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News from The Open University
Money, money, money
Money fractures marriages, drives wars, inspires art, motivates some people to great achievements, leads others to despair. Fear, desire, love, hate, jealousy, anger, anxiety, relief, shame and many more shades of emotion may attach to money in the course of an ordinary day. However given the impact money can have do we talk enough about […]
Downton Abbey star on acting, distance learning and his degree
For Downton Abbey fans, Christmas will be bitter-sweet this year as the Christmas Special marks the final ever episode of the series enjoyed by millions. Joseph Molesley, played by Kevin Doyle, has had a turbulent journey, from second footman at Downton, to butler for Mrs Crawley. Unfulfilled, and having been unable to pursue his passion […]
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Pass the mince pies – here’s why we eat so much at Christmas time
The turkey is prepped, you’ve bought dozens of mince pies, there’s selection boxes ready and that’s all before the cheeseboard comes out. Good food is part of our festive celebrations, but do we go too far? Professor Graham Harvey writes about why Christmas is a time of over-indulgence. According to at least one carol, Christmas […]
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What makes a good Christmas number one?
Dr Catherine Tackley from the OU’s music department examines what makes certain songs a hit at Christmas time. The official UK singles chart began in 1952, but many of the songs (as distinct from traditional Christmas carols) which remain popular at Christmas were established before that. ‘Jingle Bells’ by James Lord Pierpoint, dates back to 1857; […]
The magical Solar System discoveries we made in 2015
It has been a busy year for Solar System exploration – and particularly our galactic neighbourhood’s small icy bodies. Comets, asteroids, Kuiper Belt Objects and planetary satellites have all been in the news – from stunning images of comet 67P Churyumov-Gerasimenko at the start of the year, to the recent close-up of Saturn’s moon, Enceladus, […]
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Does Santa exist? The dilemma for the caring professions
Marc Cornock is an academic lawyer and Senior Lecturer at The Open University, and he also writes regularly for the Nursing Standard. In this article, he explores the dilemma faced by those in caring professions when asked “is Santa real?” The Santa question isn’t just for parents It’s the question many parents dread in the build up […]
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The choirmaster whose carols became the sound of Christmas
At 3pm on Christmas Eve, millions of radios around the world will be tuned to the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols from King’s College Chapel in Cambridge in time to hear the pure voice of a single boy chorister singing one of the hardest solos of the church calendar, the first verse of “Once […]
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‘Twas millennia before Christmas
Who doesn’t love Christmas? The tree standing proud, adorned with baubles, lights, and surrounded by gifts; the radio singing festive songs, whilst the turkey slowly roasts in the oven; and the family gathered around the television with the grandparents eagerly awaiting the Queen’s Christmas Speech. Where did it all begin? Reader in British History at […]
Star Wars: Talk like Yoda
How does Star Wars’ Yoda structure a sentence? And how does it differ to the way we tend to speak in contemporary English? This one minute film presented by Fernando Rosell-Aguilar, Senior Lecturer in Languages at The Open University, breaks down the mechanics of Yoda speech in this crash course on speaking Yodish. For more Open […]
Methane emissions in Arctic cold season higher than expected
A major new study has found that, contrary to previous assumptions, the Arctic tundra releases at least as much methane during its cold season as it does during the summer. The study led by San Diego State University (SDSU) found that far more methane is escaping from Arctic tundra during the cold months when the […]
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