The Conversation Weekly

Ahead of Canadian elections on September 20, two experts in Canadian politics profile the current prime minister, Justin Trudeau. They explore why he's so much more popular abroad than at home and assess what his real foreign policy record has been beyond being a celebrity.Featuring Alex Marland, professor of political science at Memorial University of Newfoundland and Jeremy Wildeman, Research Fellow at the Human Rights Research and Education Centre, University of Ottawa and Adjunct Assistant Professor at Queen's University, Ontario.In our second story (at 28m55), we hear about research providing new clues on why mosquitoes bite some people more than others. Madelien Wooding, a researcher at the Department of Chemistry at the University of Pretoria, explains how her team pinpointed some of the chemical compounds that make our skin more attractive to mosquitoes.We also hear (25m50) from Clea Chakraverty, politics editor at The Conversation in France about their new podcast series on what it takes to be president of France, Moi président·e, and Moina Spooner, assistant editor at The Conversation in Nairobi, recommends some reading on two concerning recent events in Guinea (39m38).The Conversation Weekly is produced by Mend Mariwany and Gemma Ware, with sound design by Eloise Stevens. Our theme music is by Neeta Sarl. You can sign up to The Conversation’s free daily email here. Full credits for this episode available here.Further readingFrom sunny ways to pelted with stones: Why do some Canadians hate Justin Trudeau?, by Fenwick McKelvey, Concordia University and Scott DeJong, Concordia UniversityRhetoric Check: Historically, how important is the 2021 Canadian election?, by Alex Marland, Memorial University of NewfoundlandCanada’s non-diplomacy puts Canadians at risk in an unstable Middle East, by Jeremy Wildeman, University of BathWe’re a step closer to figuring out why mosquitoes bite some people and not others, by Madelien Wooding, University of Pretoria and Yvette Naudé, University of PretoriaPasha 121: Why we need mosquitoes, featuring Jeremy Herren, Scientist, International Centre of Insect Physiology and EcologyGuinea coup highlights the weaknesses of West Africa’s regional body, by Benjamin Maiangwa, Lakehead UniversityMarburg in Guinea: the value of lessons from managing other haemorrhagic outbreaks, by Michelle J. Groome, National Institute for Communicable Diseases and Janusz Paweska, National Institute for Communicable Diseases

From earthquakes, to hurricanes, disease and drug violence, the Caribbean island of Haiti has faced a decade of cascading crises. In this week’s episode of The Conversation Weekly we talk to experts about what Haiti’s history tells us about its political fragility, and what that means for the country’s ability to recover from disasters.Featuring disaster management expert Louise Comfort, professor of public and international affairs at the University of Pittsburgh and Haitian American historian Jean Eddy Saint Paul, professor of sociology at Brooklyn College of the City University of New York.In our second story (at 27m40s), we talk to historian Susan Kamei, lecturer in history at the University of Southern California Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences about her new research chronicling the experiences of Japanese Americans interned by the US government during the second world war. And Kalpana Jain, senior religion and ethics editor at The Conversation in the US, recommends some reading from our coverage marking the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks (at 41m).The Conversation Weekly is produced by Mend Mariwany and Gemma Ware, with sound design by Eloise Stevens. Our theme music is by Neeta Sarl. You can sign up to The Conversation’s free daily email here. Full credits for this episode available here.Further reading:Assassinations and invasions – how the US and France shaped Haiti’s long history of political turmoil, by Jean Eddy Saint Paul, Brooklyn CollegeWill recent political instability affect Haiti’s earthquake response? We ask an expert, by Louise K. Comfort, University of PittsburghEarthquake expert who advised the Haiti government in 2010: ‘Why were clear early warning signs missed?’, by Luigi Di Sarno, University of LiverpoolHaiti: what aid workers can learn from the previous earthquake as they struggle to rebuild the country, by David Alexander, UCLThe crisis in Haiti reflects the failure of the international community to stabilize the country, by Chalmers Larose, Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM)How memories of Japanese American imprisonment during WWII guided the US response to 9/11, by Susan H. Kamei, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and SciencesWhy some Muslim women feel empowered wearing hijab, a headscarf, by Kalpana Jain, The ConversationAt the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, ancient Greece and Rome can tell us a lot about the links between collective trauma and going to war, by Joel Christensen, Brandeis University

