Archives / 2010 / March

Quotation of the Week 10

“People who make history know nothing about history. You can see that in the sort of history they make.” (G.K. Chesterton, in J.A. Gere and John Sparow (eds.), Goeffrey Madan’s Notebooks, 1981) »

Ancient History Competition 16

As you probably know, these days I am organising the Mediterranean Identities: Formation and Transformation conference in the University of Leicester, which you can also follow in my twitter account. Yesterday, one of our delegates, Norberto, asked me to set a question to the followers of this blog. I think you will find it most interesting! Who was the first Roman Imperator to die in a war against Parthia? »

Quotation of the Week 9

“History is not what you thought. It is what you can remember” (W.C. Sellar and R.J. Yeatman, 1066 and All That, 1930) »

Ancient History Competition 15

Manolis will not grace us today with a new quiz; so, I decided to ask a Roman question. Which Roman emperor was born in North Africa and died in Britain? »

Series of Ancient World documentaries on More 4

Starting on Weds 24th at 9pm on More 4 they show a seven week season of Ancient World films. The series starts with a new documentary about the neglected culture of Alexandria. As part of the documentary they explore the life of the pagan philosopher Hypatia, who met a terrible end when she was lynched for her beliefs in the city. All in all this is sixteen hours of in-depth analysis of antiquity, with new material from the redeveloped Ashmolean Museum in Oxford. »

The Upgrading (from MPhil to PhD)

My friend Dora is a Distance Learning student in our School at the University of Leicester; writing her PhD on Hellenistic Gymnasia. Today is her upgrading from MPhil to PhD. She will meet the committee around 10, when, hopefully, they will acknowledge her superior knowledge of the Hellenistic period and her innovative ideas on the development of the Institution of Gymnasia. I am confident that she will pass with flying colours. Dora’s self confidence, on the other hand, is non existent. Since m... »

Quotation of the Week 8

“Histories have previously been written with the object of exalting their authors. The object of this History is to console the reader. No other history does this.” (W.C. Sellar and R.J. Yeatman, 1066 and All That, 1930) »

Ancient History Competition 14

How do you measure intelligence in antiquity? Answer the following quiz. Ancient Athenians were very clever. However, just once, they have been tricked into thinking that a specific Sicilian town was rich. The fact was that the town was very poor. Its inhabitants presented to the Athenians golden cups and bowls, which did not really belong to them. Which town was it? »

How to Overcome Internet Procrastination Habits

I have always been prone to procrastination but, since I started blogging, the problem increased ten-fold. So, in an attempt to recover from my addiction, I would like to admit publicly that I have been abusing the use of social media on a daily basis! I find blogging, twittering and checking out my facebook account a source of excitement. I absolutely love reading the blogs of my peers. In fact, I get a kick out of writing down my own comments, while waiting for the well deserved answer. Over t... »

How to Publish your First Academic Book

So, you submitted your PhD successfully and you received the coveted title. You also managed to get a part time teaching job, or a full time job for which you get paid only at a part time rate. Your ex supervisor, your friends, your relatives, your new colleagues, they all have very high expectations of you. They are looking forward to reading your first monograph. On the other hand, you are too aware of the difficulties of satisfying them. It is true that there are too many books out there. Eve... »

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