So beautiful

THE LONG READ Infrastructure Landlords: The Rentier Capitalism of Commercial Academic Publishers THE LONG READ Infrastructure Landlords: The Rentier Capitalism of Commercial Academic Publishers This piece has been written by a friend of the OLH who wishes to remain anonymous. Figure. Pyramid …

Infrastructure Landlords: The Rentier Capitalism of Commercial Academic Publishers

This piece explores how major academic publishers are becoming “infrastructure landlords”, not just publishing research, but owning the systems around it.

👉 www.openlibhums.org/news/931/

#OpenAccess #ScholComm

Participating in BS World Rankings and then paying to access their "analytical insights" is not critical thinking in practice.
Sharing how delighted they are to be ranked X in table Y makes a complete mockery of any claims to "critical thinking".

I despair, I really do...

If HE institutions want to be taken seriously about their claims that the "critical thinking" they teach is valuable, they should probably demonstrate critical thinking in practice, alongside a bit of self-reflection.

Take, if you will, my subject Architecture...
I see Oxford University is ranked at 42 in the world. This is suprising - not because Oxford likes to be ranked near the top of tables - but because Oxford offers no programmes that are even remotely connected with Architecture and the Built Environment.

I will not be sharing how delighted I am at my HE institution's position in the new QS World Ranking for two reasons. First, I am no longer part of an HE institution. But more significantly, because they are a load of complete BS (I call them the 'BS World Rankings').

The Donald J. Trump Institute of Peace, Washington DC

'Smiling' fossil discovered in Northumberland The unusual looking fossil is estimated to be a few hundred million years old dating to the Carboniferous period.

I think I’ve found my new spirit animal.

wow!

An eco obscenity: Norman Foster’s steroidal new skyscraper is an affront to the New York skyline It contains enough steel to go round the world twice – and even has a fake breeze to flutter the stars-and-stripes flag in its lobby. If this $4bn colossus is just the first of a new breed of bulky su...

‘It would be hard to design a more menacing building if you tried.’

www.theguardian.com/artanddesign...

This is great - thank you!

Countries no longer make agreements with each other - they are now all 'deals'. #languagematters

Peter Shilton sported a beard or moustache or wre one on occasions?

The cameras use AI to identify the pieces though. My son has been building one in his bedroom for the past couple of years.

I like the look of this - thanks! I like that I can't see the word "architecture" anywhere, and it doesn't seem to focus on aesthetics. I may make an exception to my book-buying abstinence.

All showers are walk-in showers.

Never touch the stuff myself

The more you know, the more you know what you don't know... And the more you care about what you don't know.

Great title

I love walking round cemeteries making up their stories.

I concur. 100%. I always feel sorry for those at the end of the phone and say so to them as well before getting angry.

I understand Netflix are introducing a mattress subscription service.

I hear you! Most expensive one online at the moment is £15,500. Bargainous.

Stephen Parnell‬
When was the last time you bought a mattress? They are the most expensive ticket item from John Lewis! - you don't get many for $1million! 😂

The trick is how to force that cold front to appear. Still not good at that. My clouds are very full of water droplets right now but no cold front in sight

I liken my writing cycle to the hydrological cycle. Lots of reading, thinking, doing other things (evaporation) leads to a build up of clouds that have to hit a cold front in order for rain to pour down in the form of words. Which leads to rivers and lakes and seas for more evaporation for others.

I can't get enough screen real estate.

I find it so weird how the media reports death in the present tense. Surely if there's anything less present, it's the fact someone is no more. Hashtag autistic brain.

Lack of breath. 100% fatal.

I'm not getting anywhere. Sadly.