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March 12, 2026

Skin mites explained: harmless passengers or health problem?

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Alejandra Perotti, Associate Professor in Invertebrate Biology, University of Reading

_Demodex follicolorum_ collected on human nose. Pasotteo/Shutterstock

Almost everyone carries microscopic mites on their skin. They live inside pores and hair follicles, feeding on skin oils and dead cells.

When people first hear this, the reaction is often disgust or alarm. It is easy to imagine infestation, poor hygiene or something going wrong.

In reality, these tiny organisms are a normal, lifelong part of being human and part of the natural balance of the skin.

Nearly all mammals host follicular mites that live inside the pores of the skin. They are absent only in monotremes, egg-laying mammals such as the platypus and echidna, which have different skin and mammary structures. In humans, mites inhabit hair follicles and sebaceous glands, feeding on skin oils and dead cells. Healthy skin can host large numbers without any symptoms.

These organisms exist in a symbiotic relationship with us. We provide a protected environment and nutrients, while their presence forms part of the wider community of microorganisms that helps the skin function normally.

We acquire our mites from our mothers through early close contact, including birth, breastfeeding and skin-to-skin care. Babies begin life with very small populations. Numbers increase through adolescence and adulthood, and by later life almost everyone carries them.

Creatures of the night

Humans carry two main species of follicular mite: Demodex folliculorum and Demodex brevis. Both are tiny, around 0.2 millimetres long, roughly a third to half the width of a typical human hair, and invisible to the naked eye. D. folliculorum tends to cluster near the openings of hair follicles, while D. brevis lives deeper within sebaceous glands. Both remain inside pores and are most active at night.

At night, when levels of melatonin (the hormone that helps regulate sleep and circadian rhythms) rise, demodex mites move between pores and reproduce. This activity is microscopic and cannot be felt. Males and females mate at the openings of hair follicles, and several mites can share a single follicle without causing any symptoms.

Mites are not the cause of most skin problems. Evidence suggests they are opportunistic rather than causal. When inflammation or changes in the skin’s microbial balance occur, mite populations may increase because the conditions favour them.

Only in certain circumstances do demodex mites become linked with disease. In people who are immunocompromised, mite populations can increase dramatically and contribute to irritation and inflammation. Even then, they are usually part of a broader shift in the skin environment rather than the sole cause.

Rosacea sits in a similar grey area. People with rosacea often have higher numbers of demodex mites on affected skin, and some research suggests they may help sustain inflammation. But they are unlikely to be the original trigger. Rosacea appears to involve interactions between the immune system, the skin barrier, microbes such as bacteria and fungi, and environmental factors such as ultraviolet exposure, temperature extremes and stress, with mites sometimes contributing to that wider process.

Online forums are full of claims of “infestations” and advice on eliminating mites. Many of these claims are not grounded in science. Some people become convinced they can feel mites crawling on their skin. In certain cases this can be linked to delusional parasitosis, a mental health condition involving persistent sensations of infestation despite no medical evidence. The distress can lead to excessive scratching and skin damage.

Beyond the skin, humans interact with many other mites. House dust mites live in bedding, carpets and clothing, especially in warm and humid environments. They feed on shed skin cells and microscopic fungi. Some people develop allergies to proteins in dust mite waste. This reaction is caused by immune sensitivity rather than the mites attacking the body.

There are also mites that genuinely cause disease. Scabies mites burrow into the skin, causing intense itching and spreading through close physical contact. These infections are more likely where people are vulnerable, such as in overcrowded living conditions, limited access to healthcare or weakened immunity. Scabies is a medical condition, not a sign of poor hygiene or personal failure.

Understanding the difference between symbiotic mites and parasitic ones is important. Most mites that live with us are part of a natural system and do not need to be eliminated. Attempts to remove them aggressively with harsh chemicals or excessive cleansing can damage the skin barrier, leading to dryness, irritation and flare-ups of conditions such as eczema or acne.

In everyday life, simple hygiene is enough. Washing with water or mild products supports healthy skin without disrupting its ecosystem. Heavy use of strong cleansers or cosmetics may reduce mite numbers temporarily but does not necessarily improve skin health.

There is one condition directly linked to high numbers of demodex mites called demodicosis. This occurs when populations become unusually dense and contribute to redness, scaling and rough patches. It is uncommon and usually associated with weakened immunity or existing skin disorders. Treatment focuses on restoring skin health and, when needed, using targeted medications rather than trying to sterilise the skin.

Our skin is not sterile. It is a living habitat that supports bacteria, fungi and microscopic animals. This community helps regulate inflammation, maintain balance and protect the skin.

Within that ecosystem, mites are not invaders but long-standing companions in a shared biological environment. In most cases, their presence simply reflects healthy, functioning skin.

Strange Health is hosted by Katie Edwards and Dan Baumgardt. The executive producer is Gemma Ware, with video and sound editing for this episode by Sikander Khan. Artwork by Alice Mason.

In this episode, Dan and Katie talk about a social media clip via TikTok from prettyspatricia.

Listen to Strange Health via any of the apps listed above, download it directly via our RSS feed or find out how else to listen here. A transcript is available via the Apple Podcasts or Spotify apps.

Alejandra Perotti receives funding from UKRI and EU-Commission.

– ref. Skin mites explained: harmless passengers or health problem? – https://theconversation.com/skin-mites-explained-harmless-passengers-or-health-problem-276027

March 12, 2026

Ali Khamenei’s killing continues long US tradition of letting others pull the trigger

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Luca Trenta, Associate Professor in International Relations, Swansea University

The US and Israel assassinated Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in a joint operation in late February. In a post on social media, Donald Trump boasted that Khamenei was “unable to avoid our Intelligence and Highly Sophisticated Tracking Systems”. Trump added that “there was not a thing he, or the other leaders that have been killed along with him, could do”.

The US helped plan the operation, provided key intelligence to identify Khamenei’s location and destroyed Iranian defences to pave a path for his executioners. But the US did not pull the trigger. Israeli warplanes launched the strikes that ultimately killed Khamenei.

While the rationale for this division of labour is unclear, it is not unusual for US assassination plots. Declassified documents, some of which we have published ourselves at the National Security Archive, a research institute at George Washington University, reveal striking details about the long history of the US seeking allies and proxies willing to cooperate to kill.

However, these previous operations offer a clear warning. More often than not, they made matters worse – prolonging wars, fuelling local chaos, straining US relations with the targeted state and creating the conditions for future violence.

Cold war assassinations

During the cold war, the US relied on Cuban exiles and the American mafia in its many assassination attempts against Fidel Castro of Cuba. The failed attempts between 1960 and 1962 contributed to moving Castro closer to the Soviet Union and paved the way for the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, which is widely considered the cold war’s most dangerous episode.

Around the same time, the Eisenhower administration entered into confrontation with Patrice Lumumba, the first elected prime minister of Congo. President Dwight Eisenhower and the then-CIA director, Allen Dulles, came to see Lumumba as unable at best and a communist stooge at worst.

While the US started working on a coup with Belgium, an ally and the former colonial power in Congo, assassination emerged as a policy option. US intelligence officials created the poison that was supposed to kill Lumumba, which was to be injected into his food or toothpaste by a local ally.

