So it’s the end of another year already… that one went fast didn’t it? In July 2025, my blog will be 15 years old. Does this mean I am now a bratty teenager instead of a menopausal woman?! I feel there’s life in the old girl yet, so I’ll still fire up the blog monthly, […] … learn more→

People determined to spread toxic messages online have taken to masking their words to bypass automated moderation filters. A user might replace letters with numbers or symbols, for example, writing “Y0u’re st00pid” instead of “You’re stupid”. Another tactic involves combining words, such as “IdiotFace”. Doing this masks the harmful intent from systems that look for […] … learn more→

Although body worship never goes out of fashion, the idealisation of one’s own image has become a global phenomenon in recent years, mainly due to the abuse of social networks such as Facebook, Instagram or TikTok. This obsession with aesthetics has been particularly deep-rooted among the so-called Generation Z (born between 1997 and 2012) and […] … learn more→

After Elon Musk bought Twitter (now rebranded X) in 2022, disaffected users began to seek alternatives. Alongside Meta’s Threads and the open source project Mastodon, Bluesky was one of several contenders. Threads benefited from Meta’s existing user base but has failed to capture the popular imagination. Mastodon has proven complicated and difficult to grasp for most ordinary users and so use […] … learn more→

In an increasingly digital world, the way people engage with religion is evolving. For many, traditional methods of attending weekly services or visiting places of worship have shifted to exploring faith from the comfort of home. Online sermons, virtual study groups, and apps offering spiritual guidance are making religious practices more accessible than ever and […] … learn more→

Title of course: “Road to Hell: The Apocalypse in Classical and Contemporary Forms” What prompted the idea for the course? When Meghan R. Henning, a scholar of early Christianity, completed her 2014 book on how the concept of hell evolved in the early Christian church, she wanted to develop a course that examined how these visions of hell […] … learn more→

What will humans be like generations from now in a world transformed by artificial intelligence (AI)? Plenty of thinkers have applied themselves to questions like this, considering how AI will alter lives – often for better, sometimes for worse. They have conjured dramatic scenarios, like AI-driven extinction of humans (and many other species), or our assimilation into human-AI cyborgs. […] … learn more→

Summer is a wonderful time for families to go the beach and for small children to get to know the water and the sand. But aside from being a place to relax, my new research shows how the beach provides many ways to teach young children about science. My ‘beach kinder’ research I research science, technology, engineering […] … learn more→

To retain information in the long term, we know that it is important to test our knowledge and repeat it. But what is the ideal frequency of revision to avoid memory lapses on exam day? Psychological research gives us some keys to better organize ourselves. The proverb “Practice makes perfect” reflects the importance of repeating […] … learn more→

Imagine a chef at a trendy restaurant who doesn’t know how to make mayonnaise, or a pastry chef who works in a bakery and has never made a basic cake: do you think it’s possible? At university, students begin a path of specialization that requires a much more detailed study of academic subjects and disciplines. […] … learn more→