Two birds on a branch, screaming at each other.

Birds all over the world use the same sound to warn of threats

Does AI pose an existential risk? We asked 5 experts
A cartoon skull on a blue computer screen with a mouse cursor hovering over it.
These 4 common aeroplane failures are not as scary as they sound
A parked airliner under dramatic stormy skies at sunset.
People trust podcasts more than social media. But is the trust warranted?
Close-up of a man holding a professional microphone and looking excited.
Would you watch a film with an AI actor? What Tilly Norwood tells us about art – and labour rights
A woman stands in front of a night skyline.
The world’s most sensitive computer code is vulnerable to attack. A new encryption method can help
Lines of colourful computer code on a black screen.
Our quest to find a truly Earth-like planet in deep space
Animation showing the first 5,000 exoplanets to have been discovered.
Today’s AI hype has echoes of a devastating technology boom and bust 100 years ago
A black and white photo, showing a large crowd of people outside the New York Stock Exchange following the great crash of October 1929.
Today’s AI hype has echoes of a devastating technology boom and bust 100 years ago
A black and white photo, showing a large crowd of people outside the New York Stock Exchange following the great crash of October 1929.
A Palestinian man takes cover following an Israeli air strike during a military operation in Gaza City in September 2025.

Why are the ICJ and ICC cases on Israel and Gaza taking so long?

Thomas Pynchon’s Vineland, set in 1984, is translated for the Trump era in One Battle After Another
Thomas Pynchon’s Vineland, set in 1984, is translated for the Trump era in One Battle After Another
Cuba’s leaders see their options dim amid blackouts and a shrinking economy
The silhouettes of men and women are seen in a dark street.
Taylor Swift’s Father Figure isn’t a cover, but an ‘interpolation’. What that means – and why it matters
Taylor Swift’s Father Figure isn’t a cover, but an ‘interpolation’. What that means – and why it matters
The American TikTok deal doesn’t address the platform’s potential for manipulation, only who profits
A man holds up a signed document, another man in a suit looks on, and there's an American flag in the background
Taylor Swift has branded herself a showgirl. These hardworking women have a long and bejewelled history
Taylor Swift dressed as a showgirl
Kamala Harris’ candid memoir reveals her ‘ideal’ vice president – and why she thinks she lost
Kamala Harris’ candid memoir reveals her ‘ideal’ vice president – and why she thinks she lost
Why it’s time to rethink the notion of an autism ‘spectrum’
Plumes of different coloured smoke.
Venezuela and US edge toward war footing − but domestic concerns, international risks may hold Washington back
A fighter jet is seen on the ground.
Large river, old buildings

The Ganges River is drying faster than ever – here’s what it means for the region and the world

Poor sleep may make your brain age faster – new study
Model of a brain on a pillow with some zeds rising from it.
Singapore’s national identity excludes those who don’t look like a ‘regular family’
A couple embraces next to Marina Bay, Singapore.
Jane Goodall, the gentle disrupter whose research on chimpanzees redefined what it meant to be human
Jane Goodall converses on a stage
The Michigan church shooting sits within a long history of hatred against Mormons in America
The Michigan church shooting sits within a long history of hatred against Mormons in America
Trump’s targeting of ‘enemies’ like James Comey echoes FBI’s dark history of mass surveillance
A plain, multistory office or apartment building on a corner.
How Paraguay became a bastion of conservatism in Latin America
Javier Milei and Santiago Peña wave during a welcome ceremony.
US economy is already on the edge – a prolonged government shutdown could send it tumbling over
a far horizon can be seen in the desert at the edge of a high cliff that juts out
Palm trees in Africa are in decline: these botanists made a plan to do something about it
Several palm trees in the wild, about 20 feet tall or higher
Donald Trump shakes hands with Benjamin Netanyahu.

Where does the Arab and Muslim world stand on Trump’s Gaza peace plan? Expert Q&A

We teach young people to write. In the age of AI, we must teach them how to see
A person in a knitted hat looking across a vivid yellow landscape with slightly surreal colours.
Zelensky says a destructive drone arms race looms
Volodymyr Zelensky speaks at the UN headquarters in New York.
How safe is your face? The pros and cons of having facial recognition everywhere
A woman's face being scanned with a mesh of light
12,000-year-old rock art marked ancient water sources in Arabia’s desert
A rock face with outlines of engraved animals traced in blue and white.
Who are the worst fathers in literature?
Collage of covers of famous novels
Who are the worst mothers in literature?
Collage of book covers
Trump’s Gaza peace plan: A bit of the old, a bit of the new – and the same stumbling blocks
Two men in suits stand at podiums in front of flags.
Why Charli XCX might be gen Z’s answer to the Romantic poets
Charli XCX performing with many dancers

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Gaza conflict

Is Benjamin Netanyahu on a mission to realise a Greater Israel?
Is Benjamin Netanyahu on a mission to realise a Greater Israel?
UK, France and other Western nations recognise Palestinian state ahead of UN meetings
A woman holds aloft a green, white and red flag.
From resistance to intifada to recognition: the origins of an independent Palestinian state – podcast
Aerial view of Ramallah in the West Bank with Israeli settlement overlooking it.
Gaza: civilian death toll outpaces other modern wars

Neta Crawford, University of Oxford

Palestinian men consoling each other after an airstrike.