When that plot fizzled out, the US government contributed to the manhunt that delivered Lumumba to a firing squad of his domestic enemies in 1961. CIA officials later admitted that, while they were squeamish regarding the use of poison, they had no problem in delivering Lumumba to his enemies – even if this entailed a certainty of his killing.

Also in 1961, the CIA armed and supported local proxies – including by reviewing their plans – for the assassination of the Dominican dictator, Rafael Trujillo. Chaos ensued in the following years, contributing to a full-scale US invasion in 1965.

Rafael Trujillo being sworn in as Panamanian president. — Rafael Trujillo (centre) being sworn in as Panamanian president for the first time in 1930.
Archivo General de la Nación / Wikimedia Commons

Setting the conditions for a military coup that was likely to lead to assassination was also at the centre of the 1963 killing of South Vietnamese president Ngô Đình Diệm. Henry Cabot Lodge Jr, the US ambassador to South Vietnam at the time, told President John F. Kennedy that the US had planted the seed for the coup and created a fertile ground where it could flourish.

While top CIA officials were initially reluctant to support a military coup, the agency had an operative, Lucien Conein, in close contact with South Vietnamese generals as the events took place. Kennedy was apparently shocked in learning that Diệm had been brutally murdered. To this, his chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, Maxwell Taylor, remarked: “What did he expect?”

Starting in the 1980s, the US government turned its attention to the Libyan and Iraqi leaders, Muammar Gaddafi and Saddam Hussein. The Reagan administration supported the National Front for the Liberation of Libya in its ultimately unsuccessful efforts to overthrow and kill Gaddafi.

And in its confrontation with Hussein, the Bush Sr administration often called for a “palace coup” that could lead to the elimination of the Iraqi leader – although not necessarily of his regime. This confrontation spilled over into Bill Clinton’s presidency in the 1990s.

The US government supported Kurdish forces – something the Trump administration is considering in Iran – and members of the Iraqi opposition in a series of efforts to mount a coup. Many of these plots were deeply infiltrated and some were dismantled before they could start. A plot against Hussein involving the Kurds in 1996 was marred by betrayals. They all ended in disaster.

‘War on terror’

The “war on terror” after the 9/11 terrorist attacks and the opportunities that new technologies such as armed drones had created meant the US became engaged more directly in the assassination of terrorist leaders. And yet, even at the height of the war on terror, the US at times showed an unwillingness to pull the trigger itself.

Israeli investigative journalist Ronen Bergman has reported that the Bush Jr administration agreed to cooperate with Israel to kill Hezbollah commander Imad Mughniyeh in 2008. But they agreed to do so on three clear conditions: the strike should be kept secret, Mughniyeh alone would be killed and Americans would not do the killing. Mughniyeh was killed by a car bomb placed in his SUV by Mossad agents with key American assistance.

Trump has shown a proclivity for assassinations with what appears to be little concern for the implications of his actions. In his first term, again in collaboration with Israel, the US did pull the trigger in the assassination of Iranian general Qasem Soleimani. This act escalated matters with Iran and made it more likely that a war would materialise in the future.

With Khamenei, the US preferred to let Israel do the actual killing. The assassination is likely to make Khamenei a martyr and provides the Iranian regime an avenue for cohesion when its internal legitimacy was under severe strain. Collaborating to kill can lead to tactical success, but the costs are often grim.

Luca Trenta’s research on assassination was partially funded by the British Academy.

Arturo Jimenez-Bacardi does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Ali Khamenei’s killing continues long US tradition of letting others pull the trigger – https://theconversation.com/ali-khameneis-killing-continues-long-us-tradition-of-letting-others-pull-the-trigger-277784

March 12, 2026

Five paintings that capture the complexity of motherhood – chosen by art historians

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Marius Kwint, Reader in Visual Culture, University of Portsmouth

Breakfast in Bed by Mary Cassatt (1897). Huntington Library

The complex relationship between mother and child is no easy thing to capture on canvas. For Mother’s Day, we asked five experts to share their favourite painting of a mother or maternal figure.

1. Hunting for Lice by Gerard ter Borch (1652)

This small painting, displayed in the Mauritshuis in The Hague, is of a scene that might be familiar to any carer for nursery- or school-aged children today. Gerard ter Borch captures the look of concentrated maternal resolve and patient resignation by the child, who is probably a boy, judging by his smock and the ball in his hand.

Painting of a mother combing her son's hair for lice — Hunting for Lice by Gerard ter Borch (1652).
Mauritshuis in The Hague

He has paused his play and leans into the stout frame of his seated and respectably dressed mother. Typical of Dutch genre painting, it carries a moral message and finds spirituality in the humblest acts. The fine-toothed comb was an artistic and poetic symbol for purging the soul as well as the body, so this mother is not only caring for the physical health of her son but also looking to his eventual salvation. But we can also just enjoy her slight smile of pleasure and gratification in this moment of purposeful closeness with her dear child.

Marius Kwint is a reader in visual culture

2. Madonna of the Pilgrims by Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio (1603-5)

Caravaggio’s altarpiece, the Madonna of the Pilgrims, offers a beguiling mixture of the ordinary and the extraordinary. The setting is minimal, plain and achingly mundane: a doorframe with chipped masonry; some exposed bricks; a stone doorstep. A young mother – beautiful, but a little down-at-heel – supports a weighty infant on her hip.

Painting showing two grubby men kneeling at the feet of the Virgin Mary, who holds Christ on her hip — Madonna of the Pilgrims by Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio (1571–1610).
Basilica of Saint Augustine in Campo Marzio

The bond between mother and child is tangible, believable and thoroughly human. Their faint halos, though, confirm that these figures are far from ordinary. The gloomy doorway where they stand is, apparently, the entrance to the shrine of the Holy House of Loreto, the Virgin Mary’s home.

The humble, kneeling pilgrims at the Virgin’s door are not only shabbily dressed but actually grubby – the dirty feet of one made this painting notorious. Yet their piety is rewarded as the holy figures gaze on them sympathetically and Christ seems to extend his small hand in a gesture of blessing.

Alice E. Sanger is an honorary associate and associate lecturer in art history

3. Interior, Mother and Sister of the Artist by Édouard Vuillard (1893)

Most western painting romanticises mothers, highlighting blissful, tender intimacy. In these paintings, mothers are usually young, with babies or small children. But where are the complex realities of mother-child difficulty, separation and resentment – and of motherhood as tribulation and endurance (think adolescent and boomerang kids)?

Painting of a mother and daughter — Interior, Mother and Sister of the Artist by Édouard Vuillard (1893).
Moma

Édouard Vuillard’s Interior, Mother and Sister of the Artist (1893) portrays a psychologically intense mother-daughter adult relationship. Vuillard painted his mother more than 500 times and lived with her till she died (when he was 60). He said: “Ma maman, c’est ma muse” – my mother is my muse.

In the crowded space of Interior, a mature Madame Vuillard dominates: legs akimbo, elbows jutting like a seated boxer’s, her solid black body a vortex pulling in the room, its furniture and her daughter. The daughter is consumed by the oppressive domesticity (as shown by the wallpaper) and simultaneously repelled by and drawn – bowing – towards her mother. The power is starkly asymmetrical, and intimacy disturbing. Mother-child relations are sometimes unsavoury. In Interior, Vuillard boldly acknowledges this truth.

