Happy Sunday − and welcome to the best of The Conversation U.S. Here are a few of our recently published stories:

Regular readers of our Sunday newsletter know I reference “The West Wing” a lot – and real-world events frequently remind me of episodes of the TV show. Most recently, Sen. Cory Booker’s record 25-hour speech last week made me recall the episode in which a fictional senator from Minnesota, Howard Stackhouse, performs a similar gambit of talking nonstop for as long as possible in order to prevent a health bill from passing without funding for autism research.

Booker’s speech wasn’t about a specific bill but more broadly about raising concerns about President Donald Trump’s overall approach to government. He declared: “I rise tonight because silence at this moment of national crisis would be a betrayal of some of the greatest heroes of our nation.”

“Although Booker’s speech was not technically a filibuster,” writes Charlie Hunt, an assistant professor of political Science at Boise State University, “it was clearly a monumental physical achievement.”

While Booker’s oration was a major feat and set a record, beating out Sen. Strom Thurmond’s 1957 speech by almost an hour, did it also serve any other meaningful purpose? Hunt dives into the history of long Senate speeches, the arcane rules and what they tell us about their impact.

On “The West Wing,” in any case, the filibuster worked: Stackhouse got his funding after the White House staff realized what he was trying to do.

Bryan Keogh

Managing Editor

Readers' picks

The hidden power of marathon Senate speeches: What history tells us about Cory Booker’s 25-hour oration

Charlie Hunt, Boise State University

In some cases, long Senate speeches don’t produce clear results. In other cases, they can help pass or prevent new legislation.

Abolition wasn’t fueled by just moral or economic concerns – the booming whaling industry also helped sink slavery

Topher L. McDougal, University of San Diego; Austin Choi-Fitzpatrick, University of San Diego

New research shows that when the whaling industry in the US produced more products, the proportion of slaves also declined in the 1700s and 1800s.

The trade deficit isn’t an emergency – it’s a sign of America’s strength

Tarek Alexander Hassan, Boston University

The word ‘deficit’ may sound alarming, but America’s trade gap is a sign of its financial and economic dominance.

Universities in Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union thought giving in to government demands would save their independence

Iveta Silova, Arizona State University

Before the Nazis, German universities were among the best in the world. Step by step, the universities gave up their independence until they were instruments of the state.

More than just chips: Chinese threats and Trump tariffs could disrupt lots of ‘made in Taiwan’ imports − disappointing US builders, cyclists and golfers alike

Jay L. Zagorsky, Boston University

Geopolitical threats from China and the United States abound. That could be a tough pill to swallow for Taiwan − and American consumers.

Editors' picks

Social media before bedtime wreaks havoc on our sleep − a sleep researcher explains why screens alone aren’t the main culprit

Brian N. Chin, Trinity College

Research suggests that how often people check social media − and how emotionally engaged they are with it − can influence sleep even more than how much time they spend online.

Cancer hijacks your brain and steals your motivation − new research in mice reveals how, offering potential avenues for treatment

Adam Kepecs, Washington University in St. Louis

Cachexia, or wasting syndrome, causes around 80% of patients with advanced cancer to withdraw from life.

Why you should think twice before using shorthand like ‘thx’ and ‘k’ in your texts

David Fang, Stanford University

Abbreviations like ‘brb’ and ‘plz’ may seem benign. But new research shows they can make senders appear less sincere – and even undermine budding romances.

Tax Day highlights the costs of single living – but demographics are forcing financial change

Peter McGraw, University of Colorado Boulder

Singles often pay more than their coupled counterparts, and not just on taxes. As solo living rises, so does pressure on the rest of the world to catch up.

AI isn’t what we should be worried about – it’s the humans controlling it

Billy J. Stratton, University of Denver

The dread that AI evokes seems a distraction from the more disquieting scrutiny of humanity’s own dark nature.

News Quiz 🧠

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    Fritz Holznagel, The Conversation

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