The Open University

Sarah Everard murder: the problem with the government’s plan to make women ‘feel’ safer

4 October 2021

Written by Lisa Lazard, Senior Lecturer in Psychology at The Open University, Tanya Beetham, Lecturer in Psychology, Teesside University, Emma Turley, Senior Lecturer in Criminology, CQUniversity Australia, Lois Catrin Donnelly, Associate Lecturer in Psychology, University of Worcester, and Lucy Thompson, Assistant Professor of Psychology, Michigan State University. The murder of Sarah Everard has damaged public […]

Joe Biden’s pledge of support reassures Syria’s embattled Kurds

4 October 2021

Written by Cengiz Gunes, Associate Lecturer, Faculty of Social Science at The Open University. The hasty and badly organised US withdrawal from Afghanistan in August prompted fears among Washington’s other allies about the durability of US friendship. Kurdish troops in northeastern Syria, facing multi-pronged opposition from Islamic State fighters as well as the Assad regime and the […]

Liz Truss: three areas where the new foreign secretary will have the most influence

17 September 2021

Written by Jamie Gaskarth, Professor of Foreign Policy and International Relations at The Open University. In naming her as the new foreign secretary, Boris Johnson has handed Liz Truss a bewildering array of global problems and relationships to manage. Foreign secretary is a difficult role, quite distinct from other posts in government. Many occupants are […]

Russia’s state broadcaster RT going all-out to boost legitimacy of rigged Duma election

17 September 2021

Written by Precious Chatterje-Doody, Lecturer in Politics and International Studies at The Open University and Ilya Yablokov, Lecturer in Journalism and Digital Media, University of Sheffield. Russia goes to the polls on September 19 to elect a new Duma – the country’s legislature. Russian elections are not known for their unpredictability – United Russia, the […]

Image of a globe laying amongst dollar notes

Jackson Hole: the world’s central bankers have plenty to discuss after such an expensive pandemic

27 August 2021

Alan Shipman, Senior Lecturer in Economics at The Open University, writes for The Conversation about the upcoming of the annual meeting of the world’s central banks, which will be held online this year. The world’s central bankers won’t be riding into town to save the world this year. Their annual gathering in the US, at […]

Five ways emojis have reflected COVID culture

16 July 2021

Written by Dr Philip Seargeant, Senior Lecturer in Applied Statistics at The Open University. Over the past decade, emojis have become an integral part of the way we communicate, and have attracted attention from scholars in subjects ranging from linguistics to psychology. Just as the pandemic has impacted so many other parts of everyday life, […]

Amazons and warrior princesses on screen – the legacy of Xena 20 years on

18 June 2021

Written by Dr Amanda Potter, Visiting Research Fellow, at The Open University . Xena the warrior princess, played by Lucy Lawless, captivated audiences around the world for six series with her high kicks, sword skills and distinctive war cry. The series followed her as she fought her way through armies, monsters and gods, alongside her […]

Reforming Scotland’s unique jury system: why we need to listen to lawyers

25 May 2021

Lee John Curley, James Munro, Jim Turner and Lara Frumkin, all from The Open University discuss reforming Scotland’s unique jury system. Rape Crisis Scotland has once again called for the country’s not proven verdict to be scrapped, after new figures revealed that almost a quarter of all rape and attempted rape cases ended in acquittals under this […]

Cancer: how one type of RNA could be the future of treatment

10 May 2021

Written by Francesco Crea, Senior Lecturer in Cancer Genetics and Azuma Kalu, PhD Research Student at The Open University. Cells are the basic building blocks of all living things. So, in order to treat or cure almost any disease or condition – including cancer – you first need to have a fundamental understanding of cell […]

Mars: how Ingenuity helicopter made the first flight on another planet

20 April 2021

Written by Monica Grady, Professor of Planetary and Space Sciences, The Open University Imagine that you are flying a model helicopter or a drone. You are there with the auto controls. You switch them on. The rotors start to turn, gradually increasing their spin. You watch, then push the control for lift. Your helicopter rises, hovers, […]

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