Jen Harvie is a professor of contemporary theatre and performance

4. The Mothers by Käthe Kollwitz (1921-1922)

Mothers huddled together in unimaginable pain and grief. I just can’t get past this image right now. This woodcut by Käthe Kollwitz is the second last of her war portfolio. Her personal experience informed the print. Her son, Peter, was killed on the front in 1914.

Woodcutting showing women huddled together — The Mothers by Käthe Kollwitz (1921-22).
Tate

The mothers in Kollwitz’s image form almost a sculptural mass, a community bound together by throbbing heartache. This highly emotive image shows the irretrievable consequences of war, the children that these mothers have lost, and are afraid of losing.

Wars might be won and lost in the air, or on the front, or in a control room somewhere far away, but I believe it is the women and children on the ground who suffer the most. And it is the mothers who have to carry the weight of the loss of a generation.

Pragya Agarwal is a visiting professor of social inequities and injustice

5. Mother and Child by William Rothenstein (1903)

In the 1900s William Rothenstein completed a series of paintings depicting his wife – the actor Alice Knewstub – posed in various interiors. The paintings chart the early years of their marriage and the growth of their family. Mother and Child, which falls somewhere in the middle of this series, represents Alice holding their oldest child John (who would go on to become director of the Tate).

A mother holding her child in front of her — Mother and Child by William Rothenstein (1903).
Tate

Rothenstein’s representations of the mother and child relationship differ across the paintings. What I think he captures especially well in this one is the way in which parents support their children to stand up, knowing that one day those legs may take them far away. Alice’s attention is on John, but John’s attention is on whatever is going on outside the window. The positioning of the model ship just above his head extends the theme of wanting to hold onto something that cannot be held forever.

I’ve always wondered whether this painting was well known to one of Rothenstein’s later students, a young sculptor called Henry Moore, who was similarly (and more famously) drawn to the subject of the mother holding a child. It seems very likely.

Samuel Shaw is a senior lecturer in art history

What is your favourite painting of a mother or maternal figure? Let us know in the comments below.

Our senior arts and culture editor Anna Walker’s favourite is Breakfast in Bed by Mary Cassatt (1897). So much can be read in the mother’s face – exhaustion, love, fear, protectiveness. Through her painting, Cassatt immortalises an intimate moment from the fleeting period of a child’s infancy.

The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Five paintings that capture the complexity of motherhood – chosen by art historians – https://theconversation.com/five-paintings-that-capture-the-complexity-of-motherhood-chosen-by-art-historians-275359

March 12, 2026

Arco blends Studio Ghibli-inspired wonder with a distinctly French surreal imagination

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Malcolm Cook, Associate Professor in Film Studies, University of Southampton

French animation has a rich history. But it has yet to achieve the same widespread recognition as American, British or Japanese animation. Arco could change that. The film’s accessible Studio Ghibli-esque story, unique visual imagination and surreal tone marks it out from run of the mill family fare.

Arco is a 2D hand-drawn time travel fantasy film set in 2075 and 2932. The eponymous hero is ten-year-old boy who steals a cape and gemstone that enable him to travel back in time. Arriving in 2075, Arco meets Iris, an inquisitive girl whose primary caregiver is a robot. It’s a substitute for her parents who work away from home and are only present through holograms. Having lost the gemstone, Arco and Iris try to find a way for him to return home.

As this plot description might already suggest, Arco displays admiration for the Studio Ghibli films of Hayao Miyazaki from the first frame. With its pre-teen protagonists, collision of fantasy with reality, environmental themes and bumbling comedic supporting characters, viewers will be reminded of Laputa: Castle in the Sky (1986), Porco Rosso (1992), Spirited Away (2001) and Ponyo (2008) among others.

The trailer for Arco.

Arco’s depiction of wide-open blue skies accompanied by delicate piano music and later apocalyptic scenes of climate disruption also share an audio-visual heritage with Ghibli films. But far from a mere imitation, the film also offers a distinctly French take on animation.

French animation legacy

France can lay claim to one of the earliest innovators of animation – cartoonist Émile Cohl’s 1908 short Fantasmagorie was the longest and most elaborate animated cartoon to date. In 1973 the surreal sci-fi Fantastic Planet captured the trippy psychedelia of its time, and remains a cult favourite today. More recently, internationally acclaimed and financially successful French animated feature films have included The Triplets of Belleville (2003), Persepolis (2007) and My Life as a Courgette (2016).

These films are all very different. But what unites French animation is not a consistent style or thematic concern. Rather, it has a quirky sensibility that embraces the capacity of animation to look at the world from new perspectives and explore outlandish stories that couldn’t be made any other way.

An important part of the success of Arco is in balancing that distinctive French sensibility with commercial appeal. Like Studio Ghibli films, that includes using big star names for the English-language dub. This is essential to reach family audiences who might be unable or unwilling to read subtitles.

One of the film’s producers is actor Natalie Portman, lending the production Oscar-winning credibility and contacts. Portman herself voices Iris’ mother, joined by Mark Ruffalo as Iris’ father, America Ferrera as Arco’s mother, and a triple-act comedic turn from Will Ferrell, Andy Samberg and Flea as eccentric cultists.

Future thinking

Despite Arco’s fantastical story elements, its most significant achievement is in tackling timely contemporary environmental themes. Where most cli-fi cinema (science fiction that depicts climate change) often dwells on apocalyptic gloom, Arco’s take is both incisive and uplifting.

The time-travel themes allow for a subtle consideration of the need for long-term “future generations” thinking, while reinforcing the need for human, rather than technological, solutions.

The makers of Arco will no doubt be hoping for a reprise of last year’s surprise animated feature film Oscar, when the low budget Latvian computer animation Flow beat out the usual suspects of Disney, Pixar and DreamWorks. It signalled a new openness of academy voters to international and creatively adventurous animated films.

A win would be well deserved. Just as Arco’s colourful rainbow styling underpins its hopeful vision for the future of humanity, the film’s present day success signals a bright future for animation production in Europe and beyond.

Looking for something good? Cut through the noise with a carefully curated selection of the latest releases, live events and exhibitions, straight to your inbox every fortnight, on Fridays. Sign up here.

Malcolm Cook does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Arco blends Studio Ghibli-inspired wonder with a distinctly French surreal imagination – https://theconversation.com/arco-blends-studio-ghibli-inspired-wonder-with-a-distinctly-french-surreal-imagination-276807

March 12, 2026

Constant technology changes throw seniors a curve – and add to caregivers’ load

Source: The Conversation – USA – By Debaleena Chattopadhyay, Assistant Professor of Computer Science, University of Illinois Chicago

Shifting interfaces and frequent updates challenge elders and increase the burdens on people who try to help them. Maskot via Getty Images

This past Christmas, I helped my parents choose a water filter. The latest “smart” models all came with a smartphone app that promised to monitor filter life, track water quality and automatically request service. Yet my father, age 75, and mother, 67, were quick to reject them in favor of a nondigital model.

“Every time it updates or I forget how to use it, we’ll have to call you,” my dad said.

As an only child living 8,000 miles (12,875 kilometers) away, I didn’t need convincing. My parents are aging in place and don’t need traditional caregiving – they cook, drive and manage their home just fine. Instead, I provide what I call technology caregiving: helping them with their digital activities of daily living, from online banking to booking theater tickets.

But as the tech industry shifts toward artificial intelligence agents and generative user interfaces – promising to make devices smarter than ever – I am bracing for this invisible workload to become heavier, not lighter. In addition to being a technology caregiver, I’m a computer scientist who studies human-computer interaction.

