English – Page 270 – MIL Submissions Engine

August 18, 2025

Cop30: the accommodation crisis plaguing Brazil’s upcoming UN climate summit

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Bruno Soeiro Vieira, Professor Adjunto, Universidade Federal do Pará (UFPA)

Cop30, the UN climate summit scheduled to take place this November in the Brazilian city of Belém, is embroiled in a controversy that has nothing to do with solving the planet’s environmental problems. Currently occupying debate about the conference is what Brazil’s press is calling the “hosting crisis”.

André Corrêa do Lago, president of Cop30, said that countries have been pressurising Brazil to move the UN climate conference from Belém to another city because of the “exorbitant prices” being charged for hotels. Some governments have even considered not taking part in the conference or reducing their delegations. But the Brazilian government has dismissed this possibility.

How did this happen? A very low number of available beds, the raising of room rates to a premium by hotel chains, and historical prejudice have all led to the perfect storm of the current crisis.

At the end of the 17th century, Belém had three times as many inhabitants as São Paulo. The state capital of Pará was also one of the first cities in the country to have public energy, powered by gas. The city was also experiencing the first rubber extraction boom.

But with the subsequent decline of rubber, Belém and other cities in the Amazon lost their prominence. Today Belém is a city of the developing world which, like many others, including Baku in Azerbaijan which hosted the Cop29 summit last year, faces a host of infrastructure problems.

In addition to the obvious lack of urban infrastructure which generates and deepens social inequalities, there are other problems. The hotel network is too small to accommodate a demand for more than 50,000 beds, the amount of people expected for Cop30.

The problem has been cascading, but it all started with the city’s hotel chains. From the start of the year, hotels began to increase the prices of accommodation, and raise prices even higher for the period of the event.

The problems with lack of affordable hotel accommodation and the state of the city’s infrastructure are of great concern. But any public and media discussion of the issues tends to end up belittling the city and the entire Amazon region, revealing an internal colonialism that has always existed in Brazil.

Behind the criticism of infrastructure and hotel prices often lies an enduring and historic prejudice that assumes that an Amazonian city could never host an event of this size and importance.

Possible solutions

It could be argued that there has been a historical inertia, or even lack of oversight on the part of national and state governments for not having foreseen these issues and taking steps to pre-empt them.

In the short term, price regulation is necessary, which the state can’t impose because it lacks the legal authorisation to do so. The consumer secretariat even requested that hotels provide information on room rates. But this request was ignored, with chains claiming that this is a market issue, a view endorsed by the Brazilian Hotel Association.

The federal Brazilian government has responded by bringing two ocean liners to the city, which will provide around 6,000 beds. The government has also created an online accommodation platform which will make 2,500 rooms available.

There are other options available. The UN could, for example, offer a greater subsidy to delegations from developing countries, in order to guarantee a greater number of participants. Accommodating delegates in neighbouring cities is another alternative.

With time running out, there is a risk that the event won’t be attended as well as it is hoped. And the presence of the largest number of countries and delegates at Cop30 is fundamental to legitimise the decisions that will be taken.

The people of Pará are hospitable and enjoy receiving visitors, and the area is rich in culture, architecture and cuisine. This is not a time for greed, but for welcoming people and showing them the city, its way of life and what the Amazon needs. After all, the people who understand the Amazon best are the Amazonians.

Don’t have time to read about climate change as much as you’d like?

Get a weekly roundup in your inbox instead. Every Wednesday, The Conversation’s environment editor writes Imagine, a short email that goes a little deeper into just one climate issue. Join the 45,000+ readers who’ve subscribed so far.

Bruno Soeiro Vieira does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Cop30: the accommodation crisis plaguing Brazil’s upcoming UN climate summit – https://theconversation.com/cop30-the-accommodation-crisis-plaguing-brazils-upcoming-un-climate-summit-263165

August 18, 2025

In Jane Austen’s Persuasion, respite is a key ingredient for romance

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Barbara Cooke, Programme Leader and Senior Lecturer in English, Loughborough University

It’s that time of year again. Flight costs are up, schools are out, and anyone lucky enough to afford a break is heading – literally or metaphorically – for the hills. Some might harbour visions of a beautiful stranger alone in a beach or bar, someone who takes a keen interest in them, gives them the best two weeks of their lives then disappears into the sunset. This is probably what most of us imagine when we think of a holiday romance: something magical and fleeting, but removed from everyday life.

One writer, however, proved in novel after novel that a change of scene can also inspire a lasting change of mind. It might shake the blinkered out of an unhelpful way of seeing the world, or reveal hidden depths in overlooked friends and acquaintances. It can take people away from those who do not appreciate them, and introduce them into new communities in which they thrive.

Jane Austen’s heroines are a nomadic bunch, by and large. The author is known for psychological development, but the emotional and educational progress of her romantic plot lines is almost always kick-started by a series of more literal journeys. Movements between home, “seasons” in the city and prolonged visits to family and friends map out narrative progress towards love.

Following the footsteps of one Austen protagonist, Anne Elliot of Persuasion (1817), reveals how the different narrative locations she inhabits present different opportunities for her to grow in confidence and reclaim a love that she thought lost forever. At the same time, they also enable Frederick Wentworth, her erstwhile fiancé, to reconsider his false assumptions about her and see her in a more truthful (not to mention more flattering) light.

It’s something I explore in my soon-to-be-published book, Love and Landscape: Iconic Meeting Places in Classic and Contemporary Literature.

This article is part of a series commemorating the 250th anniversary of Jane Austen’s birth. Despite having published only six books, she is one of the best-known authors in history. These articles explore the legacy and life of this incredible writer.

When we meet Anne at the beginning of Persuasion, she clearly needs to get out more. She is 26 and unmarried, having been convinced at 19 by her snobbish family to end her engagement to Wentworth.

Now, she is unloved and overlooked by her father and elder sister Elizabeth and, when her family’s profligate spending means they must rent out their home and seek cheaper accommodation, it is a blessing in disguise for Anne.