As many children head back to school, in this episode we look at what really works to help stop COVID-19 transmission in the classroom. And for those countries where masks remain mandatory in schools, we hear some tips for teachers and students on how to communicate.Featuring, Brandon Guthrie, an associate professor of global health an epidemiology at the University of Washington in the US and Laura Abou Haidar, a professor of linguistics at the Université Grenoble Alpes in France.In our second story, we dig into the science behind daydreaming. Thomas Andrillon, research fellow at the Paris Brain Institute in France and an adjunct research fellow at Monash University in Australia, explains his new research on what's happening in our brains when our mind wanders.And Heather Kroeker, a health editor at The Conversation in London, recommends some recent health stories. The Conversation Weekly is produced by Mend Mariwany and Gemma Ware, with sound design by Eloise Stevens. Our theme music is by Neeta Sarl. You can sign up to The Conversation’s free daily email here. Full credits for this episode available here.Further reading:Schools can reopen safely – an epidemiologist describes what works and what’s not worth the effort, by Brandon Guthrie, University of WashingtonCOVID-19 back to school Q&A: Is it safe for unvaccinated children to go to school in person? Is the harm of school closures greater than the risk of the virus? by Joanna-Trees Merckx and Jay Kaufman, McGill University; Catherine Haeck, Université du Québec à Montréal; Dimitri Van der Linden, Université Catholique de LouvainTeaching with a masked face: a challenge? by Laura Abou Haidar, Université Grenoble Alpes (in French)What is daydreaming? Parts of the brain show sleep-like activity when your mind wanders, by Thomas Andrillon, Inserm; Jennifer Windt, Monash University, and Naotsugu Tsuchiya, Monash UniversityFeeling tired? Here’s how the brain’s ‘hourglass’ controls your need for sleep – new research , by Lukas B. Krone, Vladyslav Vyazovskiy and Zoltán Molnár, University of OxfordSugar: why some people experience side-effects when they quit, by James Brown, Aston University

Twenty years after they were ousted from Kabul, the Taliban are now back in control of most of Afghanistan. In this episode, two Afghan experts trace the origins of the Taliban back to the late 1970s, and explain what's happened to the group over the past two decades.Featuring Ali A Olomi, assistant professor of history at Penn State Abington in the US and Niamatullah Ibrahimi, lecturer in international relations at La Trobe University in Australia.And Lee-Anne Goodman, politics editor at The Conversation in Toronto, commends some further reading on what the Taliban takeover means for Afghans. The Conversation Weekly is produced by Mend Mariwany and Gemma Ware, with sound design by Eloise Stevens. Our theme music is by Neeta Sarl. You can sign up to The Conversation’s free daily email here. Full credits for this episode available here.Further readingThe Taliban wants the world’s trust. To achieve this, it will need to make some difficult choices, by Niamatullah Ibrahimi, La Trobe University and Safiullah Taye, Deakin UniversityThe world must not look away as the Taliban sexually enslaves women and girls, by Vrinda Narain, McGill UniversityAfghanistan’s Panjshir Valley: the last stronghold of resistance to Taliban rule, by Kaweh Kerami, SOAS, University of LondonThe Taliban may have access to the biometric data of civilians who helped the U.S. military, by Lucia Nalbandian, Ryerson UniversityTaliban’s religious ideology – Deobandi Islam – has roots in colonial India, by Sohel Rana, Indiana University and Sumit Ganguly, Indiana University

The Conversation Weekly podcast is taking a short break in August. In the meantime, we're bringing you extended versions of some of our favourite interviews from the past few months.This week, how researchers discovered a biological switch that could turn on and off neuroplasticity in the brain – the ability of neurons to change their structure. We speak to Sarah Ackerman, a postdoctoral fellow at the Institute of Neuroscience and Howard Hughes Medical Institute at the University of Oregon, about what she and her team have found and why it matters.This episode of The Conversation Weekly features an extended version of an interview first published on April 29. The Conversation Weekly is produced by Mend Mariwany and Gemma Ware, with sound design by Eloise Stevens. Our theme music is by Neeta Sarl. You can sign up to The Conversation’s free daily email here. Full credits for this episode available here.Further reading:Astrocyte cells in the fruit fly brain are an on-off switch that controls when neurons can change and grow, by Sarah DeGenova Ackerman, University of OregonSwimming gives your brain a boost – but scientists don’t know yet why it’s better than other aerobic activities, by Seena Mathew, University of Mary Hardin-BaylorWhat is brain plasticity and why is it so important?, by Duncan Banks, The Open University