Technology caregiving

Technology caregiving is the act of helping someone use digital tools. While this isn’t entirely new – people have long helped grandparents program VCRs and connect parents’ desktop computers to the internet – the stakes have changed.

Today, digitization is ubiquitous. Helping with these tools is no longer just occasional unpaid tech support – it is a form of continuous caregiving essential for maintaining independence. For example, even the simple act of clipping coupons has gone digital – marginalizing older adults who are unable to navigate store apps to access these discounts.

People often view older adults as resistant to technology, but recent years – particularly since the COVID-19 pandemic – have shattered that myth. While gaps in internet access and device ownership remain, they are no longer major barriers to technology access.

an older woman uses a laptop computer at a table — Today’s seniors are not tech-averse, but constant updates and interface changes make using technology more difficult for them.
Jose Luis Raota/Moment via Getty Images

The emerging crisis is not about access, but effective use. Many older adults are now online and willing to use these tools, but they require frequent help from family, friends or communities.

The innovation tax

The problem isn’t just that devices and apps are getting complex; it’s that they are constantly changing. Frequent software updates and shifting interfaces can be frustrating for all users, but they turn familiar tools into foreign concepts for older adults.

This unpredictability is about to accelerate. Take generative user interfaces, which designers can use to dynamically generate an interface in minutes. Pair them with AI agents, and the system can assume the designer’s role, taking independent actions based on how it perceives a user’s intent or need.

If the “Pay Bill” button is in a different place every third time you open a particular app because an AI decided to optimize the interface, you might feel perpetually incompetent if you can’t quickly locate it. While the industry calls this personalization, for an older adult it is a moving target.

This relentless pace of change – even when intended to be helpful – is directly at odds with age-related cognitive changes. And this dynamic is continuing with the new generation of seniors. They may be more eager to adopt new tools than the last, but wanting to use technology is not the same as being able to use it when the rules are constantly changing.

To navigate a brand new or shifting interface, your brain relies on fluid intelligence: the ability to reason, solve novel problems and ignore distractions on the fly. Unlike the knowledge that people accumulate over time, fluid intelligence naturally declines with age.

When an app updates or an AI optimizes a layout, it forces the user to discard their hard-won mental models and start over. For an older adult, this isn’t just a minor inconvenience; it is a taxing job for their working memory.

As an older adult participant in a study my colleagues and I conducted put it:

“I had a computer on my desk in 1980, OK, when nobody else did. So this is not a foreign language, but the changes that are made with little to no explanation and then things that you knew how to do have either changed or disappeared completely, that is the stuff that absolutely drives me, and I will tell you, every other older adult in America nuts.”

Help the helper

I believe that the way forward is to stop treating tech support as an afterthought and start designing for the technology caregiver. Digital literacy training for seniors and encouraging designing technologies for all users are important but not enough; it’s important to build tools that share the burden.

Two promising paths are emerging. First, cognitive accessibility features – like AI assistants that find buried buttons or provide real-time tech support – can offload tasks from the caregiver. Second, tools for caregivers are beginning to move beyond simply controlling device feature access to capabilities such as allowing authorized access for banking as co-users, or recording personalized instructions.

These tools will also need to be tailored: Family caregivers need different tools than community helpers like libraries and senior centers.

In the age of AI, innovation shouldn’t be a tax on the aging brain – it should help bridge the digital divide.

Debaleena Chattopadhyay receives funding from NSF, NIH, and CDC.

– ref. Constant technology changes throw seniors a curve – and add to caregivers’ load – https://theconversation.com/constant-technology-changes-throw-seniors-a-curve-and-add-to-caregivers-load-274814

March 12, 2026

Not just Patriot interceptors: A defense expert explains the various weapons US and allies use to defend against missiles and drones

Source: The Conversation – USA – By Iain Boyd, Director of the Center for National Security Initiatives and Professor of Aerospace Engineering Sciences, University of Colorado Boulder

An Israeli air defense system fires interceptor missiles at missiles launched from Iran on March 1, 2026. AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean

Patriot missile batteries have been the iconic air defense system in the United States’ arsenal for several decades, but evolving threats – from cheap rockets to even cheaper drones – have forced the U.S. and other militaries to develop a range of defensive weapons to match.

In retaliation for ongoing strikes by the U.S. and Israel, Iran has been conducting daily aerial attacks using missiles and drones against Israel and countries in the Persian Gulf region. In December 2025, Iran also launched a large-scale, coordinated raid involving hundreds of missiles and drones against Israel. Hamas launched an even larger assault in October 2023 of many thousands of low-cost rockets and primitive missiles against Israel, overwhelming its highly touted Iron Dome air defense system. And, in the conflict between the Ukraine and Russia, there have been several examples of large-scale drone raids by both sides.

As an engineer who studies defense systems, I see that as the variety and number of missile and drone threats grow, militaries are forced to adapt the defensive side of the equation and respond with matching speed and breadth.

The defensive weapons are components of integrated air defense systems, which include the means to detect and track threats, typically through various forms of radar. Stemming from the Cold War, interceptor missiles have been the established weapon used to disable or destroy the threats.

Well-known examples of air defense systems that use interceptor missiles include the Patriot system and the Israeli Iron Dome. These systems are designed to be effective against small numbers of missiles, including short-range ballistic missiles, as well as aircraft and drones. The U.S. also uses the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense to defend against intermediate range ballistic missiles, including intercepting the missiles before they reenter Earth’s atmosphere.

The Phalanx Close-In Weapon System, shown here in target practice, is an automated machine gun that can defend against drones and missiles.

The numbers

The current conflict in the Gulf provides the latest example of the math at the heart of the air defense challenge. Iran has fired thousands of missiles and drones, and it often requires more than one interceptor to take out an incoming missile. The Gulf states are reportedly running low on interceptors. U.S. stocks are also under pressure, and the United States is reportedly planning to move some interceptors from South Korea to the Gulf region.

Because each interceptor costs several million dollars, it is a losing proposition to use such systems to destroy rockets that only cost US$100,000. Such an asymmetric conflict is not only too expensive on the defensive side, but it is also challenging to replenish interceptors in a timely manner.

In addition, an attacker can overwhelm a defender. In the Hamas attack on Oct. 7, 2023 against Israel, the established interceptor-based air defense approach proved less than effective against the large-scale attack involving thousands of relatively primitive missiles and rockets. There are initial reports of a large barrage of rockets fired by Hezbollah at Israel on March 11, 2026.

What is needed instead are air defense approaches that scale to meet the numbers and sophistication levels of the evolving threats. One example is the U.S. Navy’s Phalanx Close-In Weapon System used to defend ships against missiles as well as small surface craft. It is an automated machine gun that can fire up to 4,500 rounds per minute. It destroys incoming targets by literally shooting them to pieces. Each round costs about $30, and usually about 100 rounds are expended on a target.

While this is a more cost-effective approach than expensive interceptors, a Phalanx magazine can be quickly depleted in 20-30 seconds, thus leaving it open to being overwhelmed by large numbers of incoming missiles. It is also the last line of defense. Ideally, you would address threats long before the Phalanx system is activated.

