12244 research outputs found
Sort by
Consuming or consumed? Postdigital McDonaldization for human sustainability
No full textA concept which took Max Weber's classic theory of the rationalisation of the West and adapted it in 1993 to fast-food restaurants seems an unlikely contender to be informing us on human and global sustainability three decades later. Yet in a postdigital society, Ritzer's primary components of McDonaldization may hold more relevance than ever. In our tribute to George Ritzer, we notice how McDonaldization sheds light on how human beings now interact with data both online and offline, as willing prosumers, within a web of artificial intelligence. In celebration of Ritzer's career, we highlight the ongoing sustainability of his McDonaldization thesis and stress its importance for building a more just and a more sustainable future
The sundial
No full textA Middle Grade historical ghost story set primarily in 1622, around the time of the completion of Banqueting House, and featuring real historical figures John Webb, Anne Jones and Inigo Jones (along others in the timeslip). Around this time an old sundial with an inscription by makar William Fowler was replaced by a new mechanical one designed by mathematician Edmund Gunter. As implied in the story, Fowler was a spy for Walsingham in James I's household and early court; indeed, Fowler was instrumental in James' marriage before he became King of England, as well as Scotland, on Elizabeth I's death. The story captures glimpses of the prior banqueting halls on the same site in Whitehall Palace, and the evolution of the sprawling complex of buildings, as well the masques held there in both the late Tudor and early Stuart periods
Speaking across the autism worldview divide: a dialogue between critical autism studies and behaviour analytic scholars
Full text linkApplied behaviour analysis and critical autism studies are generally assumed to find no common ground on the question of autism support strategies. With the core conviction that no autism support or intervention that seeks to normalise autistic people can ever be considered neurodiversity-affirming, two critical autism scholars and two BCBA behavioural analysts discuss how and why ABA needs to evolve to serve its main clients: autistic people. Building on a question-and-answer exchange between the two groups, this article is a cautious collaboration between these two apparently opposing groups, with the objective of discussing whether ABA can evolve and what it would take to do so. This article, one of two generated by this exchange, speaks to critical autism scholars and urges further critical engagement with those factions of the ABA industry seeking to take autism-centred approaches to autism support. A separate paper will speak to the ABA community
Taking up space in the world
No full textThe Material:Pedagogy:Futures (MPF) research network would like to present a looped film called ‘Taking up space in the world.’ Through interviews with graduates and instructions of artists' behaviours, the film presents our research seeking to understand - how does the studio shape a sense of self, our ways of working, and our engagement with the world? The artist’s studio is a site of becoming, a space where ideas form, habits take root, and creativity unfolds. Inventory of Behaviours (IOB) highlights the rituals and behaviours that shape artistic practice, revealing the ways artists and students occupy their studios not just physically but conceptually and socially. The studio is a space for thinking, questioning, and imagining new possibilities, an environment where learning is embedded in action. In dialogue with MPF, this work explores how studios serve as incubators for ways of being in the world. Taniel Morales’ four pillars of art education—learning how to do, how to be, how to connect, and how to imagine—frames the art school studio as a dynamic space of personal and collective transformation. It is where artists and students develop the confidence to take up space, to experiment, to navigate uncertainty, and to cultivate a practice that extends beyond the art school
A multidisciplinary research agenda for artificial intelligence, education, learning, and instruction
Full text linkArtificial Intelligence (AI) is reshaping education, learning, and instruction, yet current research in this area is fragmented, often tool-specific, and dominated by short-term perspectives. This article develops a broader research agenda for AI and Education (AI&ED), bringing together Artificial Intelligence in Education (AIED) and AI literacy within an educational ecology framing. Using a collective writing methodology, an expert panel of eleven internationally recognised scholars from various disciplines within computer and learning sciences contributed ten standalone reflections on the challenges, opportunities, and transformations of AI&ED. Two additional leading scholars provided critical commentaries to strengthen the analysis. A thematic analysis of the contributions identifies five main challenges (learning and instructional practices and curricula, access and ethics, assessment and evaluation, research capacity, and stakeholder readiness), five areas of opportunity (enhanced pedagogies, innovation in design and research, support for learning processes, critical skills, and hybrid knowledge), and four transformational themes (AI technologies and the design of education, human-AI interplay, lifelong learning, and organisation of AI&ED research). The article proposes an educational ecology research agenda across macro (policy, research ecosystem, society), meso (curricula, institutions, leadership), and micro (instructors, learners, learning processes) levels. We argue for a future-oriented, critical, and inter- or multidisciplinary approach that recognises AI as a socio-technical assemblage and sustains educational values such as equity, democracy, and human dignity in postdigital societies
Review of scientific literacy and oracy in primary school education
No full textThis Royal Society commissioned rapid literature review maps the current landscape for scientific literacy and oracy in the context of primary school education in the UK. The aim is
to identify challenges, gaps and opportunities for oracy-rich primary science (age 5-11)
Artificial intelligence in depression–medication enhancement (AID-ME): a cluster randomized trial of a deep-learning-enabled clinical decision support system for personalized depression treatment selection and management
No full textBackground: There has been increasing interest in the use of artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled clinical decision support systems (CDSS) for the personalization of major depressive disorder (MDD) treatment selection and management, but clinical studies are lacking. We tested whether a CDSS that combines an AI which predicts remission probabilities for individual antidepressants and a clinical algorithm based on treatment can improve MDD outcomes.