She goes first to visit her other, married sister in the Somerset village of Uppercross. Mary is as self-centred as Elizabeth and their father, but does at least love and appreciate Anne. Mary’s sisters-in-law, Louisa and Henrietta Musgrove, live nearby with their parents and are fond of her too. Crucially, this kinder branch of Anne’s family is also connected to the now-Captain Wentworth, who has made a good career for himself in the Napoleonic wars and is warmly welcomed into their circle.

Anne’s first move having brought her into better company, she then makes a second journey, with this group, to the coastal town of Lyme Regis. Here, the fresh sea air restores her faded youth, and Wentworth is gratifyingly present when a passing stranger looks at her “with a degree of earnest admiration”.

Anne however is more than a pretty face, and her stay at Lyme also allows her to show off her pragmatism and good judgment when Louisa is knocked unconscious by a bad fall. Wentworth, who blames himself for the accident, benefits directly from Anne’s taking charge of the situation.

Their last move, to Bath, shows the nascent couple carving out small opportunities for intimacy among crowded ballrooms and claustrophobic family gatherings.

When they are finally able confirm their mutual affection, they engineer a retreat to a gravel walk which is only “comparatively quiet and retired”, and count on their fellow walkers being too wrapped up in their own business to pay them much attention.

In Northanger Abbey (1817), Austen’s most satirical novel, it is observed that “if adventures will not befall a young lady in her own village, she must seek them abroad”. In Persuasion, Anne’s particular adventures bring her into a more supportive community, reinvigorate her youth and give her the chance to prove her worth.

In Austen’s footsteps

Over the past two centuries, a huge variety of writers have forged their own romantic plot lines from paths first cut by Anne Elliot, Catherine Morland of Northanger Abbey and Elizabeth Bennet of Pride and Prejudice (1813).

For those whose stories feature marginalised characters, for example, the value of a sympathetic and supportive community becomes even more important. So it is that author Sarah Waters imaginatively reconstructs pockets of Victorian London in Tipping the Velvet (1998) in which queer characters are visible and able to celebrate their love. The South London barbershops and jazz clubs of Open Water (2022) offer a similar respite for Caleb Azumah Nelson’s young Black lovers, who crave spaces in which they can be themselves away from the prejudices and false assumptions of mainstream society.

Jane Austen’s novels perform a kind of romantic alchemy in which travel is the catalyst. From Lyme to Bath, Hertfordshire to the Peak District, her protagonists move through a holiday atmosphere, but the transformations they undergo along the way are anything but fleeting. There might be a depressing uniformity in marriage as the inevitable, final destination, but we are left in no doubt that these are marriages – like Austen’s legacy – are built to last.

This article features references to books that have been included for editorial reasons, and may contain links to bookshop.org. If you click on one of the links and go on to buy something from bookshop.org The Conversation UK may earn a commission.

Looking for something good? Cut through the noise with a carefully curated selection of the latest releases, live events and exhibitions, straight to your inbox every fortnight, on Fridays. Sign up here.

Barbara Cooke does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. In Jane Austen’s Persuasion, respite is a key ingredient for romance – https://theconversation.com/in-jane-austens-persuasion-respite-is-a-key-ingredient-for-romance-263070

August 18, 2025

Rebranding equity as ‘belonging’ won’t advance justice — it’s DEI rollback in disguise

Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Simon Blanchette, Lecturer, Desautels Faculty of Management, McGill University

Since 2024, pushback against diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) has gathered momentum across North America. This year, that retreat has taken on a new form: the rebranding of “equity” with softer, less contentious terms like “belonging” or “community.”

The University of Alberta, for instance, no longer has a vice-provost of equity, diversity and inclusion. Instead, it now has an office for “access, community and belonging.”

Similarly, Alberta’s public pension fund eliminated its lead DEI role during a restructuring. A spokesperson maintained that “the departure of the individual responsible for the formal DEI program has not lessened AIMCo’s firm commitment to these principles.”

A similar shift is underway at the University of Lethbridge, which established an office of “accessibility, belonging and community” in December.

While language naturally evolves, this current shift appears to lack the deliberate engagement needed for genuine progress. Instead, it may be obscuring a step back from equity rather than a step forward.

A retreat disguised as progress

Calls for rebranding DEI work have existed for years and are valid, even within the field itself. What we are seeing now, however, often lacks genuine community engagement and the voices of the very stakeholders these shifts to “belonging” are meant to include.

Today’s so-called rebranding efforts are more about appeasement than progress. Rather, they are reactive moves that respond to external pressures rather than to the needs and demands of the communities most affected.

Once embraced as essential to address systemic discrimination, the term equity has now become a political lightning rod.

Some institutions now face political, shareholder and donor pressures that frame DEI initiatives as divisive or ideologically extreme, pushing them to distance themselves from such programs.

In the corporate world, the trend is stark. Mentions of “DEI” in S&P 500 corporate filings have dropped 70 per cent since 2022, replaced by softer terms like “belonging” and “inclusive culture.”

This shift allows organizations to sidestep accountability, obscure inequities and replace measurable equity frameworks with vague platitudes.

Why this matters

By softening language, organizations secure a socially acceptable way to exit from the difficult work of equity. It suggests these organizations have somehow moved beyond equity without ever having done the work.

Removing equity from organizational language has tangible consequences. First, it undermines accountability. Effective equity frameworks create measurable, trackable goals. Terms like “belonging” are harder to define and easier to abandon. They allow organizations to gesture toward inclusion without doing the hard work of systemic change.

Second, it risks leaving people behind. Equity centres those facing real structural barriers, like women, Black and racialized people, Indigenous Peoples, 2SLGBTQI+ communities and people living with disabilities. When the term disappears, so too can their visibility in policies, funding and accountability.

Finally, there’s a risk to organizations themselves. DEI rollbacks hurt morale, retention, innovation and performance, and can even increase legal risk.

A 2025 survey from New York University’s Meltzer Center for Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging found 80 per cent of leaders believe reducing equity efforts increases reputational and legal risk. It also found widespread agreement that DEI initiatives improved firms’ financial performance.

The myth of meritocracy

A common justification for dropping “equity” is desire to return to “meritocracy.” Meritocracy is the idea that individuals should be rewarded based on their talent and hard work.

