Monthly Archives: January 2017

Going back to school again – a shopping list

Going back to school again – a shopping list

All over Australia, new PhD students are beginning their studies – welcome! Starting something new can be hard. Connecting with your new community can make it so much easier. world.edu is an online community, but of course you will have your local community too, in your school or faculty. If you are new to ANU, […] … learn more→

Managing the #phd- keep a reading journal

Managing the #phd- keep a reading journal

Reading is integral to research. Everyone says that, and it’s true. It’s also true that you need to find ways to read, note and keep track of all that reading. This is in part a question of tools and strategies. But tools and strategies are necessary but not sufficient. You need to make sense of […] … learn more→

Singing “California Girls” = Sexual harassment

Singing “California Girls” = Sexual harassment

Having been part of, and victimized by, the kangaroo campus court system, I nevertheless am perpetually amazed at just how bizarrely it runs, from how piffling the “crimes” are that merit convictions, to how far reaching the penalties can be. Of particular interest to the kangaroo court system are sex related cases. Before moving on, […] … learn more→

2017 isn’t ‘1984’ – it’s stranger than Orwell imagined

2017 isn’t ‘1984’ – it’s stranger than Orwell imagined

A week after President Donald Trump’s inauguration, George Orwell’s “1984” is the best-selling book on Amazon.com. The hearts of a thousand English teachers must be warmed as people flock to a novel published in 1949 for ways to think about their present moment. Orwell set his story in Oceania, one of three blocs or mega-states […] … learn more→

U of Penn: Shakespeare OUT, Lesbian author IN

U of Penn: Shakespeare OUT, Lesbian author IN

The dementation of higher education is in real time. From one eyeblink to the next, it seems one more thing happens to debase higher education. So we have Shakespeare being taken down, and a new author, Lorde, in his place. Before moving on to the latest slip into the abyss, I reckon I’d best answer […] … learn more→

Far beyond crime-ridden depravity, darknets are key strongholds of freedom of expression online

Far beyond crime-ridden depravity, darknets are key strongholds of freedom of expression online

The internet is much more than just the publicly available, Google-able web services most online users frequent – and that’s good for free expression. Companies frequently create private networks to enable employees to use secure corporate servers, for example. And free software allows individuals to create what are called “peer-to-peer” networks, connecting directly from one […] … learn more→