Drones and anti-drone drones

Large-scale, low-cost air attacks involving weaponized drones have been used in the Ukraine-Russia war and in the Middle East. While drones can be shot out of the sky by missile interceptors, this is not a cost-effective approach. Gun systems such as the Phalanx are effective against drones. U.S., Gulf states and Israeli forces have also downed drones using guns fired from aircraft.

Another new approach that has been used by Ukrainian forces is the development of anti-drone drones, or counter unmanned aircraft systems. Drones can damage or destroy other drones through a variety of mechanisms, including electronic warfare that involves jamming their radio control and communications systems, and kinetic intercepts, in which they ram directly into the target drone. An example is Merops, which the U.S. is reportedly sending to the Gulf region.

a small rocket sits on a pole protruding from the bed of a pickup truck — A Polish soldier stands by an American-made anti-drone drone.
AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski

Energy weapons

Militaries are also developing non-kinetic defensive weapons that are based on directed energy technologies. The two most common forms of directed energy weapons are high-energy lasers and high-power microwaves. In both cases, they transform electrical power into physical effects that can damage or destroy aerial targets.

One of their key advantages over traditional kinetic defensive weapons is the claim that directed energy systems have an “infinite magazine.” As long as these systems are connected to an electrical power source, they can keep firing. While this is not entirely true – directed energy systems have to be cycled off to allow them to cool down – they are more cost-effective and have deeper magazines than kinetic systems.

Militaries around the world are fielding high-energy laser weapons for protection against light artillery, drones and surface craft. Lasers can create a number of different effects, including burning holes in threats and even setting them on fire.

For example, the U.S. Navy’s High Energy Laser with Integrated Optical-dazzler and Surveillance is a 60-kW kilowatt ship-based system used for aerial protection. It can interfere with, or dazzle, the sensors of missiles and drones.

High-power microwave weapons are not yet as advanced for air defense applications. They operate by causing short circuits in the electrical systems of missiles and drones, causing them to lose control and veer off target.

Rapid evolution

In the cat-and-mouse game of modern warfare, there is a continual carousel of offensive weapons development and responsive defensive countermeasures. Against a recent trend toward the use of large numbers of less capable and relatively inexpensive weapons, the defensive side is responding with affordable, high-volume approaches.

Iain Boyd receives funding from the U.S. Department of Defense and Lockheed-Martin Corporation.

– ref. Not just Patriot interceptors: A defense expert explains the various weapons US and allies use to defend against missiles and drones – https://theconversation.com/not-just-patriot-interceptors-a-defense-expert-explains-the-various-weapons-us-and-allies-use-to-defend-against-missiles-and-drones-278047

March 12, 2026

A successful USDA program that has supported more than 533,000 affordable rental homes in rural America is getting phased out

Source: The Conversation – USA (2) – By Brian Y. An, Co-Director of Center for Urban Research, Director of Master of Science in Public Policy Program, & Assistant Professor of Public Policy, Georgia Institute of Technology

Low-income Americans in rural areas can struggle to pay market-rate rents. mphillips007/iStock via Getty Images Plus

The high cost of renting and buying homes in U.S. cities is no secret. But this affordability problem isn’t limited to urban regions – it affects rural areas as well.

Rural areas, home to about 25% of Americans, benefit from federally supported rental housing programs – particularly a U.S. Department of Agriculture program to provide affordable homes for low-income residents.

The USDA’s Section 515 program is the primary way that the U.S. government finances affordable rental homes in rural communities. Since its inception in 1963, the program has supported the construction of over 533,000 apartments, townhouses and other small, multifamily rental homes.

The program offers below-market-rate loans to private and nonprofit developers who build and manage residential housing for low-income residents in small towns and rural counties. The terms of the deal between property owners and the government obliges these landlords to keep rents affordable for their occupants for decades, generally restricting rent to about 30% of tenants’ income.

Last new loans were in 2011

People who live in Section 515 housing typically pay around US$325 per month. That’s much less than rural market-rate rents, which typically run $800-$1,100 per month for modest homes.

Because the USDA stopped issuing new Section 515 loans in 2011, this arrangement is phasing out now as existing loans mature.

Loans for about 90% of all remaining Section 515 homes will mature by 2045, according to the Housing Assistance Council, a national nonprofit that supports affordable housing efforts throughout rural America. By 2050, the owners of nearly all properties currently in the program’s portfolio are projected to have paid off their mortgages.

And once most of the owners of these homes exit the Section 515 program, it will have been fully phased out.

An often-overlooked housing program

As a public policy professor who studies housing, I wanted to understand what happens when Section 515 loans mature. I also was interested in what determines whether properties remain affordable or leave the program after the loans are paid off.

To find out, I worked with three other housing policy researchers on a national study that was peer-reviewed and published in Housing Policy Debate in September 2025.

As of 2024, these loans were still supporting some 400,000 homes on almost 13,000 properties across 87% of all U.S. counties.

The roughly 750,000 Americans in those homes are among the nation’s poorest. The average household income of someone living in Section 515 housing in 2023 was just about $16,000 per year, which was only about one-fifth of the national median household income, which hovered around $76,600 during the same period in inflation-adjusted 2023 dollars.

In addition to having a very low income, more than 60% of the people enrolled in the program are over 62, have disabilities, or fall into both of those categories.

Market-rate options after maturity

The vast majority of these affordable rental homes were built in the 1970s through the 1990s and financed with USDA loans that last between 30 and 50 years.

By 2050, there will be no Section 515 housing left.

The owners of these rental properties no longer have to keep rents affordable once they have paid off their loans. And their owners and tenants may also lose access to a USDA rental assistance program, which helps keep tenants’ housing costs low.

They can refinance the homes or sell the properties. They also can continue to charge affordable rents to occupants or convert those units to market rate. Because of this flexibility, a large share of rural affordable housing units could soon be converted to properties rented at market rates.

What the data shows so far

For this study, our research team analyzed data from nearly 15,000 of the Section 515 properties throughout the country, which have been placed in service since 1963 – including many that are no longer providing rural affordable housing.

We found that the largest factors determining whether a building remains affordable after a Section 515 loan matures are who owns and manages that property. Buildings owned by for-profit companies are far more likely to leave the program than those that belong to nonprofit housing organizations.

Nonprofit-owned buildings, after accounting for building age and local market conditions, are 30% to 40% less likely to convert formerly Section 515 affordable housing into market-rate properties after the owners pay off their loans.

After analyzing this data, we also concluded that buildings run by small property management companies are more likely to leave the program than those managed by larger ones. Properties where the owner manages the homes are also more likely to exit.

Landlords owning more residential properties were also more likely to exit the program. This indicates that larger landlords may be able to afford the renovations and upgrades required to turn their buildings into market-rate housing once restrictions end.

A symbolic wooden house, containg a stack of $1 bills and a money bag with a dollar symbol, sits next to an alarm clock in a grocery cart. — Time is running out on the nation’s main affordable housing program in rural areas.
Max Zolotukhin/iStock via Getty Images Plus

Why subsidies and local markets matter

Having subsidies through other government programs can help keep affordable housing units from being converted to market-rate housing.

One-third of Section 515 properties also get support from other programs, including Section 8 vouchers and low-income housing tax credits. Those tax credits are another federal incentive that’s provided to developers who build and rehabilitate affordable rental housing while allowing lower rents for low-income tenants.

Those properties are more likely to remain affordable, even years after some of these tax incentives expire.

