Margot Finn
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eicathomefinn.bsky.social
Margot Finn
@eicathomefinn.bsky.social
16K followers 4.2K following 8.3K posts

Historian of Britain and colonialism, material culture, the EIC. Also works on equalities, museums, open access & research policy. Download the EIC @ Home open access volume here: https://www.uclpress.co.uk/products/88277 (or individual chapters via JSTOR) .. more

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Margot C. Finn is a British historian and academic who specialises in Britain and the British colonial world during the long nineteenth century. She has been Professor of Modern British History at the University College, London (UCL) since 2012. Finn was previously the President of the Royal Historical Society and a trustee of the Victoria & Albert Museum. .. more

Political science 31%
Economics 26%
Posts Replies Media Videos

eicathomefinn.bsky.social
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 22m
Link to the original research article. 2/2 www.nature.com/articles/s43...
Multilingualism protects against accelerated aging in cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses of 27 European countries - Nature Aging
In cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses of 86,149 participants across 27 European countries, Amoruso, Hernandez and colleagues identify multilingualism as a protective factor against accelerated ...
www.nature.com

eicathomefinn.bsky.social
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 22m
'people who are multilingual are half as likely to show signs of accelerated biological ageing than are those who speak just one language.'

Good thing that schools, universities and governments are so actively promoting modern languages then, isn't it? 1/2
Want a younger brain? Learn another language
A vast study suggests that being multilingual can slow down cognitive ageing.
www.nature.com

eicathomefinn.bsky.social
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 28m
'The White Paper asks us to specialise; we’ve done it before (for example marine sciences, offshore renewable energy) and will do it again. But we also serve the South West of England....Specialism must be balanced with serving our communities in Devon, Cornwall and the wider region.' 2/2

eicathomefinn.bsky.social
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 28m
'as our city grows through the “defence dividend”, there will be new jobs...reduced inequality, improved health, better housing, a more vibrant culture, and stronger communities. Along with this will be a demand for artists, historians, lawyers, doctors, nurses, dentists and more.' 1/2
What does specialisation for a university mean in a defence-led economy?
Plymouth is once again entering an era of defence-driven growth. Richard Davies asks how the university fits in
wonkhe.com

eicathomefinn.bsky.social
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 36m
A puff piece that relentlessly refuses to adduce actual evidence or to consider that any aspect of 'the other side' might have any virtue. Why publish this superficial guff? The topic deserves much better.
Universities risk irrelevance by failing to engage fully with AI
It is difficult to think of another sector that has so dismally failed to strategically engage with the transformative potential of IT, says Ian Richardson
www.timeshighereducation.com

Reposted by Margot C. Finn

janinegibson.ft.com
Janine Gibson @janinegibson.ft.com · 40m
Gift link: on.ft.com/4455d0e

eicathomefinn.bsky.social
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 48m
'In the past weeks, Air quality index (AQI) measurements have regularly soared to more than a hundred times higher than is deemed safe by global heath bodies and residents routinely describe the city as akin to a gas chamber. Pollution now kills more people in Delhi than obesity or diabetes.' 2/2

eicathomefinn.bsky.social
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 48m
'For the past decade, Delhi has held the inglorious title of being the world’s most polluted city. Pollution season has become as normalised as the monsoon, as it rolls over the city in a suffocating smog that begins in October and can last for more than four months.' 1/2
‘I can’t breathe in this city’: inaction over Delhi’s suffocating pollution sparks rare protest
The failure by state governments to do anything about pollution means it has often been met with apathy. But at a rare protest anger and frustration were rife
www.theguardian.com

eicathomefinn.bsky.social
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 52m
'“Following a summer of further racist disorder, it is little wonder a growing number of nursing staff report feeling unsafe, particularly when having to work on their own and often at night.' 2/2

eicathomefinn.bsky.social
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 52m
'Prof Nicola Ranger, the union’s general secretary, said: “A sustained campaign of anti-migrant rhetoric is fuelling a growing cesspool of racism, including against international and ethnic minority nursing staff, without whom our health and care system would simply cease to function.' 1/2
NHS staff who visit patients at home say St George’s flags can mean ‘no-go zones’
Black and Asian staff left feeling ‘deliberately intimidated’, according to chief executive of one NHS trust
www.theguardian.com

Reposted by Dorothy Bishop, Margot C. Finn

timbale.bsky.social
Tim Bale @timbale.bsky.social · 1h
@bjennings90.bsky.social absolutely nails it. (www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...)
David Attenborough describes how, after smelling blood, the predators (the right wing media) circle their prey (the BBC), with Trump as the savannah sun.

Reposted by Anna O. Law, Michael A. Clemens, Alan Richardson , and 3 more

wunc.org
WUNC News @wunc.org · 10h
UNC-Chapel Hill's chancellor says the university will not sign on to a higher education compact from the Trump administration.

www.wunc.org/education/20...
After faculty raise concerns, UNC-Chapel Hill Chancellor says university will not sign Trump's higher ed compact
Lee Roberts called the "preferential treatment" proposal a clear infringement on academic freedom.
www.wunc.org

eicathomefinn.bsky.social
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 14h
I just mute that post when it happens. Only takes a few secs.

Reposted by Judith Jesch

eicathomefinn.bsky.social
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 15h
'In 2024, 42,265 people were employed as researchers in Norway, down from 42,348 in 2023. The losses were more pronounced in universities and colleges'.

Et tu, Britain?