But meritocracy assumes a level playing field and obscures the fact that “merit” is socially constructed and context-dependent. It ignores that unequal barriers, like access to education and networks, impacts individual success despite a person’s achievements.

Meritocracy also assumes that diversity is prioritized over qualifications, which is not the case. We can successfully focus on both skills and inclusion.

Research by MIT management professor Emilio J. Castilla has shown that organizations claiming to be meritocratic often end up reinforcing biases instead — this is also called the “paradox of meritocracy.”

For instance, in a study involving 445 participants with managerial experience, researchers asked participants to make bonus, promotion and termination decisions for fictional employees. When an organization’s culture emphasized meritocracy, male employees received higher bonuses than equally qualified female employees.

Conversely, when the work culture emphasized managerial discretion instead, the bias reversed in favour of women. This likely occurred because the prompt signalled a potential gender bias, triggering an over-correction. In a third scenario where neither meritocracy nor managerial discretion was emphasized, there was no significant difference in the bonuses assigned.

While the last scenario sounds promising, most work environments emphasize meritocracy, consciously or not. Merit- or performance-based pay remains the norm in many organziations, meaning the first scenario is most common.

Without transparency, merit-based rhetoric about who supposedly “deserves” advancement often reinforces existing inequalities. Nepotism, network-based advantages and selective visibility often fill the gap when equity frameworks are abandoned. Networks and visibility matter, but they should not be mistaken for merit.

Ironically, sometimes the loudest critics of equity initiatives are silent when inherited privilege or insider connections determine who rises to leadership.

What can organizations do?

While some institutions are backpedalling on DEI commitments, others in Canada and across Europe are holding firm by embedding equity in their strategy, leadership and performance frameworks.

Advancing equity in today’s climate requires both strategy and sustained action. Here’s where organizations can begin:

Establish and embed explicit, measurable equity objectives aligned with your business strategy.
Increase data transparency by collecting and publicly sharing disaggregated information on recruitment, promotion, pay equity, turnover and employee experience.
Give diverse voices real decision-making authority over policies and initiatives. Employee resource groups are a great way to start.
Hold leaders accountable by training them to champion equity and tying their incentives to concrete DEI outcomes.
Communicate DEI impacts transparently and authentically by sharing stories and metrics that showcase how equity efforts have improved business performance.

These solutions are already working. In my consulting practice, I have accompanied organizations that are making progress by building trust, energizing teams and driving innovation. In the end, they are measurably more successful and resilient.

The business case for equity is well-established: it drives performance, helps fuel growth and is an overall leadership imperative. In today’s political climate, it’s critical to stay focused on outcomes rather than rhetoric that frames equity as divisive or unnecessary.

The way forward

Rebranding “equity” as “belonging” doesn’t advance justice, especially when there’s no shared definition of what “belonging” actually means. It politely denies the need to dismantle real systemic barriers. For individuals facing those barriers, it sounds like an empty promise.

No one chooses their race, sex, socio-economic background, sexual orientation or to live with a disability or the lasting impacts of military service. But institutions can choose whether to confront the inequities tied to those experiences and dismantle barriers that individuals face.

This moment also calls for an honest reflection within the DEI space itself. Some initiatives have overreached or lost focus, contributing to this current backlash. Addressing missteps openly is part of rebuilding credibility in DEI work.

Equity, at its core, is about ensuring dignity and providing everyone with a fair chance to succeed. Walking away from equity work or watering it down until it becomes meaningless is not the answer. Moving forward requires less political polarization and more co-ordinated action so that everyone can have a fair chance to thrive.

Simon Blanchette does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Rebranding equity as ‘belonging’ won’t advance justice — it’s DEI rollback in disguise – https://theconversation.com/rebranding-equity-as-belonging-wont-advance-justice-its-dei-rollback-in-disguise-261730

August 18, 2025

From resort buffets to long flights: simple tips for eating well on holiday

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Rachel Woods, Senior Lecturer in Physiology, University of Lincoln

Holidays should be about relaxing, enjoying yourself and making memories – not obsessing over a “perfect” eating plan. A healthy diet is built over months and years, not in a single week (or two). Instead of restricting what you eat, a better approach is to add healthy extras to your holiday meals. This way, you can nourish your body, support your digestive system and stay hydrated without feeling deprived.

If you usually count every calorie, giving yourself a mental break can be refreshing and well deserved. Recent research even suggests that strict calorie restriction can have a detrimental effect on mental health. Of course, this advice assumes holidays are occasional. If you travel frequently, your approach might need to be different. And if you have health conditions or specific dietary needs, tailored guidance is always best.

A few extra holiday calories won’t undo your long-term health – but side effects from overeating like bloating, constipation and fatigue can put a damper on your trip. These tips focus on helping you avoid those issues so you can feel your best and make the most of your time away.

Add, don’t restrict

It’s often easier to add something to your diet than to cut things out, especially on holiday. Rather than having a list of foods to avoid, eat what you fancy and then add nourishing extras.

Where you’re staying will influence how easy this is. At an all-inclusive resort, the variety makes it simple to include more fruit and vegetables. Adding a side salad or extra vegetables to every plate, or piling on chopped fruit at breakfast, keeps your fibre intake up and provides valuable nutrients. If you want to moderate calorie intake, starting meals with salad or fruit can help fill you up before the main course.

If your hotel offers breakfast, use it as a chance to start the day with nourishing foods. A plate with mushrooms, tomatoes, beans, or fresh fruit can set you up well, making it easier to relax about food choices for the rest of the day.

Self-catering or dining out can be trickier, but not impossible. Ordering vegetable sides, buying fresh fruit for your room, and keeping a bag of nuts or seeds handy can all help.

Wherever you are, enjoy the local cuisine. In the Mediterranean, for example, traditional diets are rich in vegetables, olive oil and fresh fish – all linked to heart health and longevity.

If you’re near the coast, make the most of fresh fish, an excellent source of healthy fats. Choosing whole, minimally processed foods as often as possible is generally the healthiest option.