Local economic conditions can play a role too. In areas with high unemployment rates, large military populations and low housing inventory, properties are also more likely to exit the program.

That means the same rural counties experiencing economic or demographic pressures are often the most likely to have a decline in affordable housing units when owners pay off their Section 515 loans.

Steps that can be taken

Congress and the USDA have taken some steps to slow the loss of affordable housing in rural areas.

For example, the USDA has funded preservation efforts such as the Multifamily Housing Preservation and Revitalization pilot program, which provides grants, loan restructuring and other financing tools to help repair aging Section 515 properties and extend their affordability.

These efforts have helped preserve some buildings and support ownership transfers from private sector landlords to nonprofit housing groups. But they spend only tens of millions of dollars per year and focus mainly on maintaining existing properties rather than building new housing.

Researchers estimate that about $5.6 billion in repairs would be needed to preserve the affordable housing currently tied to the Section 515 program.

Some lawmakers have proposed reforms aimed at doing more than chipping away at the loss of this kind of affordable housing. The bipartisan Rural Housing Service Reform Act, first introduced in 2023 and reintroduced in 2025, would modernize USDA rural housing programs and allow certain rental assistance contracts to continue after mortgages mature. As of early 2026, the bill remains under consideration.

Over the next two decades, most of these landlords will pay off their Section 515 loans. Unless the government reinvigorates the program or replaces it with something else, much of rural America’s affordable rental housing could gradually disappear as owners convert all Section 515 properties to market-rate housing.

Whether rural communities retain affordable housing will depend not only on what the federal government does, but also on the properties’ owners.

Brian Y. An received funding from JPMorganChase and this research was made possible through their generous support. Unless otherwise specifically stated, the views and opinions expressed in the published research paper are solely those of the paper’s authors and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of JPMorganChase or its affiliates.

– ref. A successful USDA program that has supported more than 533,000 affordable rental homes in rural America is getting phased out – https://theconversation.com/a-successful-usda-program-that-has-supported-more-than-533-000-affordable-rental-homes-in-rural-america-is-getting-phased-out-273637

March 12, 2026

Legal refugees now face long detention after DHS reinterprets law on applying for a green card after a year

Source: The Conversation – USA – By Ashley Sanchez, Associate Professor of Immigration, University of Notre Dame

A group of refugees and asylum-seekers tour a commercial fishing marina as part of a summer immersion program in August 2018 in Eastport, Maine. John Moore/Getty Images

The Department of Homeland Security issued a policy memo in February 2026 that could lead to the detention of refugees who are legally in the country.

The new policy states that “DHS may arrest and detain a refugee who has lived in the United States for at least one year and has not yet acquired” lawful permanent resident status. Approximately 100,000 refugees could be at risk for such arrest and detention.

The policy rescinds a 2010 DHS policy that limited the agency’s ability to arrest refugees. The 2010 policy was cited in a 2026 court order that temporarily prohibited agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement from arresting refugees in Minnesota in an effort to root out cases of fraud in the refugee admissions process.

As an immigration scholar, I believe the new DHS memo constitutes a massive departure from previous policy – one that could result in the detention of thousands of people who have lawful immigration status.

To better understand the new DHS policy and the change it represents, it’s helpful to clarify what it means to be a refugee.

Refugees flee persecution

Refugees flee their countries to escape persecution due to their race, religion, nationality or political opinion. Under U.S. immigration law, a refugee is someone who arrived in the U.S. through an official U.S. resettlement process.

After registering as a refugee abroad, the process for being resettled in the U.S. can take years – sometimes decades – and requires rigorous background checks.

Upon arrival, refugees are permitted to live and work indefinitely in the U.S. They are also eligible to “adjust” their immigration status to lawful permanent resident, also known as a “green card,” after one year in the country.

At issue with the new DHS policy is the interpretation of Section 209 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, the statute that governs refugee adjustments and moves them from refugee status to lawful permanent resident.

Section 209 states that refugees who have been physically present in the U.S. for one year and haven’t yet received lawful permanent resident status “shall, at the end of such year period, return or be returned to the custody of DHS for inspection and admission” as a lawful permanent resident.

Historically, this has meant that refugees are required to undergo a secondary screening, through an interview or paper application, before receiving their green cards.

Hundreds of people stand on a ship. — Vietnamese evacuees fill a landing craft, assisted by U.S. Marines, on May 4, 1975. More than 125,000 refugees from Vietnam were resettled in the U.S. between 1975 and 1980.
AP Photo/Neal Ulevich

But DHS is now interpreting the language in Section 209 to impose a duty on refugees to voluntarily return to DHS custody – which it defines as detention – after one year in the country. This is despite the fact that refugees are not even eligible for legal permanent resident status until they have been in the country for a full year, putting refugees in an impossible situation.

Essentially, every refugee could face imprisonment unless immigration officials review and approve their green card applications at exactly the one-year mark.

History of refugee policy

The language in Section 209 arose after the passage of the Refugee Act of 1980, a law that created our current refugee resettlement framework. Prior to this, there was no fixed legal mechanism for resettling refugees in the U.S.

Instead, the government responded to humanitarian crises largely on an ad hoc basis. It temporarily allowed people into the U.S. from Vietnam and Cuba.

Once here, those individuals had no long-term legal status unless Congress managed to pass after-the-fact legislation authorizing them to apply for green cards, as it did for Cubans with the Cuban Adjustment Act of 1966.

The Refugee Act of 1980 was meant to solve this problem. It established a legal mechanism for refugee resettlement. It created a new refugee immigration status and ensured that refugees are eligible for permanent residency.

The earliest regulations implementing Section 209 show the “returned to custody” language was satisfied by attending an interview at a local immigration office. It was part of the green card process that was eventually replaced with a paper application.

The regulations implementing that change state that the “‘custody’ requirement for refugees applying for adjustment of status” can be met by filing an application.

What the DHS memo means for refugees

So, what normally happens if a refugee fails to submit their application?

Usually, nothing.

Until relatively recently, refugees weren’t even permitted to file for lawful permanent residence until after living in the country for a year.

Previous ICE guidance recognized that even if a refugee fails to file a green card application at all, they still maintain their lawful refugee immigration status. The failure to submit an application did not create any basis to deport a refugee. Therefore, absent other factors, immigration detention was inappropriate.

A man and his family push a cart through a supermarket. — A Syrian refugee and his family shop for groceries in El Cajon, Calif., on Aug. 31, 2016.
AP Photo/Lenny Ignelzi

What will refugees do now?

Immigration attorneys are advising their refugee clients to file for lawful permanent status immediately, if they have not yet done so, to reduce the risk of detention. But that may not be enough.

The DHS memo states that a refugee “may be considered to have voluntarily returned to custody” if they filed their application and complied with any interviews. But the wording of the memo leaves open the door to detain anyone who has not yet had their application approved.

This leads to another issue, which is DHS administrative delays. The government currently takes approximately 12 months to approve refugee green card applications for requests it’s willing to process.

In January 2026, another DHS policy put an indefinite hold on all applications for individuals from a list of 39 countries. Consequently, applications for refugees from countries including Haiti, Afghanistan and Republic of the Congo are not being reviewed at all.

This means that refugees who have done everything right could be imprisoned indefinitely under this policy, because the U.S. government is refusing to judge their applications.

Against this backdrop, the Trump administration has capped refugee admissions for 2026 to a record low of 7,500.