The Conversation Weekly podcast is taking a short break in August. For the next few weeks we'll be bringing you extended versions of a few of our favourite interviews from the past few months.This week, we speak to Fathima Azmiya Badurdeen, lecturer in the department of social sciences at the Technical University of Mombasa, who interviewed Kenyan women about why they joined the militant Islamist group Al-Shabaab. She explains how she gained the trust of these women and their families, and what her findings mean for their rehabilitation.This episode of The Conversation Weekly features an extended version of an interview first published on April 22. The Conversation Weekly is produced by Mend Mariwany and Gemma Ware, with sound design by Eloise Stevens. Our theme music is by Neeta Sarl. You can sign up to The Conversation’s free daily email here. Full credits for this episode available here.Further reading:Why we did it: the Kenyan women and girls who joined Al-Shabaab, by Fathima Azmiya Badurdeen, Technical University of MombasaWhy Somali clan elders could hold the key to opening dialogue with Al-Shabaab, by Mohammed Ibrahim Shire, University of PortsmouthSomalia’s toxic political and security order: the death knell of democracy, by Abdi Ismail Samatar, University of Pretoria

The Conversation Weekly podcast is taking a short break in August. For the next few weeks we'll be bringing you extended versions of some our favourite interviews from the past few months.This week, the story of researchers who invented an ingenious new conservation technique to protect endangered birds. Catherine Price, postdoctoral researcher in conservation biology at the University of Sydney, is part of a team of researchers who’ve found a better way. They use misinformation – in the form of fake smells – to fool predators into leaving bird nests alone.This episode of The Conversation Weekly features an extended version of an interview first published on April 9. The Conversation Weekly is produced by Mend Mariwany and Gemma Ware, with sound design by Eloise Stevens. Our theme music is by Neeta Sarl. You can sign up to The Conversation’s free daily email here. Full credits for this episode available here.Further reading:Scientists used ‘fake news’ to stop predators killing endangered birds — and the result was remarkable, by Peter Banks, University of Sydney and Catherine Price, University of SydneySouth Korea is bringing back bears in a country of 52 million people – I went to find out how, by Joshua Powell, UCL‘Bat boxes’ could help revive Canada’s depleting bat population, by Karen Vanderwolf, Trent University

How close is a four-day working week? Over the last few years, companies and governments in a number of countries have begun to experiment with the idea of a four-day work week – and some of the results are in. We talk to experts about these recent trials, explore how they fit into the long history of ever-shrinking work hours, and wonder what this all might mean for the future of work. Featuring Anthony Veal, adjunct professor a the Business School, University of Technology Sydney, Jana Javornik, associate professor of work and employment relations at Leeds University Business School, University of Leeds and José-Ignacio Antón associate professor at the Department of Applied Economics at the University of Salamanca in Spain. In our second story, historian Melissa Wanjiru-Mwita from the Technical University of Kenya explains her research on the history and politics of how informal settlements in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, got their names. And Catesby Holmes, international editor at The Conversation in New York, recommends two recent stories about immigration in the US.The Conversation Weekly is produced by Mend Mariwany and Gemma Ware, with sound design by Eloise Stevens. Our theme music is by Neeta Sarl. You can sign up to The Conversation’s free daily email here. Full credits for this episode available here.Further reading:The success of Iceland’s ‘four-day week’ trial has been greatly overstated, by Anthony Veal, University of Technology SydneyFour-day week: how workplaces can successfully establish it, by Rita Fontinha, University of Reading and James Walker, University of ReadingPost-pandemic return to work is a perfect opportunity to move to a four-day week, by David Spencer, University of LeedsAre we ready to work from only Monday to Thursday?, by José-Ignacio Antón, University of Salamanca (in Spanish) Is it becoming easier to be a working mother?, by Jana Javornik, University of LeedsThe fascinating history of how residents named their informal settlements in Nairobi, by Melissa Wanjiru-Mwita, Technical University of KenyaThis is what happens to child migrants found alone at the border, from the moment they cross into the US until age 18, by Randi Mandelbaum, Rutgers UniversityDACA in doubt after court ruling: 3 questions answered, by Kevin Johnson, University of California, Davis