Staying hydrated

Hot climates and busy days make hydration especially important. Keep a water bottle with you, sip regularly, and watch for early signs of dehydration, such as thirst, dark urine, or dizziness. Water and sugar-free drinks are the healthiest choices.

If alcohol is part of your holiday, balance it with non-alcoholic fluids. From a health perspective, alcohol isn’t good for the body – but it’s understandable to want a glass of wine at dinner or a cold beer by the pool. Enjoy it in ways that minimise the after-effects: alternate with water, dilute with soda or lemonade to make spritzers or shandies, or plan a few drink-free days.

Cocktails and even mocktails can be surprisingly high in sugar, so save them for when you’ll really enjoy them. Having alcohol with food can soften its effects, but remember it’s dehydrating – so top up with plenty of water.

Eating and drinking on flights

Long flights can be dehydrating and tiring, so what you eat and drink on board can make a big difference to how you feel when you land. Cabin air is extremely dry, so drink water regularly – ideally a glass every hour – and limit alcohol and caffeine, which can worsen dehydration.

If possible, bring your own snacks. Fresh fruit like grapes or apple slices, vegetable sticks, unsalted nuts, and oat-based bars are healthier and often more satisfying than high-salt, high-sugar snacks sold on board. Salty foods can make you more thirsty, and heavy meals may leave you bloated or sluggish in the confined space of an aircraft seat.

Airline meals can vary in quality, but you can often request a lighter or special option (such as vegetarian or low-salt) when booking. Eating smaller portions and stretching your legs when possible can help keep digestion moving and reduce the risk of deep vein thrombosis (DVT).

Travelling with children

With children, mealtimes can be more challenging, especially when routines are disrupted. Young travellers are more prone to dehydration, stomach upsets and constipation – particularly if their diet changes suddenly. A loose structure of three balanced meals, healthy snacks and regular water breaks can help maintain appetite and keep digestion on track.

Holidays can also be a great opportunity for children to try new foods. Buffets work well for this, allowing them to explore small, low-pressure portions. In restaurants, sharing a few dishes between the table can encourage tasting without the commitment of a full plate. Offering new flavours alongside familiar favourites – and keeping it low-pressure – may make them more likely to try new foods.

Children can be especially vulnerable to dehydration, as they may not recognise or communicate the symptoms. Make sure they regularly have access to drinks. Some parents mark water levels on a child’s cup to track intake.

Foods with high water content – such as watermelon, cucumber and other fruit and vegetables – also contribute to hydration. Treats such as ice lollies count too, though watch the sugar. Slush drinks are often popular, but many are high in sugar and some contain glycerol, which the Food Standards Agency advises against for children under seven.

Holiday eating isn’t about perfection. Healthy eating is built over months and years, not a week or two. Keeping up your fruit and vegetable intake supports digestion, and regular fluids keep you hydrated. Simple steps to nourish your body mean more energy for exploring, relaxing with family, or simply enjoying a well-earned break.

Rachel Woods does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. From resort buffets to long flights: simple tips for eating well on holiday – https://theconversation.com/from-resort-buffets-to-long-flights-simple-tips-for-eating-well-on-holiday-262965

August 18, 2025

I got an AI to impersonate me and teach me my own course – here’s what I learned about the future of education

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Alex Connock, Senior Fellow, Said Business School, University of Oxford

Imagine you had an unlimited budget for individual tutors offering hyper-personalised courses that maximised learners’ productivity and skills development. This summer I previewed this idea – with a ridiculous and solipsistic test.

I asked an AI tutor agent to play the role of me, an Oxford lecturer on media and AI, and teach me a personal master’s course, based entirely on my own work.

I set up the agent via an off-the-shelf ChatGPT tool hosted on the Azure-based Nebula One platform, with a prompt to research and impersonate me, then build personalised material based on what I already think. I didn’t tell the large language model (LLM) what to read or do anything else to enhance its capabilities, such as giving it access to learning materials that aren’t publicly available online.

The agent’s course in media and AI was well structured – a term-long, original six-module journey into my own collected works that I had never devised, but admit I would have liked to.

It was interactive and rapid-fire, demanding mental acuity via regular switches in formats. It was intellectually challenging, like good Oxford tutorials should be. The agent taught with rigour, giving instant responses to anything I asked. It had a powerful understanding of the fast-evolving landscape of AI and media through the same lens as me, but had done more homework.

This was apparently fed by my entire multimedia output – books, speeches, articles, press interviews, even university lectures I had no idea had even been recorded, let alone used to train GPT-4 or GPT-5.

The course was a great learning experience, even though I supposedly knew it all already. So in the inevitable student survey, I gave the agentic version of me well-deserved, five-star feedback.

For instance, in a section discussing the ethics of non-playing characters (NPCs) in computer games, it asked:

If NPCs are generated by AI, who decides their personalities, backgrounds or morals? Could this lead to bias or stereotyping?

And:

If an AI NPC can learn and adapt, does it blur the line between character and “entity” [independent actor]?

These are great, philosophical questions, which will probably come to the fore when and if Grand Theft Auto 6 comes out next May. I’m psyched that the agentic me came up with them, even if the real me didn’t.

Agentic me also built on what real me does know. In film, it knew about bog-standard Adobe After Effects, which I had covered (it’s used for creating motion graphics and visual effects). But it added Nuke, a professional tool used to combine and manipulate visual effects in Avengers, which (I’m embarrased to say) I had never heard of.

The course reading list

So where did the agent’s knowledge of me come from? My publisher Routledge did a training data deal with Open AI, which I guess could cover my books on media, AI and live experience.

Unlike some authors, I’m up for that. My books guide people through an amazing and fast-moving subject, and I want them in the global conversation, in every format and territory possible (Turkish already out, Korean this month).

That availability has to extend to what is now potentially the most discoverable “language” of all, the one spoken by AI models. The priority for any writer who agrees with this should be AI optimisation: making their work easy for LLMs to find, process and use – much like search engine optimisation, but for AI.

To build on this, I further tested my idea by getting an agent powered by China’s Deep Seek to run a course on my materials. When I found myself less visible in its training corpus, it was hard not to take offence. There is no greater diss in the age of AI than a leading LLM deeming your book about AI irrelevant.

