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Academic Insights for the Thinking World

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  • Bette Midler at a press conference in a theatre in Amsterdam for her film Divine Madness

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The medieval world [interactive map]

By OUP History

The study of the Middle Ages is expanding. With new locales and cross-cultural interconnections being explored, the study of the medieval world has never been more open. Set upon the backdrop of Martellus’ c.1490 world map, venture across the medieval world discovering Latvian Mead, trans-Mediterranean trade, and Ibn Battuta’s travels. Explore the Middle Ages like never before and sample medieval research from across our books, research encyclopedias, and open access journal articles.  

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75 years of unidentified flying objects [interactive]

By Greg Eghigian

In the summer of 1947, a private pilot flying over the state of Washington saw what he described as several pie-pan-shaped aircraft traveling in formation at remarkably high speed. Within days, journalists began referring to the objects as “flying saucers.”

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Here’s Johnny––and Bette!

By Kevin Winkler

New York-based talk shows in the 1970s offered plentiful opportunities for quirky young talents like Bette Midler to sing a song or two and maybe kibitz with the host, regardless of whether they had a Broadway show or film or new record to promote. Midler had none of these when her manager Budd Friedman got her booked on The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson not long after she began her legendary run at the Continental Baths.

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A chronology of the COVID-19 outbreak in Wuhan, China [timeline]

By Dali L. Yang

In Wuhan: How the COVID-19 Outbreak in China Spiraled Out of Control, Dali L. Yang scrutinizes China’s emergency response to the COVID-19 outbreak in Wuhan, delving into the government’s handling of epidemic information and the decisions that influenced the scale and scope of the outbreak. This timeline adapted from the book walks through the day by day chronology of the initial outbreak and explores how both the virus and information spread.

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How well do you know fantasy literature?

By Ruby Dunn

Are you an avid fantasy fiction reader, or are you new to the world of dragons, mythic quests and magical worlds? Either way, test your knowledge of this most varied of genres with our quick fantasy literature quiz!

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The Oxford Comment podcast

A spotlight on Native American language and religion [podcast]

By Steven Filippi and Rachel Havard

On today’s episode of The Oxford Comment, the last for 2023, inspired by the themes in Martin Scorsese’s “Killers of the Flower Moon”, and in celebration of National Native American Heritage Month in the United States, we spotlight two aspects of Native American culture that transcend tribe and nation and have been the recent focus of OUP scholars: language and religious beliefs.

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"Understanding Self-injury: A Person-centered Approach" by Stephen P. Lewis and Penelope A. Hasking, published by Oxford University Press

Supporting a loved one who self-injures [infographic]

By Stephen P. Lewis and Penelope A. Hasking

The stigmatization of self-injury remains common. Such stigma makes it difficult for people to reach out about their experience, even when they may want support. Further, many people who do not have lived experience, but who are concerned about someone who does, want to offer support but are unsure about how to navigate this. The […]

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Title cover for "Feeling Unreal: Depersonalization and the Loss of the Self, second edition" by Daphne Simeon and Jeffrey Abugel, published by Oxford University Press

Understanding Depersonalization and Derealization Disorder [infographic]

By Daphne Simeon and Jeffrey Abugel

Depersonalization is the third most common psychiatric symptom, yet clinicians and lay people still know little about its presentation and treatment. While it can indeed be a symptom accompanying other mental illnesses, it is also a full-blown disorder itself, recognized by every major diagnostic manual.

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The Oxford Comment podcast

Infrastructure, public policy, and the Anthropocene [podcast]

By Steven Filippi, Ed Aymer, and Meghan Schaffer

On today’s episode of The Oxford Comment, we discuss the state of human infrastructure in the Anthropocene with a particular focus on how research can best be used to inform public policy.   First, we welcomed Patrick Harris, co-editor-in-chief of the new transdisciplinary journal, Oxford Open Infrastructure and Health, to speak about the aims and […]

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The Oxford Comment podcast

Supporting the future of peer review [podcast]

By Steven Filippi and Jenn Saboe

Every year, Peer Review Week honors the contributions of scientists, academics, and researchers in all fields for the hours of work they put into peer reviewing manuscripts to ensure quality work is published. This year, the theme of Peer Review Week is “The Future of Peer Review.”

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