Rethinking the future of work: an interview with Joe Ungemah
Dr Joe Ungemah, author of Punching the Clock, examines whether the future of work is compatible with maintaining the social fabric of the workplace and the psychological needs of workers.
Studying ancient tsunamis is all about glasses
If you go back a mere 40 years or so, not a long time really, then you pretty much arrive at the time when the modern study of ancient tsunamis began. Before then there had been some work, but it really kicked off with Brian Atwater and his work on the 1700 CE Cascadia earthquake […]
Digital dilemmas: feminism, ethics, and the cultural implications of AI [podcast]
In episode 82 of The Oxford Comment, we discussed the ethics and cultural implications of artificial intelligence (AI) with scholars Kerry McInerney, Eleanor Drage, and Kanta Dihal
“Think like a forest”: how forest literature can help us fight climate change
The gargantuan task of the fight against climate change needs practical know-how and political militancy. It also requires a clear sense of its wider goals. Robert Spencer explores how “forest literature” can help us to formulate new ways of inhabiting the living world.
What is subject marketing? An interview with Hana Purslow, philosophy marketing manager
In this interview, our Marketing Manager for philosophy, Hana Purslow, outlines OUP’s approach to subject marketing.
Reading Between the Lines: Bernard MacLaverty’s Grace Notes and the Peace Process in Northern Ireland
A novel about a female composer struggling with depression after the birth of her child does not, on the face of it, seem to have much to do with war or peace in Northern Ireland. But appearances can be deceiving.
Climate emergency: lessons from Classic Maya to contemporary China [podcast]
In episode 81 of The Oxford Comment, we discussed the environmental resilience of the Maya with scholar Kenneth E. Seligson and contemporary China and sustainability with scholar Scott M. Moore.
Macbeth, King James, and biting the hand that feeds you?
Possibly the most dangerous play William Shakespeare wrote was The Tragedie of Macbeth. The drama is packed with illegality: assassination of kings; prophecies about kings; supernatural women; and necromancy. To add to the danger, Shakespeare’s employer, King James, was a prickly patron of the performing arts and notorious for his sensitivity to slights, real and perceived. […]
Twenty years on: Luis Moreno Ocampo on the International Criminal Court
Luis Moreno Ocampo provides a unique perspective on the International Criminal Court and its interaction with the War on Terror.
Scars on the Land: Slavery and the environment in the American South [extract]
Although typically treated separately, slavery and the environment naturally intersect in complex and powerful ways, leaving lasting effects from the period of emancipation through modern-day reckonings with racial justice. David Silkenat’s Scars on the Land provides an environmental history of slavery in the American South from the colonial period to the Civil War.
Sir Stanley Wells and the First Folio
2023 marks the 400th anniversary of the publication the First Folio of William Shakespeare’s plays, which has since acquired the status of a cultural touchstone.
Women in the history of linguistics—from marginalization to recognition
Women’s history month raises issues of erasure and marginalization, authority and power which, sadly, are still relevant for women today. Much can be learnt from the experience of women in the past.
Women in sports: Althea Gibson, Billie Jean King, and their legacies [podcast]
Women’s history in sports has in fact been a long series of shocks that have reshaped the world of athletics as well as the possibilities that exist for women everywhere. In episode 80 of The Oxford Comment, we discussed tennis greats Althea Gibson and Billie Jean King and the legacies for women in sports with scholars Ashley Brown and Susan Ware.
Saving Earth’s Refrigerator: what does global warming mean for our planet’s future?
Colin Summeryhayes explains how global warming is affecting the polar regions and what the loss of “Earth’s Refrigerator” means for our future.
The social code: deciphering the genetic basis of hymenopteran social behavior
The authors of a recent study published in Genome Biology and Evolution set out to uncover early genetic changes in bees and wasps on the path to sociality.
Explore environmental history in eight books [reading list]
Environmental history is one of the most innovative and important new approaches to history. Explore eight of our latest titles in environmental history.