Robot teacher in front of a blackboard — Optimising your output to be seen by the AIs is the new SEO.
Vasilyev Alexandr

When I experimented with other AIs, they had issues getting their facts straight, which is very 2024. From Google’s Gemini 2.5 Pro I learned hallucinatory biographical details about myself like a role running media company The Runaway Collective.

When I asked Elon Musk’s Grok what my best quote was, it said: “Whatever your question, the answer is AI.” That’s a great line, but Google DeepMind’s Nobel-winning Demis Hassabis said it, not me.

Where we’re heading

This whole, self-absorbed summer diversion was clearly absurd, though not entirely. Agentic self-learning projects are quite possibly what university teaching actually needs: interactive, analytical, insightful and personalised. And there is some emerging research around the value. This German-led study found that AI-generated tuition helped to motivate secondary school students and benefited their exam revision.

It won’t be long before we start to see this kind of real-time AI layer formally incorporated into school and university teaching. Anyone lecturing undergraduates will know that AI is already there. Students use AI transcription to take notes. Lecture content is ripped in seconds from these transcriptions, and will have trained a dozen LLMs within the year. To assist with writing essays, ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini and Deep Seek/Qwen are the sine qua non of Gen Z projects.

Schoolgirl with AI in her head — It’s happening.
Metamorworks

But here’s the kicker. As AI becomes ever more central to education, the human teacher becomes more important, not less. They will guide the learning experience, bringing published works to the conceptual framework of a course, and driving in-person student engagement and encouragement. They can extend their value as personal AI tutors – via agents – for each student, based on individual learning needs.

Where do younger teachers fit in, who don’t have a back catalogue to train LLMs? Well, the younger the teacher, the more AI-native they are likely to be. They can use AI to flesh out their own conceptual vision for a course by widening the research beyond their own work, by prompting the agent on what should be included.

In AI, two alternate positions are often simultaneously true. AI is both emotionally intelligent and tone deaf. It is is both a glorified text predictor and a highly creative partner. It is costing jobs, yet creating them. It is dumbing us down, but also powering us up.

So too in teaching. AI threatens the learning space, yet can liberate powerful interaction. A prevailing wisdom is that it will make students dumber. But perhaps AI could actually be unlocking for students the next level of personalisation, challenge and motivation.

Alex Connock does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. I got an AI to impersonate me and teach me my own course – here’s what I learned about the future of education – https://theconversation.com/i-got-an-ai-to-impersonate-me-and-teach-me-my-own-course-heres-what-i-learned-about-the-future-of-education-262734

August 18, 2025

Game changer: how data science is revolutionising athlete performance

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Christophe Ley, Associate professor in Mathematics, University of Luxembourg

Sports coaches have always made decisions based on experience, observation and intuition. But they are increasingly relying on hard evidence. Behind the scenes, a quiet revolution is transforming sport – driven not by human skills but by data.

Wearable sensors, video trackers, GPS and health monitors now capture almost everything an athlete does. From their speed and movement to heart rate and positioning, countless data are being recorded.

But how best apply all that data?

I work at the intersection of sports, statistics and artificial intelligence, leading the Modelling, Interdisciplinary, Data, Applied, Statistics (Midas) research team at the University of Luxembourg. Our goal is simple: use data to help athletes and coaches make better decisions.

Whether that’s adjusting tactics pre-match, predicting outcomes or preventing injury, data science is changing the game.

The challenge is to make sense of this plethora of data, which comes from different sources and is of different types. And that is precisely where statistical modelling and machine learning come into play.

By finding patterns in the data – such as why a certain (over-)training has led to reduced performance or even injury, for example – we can provide actionable insights. Indeed, these insights don’t just reveal or explain what has happened, but can also predict what is going to happen – and most importantly why.

To be able to predict as accurately as possible future performances and results and to estimate the risk of injuries, we’ve developed a new approach called statistically enhanced learning (SEL) — a framework that blends statistical modelling with machine learning.

In short, statistical insights can be transformed into features that help predictive algorithms work better. Consider “team strength”. This is an abstract concept we’ve come up with to represent the team’s current playing ability. And we model it out of data from the games teams have previously played.

It isn’t meaningful to use all individual games as input to a predictive algorithm. So we first build a statistical model to estimate team strengths from all these matches (giving more weight to more recent matches), and the estimated team strengths will then be used as input for the predictive algorithm.

Think of it as giving AI smarter inputs, such that it makes smarter predictions. In our studies, this approach consistently improves accuracy and interpretability across different sports.

Working with the Metz women’s handball team, champions of France in 2025, we developed prediction models that achieved over 80% accuracy. In a recent scientific paper, we combine game information (such as day of the week the game takes place, importance of the game) and team’s structure (height, weight, age of players) with the team strengths (which we estimate based on several previous match results) and feed all this into the programme. Without the team strengths, the accuracy would drop by roughly 20%.

Crucially, these models are not black boxes. We use explainable AI techniques so coaches can understand which variables drive the predictions, helping them adjust strategy and prepare more effectively.

Preventing injuries

Another key area is injury prevention. Injuries can derail a season, or even a career. By analysing patterns in performance and workload data, we can identify early warning signs. For example, slight declines in speed, jump height or reaction time may signal that a player is at risk.

Once flagged, coaches and medical staff can step in by adjusting training, adding rest days or tailoring recovery. Instead of reacting after an injury, teams can act proactively to keep athletes healthy.

Clearly our tools do not replace coaches. Rather they enhance their decision-making, be it at the level of tactical preparation or training setup. By turning data into insight, we help teams compete smarter.

Challenges and the future

Of course, this new era brings challenges. Data quality is not always consistent. Not all clubs can afford the same technology. And ethical questions arise around data ownership and athlete privacy. But the direction of travel is clear. Data science is becoming an essential part of sport, not just for top clubs and national teams, but across all levels.

We are also expanding our collaborations. This approach can be used in various sports including football, basketball and rugby. Our aim is to make analytics more accessible, explainable and useful, so that athletes and coaches, not just data scientists, benefit from what we learn.

