Tag Archives: academic

Voodoo academic claims end to African famine (Rousse)

Posted on April 12, 2012 by Dreamaticus

“Prior to the agrarian revolution…” boomed the pompous voice across the lecture hall. We were supposed be celebrating my birthday with tea and cake, but instead were forced to listen to this overblown academic drone on and on and on, … Continue reading →

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Class-conscious Cotswolds offers mixed welcome (Rousse)

Posted on March 12, 2012 by Dreamaticus

Everyone* we knew had moved to the Cotswolds. We drove down to see if life there would suit us too. My sister J set up an introduction for us with the vicar’s wife, also newly arrived in the village. The … Continue reading →

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1980s innovations in publishing: the musical academic journal (Rousse)

Posted on March 1, 2012 by Dreamaticus

GMcM and I were browsing through old copies of the Journal of Information Science. Back in 1989 the fonts were enormous. What surprised us most of all, however, was that each issue was musical, just like a novelty greeting card.

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Planning a party and pilfering pains au chocolat (Rousse)

Posted on February 27, 2012 by Dreamaticus

The venue asked us to make some decisions for our afternoon of celebration: would we prefer the chairs to be set out theatre or cabaret style, and when would we like tea and cake to be served – before or … Continue reading →

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Pet Shop Boys lose their crown to brainy guitar duo (Rousse)

Posted on February 22, 2012 by Dreamaticus

Our friends BM and RG gave up successful careers in academia and law to become the biggest pop sensation since the Pet Shop Boys. Such was their popularity that MTV played their latest video on a continuous loop. Against a … Continue reading →

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A grandmother, assorted colleagues, South American doctoral studies, and an ex-boyfriend (Rousse)

Posted on January 15, 2012 by Dreamaticus

The venue for KB’s last meeting before she finally retired was the sitting room of my grandmother’s house in Hexham. My last visit to the house was in 1992, but little had changed in 20 years. I tested the comfort … Continue reading →

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A mother’s secret career and further clues of the Baby Ted graveyard (Rousse)

Posted on December 20, 2011 by Dreamaticus

The party of external examiners included an elderly man from Sheffield University, a woman from Loughborough, and a dark-haired systems librarian called Mike Hirst. They all seemed friendly enough although none were interested enough to acknowledge (or perhaps question) who … Continue reading →

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Lecturer in a tutu (Rousse)

Posted on December 14, 2011 by Dreamaticus

I was busy in the kitchen admiring my glug jug collection when KT called the meeting. I reckoned that I should wear more than a pair of lacy black knickers in the company of my colleagues so I rushed through … Continue reading →

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Another Sunday in academia – with a hedgehog (Rousse)

Posted on October 19, 2011 by Dreamaticus

If you have ever wondered how the typical academic spends a Sunday, the answer is straightforward: either at work, or thinking about work. This Sunday was no different from most others. TPR was entertaining himself elsewhere when I set off … Continue reading →

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How to survive the first week of term (Rousse)

Posted on September 8, 2011 by Dreamaticus

My work life was falling to pieces: the only computer available to me for running a complex statistical package was an ancient XT; my first tutorial of the academic year lasted only 30 minutes because I hadn’t prepared enough material; … Continue reading →

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