Plus: AI vs. human English
| | | | Top headlines Lead story The U.S.-Israeli military campaign against Iran is nearly three weeks old, and rather than abating, the conflict is steadily expanding across the region. In fact, something of a Rubicon appeared to be crossed this week, argues Rice University scholar and Gulf expert Kristian Coates Ulrichsen. On Wednesday, Israeli planes struck Iran's energy assets in South Pars gas field, part of a maritime zone shared with Qatar that makes up the world's largest natural gas field. Within hours, Tehran had struck and badly damaged some of Qatar's own energy facilities. The attacks have thrown global energy markets into a frenzy, spooking investors, political leaders and consumers in the process. But they also represent something of a worst-case scenario for Gulf states like Qatar who have ridden the fat profits of oil and gas into regional power status, Ulrichsen writes. The blowback affecting energy assets also points to a broader thorny security dilemma for the six Gulf states: Can the longtime promise of U.S. protection remain a bankable guarantee in the face of daily Iranian attacks? To see the latest from our ongoing coverage of the Iran war, click here. One last thing: If you enjoy The Conversation's daily newsletter, we think you'd appreciate reading Nautilus. Their daily newsletter delivers thoughtful science and culture, exploring ideas that shape how we see the world. Try it. |  | Tom Kutsch Commissioning Editor – International and Business | | | |  A view of the liquefied natural gas production at the Ras Laffan facility in Qatar. Stringer/picture alliance via Getty Images Kristian Coates Ulrichsen, Rice University Iran has responded in kind to attacks on its energy infrastructure. With the energy assets of Gulf states now in play for Tehran, regional chaos grows by the hour. | Politics + Society | -
Mehrzad Boroujerdi, Missouri University of Science and Technology Several people on the list are deeply embedded in Iran's political, intelligence and security architecture. -
Monica Duffy Toft, Tufts University The Trump administration's miscalculation of Iran is the latest entry in an old and lethal tradition in international politics: the catastrophic gap between what leaders believe and what war delivers. | | Science + Technology | -
Logan S. James, The University of Texas at Austin; McGill University Many aspects of animals that people find beautiful evolved to be attractive to the animals themselves. A new study hints at a common aspect of perception that dates back hundreds of millions of years. -
Mary Magnuson, The Conversation The fictional biologist in 'Project Hail Mary' claims that potential alien organisms might not be made of carbon or require water, unlike life on Earth. -
Laura Aull, University of Michigan A linguist explains what makes human English human, and why you shouldn't overdo it with large language models. | | International | -
Rabia Akhtar, Harvard Kennedy School; University of Lahore Weeks of fighting between Pakistan and Afghanistan has resulted in hundreds being killed. -
Asher Kaufman, University of Notre Dame The resumption of war between Hezbollah and Israel has raised the prospect of an occupation of southern Lebanon. | | Health + Medicine | -
Jeffrey Tully, University of California, San Diego; Christian Dameff, University of California, San Diego Policy and legal efforts aim to stop these malicious security breaches, but they are growing more common as hospitals adopt remote health care delivery and hackers adopt artificial intelligence. -
Katrine L. Wallace, University of Illinois Chicago The judge's decision is a win for public health, but the back-and-forth on vaccine policy may undermine the public's trust in science. | | Environment + Energy | -
Karen Schlatter, Colorado State University; Sharon B. Megdal, University of Arizona The current Colorado River negotiations process includes all five of the most common sources of conflict in any process seeking compromise. | | Podcast 🎙️ | -
Gemma Ware, The Conversation Arun Dawson talks to The Conversation Weekly podcast about the history of Iran's Shahed drones and how the US cloned them. | | | | The Conversation News Quiz 🧠 |
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Here's the first question of this week's edition: Acclaimed dino hunter Paul Sereno credits his discovery of a new 𝘚𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘰𝘴𝘢𝘶𝘳𝘶𝘴 species to a clue in a decades-old book about … - A. Charles Darwin
- B. Indiana Jones
- C. Michael Crichton
- D. The Sahara Desert
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