As fans, we see the goals, the saves, the rallies, the celebrations. What we do not see is the science behind the scenes – the models predicting outcomes, the algorithms flagging risks, the data informing every sprint and substitution.

Sport will always be about passion, talent and human drama. But increasingly, it is also about probability, precision and the quiet power of data. And that might just be one of the most important game changers of all.

Christophe Ley is co-founder of the company GrewIA and President of the Luxembourg Statistical Society.

– ref. Game changer: how data science is revolutionising athlete performance – https://theconversation.com/game-changer-how-data-science-is-revolutionising-athlete-performance-261400

August 18, 2025

Despite A-level popularity, maths education after 16 is still lacking in England

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Paul Glaister, Professor of Mathematics and Mathematics Education, University of Reading

Mathematics at A-level is going from strength to strength. Maths is the most popular subject choice, and further maths, which is a separate A-level course, has seen the most growth in uptake. Despite this, concerns still remain about the mathematical skills of young people who do not choose to study maths after they are 16.

Students in England who have passed GCSE maths at grade four or above, but who are not taking A-level or AS-level maths, are eligible to take a core maths qualification.

Core maths was introduced in 2014-15 to attempt to remedy a lack in mathematics education after 16. But the number of entries remains well short of what they could be. Many students who would benefit from maths after 16 are not taking this subject.

A 2010 report from the Nuffield Foundation found students in the UK lag their peers in other countries in participation in mathematics after the age of 16. Further research from the Royal Society and higher education charity AdvanceHE showed that as a consequence, many were not well prepared for the demands of their university courses or careers. Survey data has also found that over half of UK adults’ maths skills are low.

Many courses at university include mathematical or quantitative elements, but do not require AS or A-level maths for entry. These include psychology, geography, business and management, sociology, health sciences, biology, education and IT. When many students have not studied mathematics since GCSE, this results in a lack of fluency and confidence in using and applying it.

Core maths consolidates and builds on students’ mathematical understanding. The focus is on using and applying mathematics to authentic problems drawn from study, work and life. This includes understanding and using graphs, statistics and tools such as spreadsheets, as well as understanding risk and probability.

Students in class with laptop and calculator — Core maths includes topics such as probability.
EF Stock/Shutterstock

Take-up remains low despite incentives – schools receive an additional £900 in funding for each student who studies core maths. In 2025, 15,327 students took core maths – a 20% increase on 12,810 entries in 2024, which is very encouraging. However, research from the Royal Society in 2022 found that fewer than 10% of the number of A-level students who were not taking A-level mathematics had taken core maths, which will not have changed significantly even with the current numbers.

Increasing enrolment

There remains strong commitment from the government for increasing participation in mathematics after 16 in England through core maths. Many schools and colleges have embraced the subject, and universities have expressed support too.

However, a real incentive for teenagers to study this subject would be if it was rewarded in entry to university. Universities can allow students entry to a course with lower A-level grade profiles than normally required if they also passed core maths, for instance. But the number of universities making this kind of offer is low.

Schools and colleges need stronger signals from universities to induce them to offer students the opportunity to study for a core maths qualification, and to encourage their students to do so. Shifting today’s landscape to one where the vast majority of learners aged 16 to 19 in England are studying some form of mathematics which is relevant to their current and future interests and needs will require reform.

The Royal Society’s 2024 report on mathematical and data education sets out several reforms necessary to develop the mass mathematical, quantitative and data skills needed for the careers of the future. These include compulsory maths and data education in some form until 18. Extending the take up of core maths would be an excellent way to begin achieving this.

Paul Glaister does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Despite A-level popularity, maths education after 16 is still lacking in England – https://theconversation.com/despite-a-level-popularity-maths-education-after-16-is-still-lacking-in-england-263224

August 18, 2025

How Russia emerged as the clear winner from the Alaska summit

Source: The Conversation – UK – By David Hastings Dunn, Professor of International Politics in the Department of Political Science and International Studies, University of Birmingham

As a former reality TV star, Donald Trump often gives the impression of playing the part of a US president rather than conducting the business of leading a government seriously. Nowhere has this been more apparent than in his recent summit with Russia’s Vladimir Putin in Alaska, where the two leaders met to discuss ending the war in Ukraine.

The theatre of the occasion had been meticulously planned. Trump rolled out the red carpet for Putin and organised a military flypast, while there were multiple choreographed photo opportunities. Yet what resulted was no peace deal and no prospect of the war ending any time soon.

The very act of meeting and the nature of the interaction were such that the summit instead did considerable damage to the US and broader western position on Ukraine. At the same time, it strengthened Russia’s stance considerably.

Russia used the summit to its strategic advantage, coming away with more concessions than it could have hoped for. Trump’s calls for a ceasefire in Ukraine are now gone and the prospect of additional sanctions on Russia have evaporated. Moscow now has the US president advocating for Ukraine to cede additional territory to Russia over and above the amount it has already taken by force.

The diplomatic mechanism of summitry, which is always a risky endeavour, delivered all this to Putin. I put this down to apparent poor preparation on the US side, including no preconditions, and skilful statecraft by the Russians.

Ending Putin’s isolation

Embracing Russia on equal terms with all the accoutrements of a state visit not only ended Putin’s isolation internationally. It immediately rehabilitated him on the world stage.

The symbolism of this was best demonstrated by the joint statement the two leaders delivered to the media. Putin spoke first and for longer with a well crafted speech. This contrasted sharply with Trump’s short ramble.

By recreating the theatre of a cold war summit, Trump indulged and actively reinforced Putin’s own nostalgic fantasies about Russia being a superpower with hegemonic geopolitical entitlements.

In an interview with Fox News after the summit, Trump said: “It’s good when two big powers get along, especially when they’re nuclear powers. We’re number one, they’re number two in the world.”

Trump’s statement exalted and exaggerated Russia’s position in the international system, while diminishing and sidelining the wealth and interests of European powers.

Putin hinted at future “superpower summits” to come, providing Trump with other opportunities for theatrical photo opportunities and to play the role of peacemaker.

