Reflecting on the interplay of historical and social scientific concepts, Roland Betancourt discusses the extent to which current social and cultural trends influence the study of the past. Responding to critiques of current research being ‘presentist’…
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After ten years of UK What Works Centres, what should their future be?
A decade on from the foundation of the What Works Network, an initiative designed to improve the use of social scientific evidence in the design and delivery of public services in the UK. Michael Sanders and Jonathan Breckon discuss their effectiveness…
Book Review: Being You: A New Science of Consciousness by Anil Seth
In Being You, Anil Seth takes us on a comprehensive tour through the science of consciousness, drawing on the most up-to-date data, lessons and theories in the field. This is a compelling book that will leave readers pondering whether new technologies …
Bridge or Barrier – Does generative AI contribute to more culturally inclusive higher education and research?
Whilst the ability of generative AI to produce text in English has been widely covered, the implications of its ability to translate and act as a cultural broker into English have received less attention. Considering use contexts in education and resea…
What is Responsible Knowledge Exchange, Engagement and Impact?
Drawing on findings from The Responsible Knowledge Exchange, Engagement and Impact (2021-23) project, Alis Oancea, Aileen Marshall-Brown and Juliet Scott-Barrett outline six factors to consider when designing policies and practices to promote responsib…
When it comes to research culture, why do folktales carry more weight than evidence?
Academia is nominally an evidence-based profession, but when developing policy around academic careers and management, higher education institutions more often that not draw on individual experience and anecdote, rather than systematic knowledge. Discu…
Putting public data to use is a fundamentally human challenge
Using data is often seen as a technical or computational challenge, especially for organisations with multiple streams of data. However, as Sarah Morton and Ailsa Cook discuss, the fundamental challenges faced by organisations using data are largely hu…
Are universities too slow to cope with Generative AI?
Similar to other ed-tech trends, generative AI has led to a lively debate and divide between those boosting the potential disruptive nature of the technology and more critical perspectives. Mark Carrigan argues that as generative AI is already making i…
Less academic freedom leads to less innovation
Drawing on data showing a decline in academic freedom over the past decade, David Audretsch, Christian Fisch, Chiara Franzoni, Paul P. Momtaz and Silvio Vismara, analyse the relation of academic freedom to technological innovation, as represented by pa…
Finding time for impact – Policy choices incentivising academic behaviours are not zero-sum games
Research policy increasingly encourages academics to undertake different activities, such as research, teaching and academic service, yet academic time remains finite. Using the introduction of tuition fees in 2012 as a natural experiment within the UK…