1,258 search results
Ten top tips for writing a novel
History & The Arts

Ten top tips for writing a novel

...simple. Get a cat. Muriel Spark, author of The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie believed that a contented cat was a great aid to the deep concentration needed for novel writing. It works like this – the cat sees your desk lamp, decides it’s a good place for a nap, and settles down happily while you work. ‘Its presence alone is enough,’ Spark said. ‘The effect of a cat...
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Article 5 mins
Beyond the plate: Autism, food and sensory sensitivities
Health, Sports & Psychology

Beyond the plate: Autism, food and sensory sensitivities

...simple question – however, the seemingly obvious answer can tell us a lot about why some autistic people struggle considerably with eating particular foods, but can tolerate or enjoy others. Many autistic people have what we call sensory processing differences – that is, differences with how they experience smell, texture, taste and sight (amongst other senses),...
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Article 5 mins
Systems thinking: a select glossary
Money & Business

Systems thinking: a select glossary

...simple feedback (as in a thermostat) but should not be confused with human communication, which has a biological basis. (ii) Second-order communication is understood from a theory of cognition which encompasses language, emotion, perception and behaviour. Amongst human beings this gives rise to new properties in the communicating partners who each have different...
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Article 5 mins
A very brief history of AI
Digital & Computing

A very brief history of AI

...simple program that recognises certain words and phrases entered by the user and uses it to generate one of a series of its own questions. It doesn’t matter if the user enters nonsense, ELIZA will still happily converse with them: [Chat] A quick play with ELIZA almost always reveals its limitations and after a short time, many people can begin to see how the program...
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Article 5 mins
How do I pitch an idea to a science editor?
Science, Maths & Technology

How do I pitch an idea to a science editor?

...simple Avoid jargon. Using words such as ‘stakeholders’, ‘leverages’ and ‘sustainable dialogues’ in your pitch will alienate the editor. Who are you? If it’s your first time pitching to an editor, include a bit about yourself, your areas of interest and your expertise. Supply up to three links to your previous work or, if a new writer, briefly explain why...
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Article 5 mins
Heroes and Villains: The Outlaw in Early American Folk Music
Health, Sports & Psychology

Heroes and Villains: The Outlaw in Early American Folk Music

...simple criminal’ – someone who refuses to abide by the norms of their own community. Such a figure is considered a ‘bad man’ by performer and listeners alike. Secondly, what Eric Hobsbawm (1981) calls the ‘social bandit’ – regarded as a criminal by the ruling class and its agencies, but who remains within the moral order of their own community and frequently...
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Article 5 mins
Machines, minds and computers
Digital & Computing

Machines, minds and computers

...simple frauds – as their makers well knew. The idea was to mimic intelligent life, though the audience may have been willing to believe they were in the presence of a machine that was genuinely reasoning. On the other hand, mythical creations such as the Golem were imagined as being indisputably living things, capable of independent action and of real personality....
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Level 3: Advanced 10 hrs
An introduction to music theory
History & The Arts

An introduction to music theory

...simple multiple-choice questions...Gain an understanding of the basic building blocks of musical theory and notation. This free course, An introduction to music theory, will introduce you to music staves, clefs, rhythmic and pitch values, rhythmic metre and time signatures. This OpenLearn course provides an introduction to music theory pitched at a level equivalent to...
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Level 1: Introductory 8 hrs