Methods: This was a multicenter, cluster randomized, patient-and-rater blinded and clinician-partially-blinded, active-controlled trial that recruited outpatient adults with moderate or greater severity MDD. All patients had access to a patient portal to complete questionnaires. Clinicians in the active group had access to the CDSS; clinicians in the active-control group received patient questionnaires; both groups received guideline training. Primary outcome was remission (<11 points on the Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale [MADRS]) at study exit.
Results: Forty-seven clinicians were recruited at 9 sites. Of 74 eligible patients, 61 patients completed a postbaseline MADRS and were analyzed. There were no differences in baseline MADRS (P = .153). There were more remitters in the active (n = 12, 28.6%) than in the active-control (0%) group (P = .012, Fisher’s exact). Of 3 serious adverse events, none were caused by the CDSS. Speed of improvement was higher in the active than the control group (1.26 vs 0.37, P = .03).
Conclusions: While limited by sample size and the lack of primary care clinicians, these results demonstrate preliminary evidence that longitudinal use of an AI-CDSS can improve outcomes in moderate and greater severity MDD
Understanding community engagement in forest restoration in rural Zimbabwe through intercultural dialogue and participatory action research
No full textThe decades-long decline of certain tree species in previously densely forested areas of Zimbabwe suggests that the forest’s capacity to regenerate itself sustainably is at risk. In an ecologically depleted, rural region outside Harare, Zimbabwe, community members created a tree nursery site, Trees of Hope (https://treesofhopeinzimbabwe.org), in
2019, where indigenous saplings now flourish as part of a locally valued sustainability plan. From 2023 to 2025, an
intercultural, cross-disciplinary, learning initiative—Exploring and Exchanging Communications about Trees
(EECAT)—investigated how reforestation practices are understood locally with partners comprising a primary
school, a permaculture organisation, researchers from universities in Zimbabwe, South Africa and the UK, a UK
community interest company, and an advocate of youth-led, climate-resilient agriculture. Participatory action
research captured shifts in understanding the value of trees between generations, and between formal and informal
sectors engaged in climate change response. Participants’ reflections both on and through their actions include
tensions between respecting and adapting traditional cultural practices within their communal lands
Practising public humanities in a time of crisis: pandemic, pregnancy, and panic
Full text linkThis is a reflection on the experience of carrying out an Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC)-funded public humanities project during the pandemic, focusing on one pathway to impact – a collaboration with Seven Stories, The National Centre for Children’s Books – as a case study. I want to explore how we adapted these programmes in the light of global and personal circumstances and embraced digital media in unexpected ways. Looking back on what we accomplished, I now believe that, despite considerable challenges, we ended up with outcomes that were even richer and more rewarding precisely because of the challenges we faced and the unexpected paths that the project took us down. The second voice in this article is that of Charlotte Lancaster. Through her role as a Postdoctoral Impact Fellow at Bath Spa University, she worked to evidence the wider public impact of the “Into the Forest” project retrospectively. Here, she evaluates the impact of the project with Seven Stories and offers a coalescent voice to the argument underlining this article: that we need more realistic and flexible approaches to research planning, funding, and evaluation
Cold War nuclear wargaming 1947-1991: professional wargaming of dark themes
No full textDuring the Cold War, more accurately known as the First Cold War from 1945 to 1991, wargames were a staple in the military, political, and industrial sectors. This book delves into a seldom-explored area of nuclear wargaming. It features a variety of professional wargames from that period, including Tom Schelling's classic crisis game set in Cold War Berlin, which often incorporated nuclear war scenarios, Dr. Paddy Griffith's strategic nuclear wargame, and decision-making games for political leaders facing the ultimate choice of whether to resort to nuclear options in response to a Warsaw Pact invasion of Europe. Additionally, it includes extracts from tactical nuclear wargaming rules used by the British and American military in their land wargames, as well as a civil defence exercise addressing the challenges of local government managing the transition to war and the immediate post-strike period