Dr. Hurrell had good things to say about my decolonization paper, and has stressed that there is no urgency for completing my final paper of the year. Even better, he says that he will have at least six hours a week of research work for me, from July to September. Half of it will be [...]

There’s nothing like seeing all the websites to which you have contributed listed in one place to make you feel like a hardcore geek.
Now, back to being the only person in the Department of Politics and International Relations. At 8:45pm on a Sunday. Surrounded by books on the Middle East, and drinking Red Bull.
[Update: 11:59pm] [...]

In the last week or so, I have found two short-term but remunerative pieces of academic work. Firstly, I will be giving a lecture on July 10th to a group of American undergraduates on Canada/US security and defence cooperation since September 11th. The lecture is part of a program being run by Regent University, in [...]

The Comedy Central website - once a much prized source of Daily Show and Colbert Report clips - has become unusable. Now, every single clip is preceded by a truly insipid 30-second Pringles commercial: the same ad for every clip. Given that both The Colbert Report and The Daily Show post about 6-7 one-minute clips [...]

Today, I came up with a nice ten mile ride primarily through eastern Oxford. Starting at the intersection of Banbury Road and Martson Ferry Road, you ride through a stretch of countryside to Old Marston. Then, carry on straight up the very obvious hill to where the John Radcliffe Hospital (not to be confused with [...]

Within a university that often seems like a bewildering assortment of disconnected parts, those elements that work really well are especially appreciated. Perhaps most notable among these is the inter-college mail. You can put a paper into an envelope, drop it at the porter’s lodge, and have it delivered unto your supervisor within about a [...]