Are there limits to how much faster, higher or stronger humans can get? We talk to researchers in biomechanics, sports technology and psychology, to find out.Featuring Nicole Forrester, a former Canadian Olympic high jumper and now assistant professor in the school of media at Ryerson University in Toronto, Anthony Blazevich, professor of biomechanics at Edith Cowan University in Perth, Australia, and Jonathan Taylor, lecturer in sport and exercise at Teesside University in the UK.In our second story, we hear the story of the troubled 1920 Antwerp Olympics, held in the wake of the first world war and the Spanish flu pandemic from Keith Rathbone, senior lecturer in modern European history and sports history at Macquarie University in Sydney.And Thabo Leshilo, politics editor at The Conversation in Johannesburg, recommends some analysis on the recent unrest in South Africa following the imprisonment of former president, Jacob Zuma.The Conversation Weekly is produced by Mend Mariwany and Gemma Ware, with sound design by Eloise Stevens. Our theme music is by Neeta Sarl. You can sign up to The Conversation’s free daily email here. Full credits for this episode available here.Further ReadingSuper shoes: Explaining athletics’ new technological arms race, by Jonathan Taylor, Teesside UniversityHow the COVID-19 delay of the Tokyo Olympics helped some athletes break records, by Jane Thornton, Western UniversityThe secret formula for becoming an elite athlete, by Nicole W. Forrester, Ryerson UniversitySardines for breakfast, hypothermia rescues: the story of the cash-strapped, post-pandemic 1920 Olympics, by Keith Rathbone, Macquarie UniversityUnrest is being used to subvert South Africa’s democracy: giving in is not an option, by Mcebisi Ndletyana, University of JohannesburgWhy have South Africans been on a looting rampage? Research offers insights, by Guy Lamb, Stellenbosch University

How do you mimic meat? We take a look at the science behind plant-based and cultured meat in this episode, where it might lead and how ready people are to eat meat grown in a lab.Mariana Lamas, a research associate at the Centre for Culinary Innovation at Northern Alberta Institute of Technology in Edmonton, Canada, talks us through some of the key elements that make a plant-based meat mimic successful. Andrew Stout, PhD candidate in biomedical engineering at Tufts University in Massachusetts, US, explains how he grows meat in a petri dish, and where he sees the future of the field. And Matti Wilks, postdoctoral research associate in psychology at Yale University in Connecticut, tells us what she's found by asking people about their readiness to eat cultured meat.In our second story (25m30), we hear about new research on cigarette advertising and how it lures in children in Indonesia – ranked in the top 10 countries in the world for the number of adults who smoke. Nurjanah, senior lecturer in health promotion at Universitas Dian Nuswantoro in Semarang City, explains what she and her colleagues found when they mapped the proximity of cigarette advertising to schools.And Hannah Hoag, deputy editor at The Conversation in Canada, gives us some of her recommended environment stories to dip into this week (34m40).The Conversation Weekly is produced by Mend Mariwany and Gemma Ware, with sound design by Eloise Stevens. Our theme music is by Neeta Sarl. You can find us on Twitter @TC_Audio, on Instagram at theconversationdotcom or via email on podcast@theconversation.com. You can also sign up to The Conversation’s free daily email here. Full credits for this episode available here.Further readingHow scientists make plant-based foods taste and look more like meat, by Mariana Lamas, Northern Alberta Institute of TechnologyNo animal required, but would people eat artificial meat?, by Clive Phillips, The University of Queensland and Matti Wilks, The University of Queensland (now Yale)Plant-based burgers: should some be considered ‘junk food’?, by Richard Hoffman, University of HertfordshireLab-grown meat could leave marginalized people in need, by Sarah Duignan, McMaster UniversityResearch: teenagers whose schools are surrounded by cigarette advertisements tend to smoke more, Dian Kusuma, Imperial College London; Abdillah Ahsan, University of Indonesia; Nurjanah and Sri Handayani, Dian Nuswantoro University (In Bahasa Indonesia)Putting an end to billions in fishing subsidies could improve fish stocks and ocean health, by Daniel Skerritt, University of British ColumbiaScientists aim to build a detailed seafloor map by 2030 to reveal the ocean’s unknowns, by Sean Mullan, Memorial University of Newfoundland