Latest columns

Should AI be considered the (co-)author of AI art?

Column

Simone Sprangers

04/03/2021

3 minutes to read

AI is used quite often in art production. But this technology can lead to philosophical problems. Is the artist still the author of his work, or does he has to share this authorship with AI? The ontology of art can shed light on this issue.

Black Lives Matter and the right to protest?

Column

Christian Chun

09/06/2020

6 minutes to read

The reactions to the Black Lives Matter protests are an indications of the structural racism in the US, says Christian Chun.

The coronavirus crisis of 2020 and globalization

Column

Jan Blommaert

05/06/2020

8 minutes to read

The coronavirus crisis is a textbook example of contemporary globalization processes. Let us run through some of its key features.

The SpaceX mission and why it worries me

Column

Jan Blommaert

03/06/2020

4 minutes to read

Elon Musk's SpaceX operates in a field of power previously reserved for state institutions under public control. Is this a good or a bad thing?

No-touch greeting gestures in times of COVID-19

Column

Tineke nugteren

02/06/2020

3 minutes to read

Greeting is a fine art. COVID-19 makes that people all around the world are now trading their handshakes for lower-risk gestures.

The Age of Zoom Meetings for a person who stutters

Column

Jacob Berexa

28/05/2020

6 minutes to read

The Age of Zoom Meetings is especially difficult for people who stutter (PWS for short). Jacob Berexa explains why zoom is emotionally draining for people with PWS.

face mask, corona, covid, culture, corona culture

The COVID19 lockdown rules: How we learn and adjust

Column

Jan Blommaert

19/05/2020

7 minutes to read

The COVID19 lockdown crisis involves many of us rapidly learning and adjusting to entirely new rules, many of which used to be 'weird' until recently.

Free access to scholarly e-books and articles? Thank you, but no, thank you

Column

Juan Eduardo Bonnin

14/05/2020

4 minutes to read

Why have academic publishers started offering free access to their content? In this article I argue that they want to prevent you from getting to know the benefits of piracy.

Online proctoring: how the corona crisis makes some students more equal than others

Column

Linnet Taylor

23/04/2020

6 minutes to read

In the coronavirus crisis, many universities - including Tilburg University - set up online exams and proctoring to ensure students can graduate. Linnet Taylor (Tilburg University) highlights the problems this brings, suggesting alternatives.

Vlogging during the coronavirus crisis

Column

Mingyi Hou

14/04/2020

7 minutes to read

Chinese student Yi Dahua’s vlogging from Turin, Italy has made him a micro-celebrity during the coronavirus crisis. His case illustrates a "boundary-blurred" public sphere with widely varied public communication on the pandemic.

Covid-19: A World United, A World Apart

Column

Ana Deumert

06/04/2020

8 minutes to read

Covid-19 affects us all, but it affects us differently. In this column I look at #StayAtHome policies outside of middle-class realities, and argue for caring and compassionate policy interventions that support the most vulnerable.

The Coronavirus and online culture: Lessons we're learning

Column

Jan Blommaert

30/03/2020

7 minutes to read

The coronavirus crisis shows us an inescapable fact: the online and offline dimensions of social life have effectively become fused.

The coronavirus, the attention economy and far-right junk news

Column

Ico Maly

24/03/2020

9 minutes to read

The coronavirus has devastating consequences for social life in all corners of the world. For some, this global pandemic is an opportunity to reach a wide audience, to make money or to further a political agenda.