Reposted by Margot C. Finn

resprofnews.bsky.social
Research Professional News @resprofnews.bsky.social · 15h
Norway’s shrinking research workforce causes alarm.

www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-euro...
Norway’s shrinking research workforce causes alarm - Research Professional News
Budget cuts and changing priorities blamed for “startling” loss of researchers
www.researchprofessionalnews.com

eicathomefinn.bsky.social
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 16h
no time to say sadly.

eicathomefinn.bsky.social
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 16h
Then you might be interested in this Politics & International Studies Impact Case Study from the Institute of Policy Studies at the University of Bath on the case for UBS nationally and internationally. @uniofbath.bsky.social

results2021.ref.ac.uk/impact/1f464...
Impact case study : Results and submissions : REF 2021
results2021.ref.ac.uk

Reposted by Alan Lester, Judith Jesch

eicathomefinn.bsky.social
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 18h
Thought for the day:

On Bluesky, it's "nice" to "Like", but it's (more) effective to Repost. Be effective. (You can also be nice).
Bluesky logo: the 4 wings of a blue butterfly against a grey backgroound.

eicathomefinn.bsky.social
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 18h
Reformation of Science Publishing: The Stockholm Declaration can be accessed without a Royal Society login from PubMed. Vital reading for our times. 3/3
Reformation of science publishing: the Stockholm Declaration - PubMed
Science relies on integrity and trustworthiness. But scientists under career pressure are lured to purchase fake publications from 'paper mills' that use AI-generated data, text and image fabrication. The number of low-quality or fraudulent publications is rising to hundreds of thousands per year, w …
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

eicathomefinn.bsky.social
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 18h
'These problems include the costs and inequalities of publishing with open access under the for-profit, author-pays model as well as the “flood” of low-quality papers that has been produced under the model, according to the Stockholm Declaration, published on 5 November.' 2/3

Reposted by Susan J. Smith, Malcolm MacLean

eicathomefinn.bsky.social
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 18h
'The global scientific community has been urged to adopt and support non-profit scholarly publishing models to help solve the problems caused by today’s predominant systems—described as “arguably the largest science crisis of all time”.' 1/3

Reposted by Charles West, Margot C. Finn

medartres.bsky.social
Medieval Art Research @medartres.bsky.social · 19h
The Courtauld is offering a a new fully funded Peter Fergusson PhD Scholarship in English Medieval Architecture for eligible projects focusing on England from the eleventh to the early sixteenth centuries. Statement of intents are due by 17 November 2025.
Peter Fergusson PhD Scholarship in English Medieval Architecture, Courtauld, statement of intent deadline 17 November 2025
The Courtauld is offering a a new fully funded Peter Fergusson PhD Scholarship in English Medieval Architecture for eligible projects focusing on England from the eleventh to the early sixteenth centuries. Statement of intents are due by 17 November 2025.
medievalartresearch.com

eicathomefinn.bsky.social
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 19h
That's just the tip of this iceberg. Citizen research, enhanced archival practice, better-informed health care professionals and co-produced museum exhibitions all feature in this Impact Case Study.

We lose more than Humanities when we lose university Humanities research. Humanity & policy. 4/4
Swansea University Foundation stone, set in a grey/brown brick wall. Following a Royal Commission of 1916, the university opened in October 1920. Times were challenging after WWI, but the government believed in higher education.

eicathomefinn.bsky.social
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 19h
What's more "The coal industry and its workers, via Friendly Societies, Trade Unions and Mutual Aid societies, were innovative in responding to disability via sickness benefits, provision of medical care and assistive technologies." Food for thought for today's policy-makers? 3/4
Map of British coalfields in the 19th century, stretching from the Clyde to Bristol and including South Wales coalfields. Green and brown, surrounded by blue seas.

eicathomefinn.bsky.social
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 19h
Research by @profdavidturner.bsky.social et al "challenged the notion that disability inevitably led to the end of a person’s working life by showing that the occupationally diverse nature of the coal industry allowed opportunities for those left impaired by accidents to return to work". 2/4
Results and submissions : REF 2021
results2021.ref.ac.uk

Reposted by Martin Johnes

eicathomefinn.bsky.social
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 19h
If Britain is 'sliding "into economic crisis over £85bn sickness bill', what can UK Arts, Humanities & Social Science research tell us about alternative pathways?

Swansea University historians have some excellent answers. 1/4

@torstenbell.bsky.social @bphillipsonmp.bsky.social
Britain sliding 'into economic crisis' over £85bn sickness bill, ex-John Lewis boss warns
The number of people who are out of work for health reasons has grown by 800,000 since 2019.
www.bbc.co.uk

eicathomefinn.bsky.social
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 20h
My point is that we have to include ourselves in 'the problem' to be an effective part of 'the solution'.

eicathomefinn.bsky.social
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 20h
We have to ask, why are academics and other university stakeholders trained in these subjects (which focus on understanding and communication) not getting through. I don't like aspects of the climate & structural incentives either. But there they are: we're meant to be equipped to grapple with them.

eicathomefinn.bsky.social
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 20h
Given the urgency, I'd be minded to focus on rectifying the anomaly rather than starting from a position of 'blame'.

eicathomefinn.bsky.social
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 21h
'As pressure mounts globally on the humanities, Africa’s leading writers and scholars used this week’s Nobel Symposium in Literature, held in South Africa, to argue that the arts are still vital to the world’s intellectual and moral life.'
‘It’s what makes us human’: Top writers defend humanities
As pressure mounts globally on the humanities, Africa’s leading writers and scholars used this week’s Nobel Symposium in Literature to argue that ...
www.universityworldnews.com