At least one federal lawsuit has already been filed to challenge this new policy.

What happens now depends on how far DHS is willing to go and whether the courts allow it to do so.

Ashley Sanchez is the director of the Notre Dame Immigration Clinic, where she and her students represent refugees seeking permanent residency. She was previously the Supervising Attorney at Cleveland Catholic Charities, Migration and Refugee Services.

– ref. Legal refugees now face long detention after DHS reinterprets law on applying for a green card after a year – https://theconversation.com/legal-refugees-now-face-long-detention-after-dhs-reinterprets-law-on-applying-for-a-green-card-after-a-year-277054

March 12, 2026

Federal benefits cuts are looming – here’s how Colorado is trying to protect families with children

Source: The Conversation – USA – By Stephen Roll, Assistant Professor of Social Policy, Washington University in St. Louis

Colorado is leveraging its tax code to reduce child poverty. Royalty-free/Getty Images

Childhood poverty in the U.S. fell to its lowest level in history in 2021. The fall was largely due to the expanded child tax credit and other COVID-19 pandemic supports that put cash directly in the hands of parents and lifted millions of children out of poverty.

Once these safety net changes expired at the end of 2021, childhood poverty rebounded, surging from 5% in 2021 to 13% in 2024.

While federal anti-poverty initiatives like the child tax credit expansion have stalled, states like Colorado are increasingly leveraging their tax codes to combat poverty. The Colorado Family Affordability Tax Credit took effect in tax year 2024. It is one of the most substantial and accessible state-level programs designed to support families, potentially offering thousands of dollars to low-income Colorado parents.

As economic policy researchers, we are conducting a three-year evaluation of the Colorado Family Affordability Tax Credit. We estimate that the credit reduces child poverty in Colorado by about 20%, and that reduction increases to 37% when combined with other state tax credits for low-income families, moving roughly 52,000 children above the poverty line.

Colorado’s approach is projected to have one of the strongest anti-poverty effects among state refundable child tax credits. If Colorado’s design were implemented in every U.S. state, child poverty nationwide could be reduced by more than one-third.

However, due to the complicated funding structure of the Colorado tax credit, the program is at risk. Changes in federal legislation created tax breaks for Colorado businesses, reducing state revenue projections. Since the credit is only available when Colorado state revenue growth is above 3%, these tax breaks caused the Family Affordability Tax Credit to be suspended for 2026, meaning the credit may not be part of families’ 2027 tax refunds.

Changes put Colorado families at risk

State anti-poverty programs are more vital now as planned cuts to federal safety net programs may substantially reduce the benefits available for low-income families. The 2025 federal tax breaks and spending cuts package expanded work requirements for the Supplement Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, and Medicaid – programs that millions of families rely on to meet their food and healthcare needs.

Following this change, most working-age adults enrolled in these programs must work 80 hours per month. Previously, Medicaid had no work requirements and SNAP had work requirement exemptions for older working-age adults. The law requires states to implement these changes by Jan. 1, 2027, though some states, such as Georgia and Ohio, are starting earlier. Proponents argue that work requirements encourage labor force participation and reduce government spending.

“PBS NewsHour” reports on the changes to SNAP as a result of the passage of the 2025 federal tax breaks and spending cuts bill.

However, research finds that stricter work requirements reduce program participation more than they increase work. Changing enrollment systems requires retraining staff and providing outreach and education to enrollees, which is costly to implement.

As a result, many Americans may lose benefits not because of an unwillingness to work, but because of complex rules and red tape, which are difficult to manage while juggling unsteady jobs, caregiving obligations or health issues.

Federal changes to the safety net will hit Colorado especially hard. Early estimates from simulation models applying the new requirements show that roughly 298,000 Colorado families could lose their SNAP benefits, and 154,000 could lose Medicaid coverage. These cuts will disproportionately affect families with children, low-wage workers and families already struggling to make ends meet.

Amid soaring costs of living in the state, tighter eligibility doesn’t eliminate need. Instead, it forces families into difficult trade-offs. Those could include skipping meals, delaying medical care or falling behind on rent.

Using the tax system to support families

Colorado’s Family Affordability Tax Credit was implemented in 2024. The credit provides US$3,200 per child under age 6 and $2,400 per child ages 6 to 16, making it one of the most substantial state child tax credits.

Married couples filing jointly with eligible children who earn up to about $95,000 per year qualify for a portion of the credit. It is fully refundable, meaning families can receive the credit as a tax refund even if they do not owe anything in state taxes. Delivered through the tax system, access is simple and largely automatic for most households.

Colorado families with children could qualify for up to $7,000 in tax credits.

Parents who received the credit consistently told us in interviews that it made it easier for them to afford paying for their basic needs, such as food, housing, utilities and transportation. The reduced financial strain also improved their emotional well-being and family dynamics. As one caregiver noted, lower stress meant they weren’t in “hustle mode” just to keep the lights on.

The credit is “more than a dollar amount,” another said. It provides “peace of mind.”

Parents also highlighted the positive effects that receiving this tax credit had on children. The money allowed some to take their kids to activities and on outings, and allowed many parents to feel more present with their children.

“If I’m relaxed and my own cup is full, I can fill theirs,” said one parent. “It’s a ripple effect.”

More than 60% of the families we surveyed said they preferred the tax credit to other kinds of government benefits, citing its flexibility and ease of use. Unlike programs that require frequent reporting or compliance checks, such as Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, Colorado’s Family Affordability Tax Credit was often described as straightforward.

“I never feel it’s that difficult to get,” said one participant we interviewed.

Why tax credits work — and where this approach can fall short

Colorado’s tax-based approach to fighting poverty, which includes the Family Affordability Tax Credit, the Colorado Earned Income Tax Credit and the Colorado Child Tax Credit, offers flexible support via a familiar system. However, this approach has limitations.

Millions, including about 1 in 4 workers eligible for the federal Earned Income Tax Credit in Colorado, don’t file taxes. That means they may miss out on the tax credits.

Another issue is that lump-sum payments can be difficult to budget for people who rely on government benefits to make ends meet. Our research suggests that one-third of Colorado respondents preferred monthly payments. We’ve also found that two-thirds of federal child tax credit recipients in 2021 preferred monthly payments for budgeting reasons.

Why state investment in children matters

Although the full impacts of the Family Affordability Tax Credit on Colorado’s children are not yet known, a robust body of research points to the powerful role state policies can play in shaping young children’s development. Increased family income benefits children by enabling greater family resources, such as educational spending, and reducing parental stress.

Importantly, increasing spending that supports families with children can yield long-term benefits for society by improving children’s health, education, employment and economic stability later in life. Research shows a 10-to-1 return on investment from providing refundable tax credits to these families.

As federal support wanes, state policies, like Colorado’s, could be crucial for providing the stability children need to grow, learn and thrive. Unless Colorado makes the Family Affordability Tax Credit a permanent and reliable fixture of the state budget – as a recent proposal aims to do – the progress the state has made in reducing child poverty may only be temporary.

Read more of our stories about Colorado.

Stephen Roll receives funding from Gary Community Ventures.

Jenn Finders has received funding from the National Science Foundation, Indiana Family and Social Services Administration, North Central Regional Center for Rural Development, and the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues.

Leah Hamilton receives funding from Gary Community Ventures.

