Lady Tizzy raised a serious point of frustration reently about the payment barriers that scientific and other academic journals put up to block access to research. It’s a fascinating issue because the research publishing world is changing and almost everyone wants to see research freely available to a wide audience. But publishing peer reviewed papers…
I like a drink, especially good wine. I recently gave up alcohol for ten days after returning from Italy, an annual penance that I feel does me good. I find alcohol a relaxant, makes me feel convivial and an instant endorphin producer. And I’d better own up to the fact that I once owned half…
No, not me, well not yet… Lady Deech mentioned the rumours that are flying around in one of her blogs so I thought I’d keep you up to date about what’s happening. During a debate on reform of the House of Lords, on Tuesday 29 June, Lord Strathclyde announced he would be setting up a…
I see the coalition is beginning to favour the graduate tax solution to funding universities. I have grave doubts about it even though the principle of a graduate contribution or graduate tax is a welcome development on the surface. It has the support of students and student leaders and on the face of it is a…
Here I am again in Italy trying hard to fathom out how the Italian legislature actually functions! We are now 5 days into a confusing political crisis that Italians themselves have great difficulty fathoming out. Gianfranco Fini, a towering figure in Italian politics, labeled years ago as a neo-conservative far right winger, and President (Speaker)…
