On World Children’s Day, Karín Lesnik-Oberstein considers the origins of the links between children’s literature and nature – and what it means to make children (and therefore children’s books) responsible…Read More >
Heritage & Creativity
Can language models like ChatGPT use words meaningfully?
Language models like ChatGPT force us to consider what we are prepared to treat as meaningful language users. For World Philosophy Day 2023, Jumbly Grindrod explores the importance of the…Read More >
Straw bale hung from London’s Millennium Bridge to comply with ancient law – just part of the River Thames’ long, legal history
Maintenance workers on London’s Millennium Bridge – which spans the River Thames – have hung a bale of straw from the bridge’s undercarriage. An ancient byelaw requires that a bridge’s owner warn passing ships of…Read More >
Black History Month – the history department workshop
As part of Black History Month in October the history department at the University of Reading will be presenting research on the historical Black experience, looking in particular at the…Read More >
What is AI art? An interview with Eleanor Crook
In the Company of Monsters: New Visions, Ancient Myths is a new exhibition at Reading Museum featuring works by Eleanor Crook, Paul Reid, and Michael Ayrton. The exhibition is co-curated…Read More >
Libya flood disaster: scale of the catastrophe must bring the two warring factions together
A century ago, the coastal city of Derna was well known for picture-perfect beaches, palm trees and whitewashed villas mainly inhabited by Libya’s Italian colonial occupiers. Today, in the aftermath of…Read More >
The powerful and personal ways in which landscapes matter
Thanks to the labours of generations of geologists, geographers, archaeologists, anthropologists and historians, we know a great deal about the physical making and cultural representation of landscape. Ironically, however, our…Read More >
Five bizarre historic leisure activities to try with friends – from gurning to stereoscopy
Leisure activities flourished in 19th-century Britain, as legislation was passed limiting the length of the working day and working week, giving people more free time. If you’re struggling to know how to…Read More >
Lúcia Nagib elected Fellow of the British Academy
Lúcia Nagib, Professor in Film in the Department of Film, Theatre & Television (FTT), University of Reading, and Honorary Professor at the University of Nottingham in Ningbo, China, has just…Read More >
