Women's boozing might explain the high levels of child mortality that blighted the continent, argues Lynn Martin Growing up in late medieval Europe was not easy. Historical demographers have...
Britain's ancient woods are living time capsules of centuries of human exploitation of the environment. How best can we preserve them, asks Ian Rotherham Our complex and dynamic ancient woods are a...
Juliet Lodge understates the UK level of ignorance of, and lack of commitment to, a European higher education area in her analysis of the government white paper (Opinion, THES, May 30). A briefing...
The report "RAE reform to shut out one in three" ( THES, May 30) presents an apocalyptic vision and names me as its creator. It lists institutions that allegedly would no longer receive research...
It is good that Sir Gareth Roberts' research quality assessment is designed to take the element of gambling out of submissions. But it seems inevitable that some departments will lose research money...
Alison Wolf mistakenly states that vice-chancellors, through Universities UK, have failed to make clear their views on three issues (Opinion, THES, May 30). UUK has not been afraid to rock the boat,...
As an English-language specialist, I help students do what Martin Luck ("Give their grammar a fine-tuning", THES, May 23) suggests PhD students should do progressively: organise their writing, touch...
Refusing to teach British National Party members (Letters, THES, May 30) shows extreme intolerance and brings the very purpose of academia into question. Our purpose is either to teach within the...
In the course of a career, most teachers will come across students with whom they vehemently disagree. Specialising in ethnicity and nationalism, I have dealt with students here, in South Africa, and...
The National Health Service should not only welcome medics with disabilities, but it should also consider how to support doctors who become disabled during their careers (Soapbox, THES, May 30). From...
Geoffrey Alderman asserts that a university's purpose is for academics alone to decide and that its taxpayer funding is for politicians and taxpayers to determine (Letters, THES, May 30). This will...
Charles Clarke should have looked more closely at UK provision in Baltic studies ("'Purist' Clarke states his case", THES, May 30). He would have found the Baltic Research Unit recently set up at the...
As founder and chairman of Britain's first Baltic Research Unit in 1988, I agree with Clarke that Baltic studies is "a good thing". Shame then that Bradford's recent dispersal of its only 5*...
Academics can blame only themselves if national pay bargaining is in danger (News, THES, May 30). As a Birkbeck staff member for 20-odd years, I was only too aware of progressive relative...
Foundation degrees are filling a gap in the market. But as the gap is so small, is the deciding factor for potential students not curriculum content but the amount of work experience they require?...