St Edmund Hall Blog
Research
The St Edmund Hall blog brings you the latest thought in academic research and interesting artefacts from our archive and library.
Please note that any opinions or views expressed by blog contributors are not shared or held by St Edmund Hall.
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A Medieval Ink Recipe
27 Jan 2021
Medieval ink recipes provide fascinating descriptions of the materials, techniques, and patience required before a scribe could put pen to page.
The Magic of Colour
20 Jan 2021
Materials that change colour in response to their environment are fascinating and useful – but how can we find more without breaking the bank?
The Hierarchy of Gingerbread: Gift-Giving at Christmas in Medieval Convents
9 Dec 2020
Edmund Wareham delves into the world of medieval baking to discover the importance of gingerbread for a group of medieval German nuns.
Sir Richard Blackmore—The Worst English Poet?
2 Dec 2020
Tom MacFaul reconsiders the work of Sir Richard Blackmore (SEH, 1669); is he the worst English poet?
Should we go back to Pluto?
25 Nov 2020
In 2015 we saw Pluto for the first time through a single flyby, now we ponder should we return with an orbiter?
Who Gets the Ventilator?
11 Nov 2020
Suppose that you have a ventilator with which you can prevent either Ahmed or Barbara from dying. Whilst Ahmed would live for nine years were you to save him, Barbara would only live for five. There are no other relevant differ…
Tom Rocks Russia
28 Oct 2020
This is Dr Tom Crawford’s video diary of his visit to ITMO University in St Petersburg Russia
How we make decisions: inferential reasoning in humans and mice
21 Oct 2020
Have you ever faced one of those situations where you are compelled to make an important decision, which you know is doable because it rings a bell from your own experience?
On genes, genetics and epigenetics
12 Oct 2020
What is a gene? Although the discipline within biology that we call genetics is well over 100 years old, this question remains an enigmatic one with fascinating new twists.
Discovering the Earthworm’s Half a Billion Year Old Cousin
16 Jun 2020
The worms that gave rise to earthworms and leeches have half a billion years of history in the ocean. A new discovery of 514 million year old fossils from China unravels the early origins of annelids, the segmented worms.
This Time is Different: Economic Policy Challenges in the Time of COVID-19
9 Jun 2020
COVID-19 has already generated challenges to the global economy and the policy responses permeate political-financial-economic stability.
Testing in a Pandemic
25 May 2020
What is the best way to use our limited capacity for infectious disease testing? This blog discusses how lives can be saved by optimal adaptive targeting of tests.
Did the Court of Appeal ‘Kill Off’ the Heathrow Third Runway?
19 May 2020
In February 2020 debates about the third runway at Heathrow took a new turn, but did the Court of Appeal really ‘kill off’ the proposal?
Censorship and Information Control
28 Apr 2020
For the past couple of years, I have participated in a similar comparative exercise run from the University of Chicago. This brings together people from a wide range of disciplines and occupations – historians, ant…
Make Your Own Pi
14 Mar 2020
March 14th is Pi Day, and as of 2020 is also the official UNESCO International Day of Mathematics.
How Should You Remember an Icon? The Story of Sophie Scholl
8 Mar 2020
How do we talk about individuals and groups who resisted Nazism? How do we do justice to the complexity of their lives and actions? Dr Alexandra Lloyd (Fellow by Special Election in German Studies) examines the case of Sophie S…
Britain, Europe, and Politically Convenient Myths
4 Mar 2020
Mikko Lievonen discusses Britain’s entry into the European Economic Community in the 1970s.
From Fertiliser to Fuel
25 Feb 2020
As the world seeks pathways to rapid decarbonisation, an old technology is gaining new attention as a carbon-free fuel. This month the BBC covered a special Royal Society report focused on using “green ammonia” fo…
Russian Revolutionary Posters
4 Feb 2020
An explosion of images accompanied the Russian Revolution. Posters were an important feature of the historical landscape: over 3,600 posters were designed and printed in millions of copies between 1918 and 1921, the period of C…
The 21st Century Global Economy
22 Jan 2020
The world changed dramatically in the latter part of the 20th century. The conclusion of the Cold War at the end of the 1980s heralded a period of not only profound political but also economic change.
12 Days of Christmas Puzzles
2 Jan 2020
Over the Christmas period we ran a Christmas puzzle challenge on our social media channels. Due to their popularity, we have compiled them all here and provided more for everyone to try in case you missed the posts.
How does disorder affect Quantum Systems?
27 Nov 2019
In this blog, Isabel Creed discusses the basic principles behind her research into how disorder affects Quantum Mechanical systems.
The History of the Earth at an Arms Length
30 Oct 2019
I study the origin of complex life. I want to understand why it took so long to go from simple single cell organisms, such as amoebas and algae, to things like multicellular organisms like plants and animals. I do this by exami…
St Edmund of Abingdon and the Origins of the Medieval Hall
22 Oct 2019
Dr Emily Winkler on the naming and the origins of St Edmund Hall.
An introduction to research in Computational Complexity Theory
26 Jun 2019
Professor of Computer Science and Senior Research Fellow at St Edmund Hall, Leslie Ann Goldberg introduces computational complexity theory.
‘Long live freedom!’ – Student Resistance against the Nazis
19 Jun 2019
German tutor Dr Alexandra Lloyd discusses the White Rose, a group of students and their professor who defied the Nazis.
I Guess the Rains Down in Africa
21 May 2019
Stipendiary Lecturer in Physical Geography Callum Munday discusses Toto, droughts and how we can better predict the future of rainfall in Africa.
Mammals During the Extinction of Dinosaurs
8 May 2019
Professor and Tutor in Earth Sciences, Roger Benson discusses mammals and their jaws during the extinction of the dinosaurs
Celtic Magic
24 Apr 2019
English tutor, Professor Mark Williams discusses magical transformations in the Celtic ‘Four Branches of the Mabinogi’ and the problematic conflict between God’s powers and those of fictional enchanters.
Why the oohs and ahhs?
16 Apr 2019
Luminous coffee stain or momentous achievement? Professor Jeff Tseng weighs up the significance of the first picture of a black hole captured by the Event Horizon Telescope that was all over last week’s news.