An Opera in Ukraine Reminds the World of Putin’s War Crimes Russia’s child abductions are the focus of a new opera, Mothers of Kherson, that premiered in Kyiv, Ukraine. The cast is reported to have received standing ovations for their performance, and the opera was said to have evoked ‘tears and catharsis’ (Higgins and Matveichuk … Continue reading Do Not Forget Ukraine’s Stolen Children
Friends and Colleagues
Hope Becomes Hype
A post authored by A. Michael Noll, distributed with the author's permission. Hype can be over-hyped, as Michael argues in this post. Hope so easily transforms into and becomes hype. Again and again, history shows how hope for some new product, technology, or service becomes over-promoted with far too much hype. The motivation usually is … Continue reading Hope Becomes Hype
Personal Reflections on Twenty-Five Years of the Oxford Internet Institute
Notes on a presentation to the Oxford Internet Institute on 15 May 2026 at the Mathematical Institute, University of Oxford. I had the pleasure of speaking at a celebration of the first twenty-five years of the Oxford Internet Institute (OII). I gave a talk followed by drinks and a dinner at Balliol College. I was … Continue reading Personal Reflections on Twenty-Five Years of the Oxford Internet Institute
The Bright Side of the News
I have been a proverbial news enthusiast – maybe even a news junkie – for decades. I roll out of bed to read a couple of morning papers everyday (real newspapers delivered to my door) and subscribe to more online. I’ve always enjoyed humour and cartoons accompanying the news, but never have I appreciated humour … Continue reading The Bright Side of the News
Reading and Writing Skills: Flipping the Digital Divide?
by Ruth Shillair and Bill Dutton There has been much discussion of how reliance on digital media might undermine skills in reading and writing, as with pen and paper, and, in American education, with a copy of The Elements of Style by W. Strunk Jr.& E.B. White. But the loss of traditional skills goes far … Continue reading Reading and Writing Skills: Flipping the Digital Divide?
THE SOUL OF THE MACHINE
[This post was written by A. Michael Noll and distributed here with the permission of the author.] It is nothing new. For decades, we have been fascinated with digital computing machines – thinking machines. For decades we have been using human terms to characterize them – intelligent. Artificial intelligence (AI) is over a half-century old. … Continue reading THE SOUL OF THE MACHINE
Meetings!
Bill Dutton with Dr. Ruth Shillair After reading one more litany of complaints about ‘meetings’, I must come to their defense. Harry Wallop’s article ‘Are meetings pointless?’ in The Sunday Times (12 August 2026) stirred me to answer his question. While balanced, his article basically calls into question the value of meetings. So let me … Continue reading Meetings!
Noriko Hara Visits Oxford
Wonderful to have an opportunity to catch up with Professor Noriko Hara, currently a professor in the Luddy School of Informatics, Computing and Engineering and the Director of the Rob Kling Center for Social Informatics at Indiana University, Bloomington. I met her when she was a graduate student of Rob Kling’s, a former colleague of mine when I was … Continue reading Noriko Hara Visits Oxford
Reputational Crash: The Return of the Ugly Americans
As an American living in Europe, I have been surprised by the number of friends and acquaintances in the US who are angry at democratic nations across NATO, Europe, and the world for not agreeing to calls from President Trump to support his military operations against Iran. Their frustration is not simply because the US … Continue reading Reputational Crash: The Return of the Ugly Americans
Drama in the Zoom Room
A Short Scenario by Ruth Shillair* I have been followed to many online meetings by AI Assistants like Otter, which want to record or summarise my conversations and meetings. The Assistant – let’s called s/him IT - asks to be admitted to the meeting as if IT was one of the invited participants, but I … Continue reading Drama in the Zoom Room