He also suggested that US and Russian investment and business cooperation has tremendous potential “in trade, digital, high tech and space exploration” as well as the Arctic. And ahead of the summit, Putin indicated that he wants to pursue a new nuclear weapons agreement with Trump.

By bringing his treasury and commerce secretaries, Scott Bessent and Howard Lutnick, to Alaska, Trump had clearly taken the bait that there are lucrative opportunities on offer for the US if only the troublesome issue of Ukraine can be quickly settled and moved beyond. This framing was evident in Trump’s assessment that the summit went well and that there was much that the two sides agreed on.

A considerable setback

Trump’s love of the limelight, particularly when it garners the world’s attention, has been a feature of his two presidencies. His meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during his first administration had all the pomp and performativity of previous summits. Trump left without any agreement or real improvement in relations.

It did, however, succeed in ending the damaging social media spats between the leaders that had unnecessarily escalated real-world tensions. The meeting in Alaska is likely to have the opposite effect.

For Russia, it has reinforced the nostalgic fantasy that it is a superpower with a right to a sphere of influence. Given that Europe has been arguing for three years that it is the Russian mindset that is the problem, not just its current aggression in Ukraine, this is a considerable setback.

Putin was given the opportunity to flatter Trump’s ego about the 2020 election, which the US president claims was rigged, and suggest that the war would never have happened if Trump had been in charge. Now, Ukraine is once again being seen by Trump as the obstacle to peace.

The Russians, by persuading Trump to give up his demand for an immediate ceasefire, have bought themselves more time to make further advances on the battlefield. They have also stalled any further pressure from Washington while they pretend to negotiate seriously.

The only positive outcome of the encounter may be the realisation of European leaders that well prepared summit meetings with Trump are an open opportunity to move the dial back in their direction.

David Hastings Dunn has previously received funding from the ESRC, the Gerda Henkel Foundation, the Open Democracy Foundation and has previously been both a NATO and a Fulbright Fellow.

– ref. How Russia emerged as the clear winner from the Alaska summit – https://theconversation.com/how-russia-emerged-as-the-clear-winner-from-the-alaska-summit-263322

August 18, 2025

Drought can make farmers feel worried and hopeless: Ghana study finds social networks help

Source: The Conversation – Africa (2) – By Seth Asare Okyere, Teaching Assistant Professor, University of Pittsburg and Adjunct Associate Professor, Osaka University, University of Pittsburgh

Droughts are a familiar hardship in Ghana’s semi-arid north, where rainfall is erratic and agriculture is the mainstay of rural economies. The economic and environmental effects of drought have been well documented. But less attention is paid to its psychological toll on farmers and their families.

We conducted a study in the Talensi district of Ghana’s Upper East region to assess the impact of drought on the mental wellbeing of peri-urban farmers in semi-arid Ghana. We are a multidisciplinary team of scholars working in the area of resilience, sustainability and more recently psychological wellbeing.

We also investigated whether social capital (people’s social support networks) affected the impact of drought on three mental health outcomes: depression, anxiety and stress.

Based on a survey of 507 farmers, we found that prolonged periods of drought were strongly linked to increased levels of depression, anxiety and stress.

Our research also offers hope, however: personal social capital reduced the severity of these mental health impacts.

Our findings offer important insights for policymakers, especially in the context of climate change, which is intensifying drought conditions in the region. This study is among the first in Ghana – and the broader west African region – to empirically examine the mental health effects of drought on farmers using validated psychological tools.

It opens a crucial conversation about how vulnerability in the era of climate change is addressed. Our study demonstrates that climate adaptation planning is incomplete without integrating psychological wellbeing.

Vulnerabilities

Droughts are slow-onset disasters. Their effects accumulate gradually. But their impact on livelihoods and psychological resilience is deep.

In northern Ghana, where rain-fed agriculture dominates, even short delays in rainfall can trigger food insecurity, livestock losses and economic instability.

In the Talensi district, where we conducted the study, average annual rainfall is around 950mm. But it’s poorly distributed and increasingly erratic. The land has shallow, gravelly soil that has low moisture retention. These environmental conditions, compounded by the lack of irrigation infrastructure, make farmers highly vulnerable to climatic shocks.

For the study, we randomly selected 507 farmers across two communities – Awaredone and Yameriga. These communities combine crop cultivation with livestock rearing. Farmers cultivated mainly millet, rice, maize, cowpea and soybeans. Livestock were cattle, sheep and goats. We conducted our survey between September 2022 and March 2023. We used a combination of validated psychological scales and structured interviews in local languages to assess the impact of drought on mental health outcomes. We then used structural equation modelling to model our findings.

Our results were striking.

Stress levels

Our statistical modelling showed a significant link between the severity of the effects of drought and elevated levels of depression, anxiety, and stress. Farmers experiencing longer or more intense drought periods were more likely to report psychological distress.

Many farmers spoke about the hopelessness they felt when they watched their crops wither, or their animals die. They also spoke of the weight of not being able to provide food or income for the household.

Farmers reported symptoms such as insomnia, irritability, persistent worry, and even suicidal thoughts.

As one farmer we interviewed put it:

When the rains fail, it is not just the crops that die. Sometimes, our spirits die too. But when a neighbour shares food or even just listens, it brings life back.

Not all farmers were equally affected. Those with strong social support networks – including relationships with family, friends, neighbours and community groups – reported better mental health outcomes, even when they experienced the same drought conditions.

This is where the concept of personal social capital comes in. It refers to the resources – emotional, informational, or material – that individuals can access through their social relationships. In rural and peri-urban Ghana, this might mean receiving food from a neighbour, emotional support from relatives, or shared labour during the farming season.

Social capital acted as a buffer, we found. It moderated the relationship between drought and mental health outcomes. In other words, farmers with strong social ties were better equipped to cope with the psychological impacts of drought.

Why it matters

We conclude from our findings that combining social capital with other forms of capital – human, physical, financial and natural – alongside sustainable livelihood diversification programmes could reduce the underlying issues that make people vulnerable to the mental health impacts of drought.

This points to an urgent need to include mental health in disaster response and climate adaptation planning. As climate change intensifies, droughts are expected to become more frequent and severe in Ghana’s northern regions.

