Could Distributed Peer Review Better Decide Grant Funding?
The landscape of academic grant funding is notoriously competitive and plagued by lengthy, bureaucratic processes, exacerbated by difficulties in finding willing reviewers. Distributed […]
Questioning Randomized Controlled Trials and Development Economics
Over the last three decades randomized trials have become an increasingly popular way of testing interventions designed to address developmental challenges. But do RCTs generate reliable results – or even retard progress?
Riots Are Not Just Mindless Violence
Social psychology teaches us that when people riot, their collective behavior is never mindless. It may often be criminal, but it is structured and coherent with meaning and conscious intent. To address the causes of such violence, we need to understand this.
Do Academics Themselves Undermine Freedom of Expression?
Spats, fall-outs and intellectual and personal feuds have long been commonplace among scholars. And, because critiques of ideas and publications are also exercises in freedom of expression, they are integral to the rough and tumble of academic life. But British universities are now facing much more insidious challenges…
Should Academics Offer Support to Student Protesters?
Despite warnings from universities (under government pressure), thousands of students in Indonesia protested controversial bills. What role, if any, should academics play in the support and encouragement of student protesters?
The Internet Is More Than Just a Source of Distraction in Modern Scientific Communication
Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and other social media platforms are sometimes dismissed as distractions for students. But they’re also avenues for scientific communication. Scientists are active on social media, discussing everything from methods to the latest developments in research. They even use social media to raise funds…
Economics Nobel 2019: Why Banerjee, Duflo and Kremer Won
The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel 2019 (commonly known as the Nobel Prize for Economics) has been awarded to Abhijit Banerjee, Esther Duflo and Michael Kremer “for their experimental approach to alleviating global poverty.” Through the award, the Nobel committee recognized both the significance of development economics in the world today and the innovative approaches developed by these three economists.
The Power of Image in Politics
Images tap into attitudes, but not always in the same way for every viewer. An image’s perceived level of influence is based on “believability.” This is the idea that it is true if we agree, fake if we disagree. And it is here that the power of images intersects with the great challenge of the digital age. How do we understand politics, fake news, campaigning, and citizenship in an area dominated by images?
Opinion: Economic Theory Needs a Major Overhaul
Current mainstream economic theory needs an overhaul. Modern advanced economies are complex, evolving systems, which cannot continue to be understood only through aggregate quantity. Sergio Focardi discusses the explanatory power of qualitative (in addition to quantitative) understandings of the market.
![Share Your Most Surprising Policy Citation for Chance to Win $500 [Closed]](https://www.socialsciencespace.com/wp-content/themes/conferpress/images/default_thumbnail-new-border.jpg "Share Your Most Surprising Policy Citation for Chance to Win $500 [Closed]")
