NEW✨ To mark a new exhibition @lselibrary.bsky.social, Combining Efforts: 200 Years of Trade Unions, co-curator Chelsea Collison picks out and reflects on seven fascinating items on display that illuminate the history of Britain's unions. @londonmetuni.bsky.social @tuc.org.uk

An #LLM like #ChatGPT doesn’t think like a human, so why does it speak like one? It may try to imitate human intelligence, but George Gaskell @lsemethodology.bsky.social highlights the limits of ChatGPT’s conversational ethics, common sense and cultural sensitivity on @lseimpactblog.bsky.social.

#China’s ties with Iraqi #Kurdistan are deliberately “decaf”: strong in trade, culture & education, but carefully avoiding politics, security or recognition. Aziz Sardar explains why on the China Dialogues Blog @lseideas.bsky.social. Read more 👉 blogs.lse.ac.uk/cff/2025/09/...

“The United States is now a competitive authoritarian system.” In an interview with @lseeuroppblog.bsky.social's editor Stuart Brown, @brianklaas.bsky.social discusses #DonaldTrump’s impact on American and global democracy.

Analysing submissions to 60 Institute of Physics journals, @jamesmzd.bsky.social & Misha Teplitskiy find that #PeerReviewers tend to favour submissions from their own countries, meaning authors from countries with few reviewers face a major structural barrier. @lseimpactblog.bsky.social

Our latest newsletter is out today 📬 Read for insights into Trump and the tech future of the US, the danger of "new capitalism", the rise of conspiracy theories, gendered AI bias in healthcare, and more. 👉 mailchi.mp/lse/lse-blog... Subscribe 👉 lse.us21.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=...

In early September, President #Trump issued an executive order directing that the US Department of Defense would again be known as the “Department of War”. The move is mostly political theatre, writes Jonny Hall @lseir.bsky.social on @lseusablog.bsky.social.

Online #ConspiracyTheories can spread rapidly across the world. Yet as Zichen (Jess) Hu @lsemedia.bsky.social writes, the way conspiracy narratives are interpreted and reframed in different contexts reflects a fractured global order @lseeuroppblog.bsky.social

"The biggest danger for universities comes from autocrats, wannabe autocrats, anti-scientists & pseudoscientists." Katrin Kinzelbach, principal investigator of the #AcademicFreedom Index, speaks the current state of academic freedom & the threats it faces in an interview on the LSE #HigherEd blog.

Wealthy #donors are increasingly funding political #campaigns, eroding the public’s trust in the political process. The #UK government should cap individual donations & campaign spending by political parties, argues @rosewhiff.bsky.social @transparencyuk.bsky.social on @lsepoliticsblog.bsky.social

The richest capitalists & richest workers are increasingly the same people, writes @brankomilan.bsky.social @stone-lis.bsky.social @lseinequalities.bsky.social. Why should we care? Because this new elite is resistant to shocks in labour & capital markets & thus able to hold its position at the top.

What do #researchers acknowledge #ChatGPT for in their papers? Publishers increasingly require, and academics are increasingly willing to credit, the role played by #LLMs in their papers. But a significant amount of this activity also goes unreported. Kayvan Kousha for @lseimpactblog.bsky.social

Seven CEOs at #Trump’s #AI dinner indicated the concentration of power in America’s tech destiny. Can such a narrow foundation support a robust technological future? Mairéad Pratschke @lsedatascience.bsky.social on @lsebr.bsky.social 👇

"I’m not sure there is a single country in Europe that is resistant to the rise of the far right.” @mlorimer.bsky.social @lse-ei.bsky.social spoke to @jobale.bsky.social about Europe's radical right. Read more @lseeuroppblog.bsky.social 👇

Is #DeepTech entrepreneurship a viable response to today’s grand challenges? @benjamincabanes.bsky.social @minesparis-psl.bsky.social for @lsebr.bsky.social.

To celebrate East and Southeast Asian Heritage Month, @lsereviewofbooks.bsky.social has curated a #ReadingList of twelve must-read books by ESEA authors and that share ESEA stories, recommended by the LSE community 📚🔖 @eseaauthors.bsky.social

New research by Sam Rickman @cpeclse.bsky.social finds that #AI tools (LLMs) can downplay #women’s #health needs compared to men’s in ways that could exacerbate #inequality. @lseinequalities.bsky.social

#Communism in the #SovietUnion was no more successful at reducing #inequality than other regimes, in Europe and beyond. @jcosta-font.bsky.social @lsehealthpolicy.bsky.social, Anna Nicińska & Melcior Roig-Rosello for @lseeuroppblog.bsky.social 👇

What are #community #banks, and how are they emerging as critical enablers of the #NetZero transition? Nse Udohaya explains on @lsebr.bsky.social

"Brexit made it harder to manage unauthorized migration – a loss of access to European databases and the disappearance of returns agreements." @alanmanning4.bsky.social (LSE Economics) looks at problem's #Reform UK's proposed immigration policy @lsepoliticsblog.bsky.social.

