Recently, I started a new job. One of the first things on my to-do list was to employ someone to work with me. I thought that it might be useful to reflect on the recruitment process, particularly for academics who are looking for an alternative academic job (an ‘alt-ac job’ as some people call it)—an administrative […] … learn more→

We’re running all sorts of experiments on the human race nowadays. Widespread vaccination, widespread exposure to wireless fields, widespread exposure to pornography, and constant tests to see just how often the public will believe highly convenient suicides, among many other experiments…maybe it’s all safe and harmless, maybe, but I completely understand how some people can […] … learn more→

According to tech entrepreneur Patrick Collison and economist Tyler Cowen, academia needs a new discipline called “progress studies.” But their proposal overlooks two crucial facts: human progress has been an object of study for centuries, and innovators ignorant of that scholarship have had devastating effects on the planet and society. When Collison and Cowen write that “progress […] … learn more→

As digital technologies facilitate the growth of both established and emerging organizations, the darker facets of the digital economy are beginning to emerge. In recent years many unethical practices have been revealed, including the seizure and use of consumer data, anti-competitive activities , and secret social experiments . But what do young people who grew up with the internet think […] … learn more→

There’s a huge debate about homework and whether it helps kids learn during the school year. But everyone agrees that homework can take lots of time. The most commonly accepted guidelines recommend one hour for middle school and two hours for high school. However, I think this amount of time on homework every day can be too much. The […] … learn more→

Education minister Dan Tehan met with university Vice Chancellors in Wollongong this week to discuss a new report on an upcoming funding formula for universities – performance-based funding. This report, and the proposed funding approach detailed in it, has been some time coming. In 2017, the government ended the policy of demand-driven funding to universities, introduced by the previous Labor government […] … learn more→

For many students, pressure and expectation are just another part of the school experience. There is pressure to perform certain tasks, conform to uniform standards and to achieve one’s full potential. Then there are the expectations – that students will do their homework, turn up on time, and perform to the best of their ability. Pressure is even higher […] … learn more→

I don’t go to American Thinker often, but a recent post there from an “old white professor” has some good advice…though I have a bit to add. Advice to the College-Bound from the Old, White Professor While the advice is good, the professor here doesn’t realize that most battles are decided before the first drop […] … learn more→

For those interested in currency, watching the GBP Sterling over the past few months will have been an interesting ride. Prime ministerial resignations, cabinet reshuffles, and building model buses out of wine boxes have all had an effect on the value of the pound. The euro has seen a similar trajectory with various trade wars […] … learn more→

When I started my undergraduate education 21 years ago, computers were a luxury and talking to the professor meant coming to office hours — emails were not a thing. A student’s room would be filled with course syllabi, lecture notes and marked papers. Today, I look at the university classroom from the other side. Students […] … learn more→