We argue that interventions should not only focus on boosting agricultural productivity or providing technical training. Instead, a more integrated approach is needed – one that combines climate adaptation with mental health support and community mobilisation. This is particularly relevant for the region, where health services are overstretched and mental health is often a taboo subject.

Therefore, enhancing social capital – through savings groups, farmer cooperatives, or traditional mutual aid networks – can improve psychological resilience. In practical terms, this might mean strengthening farmer-based organisations, promoting inclusive governance, and incorporating mental health education into climate adaptation services.

Donors and NGOs can also play a role by supporting psychosocial support programmes that are culturally sensitive and locally grounded.

If left unaddressed, the psychological burdens of drought could erode the social fabric of farming communities, reduce productivity, and trap households in cycles of poverty and distress. But if we recognise the value of social support systems – and invest in them – we can build more resilient, healthier communities.

The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Drought can make farmers feel worried and hopeless: Ghana study finds social networks help – https://theconversation.com/drought-can-make-farmers-feel-worried-and-hopeless-ghana-study-finds-social-networks-help-262627

August 18, 2025

Midlife adults are overextended with multiple roles

Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Gail Low, Associate Professor, Chair International Health, MacEwan University

Fifty-somethings are getting caught between helping younger generations and tending to their own growth. (Shutterstock)

Late midlife adults are one of Canada’s largest yet most under-recognized and over-extended resources. They quietly tend to the health and well-being of millions of younger and older people, in person or from a distance.

From August 2024 to July 2025, Canada’s late midlife adults — those between the ages of 55 and 64 — collectively worked more than 100 million hours per month in a wide range of occupations like retail, law, engineering and health care.

In addition, Statistics Canada estimates they’re contributing 552 million hours per year formally volunteering, such as in crisis centres and schools. Late-to-midlife adults across Canada spent another 1.342 million hours doing unpaid informal volunteering.

Across Canada, baby boomers spent 1,219,000 hours of their 1,342,000 informal volunteer work hours directly helping family members like a parent or a sibling. During the COVID-19 pandemic, a good number were adding another 20 caregiving hours to their work week, whether in their own home or in a family member’s.

Aging and caregiving

Both of us research population and individual aging. We have watched our own siblings feeling caught between supporting parents and supporting their children, deferring their own health needs in the process. This is no surprise, because about one in five midlife women are caring for a child and more than one-third are providing care for an adult.

A typical caregiver has been providing 35 hours of care per week for more than four years. Adding three more hours per week would put them at the tipping point for anger and depression or just giving up.

A middle-aged woman in a blue shirt standing between an older woman and teen — One in five midlife women is caring for a child and more than one-third are providing care for an adult.
(Shutterstock)

In today’s economy, most people work to earn a living, as opposed to funding leisure and future retirement.

For nearly half of Canada’s caregivers, full-time work isn’t optional. For six out of 10 of them, neither is figuring out how to find formal supports.

Research indicates four in 10 working caregivers worrying about paying their bills. It is not hard to fathom why many caregivers start their day tired and anxious.

Elongated caregiving is on the rise on the home front as well. More young adult children in their early 20s to mid-30s are living with a parent. With persons 55-64 years of age holding two-thirds of household wealth in Canada, young adults are more likely to save for the future under their parents’ roofs.

A recent study estimates that 18 per cent of young adults self-identify with high anxiety and another 13 per cent with depression while almost half worry about losing their jobs.

Canada’s late midlife adults were also significantly mentally distressed, more so than older Canadians, during the pandemic. They also felt judged and more alone than older Canadians. Family conflicts and breakdowns were a source of stress, which other researchers identified as a risk factor for family conflicts, with anxiety and even suicidal thinking.

Research tells us this demographic is unlikely to use community support services for things like meal preparation or fitness for themselves. Around one in four who needed health services had trouble accessing them. Others reported that they either did not get around to accessing services or wanted to go it alone. Research about how they stayed afloat during COVID-19 was lacking and remains largely absent.

How people look at aging

In his book about psychosocial development, Life Cycle Completed, psychologist Erik Erikson remarked that historic change has the power to make people stop and rethink what old age looks like.

Across 20 countries, at age 60, health satisfaction has had a great deal to do with how people see themselves aging.

Before COVID-19, we designed a study that surveyed more than 500 Canadians in their 50s. They were feeling most pessimistic about aging physically, including their state of health. When it came to loss, what resonated most was difficulty making friends and seeing “old age” as a depressing time.

Two women preparing food in a kitchen — A typical caregiver has been providing 35 hours of care per week.
(Shutterstock)

For these 50-somethings, being caught between helping younger generations and tending to their own growth was detrimental to self-confidence. Making time for activities that help people learn about and see good in themselves is time well spent.

In the aftermath of COVID-19, late midlife adults are looking at an uncertain future. Statistics tell us that they currently anticipate poor health as early as age 71, and their own demise around age 81.

Recent surveys further reveal they’re juggling an average of $300K in debt and are worried about household essentials, with with one in three also unprepared for the soaring cost of living, particularly for basic expenses and if already living paycheque to paycheque. Some even link historic shifts in co-residing young adults with older adults’ increasing debt loads.

Meanwhile, federal funding priorities focus on programs for youth and on raising potential midlife caregivers’ awareness of older people’s support needs.

Late midlife adults represent one of our nation’s major resources, given the socioeconomic and health-related roles they play as caregivers to young and old. But resources can become depleted: they need care, respect and sensitivity themselves in order to continue in those roles.

It’s time to ask late midlife Canadians about the burdens they’re carrying, if the load is becoming too heavy, and how they are managing the load. This is a conversation well worth having.

Gail Low receives funding from the RTOERO Foundation, University of Alberta, and MacEwan University. She works for MacEwan University and volunteers for the Gateway Association.

Gloria Gutman is Professor Emerita at Simon Fraser University. She is a Past-president of the International Association of Gerontology and Geriatrics, Canadadian Association on Gerontology, and International Network for Prevention of Elder Abuse.

– ref. Midlife adults are overextended with multiple roles – https://theconversation.com/midlife-adults-are-overextended-with-multiple-roles-246886