June 2021

The rise and fall of the European Super League: when the American challenge backfires

By David Ellwood

In the long history of America’s influence on the politics of innovation in Europe, the case of the planned football Super League stands out. This is not because of the project as such, but simply because, of all the variety of responses Europe has produced when faced with the latest American novelty, none has provoked enthusiasm and rejection—above all rejection—with such extraordinary intensity, unity, and speed.

Not only food and drinks: how EU (and UK) law could also protect handicrafts

By Andrea Zappalaglio

The most important international agreement on Intellectual Property defines the concept of Geographical Indication as follows: “indications which identify a good as originating in the territory of a Member, or a region or locality in that territory, where a given quality, reputation or other characteristic of the good is essentially attributable to its geographical origin.” Why is it then that the “Kashmir Pashmina” is a protected GI in India while Harris Tweed-cloth is not an EU/UK GI?

Songs with words: choosing and interpreting texts for choral composition

By Annabel Rooney

Like many aspects of choral composition, choosing the words is a combination of practical and creative considerations. If you want your music to be performed (and most composers do!), thinking about who might sing the words, and on what occasion, is as important as their inspirational qualities.

Archaeology, architecture, and “Romanizing” Athens

By Ian Worthington

The question of whether Athens was a Greek or Roman city seems straightforward, but among scholars there is some debate.

Monthly gleanings for May 2021: yesterday, tomorrow, and time concepts

By Anatoly Liberman

A curious exchange on the word “harebrained” in the periodical Notes and Queries in the first half of 1880 began with the statement that the word owes its origin to the idiom “as mad as a march hare.” But are hares “madder” than other wild animals? Probably not.

New York City and the path to neoliberalism in the 1970s [timeline]

By Benjamin Holtzman

In the late twentieth century, New York City transformed into a model of neoliberal governance. While at mid-century, city government maintained the most robust social democratic program in the country, by the late twentieth century, much of this program had been curtailed and the private sector and market had gained a far greater role in providing services previously maintained by government.

Where are the Martian scientists?

By Edwin L. Battistella

When Perseverance, the Mars rover, landed on the Red Planet on 18 February 2021, I found myself asking a familiar question: where are the Martian scientists?

Business and Management, Oxford Research Encylopedias

Experiential learning: current contributions and future trends in practice

By Anna B. Kayes and D. Christopher Kayes

Nearly 40 years after the publication of David Kolb’s 1984 book, “Experiential Learning: Learning as the source of learning and development,” experiential learning remains one of the most influential theories of learning in management education.

Inequality and economics: let’s go back to Adam Smith

By Benoît Walraevens

Although the issue of economic inequality has long been neglected by economists, it has become increasingly important in academic and public debate over the past decade. International institutions long considered pro-liberal, such as the OECD and the IMF, are now openly calling on governments to take redistributive and tax justice measures to enable more inclusive and equitable growth.

Finding resonant spaces between Indian classical music and the Western choral tradition

By Reena Esmail

When I look back at my childhood, I see that I was just starting down the path that has defined the music I write: I was trying to find places between my cultural identities that felt resonant to me. TāReKiṬa is one of those resonant places.

Me, you, Europe, the Universe: recovery and revival at the 65th Eurovision Song Contest 2021

By Philip V. Bohlman

Already during the initial spread of the coronavirus pandemic during the early months of 2020, when the organizers of the Eurovision Song Contest determined the world’s largest and most extravagant musical competition could not take place in May, plans were underway for its return a year later, on 22 May, 2021 in Rotterdam. The intervening year was one of introspection.

Eric Partridge and the etymology of slang (part two)

By Anatoly Liberman

Eric Partridge is deservedly famous among word lovers. His main area of expertise was substandard English, that is, slang and cant. In this blog post, the Oxford Etymologist offers a tribute to an indefatigable word hunter and a great expert in the field that interests many people.