The role of the academic humanist has always been a public one – however mediated through teaching and publication, argues Tim Hitchcock. As central means to participate in public conversations, Twitter and blogging just make good academic sense. Hitchcock looks at how these new platforms are facilitating academic collaboration, teaching and public engagement. What starts as a blog, ends as an academic output, […]
Category: Social Media
Book Review: The War on Learning: Gaining Ground in the Digital University
In The War on Learning, Elizabeth Losh analyses recent trends in post-secondary education and the rhetoric around them. In an effort to identify educational technologies that might actually work, she looks at strategies including MOOCs, the gamification of subject matter, remix pedagogy, video lectures, and educational virtual worlds. Losh’s work is valuable reading for students and parents trying to make sense of when current technologies […]
Higher Education community responds to cabinet reshuffle, but it is too soon to foretell David Willetts’ legacy.
Following David Willetts’ resignation as part of the UK government’s cabinet reshuffle, Greg Clark MP has today been announced as the new Minister for Universities and Science. Steven Jones looks at the flurry of comment taking place on Twitter about the reshuffle, the government’s higher education initiatives over the past four years, and what might prove to be the lasting legacy of the […]
Altmetrics may be able to help in evaluating societal reach, but research significance must be peer reviewed.
Social media indicators of scholarly communication, or commonly referenced as altmetrics, are still far from being adopted as part of everyday research evaluation, but they already have stated value in indicating what is interesting and popular. Kim Holmberg argues these indicators have exciting potential for measuring the impact of public outreach. But further research is necessary to fully understand their value and possible applications. […]
The Philosophy of Data Science (series) – Rob Kitchin: “Big data should complement small data, not replace them.”
Over the coming weeks we will be featuring a series of interviews conducted by Mark Carrigan on the nature of ‘big data’ and the opportunities and challenges presented for scholarship with its growing influence. In this first interview, Rob Kitchin elaborates on the specific characteristics of big data, the hype and hubris surrounding its advent, and the distinction between data-driven science and empiricism. What […]
Survey findings point to the benefits and risks associated with academics using social media.
While the advantages of social media are increasingly recognised by academics and universities, potential negative aspects need to be identified and managed by individuals and their institutions. Deborah Lupton presents the findings from her survey which underscore how social media can facilitate connection and sharing of material, however the speed and rapid churn of ideas, as well as the use of social media for self-promotion […]
Book Review: Going Viral by Karine Nahon and Jeff Hemsley
In Going, Viral Karine Nahon and Jeff Hemsley look to uncover the factors that make tweets, videos, and news stories go viral online. They analyze the characteristics of networks that shape virality, including the crucial role of gatekeepers who control the flow of information and connect networks to one another. This concise and insightful book targets a niche topic in the studies of digital media […]
Five Minutes with Anne Barron and Mary Evans: “Academics seldom have the opportunity to discuss issues about their profession”
To mark the thirtieth anniversary of the death of social theorist Michel Foucault, Anne Barron and Mary Evans have organised a conference in late June for academics to reflect on his legacy in relation to higher education. Governing Academic Life will create an interdisciplinary space to discuss the public university, neoliberalism, academic publishing, and assessment measurement. Managing Editor Sierra Williams asked […]
Publicly available data from Twitter is public evidence and does not necessarily constitute an “ethical dilemma”.
An article in Scientific American suggests further ethical considerations should be made for research derived from Twitter data. Ernesto Priego questions first the extent to which Twitter will actually release all of its valuable data and also argues archiving and disseminating information from Twitter and other public archives does not have to be cause for an “ethical dilemma” so long as […]
A New Politics of Knowledge? Exploring the contested boundaries between science, knowledge and policy.
Kat Smith and Richard Freeman argue it’s time to start bringing together the diverse and innovative thinking around the complex relationships between science, knowledge and policy. If we really want to understand how research does, and might, impact on policy and society more broadly, we need to combine the lessons available from sociological studies of knowledge, political science and anthropology […]