A distinctly unoriginal take on the pathologies of overvaluing academic “novelty.”
Get off my lawn! Are journal demands for “novelty” creating a culture of low-level academic dishonesty?
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Recent Posts
We all suffer if the field is parochial
David C. Kang is Maria Crutcher Professor of International Relations at the University of Southern California, where he also directs the Korean Studies Institute. His latest book, coedited with...
Do Policy Recommendations = Policy Relevance?
Whether scholars embed policy recommendations in their work is a flawed measure of whether work is policy-relevant. Across a series of articles and book chapters, Michael Desch...
The “Dual-Use” Dilemma in Policy Engagement
Photo courtesy of the European Union. Used under Creative Commons License. This is a guest post by William Akoto, a postdoctoral researcher jointly appointed at the Sié Chéou-Kang Center...
More Recent Posts
Harry Potter and the Questionable Metaphors: Sino-Chinese Addition
People may have wondered why spend so much time thinking about what pop culture says about international relations. They have have pondered whether dedicating entire class sessions to Harry Potter and the International Relations of Ethnic Conflict might be misguided. I can now officially and...
Monday Morning Linkage
Hi, Ducks! Happy New Year! I'm back after a semester wandering across northern India. Did you miss me? Well, here are your links anyway... Professor Ole Wæver argues for "open science to fight big threats." Senator Bernie Sanders has asked the NSA a simple question that may finally make a...
Friday Nerd Blogging: IR Meets the Cold
What is better than one Nazi Zombie movie? Two of them! Yes, we have a sequel:
Thursday Morning Linkage – Happy New Year Edition
We're going to kick of 2014 right with our morning linkage. I'd like to say the stories coming out from around the world are festive and joyful, but I suppose the habit in the profession is to be drawn to difficult news from around the world. Here are some interesting stories that caught my eye...
Happy New Year Linkage
Greetings readers! And apologies for my slap-happy blogging record of late. Among my several resolutions this year is a return to blogging at the rate of at minimum one substantive post per week, in addition to my bi-weekly linkage posts. We'll see whether I can sustain or (more hopefully) exceed...
In Cyber Security, it is the little things that matter…
I really like the point of this brief little article on a “cyber attack” against a power plant. The money quote highlighted from the Foreign Policy article, “A shooter could get 200 yards away with a .22 rifle and take the whole thing out…A metal sheet that would block the transformer from...
Penultimate Call for Blogging Awards Nominations
One week left for nominations. Please send us your nominations -- you can email us a nomination directly or post in the Comments thread below. Here's what we have so far for each category: Best Blog (Individual) Deborah Brautigam at China in Africa Jay Ulfelder at Dart Throwing Chimp Kan Opalo at...
[More] Academic New Year’s Resolutions You Won’t Keep
January for academics is like September for the fashion industry. Rather than fresh lipstick shades and new boots, 'tis the season to start fresh, to organize your office, shake off the pre-Christmas crumbs from your desk, and try to tackle the year with enthusiasm and a fresh perspective. Time to...
Friday Nerd Blogging: Winterfest Depression Edition
Sorry folks, but with intermittent wifi in the US (my mother-in-law is a neo-luddite), the best I could do was this: Indeed, I spent part of this break reading less of a dissertation than I should have. So, yeah, there's that. May your New Year's Resolutions prove to be more resolute than me....
Thursday Morning Post X-Mas Linkage
Well, I hope you survived the crush of end of term and then the crush of family and holiday stuff, if you are in to that kind of thing. In the meantime, if you stepped away from the media, what did you miss? Well, South Sudan is on the brink while the Central African Republic may be stepping back...
Happy, Merry, and Peace
The semester is over, the papers are graded, and the departmental meetings are over (for a while). The shopping is done, the house is clean, the presents are wrapped, the relatives are here, and the kids are bouncing off the walls. All that is left to do is relax, reflect, and enjoy. Wishing all...
The Scottish Threat Environment: Insecurity, Fears and Independence
This article is cross posted from the Scottish Global Forum. In this form it is slightly modified and hyperlinked. The Nature of Threats to Scotland In March of 2015, a cry goes out in the town centre, everyone reacts quickly. Valuables are hidden underground; women and children are stored in...