Mocking the humanities: a pundit recounts how a scientist used parody -- a classic literary mode of expression -- to mock academic practices in the humanities. From the commentary: Alan Sokal's point ... was that intellectual inquiry in the humanities often is not open. The humanities, he today tells The Chronicle, had become a “subculture” [...]
What do the humanities have to say? And who should listen? A note from Mary Beard, at year's end: They have just issued on the website a top 24 of Cambridge research stories this year. On my reckoning, 19 of those are pure science.... You’d think from looking at this roster that none of the work that [...]
The "third culture" integrating science and humanities: employing a term developed by C.P. Snow and John Brockman, an Italian astronomer reflects on the creative way forward: Emotion therefore is common to science and art, humanistic and scientific culture. Emotion is conveyed through language. Emotion and language (be it literary, artistic or scientific) are the links [...]
Heralding the creative economy: Andrew Chitty leads the effort in the UK. The Arts and Humanities Research Council strengthens the fundamental ties between business and the humanities with its new Creative Economy Champion. From the press release: The main focus will be on enhancing and extending the AHRC’s reach in the creative economy, emphasising the importance [...]
The Greatest of New Years: that our age of science is also the age of the humanities, from our St. Petersburg correspondent, 1 January 2017 “S nastupivishim!”: “Happy upcoming New Year!” So the new year begins here, ahead of yours, and we have been enjoying the sparkling lights in the Nevsky Prospekt. There are fewer tourists [...]
Time and remembrance: recalling our place in the change of the year opens up new possibilities for us to commemorate the lives of others, to "preserve frail transitory fame," and also to acknowledge the source of what is lasting and eternal. To the Countess of Bedford, On New Year's Day THIS twilight of two years, not past, nor [...]
