You’ve probably heard a lot about voice recognition in the news – maybe because someone has accidentally ordered 600 tins of spaghetti hoops through their Amazon Echo. Although it’s possible to entrust many aspects of your life to Alexa, there might be some unexpected consequences. In this week’s Thing, we’ll look specifically at how voiceRead More
23 Things
23 Things – #18: Focus
Over the last few months, we’ve seen the many ways in which technology can improve our lives as 21st-century researchers. Unfortunately, it also presents endless distractions, making it very difficult to actually get any work done. In this week’s Thing, we’ll explore some tools that help us stay focussed and meet those writing targets. AssessingRead More
23 Things – #17: Referencing
Bibliographic referencing certainly isn’t the most exciting part of academic research, but it’s absolutely vital. Although getting everything in the right format and order is unspeakably dull, there are many tools out there that will make your academic life much easier. You’ll need to invest a bit of time upfront, but you’ll be very gladRead More
23 Things – #16: Writing
If you’ve been distracted by the showcase of technology over the last 15 weeks, now’s the time to get on with some work. Although many apps provide hours of work displacement activities, some are actually designed to help us. Yes, really. In this week’s Thing, we’ll look at tools to help you write by boostingRead More
23 Things – #15: Google Maps
No doubt you’ve already used Google Maps for scampering around to conferences or finding the nearest coffee shop. But there’s so much more you can do with mapping technology. In this week’s Thing, we’ll look at some unusual applications, including time travel and museum visiting. We’ll also investigate how you can create your own onlineRead More
23 Things – #14: Wikipedia
A wiki (Hawaiian for ‘quick’) is a website or database developed collaboratively by a community of users, allowing anyone to add or edit the content. Wikipedia — the largest example of a wiki — is accessed by half a billion people each month, yet only around 136,000 actually contribute to the content. In this week’sRead More
23 Things – #13: Collaboration
While writing a thesis is, of course, an individual endeavour, a PhD also offers many opportunities to collaborate. You might join an editorial board, sit on a committee, or start a networking group. Thanks to a wealth of digital tools, you can pursue all of these activities without leaving your favourite chair. In this week’sRead More
23 Things – #12: Mobile Apps
There’s a good chance you’re reading this post on a mobile device. After all, the majority of webpages are now viewed on a smartphone or tablet. We can get easy access to information, services, and tools without the faff of lugging around a laptop. In this week’s Thing, we’ll explore mobile apps for researchers. Firstly,Read More
23 Things – #11: Screencasting
Over the last few weeks, we’ve explored various ways of creating original content on your computer. Hopefully, you’ve tried some of the recommended software and generated a few digital objects. The trouble with many of these tools is that they’re quite complicated and it’s easy to forget how to accomplish specific tasks. Fortunately, it’s simpleRead More
23 Things – #10: Copyright
Copyright isn’t a topic that’s likely to set your world on fire, but it’s impossible to avoid. Whether you’re a creator or a consumer of original content, you need to be aware of the issues. In this week’s Thing, we’re interested in how you can protect your work and avoid getting sued. We’ll start withRead More