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Art museums have had a rough time lately. In 2020, most had to keep their doors closed for long stretches due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A year later, many are still coping with a cash-strapped new normal.
Meanwhile, non-fungible tokens associated with works of art have gotten trendy. But it’s not clear that these newfangled digital assets, commonly called NFTs, can solve museums’ money problems. Ohio State accounting scholar Brian Mittendorf and Sean Stein Smith, a business professor who is studying NFTs and other crypto-assets, teamed up to offer four reasons why “museums have failed to turn the NFT craze into a financial windfall.”
Also today:
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Emily Schwartz Greco
Philanthropy + Nonprofits Editor
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A woman looks at a non-fungible token digital art display in New York City in September 2021.
Timothy A. Clary/AFP via Getty Images
Brian Mittendorf, The Ohio State University; Sean Stein Smith, Lehman College, CUNY
The people in charge of museums may lack the requisite expertise to manage non-fungible tokens, and the upside is far from guaranteed.
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Health
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Patrick Jackson, University of Virginia
Merck and Pfizer both have oral antiviral pills under review by the FDA. Such treatments could help turn the tide of the pandemic.
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Isobel Ronai, Columbia University
Lyme disease affects millions worldwide. But there are things you can do to protect yourself from this insidious illness.
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Arts + Culture
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M. Wesam Al Asali, Princeton University
After Fidel Castro took power, government plans to build new housing, schools and factories were hindered by sanctions and supply chain issues, forcing architects to come up with creative solutions.
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Economy + Business
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Ana Santos Rutschman, Saint Louis University
Moderna claims its scientists alone invented the mRNA sequence used to produce its COVID-19 vaccine. The US government, which helped fund the drug, disagrees.
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Politics + Society
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Gloria Emeagwali, Central Connecticut State University
Violence in Ethiopia could cause ripples across the Horn of Africa, destabilizing the region.
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Education
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Joris Van Ouytsel, Arizona State University
Parents who spy on their children’s online activity run the risk of doing more harm than good, an expert says.
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Ethics + Religion
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Jonathan D. Sarna, Brandeis University
In the late 19th century, a satiric weekly stoked fears about how Jewish immigrants would change New York City’s character.
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Science + Technology
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Robert Jacobs, University of Rochester
Errors don’t necessarily mean your mind is faulty. They may actually be a sign of a cognitive system with limited capacity working efficiently.
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Kristine Nolin, University of Richmond
Deep-fried turkeys are delicious, but making one can be dangerous. The scientific reason for fiery Thanksgiving mishaps? A difference in the densities of ice, water and oil.
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Podcast 🎙️
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Gemma Ware, The Conversation; Jack Marley, The Conversation; Daniel Merino, The Conversation
Experts from around the world react to the COP26 Glasgow climate summit. Listen to The Conversation Weekly podcast.
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From our international editions
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David Kenny, Trinity College Dublin; Conor Casey, University of Liverpool
The beloved sci-fi series has plenty of lessons for our own galaxy.
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Michael Caldwell, University of Alberta; Tiago Rodrigues Simoes, Harvard University
In 2015, a published article described the fossil of a four-legged snake. New research has revealed that it is in fact a lizard, and the fossil is the centre of a scientific ethics debate.
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Timothy Welch, University of Auckland
Electric cars are hailed as the best way to cut transport emissions, but it’s an illusion to think we can reduce our environmental impact without changing the way we design and move about in cities.
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