The Open University

Artist and Empire: a belated revisiting of our colonial history

29 March 2016

Artist and Empire, the major exhibition showing at Tate Britain, has been well received by art critics and audiences alike. Aiming to unite art and a reckoning with Britain’s imperial past, it is a noteworthy venture – but why has it taken so long for such a show to be hosted by a major British […]

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How happiness is challenging GDP as the measure of a country’s health

21 March 2016

Denmark reclaimed its place as the happiest country in the world, according to the latest annual World Happiness Report. Switzerland, Iceland, Norway and Finland followed in quick succession at the top, while Benin, Afghanistan, Togo, Syria and Burundi languished at the bottom. The nations that top the usual measure of a country’s health – its […]

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OU academics review 2016 budget statement

16 March 2016

George Osborne today delivered his eighth budget as Chancellor. We spoke to two Open University academics with different areas of expertise to get their take on the headlines… Lecturer in finance Jonquil Lowe on how the budget might impact personal finances… Lecturer in economics Alan Shipman gives an overall summary of today’s budget statement… https://youtu.be/HTRuvF9YWxw

Bombing in Ankara: who is fighting who in Turkey?

15 March 2016

Hours after Ankara was rocked by the second bomb attack in less than three weeks, killing at least 37 people and injuring 70 others, Turkish jets bombed PKK bases in the Qandil mountains deep inside the Kurdish region of Iraq. Turkish security officials told reporters that two suspects in the bombing had ties to the […]

With Michigan triumph, Sanders proves the US need not settle for the ‘inevitable’

9 March 2016

Bernie Sanders’s victory in the Michigan presidential primary has stunned America’s political establishment. He not only defied the polls, which had put him behind by as much as 20 points, but he has also “changed the race” by once again challenging Hillary Clinton’s seemingly clear path to the Democratic nomination. Only a week before, she […]

Unique course taps into the love of performing

9 March 2016

We all have a friend or relative who lives for occasions when they can wheel out their guitar or the karaoke machine. Millions more have followed the progression of our favourite acts on Saturday night talent shows. Tapping into the huge growth in participatory music-making and the success of BBC shows such as The Choir […]

Learning lessons on coping with death from an African perspective

7 March 2016

The report, Responses to Death, Care and Family Relations in Urban Senegal, conducted by academics from the University of Reading and The Open University provides the first in-depth understanding of responses to death, care and family relations in an urban West African context. Funded by The Leverhulme Trust, the researchers suggest that Britain could […]

How far should we go when depicting violence?

4 March 2016

London audiences have been horrified by the violence shown on stage in the National Theatre’s production of Sarah Kane’s play Cleansed. The National’s own website rather euphemistically describes the production as “unflinching”, but media reports have dwelt on the gory action in more detail. The play involves electrocution, incest, forced sex-reassignment surgery, and in a […]

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11 children’s books that challenge gender stereotypes

3 March 2016

Bookshops, libraries and schools are starting to rethink the merit of dividing reading sections and recommendations into books for boys and books for girls. “There are some great examples of strong female characters that appeal to boys and girls in young adult fiction, especially with the recent popularity of dystopian series such as The Hunger Games […]

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Investigatory Powers Bill ‘rush job’ is a recipe for disaster

2 March 2016

The Investigatory Powers Bill – which could allow police to hack mobile phones, computers and web browsing history – provides a unique opportunity to lead global surveillance regulation. But, rushing the Bill through parliament without adequate scrutiny is a potential recipe for disaster. That’s according to Ray Corrigan, senior lecturer in maths, computing and technology […]

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Category: Arts and social sciences