Life and art

Is TikTok right? Should I avoid matcha if I have low iron?
Women in a cafe smiles holding a matcha latte.
Arundhati Roy’s new memoir illuminates a ‘restless, unruly’ life
A woman in a white shirt with greying curly hair
KPop Demon Hunters gives a glimpse into K-pop culture in South Korea
Cartoon image of three young women performing on stage
Fashion icon Giorgio Armani’s impact and legacy will be felt for decades to come
A smiling white-haired man stands on a darkened stage.

Environment

Heat, air quality, insurance costs: how climate change is affecting our homes – and our health
Woman sits in front of fan in her hot home
A walk across Alaska’s Arctic sea ice brings to life the losses that appear in climate data
A white landscape with blocky ridges extends under a blue sky.
Deadlier than varroa, a new honey-bee parasite is spreading around the world
An orange and yellow bee sitting on a pink flower
High-tech plans to save polar ice will fail, new research finds
A large ice berg with a hole in it.

Health

A new treatment for Huntington’s disease is genuinely promising – but here’s why we still need caution
Younger woman embraces older woman as they look out a rainy window.
What parents need to know about Tylenol, autism and the difference between finding a link and finding a cause
Boxes of acetominophen-based medications on a store-shelf.
Do TikTok ‘anti-inflammatory diets’ really work?
Woman looks at jar of pickles and her phone, while grocery shopping
A booming longevity industry wants to sell us ‘immortality’. There could be hidden costs
Nurse preparing a patient for hospital MRI scan

Science and Technology

Nobel chemistry prize awarded for crystal materials that could revolutionise green technology
Three men sat at a desk in front of screen with images of three other men.
What a newly discovered gas bridge between galaxies tells us about the cosmic cycle of matter
Two galaxies linked by a faint curve of gas
Fish ‘fingerprints’ in the ocean reveal which species are moving homes due to climate change
A cream-coloured fish with black blotches in a cave.
12,000-year-old smoked mummies reveal world’s earliest evidence of human mummification
A woman's skeleton in a crouched posture

Business and economy

Why Argentina is looking to the Trump administration for a bailout − and what the US Treasury can do to help
Two men in suits shake hands.
Banks retreat from climate change commitments – but it’s business more than politics
An oil derrick pumps oil in a field at dusk
AI hype has just shaken up the world’s rich list. What if the boom is really a bubble?
A composite image of US tech billionaires Larry Ellison and Elon Musk
Trump’s tariffs are headed to the US Supreme Court, prolonging the chaos on trade
A composite image showing US President Donald Trump and the US Supreme Court building

The Conversation Weekly Podcast

How trafficked American guns fuel Mexico’s cartel violence – podcast
Guns on a table in Mexico.
Three scientists speak about what it’s like to have research funding cut by the Trump administration
A sign saying science helps you held up by a protestor.
Birkin v Wirkin: the backlash against the global elite and their luxury bags – podcast
A Hermes bag with a view of a city skyline behind
How AI could influence the evolution of humanity – podcast
Illustration of evolution of humanity from primates to an unknown future with a blue light.
Subscribe to The Conversation Weekly podcast

Most read this week

1.
Hamas and Israel are on the verge of a ceasefire. What’s being left unsaid, though, could scupper the deal

Martin Kear, University of Sydney

Hamas and Israel are on the verge of a ceasefire. What’s being left unsaid, though, could scupper the deal
2.
Lady Gaga bomb plot: Thwarted plan lifts veil on the gamification of hate and gendered nature of online radicalization

David Nemer, University of Virginia and Arthur Coelho Bezerra, Instituto Brasileiro de Informação em Ciência e Tecnologia (Ibict)

Lady Gaga bomb plot: Thwarted plan lifts veil on the gamification of hate and gendered nature of online radicalization
3.
Around the world, migrants are being deported at alarming rates – how did this become normalised?

Andonea Jon Dickson, University of Edinburgh; Cetta Mainwaring, University of Edinburgh, and Thom Tyerman, University of Edinburgh

Around the world, migrants are being deported at alarming rates – how did this become normalised?
4.
The Gaza ceasefire deal could be a ‘strangle contract’, with Israel holding all the cards

Marika Sosnowski, The University of Melbourne

The Gaza ceasefire deal could be a ‘strangle contract’, with Israel holding all the cards
5.
María Corina Machado’s peace prize follows Nobel tradition of awarding recipients for complex reasons

David Smilde, Tulane University

María Corina Machado’s peace prize follows Nobel tradition of awarding recipients for complex reasons