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News from The Open University

Five books with musical backdrops if you are inspired by the BBC Proms season 

Five books with musical backdrops if you are inspired by the BBC Proms season 

Are you enriched by the Proms season? Check out the five book choices of The Open University’s Dr Joanne Reardon, Senior Lecturer in Creative Writing. These tales feature the melodious golden threads of music and musical instruments as varied as the BBC Proms itself. From classical and opera to jazz and folk, these intensely human […]

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Three steps to talking to a loved one at risk of being radicalised into rioting

Three steps to talking to a loved one at risk of being radicalised into rioting

Psychologist and Post-Doctorial Researcher Dr Anthony English says there are ways you can identify if someone is at risk of being radicalised into rioting and three steps you can take that may help them think again. For some, the shocking scenes of violence which have erupted across dozens of locations in England and Northern Ireland […]

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How a person’s accent might influence court cases

How a person’s accent might influence court cases

An Open University academic has conducted an intriguing test for the BBC’s Morning Live programme on how the accents of people in a courtroom might influence judges and juries. Lara Frumkin is a Professor of Psychology at the OU and conducted the test in a short film, one of six OU/BBC films made in co-production […]

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Worried about someone you know becoming extreme in their political views? Academic research is here to help

Worried about someone you know becoming extreme in their political views? Academic research is here to help

In the wake of rioting far-right activists causing mayhem throughout the UK, The Open University is sharing research that could help someone worried about a family member or loved one participating in similar future events. The findings can help assess if someone has extreme views and is the result of an OU psychology team currently […]

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Every-day extremism – the impact of small negative comments: academic opinion

Every-day extremism – the impact of small negative comments: academic opinion

An Open University academic who researches extremism ideologies plays a key role in a short film on the BBC’s Morning Live programme that features every-day extremism. It’s part of a series of six films made in partnership with The Open University and the BBC. Professor Kesi Mahendran (pictured) is a Professor of Social and Political Psychology at […]

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Thirteen brain-health ‘hacks’ to increase happiness

Thirteen brain-health ‘hacks’ to increase happiness

An Open University academic has provided 13 brain-health hacks to help us improve our happiness and has revealed all in a short film from a series of specials produced in partnership with the BBC for the This Morning Live show on BBC One. Dr Sinead Eccles is a Staff Tutor in Psychology at the OU […]

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Changing your mind and the relevance of ‘confirmation bias’

Changing your mind and the relevance of ‘confirmation bias’

An Open University academic is behind a short film on the BBC’s Morning Live programme that featured a fascinating experiment before the General Election on ‘changing your mind’. Dr Jim Turner, Senior Lecturer in Forensic Psychology at the OU, is one of a team of OU academics who has inspired one of six short films […]

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OU academics to feature on the BBC’s Morning Live programme

OU academics to feature on the BBC’s Morning Live programme

Two Open University academics are to feature this week in the BBC’s Morning Live programme on Wednesday and Thursday 19 and 20 June to explore the psychology of climate change and  distracted driving. Dr Trudi Macagnino and Professor Gemma Briggs are the OU consultants involved in two short informative films due to air during the […]

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Five classic novels to read about Italy if you loved the BBC’s Rob and Rylan’s Grand Tour of the country

Five classic novels to read about Italy if you loved the BBC’s Rob and Rylan’s Grand Tour of the country

If you were thinking of jetting off to Italy this summer and laughed at the antics of this duo in the BBC programme Rob and Rylan’s Grand Tour, Antonia Saunders, a research student at The Open University, has a book list you might want to explore. Since this pair traced the footsteps of romantic poet […]

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A million digital ‘tourists’ descend on ancient Pompeii

A million digital ‘tourists’ descend on ancient Pompeii

A digital team at The Open University are celebrating after learning their interactive online tour of Pompeii before Mount Vesuvius erupted has notched up more than a million online clicks. Designers within the OU’s Broadcast and Partnerships team were delighted when they learned of the interactive figures, just a month after the airing of the […]

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