In the early 1980s my parents brought home a home computer connected to the television screen. This motivated me to “play” scientist. I was proud to publish in those early computer magazines simple programs on how to draw mathematical functions, monitor the machine code of the microprocessor or rudimentary animations and computer games. Everything was published, […] … learn more→

There is a persistent gender gap in Australian schools. Boys, on average, outperform girls in maths. We see this in national tests such as NAPLAN, as well as international assessments. New Australian Council for Educational Research analysis by my colleague Catherine Underwood shows how boys, on average, are also more confident and positive about maths than girls. What can […] … learn more→

The number of people in England choosing to enrol in an apprenticeship has declined markedly over the past decade. Apprenticeship participation has fallen overall from 908,700 in 2016-17 to 736,500 in 2023-24. Particularly notable has been a shift away from apprenticeships providing introductory skills for young people towards them becoming higher level qualifications for older adults. In 2023-24, 55,660 […] … learn more→

America has already lost its global competitive edge in science, and funding cuts proposed in early 2025 may further a precipitous decline. Proposed cuts to the federal agencies that fund scientific research could undercut America’s global competitiveness, with negative impacts on the economy and the ability to attract and train the next generation of researchers. I’m an astronomer, and […] … learn more→

Generative artificial intelligence (AI) has taken off at lightning speed in the past couple of years, creating disruption in many industries. Newsrooms are no exception. A new report published today finds that news audiences and journalists alike are concerned about how news organisations are – and could be – using generative AI such as chatbots, image, […] … learn more→

When I started this blog thirteen years ago I wanted to provide advice and resources about academic writing and doctoral research. Along the way I sometimes meandered into more general academic issues and occasionally things that were more about me. Sometimes I shared what I was writing. As in the last post where I posted […] … learn more→

Teenagers are falling in love with chatbots. Young people are reporting epidemic levels of loneliness, and some are turning to technology to fill the void. Recent tragedies provide a glimpse into the extent of this trend and the dangers it poses. A 14-year-old boy’s suicide following a romantic relationship with an AI companion raised national alarms about the dangers […] … learn more→

Social media is flooded with “talks”, “workshops” or “guides” for schools in which the term “prevention” is used indiscriminately and without any evidence other than that self-proclaimed by the professional in his own slides. And this occurs for suicidal behavior , substance use , sexual violence, bullying, affective sexual education, mindfulness , etc. Pseudo-psychological dissemination in the media and on social […] … learn more→

Imagine you are asked to give a small amount of money to a stranger. It’s not your money, so it doesn’t cost you anything. You’re just deciding how much they get. But first, a pair of coins is flipped – one for you and one for the stranger – and you are told the results. […] … learn more→

This week, France hosted an AI Action Summit in Paris to discuss burning questions around artificial intelligence (AI), such as how people can trust AI technologies and how the world can govern them. Sixty countries, including France, China, India, Japan, Australia and Canada, signed a declaration for “inclusive and sustainable” AI. The United Kingdom and United States notably refused to sign, […] … learn more→