The Academic Writing Platform for the Middle Common Room.
I am a student in my 20s without any children or dependents. You could argue that there is no role in life granted more freedom than mine. In my position, you have the flexibility to choose how you spend your time and who you spend it with. You can spontaneously Read more…
Look at the image above. What do you think about this artwork? Any clue how much does this cost? Hold your heart, my friend, as it was auctioned for just $432,500. You might be wondering if the painting is embellished with riches of all sorts but no, it’s the painter Read more…
At various facets of life, I came across many who looked at me in awe when I tell them that I study Chemistry, because it is considered to be a subject that is difficult to understand easily and complicated to learn. However, many are unaware that there are millions of Read more…
Our lives revolve around food. We think about it all of the time (at least I do!). We have to eat to survive and we even plan our lives around it. During festive celebrations such as birthdays or Christmas for instance, we stuff our faces with calorie-laden treats. As we Read more…
I’ve come to anticipate the response I’ll get when I tell people the topic of my dissertation. It is, incidentally, the same response you might get while trying to explain polyamory to a maiden aunt: “That’s…. very modern”. I know, as historians, stereotype dictates that we’re meant to spend our Read more…
Every surface, nook and cranny of the human body is inhabited by bacteria, with over 1000 different species calling our bodies home [1]. Don’t panic! Most are totally harmless bacteria, known as commensals. Some are even beneficial to our health. Only a tiny proportion of bacterial species are pathogens, responsible for causing infectious diseases ranging from mild acne to Read more…
One of the oldest questions in political and philosophical debates is that of when one state ends and another begins. In The Histories, Herodotus tells us about a meeting of Greek commanders during the second Persian war to decide upon their naval strategies against the Persian fleet, in the wake Read more…
In light of the recent developments in data protection laws around the world, Ex Aula is delighted to present a short video that examines the implications of data protection rights. Aimed at a non-specialist audience, DPhil student Václav Janeček discusses his work (published in the journal ‘Computer Law and Security Review’) on data ownership Read more…
How does one draw tragedy? How can terror be depicted without trivialising the sorrow of those who suffered from it? In Pakistan terror is not something one can caricaturise, when the terrorist can be present a few metres from you, ready to detonate a bomb in the centre of your Read more…
The most common question I’ve been asked when introducing my work to strangers, friends, and Tinder dates has been “but aren’t mental illnesses…in the mind? What do genes or molecules have anything to do with it?” The answer is, in short, everything. Each of our mental functions is fundamentally rooted Read more…