– ref. Federal benefits cuts are looming – here’s how Colorado is trying to protect families with children – https://theconversation.com/federal-benefits-cuts-are-looming-heres-how-colorado-is-trying-to-protect-families-with-children-275199

March 12, 2026

‘Hamnet’ is making audiences break down in tears – and upending beliefs about male grief

Source: The Conversation – USA (2) – By Jeanette Tran, Associate Professor of English, Drake University

Paul Mescal as William Shakespeare in Chloé Zhao’s film ‘Hamnet.’ Focus Features

Did you cry during “Hamnet”?

On social media, many viewers shared the overwhelming emotions elicited by the film, which has been nominated for eight Academy Awards.

One viewer commented on Reddit that the movie was an “out of body experience.” Another posted on X that it left them “covered in tears” and “ugly crying the entire drive home.” New York Times columnist Sarah Wildman wrote that the film left her “sobbing in my seat.”

In “Hamnet,” which director Chloé Zhao adapted from Maggie O’Farrell’s 2020 novel of the same name, William Shakespeare’s youngest son, Hamnet, dies of the bubonic plague at the age of 11. The film traces the profound impact this loss has on his family, while also suggesting that Hamnet’s death influenced the genesis of Shakespeare’s tragic masterpiece “Hamlet.”

But as critics debate whether “Hamnet” constitutes “grief porn” or is instead a brilliant field guide for how to move through the dark woods of sorrow, I found the film so compelling due to how the characters themselves grieve.

Much like Shakespeare’s “Hamlet,” “Hamnet” critiques the notion that grieving is somehow unmanly.

A mother mourns

“Hamnet” offers an intimate portrait of Shakespeare’s personal life, though aspects of the story are highly fictionalized.

In the film, Shakespeare and his wife, commonly known as Anne but renamed Agnes in “Hamnet,” fall in love, bear three children and suffer through the tragic death of 11-year-old Hamnet.

The couple’s marriage is tested by the contrasting ways they grieve Hamnet’s death. Agnes believes Shakespeare, who is in London writing plays when Hamnet dies, fails to grieve their son appropriately because of his desire to return to London so shortly after Hamnet’s death. At the same time, the film suggests Agnes would prefer to stay in the family’s dilapidated home forever because it tethers her more closely to Hamnet’s memory.

In a feminist move, the film notably centers Agnes, who’s been an afterthought in popular memory: She’s largely known for Shakespeare bequeathing her his “second best bed.”

Her perfect love for her children is made palpable through her vigilant care for them – in health, sickness and death.

And yet, “Hamnet” would not be “Hamnet” without Shakespeare and the way his failure to grieve affects Agnes. Agnes losing her son is the film’s central tragedy. But the second tragedy is her loss of faith in her husband, who suddenly strikes her as cold and overly career driven.

How could a man capable of writing poetry with such emotional depth be so clueless about how to grieve their dead son? For Agnes, this is no man at all.

Then and now, expressions of grief are often gendered.

In her 1996 study “Telling Tears in the English Renaissance,” literary scholar Marjory E. Lange explains how in Shakespeare’s time, men who cried might be perceived as being dramatic and weak for appropriating a female form of expression; those who shed tears in public – to borrow a contemporary term – could be accused of “sadfishing” for attention, even if they were genuinely overcome with emotion.

And in her monograph “Masculinity and Emotion in Early Modern English Literature,” literary scholar Jennifer Vaught also notes that men during Shakespeare’s life were expected to be stoic in their grief.

But Vaught complicates the idea that male weeping was universally frowned upon back then. She points to how emotion routinely serves as a springboard for virtuous action in the era’s literature. For example, in Shakespeare’s tragicomic romance “The Winter’s Tale,” King Leontes’ tears facilitate his evolution from jealous, abusive monarch to loving husband and father. Without this grief-induced transformation, the reunion with his wife and daughter – whom he believed were dead – would never have been possible.

To grieve or not to grieve?

Zhao’s “Hamnet” and Shakespeare’s “Hamlet” each explore the anxiety men can feel about expressing grief. But they also find ways to show how that grief can be both beautiful and productive.

In “Hamlet,” Hamlet’s uncle, Claudius, challenges his masculinity due to his overwrought grieving style.

Hamlet’s grief is essentially the polar opposite of how Shakespeare’s is portrayed in “Hamnet”: When Hamlet enters the stage, he’s wearing an inky black coat, which symbolizes his ongoing mourning of his dead father. His mother, Gertrude, has moved on after just two months and has married her dead husband’s brother, Claudius.

Claudius is quick to chastise Hamlet for his “unmanly grief.” He acknowledges that “tis sweet and commendable” that Hamlet mourns his father, but to persist in grief amounts to a weakness of heart, reason and faith. Why mourn death when it is so common and perhaps even willed by God? Instead of crying, Claudius suggests Hamlet profess, “This must be so.”

“Hamlet” reveals how grieving men are held to different standards than women, and that these fluctuating standards can be contradictory and confusing.

It isn’t that Zhao’s Shakespeare doesn’t feel Hamnet’s loss with the same profundity that Agnes does; he just can’t express it in the same manner. In the same way Claudius suggests Hamlet must move on because the kingdom needs governance, Shakespeare insists on getting back to work to fulfill his artistic calling, provide for his family and, in a surprising twist, grieve his son.

‘Hamlet’ as a vehicle for grief

The satisfying resolution of the film reveals that Shakespeare has been living in deplorable conditions in London.

Agnes believed he was enjoying the trappings of his budding celebrity. But the small, disheveled room above the theater where he sleeps and writes suggests he has been mourning in private. He channels his private grief into his very public play “Hamlet,” which, when performed before Agnes, reads as a coded articulation of his love for her, their dead son and the playwright’s endless well of sorrow.

The play cleverly allows the deceased Hamnet to live on perpetually through the character Hamlet.

At the film’s start, Zhao cites literary scholar Stephen Greenblatt’s finding that Hamnet and Hamlet were the same name and entirely interchangeable, which makes Hamnet’s death and the birth of “Hamlet” feel inevitable. Zhao invites viewers to imagine that the character of Hamlet grieves openly in a way that Shakespeare does not have the courage or capacity to do. Though Claudius ridicules Hamlet for his emotional vulnerability, his grief drives him to avenge his father and emerge as a hero.

Even the most open-minded readers may fall into the trap of emasculating Hamlet, simply because he begins the play by visibly grieving.

I’ll sometimes ask my students or colleagues to tell me what they think Hamlet looks like, and their descriptions often play into anti-masculine stereotypes: The Hamlet of their imagination is usually slim, slight and a bit wan, much like actor David Tennant, who played Hamlet in the Royal Shakespeare Company’s 2008 production. Franco Zeffirelli’s casting of Mel Gibson as Hamlet in his 1990 film adaption of Shakespeare’s play created a stir because it went so clearly against type.

Now I hope reading Shakespeare’s “Hamlet” alongside Zhao’s “Hamnet” can instill an appreciation for manly grief, one that expands the possibilities of who Hamlet can be.

It has become trendy to say real men cry. But Zhao’s film suggests they can also create emotionally devastating art that invites audiences to cry with and for them.

Jeanette Tran does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. ‘Hamnet’ is making audiences break down in tears – and upending beliefs about male grief – https://theconversation.com/hamnet-is-making-audiences-break-down-in-tears-and-upending-beliefs-about-male-grief-277474