"What post-materialism captured was not the end of class, but a change in the way class conflict is expressed through politics." @joan-c-williams.bsky.social on class, status-signalling and the rise and the far right for @lseinequalities.bsky.social. @eacentersf.bsky.social @uclawsf.bsky.social

Despite a concerning rise in vaccine-preventable diseases like measles in the #US, RFK Jr's reframing of #healthcare as an issue of personal empowerment rather than public responsibility has populist appeal. Daniele Sudsataya & Manna Mostaghim @lsehealthpolicy.bsky.social @lseusablog.bsky.social

Photo essays, podcasts, documentaries & other alt-research outputs are on the rise. But communities in crisis who are the subject of such projects can feel over-researched and under-served. Is it time to re-evaluate the ethics of alt-research? @birte-vogel.bsky.social @lseimpactblog.bsky.social

Central to #DonaldTrump’s political agenda is an obsession with the reach and influence of cultural institutions. His attacks on them are part of a struggle over who is central and who is peripheral in American society – @mlamont.bsky.social @harvard.edu for @lseinequalities.bsky.social

With record Channel crossings and protests outside asylum hotels this summer, small boat migration is at the centre of UK politics. Accounting for <2 per cent of total migrant inflows, it has an outsized impact on attitudes to #immigration. @apuravbhatiya.bsky.social @lsepoliticsblog.bsky.social

Many #gulf states remain deeply reliant on the production, consumption & export of hydrocarbons, yet have set ambitious strategies to transition to #NetZero by 2060. Can they achieve it? Jean El Achkar & Salem Alhajraf consider this question on the @lsemiddleeast.bsky.social blog.

Come and work with us! It's a brilliant team, doing brilliant things for social science research, with lots of exciting plans on the horizon.

What determines the success or failure of #industrial #policies in Europe? They will fail if they go against the grain of institutions and if they do not build on existing industrial strengths – Angela Garcia Calvo and Bob Hancké @lse-ei.bsky.social for @lseeuroppblog.bsky.social.

Could you be the next Managing Editor of LSE Business Review @lsebr.bsky.social? Applications for the position (part-time, 28 hrs/week) are open, closing at 23:59 tomorrow 9 September. Find the the job spec and information on how to apply below. jobs.lse.ac.uk/Vacancies/W/...

Charging #VAT on the UK's #PrivateSchools is a mostly symbolic move by the Labour Government: their mission of “smashing the class ceiling” needs to target elite university admissions. @aaronreeves.bsky.social & @samfriedman.bsky.social @lsesociology.bsky.social for @lsepoliticsblog.bsky.social

Can we measure #trust in scientific #publications? @jacoates.bsky.social @ripplingideas.bsky.social offers a model for assessing the trustworthiness of #research on @lseimpactblog.bsky.social.

Until recently, the #UK had to adapt to a #climate in which cold weather is a risk to life, #health & productivity. But it's now hot weather that produces adverse effects & risks, write @shourodasgupta.bsky.social @profejzrobinson.bsky.social @granthamlse.bsky.social on @lsepoliticsblog.bsky.social

Senior HR managers are working on creating an AI policy, While practitioners in their firms are already using AI daily. Middle managers are worried.

How is the far right shaping Europe's future? Read our latest newsletter for insights on this question and more, from the crisis in US higher ed to the mess of UK public finances and the limits of GDP as a measure. Read it here 👉 mailchi.mp/lse/lse-blog... Subscribe 👉 eepurl.com/iwXSu-/

Who would want to be #RachelReeves this autumn? As #borrowing costs soar, the pound falters and #inflation persists, the UK Chancellor faces an increasingly tough challenge to stabilise the UK’s public #finances. @IainBeggLSE @lse-ei.bsky.social on @lsebr.bsky.social.

Despite what a recent article in The Atlantic says, #Sudan is not locked in a war about nothing, argues Cathy Wilcock @sheffielduni.bsky.social on @africaatlse.bsky.social. The civil war, now in its third year, only gains in complexity the longer it goes on. Read 👉 blogs.lse.ac.uk/africaatlse/...

"I’m not sure there is a single country in Europe that is resistant to the rise of the far right.” @mlorimer.bsky.social @lse-ei.bsky.social spoke to @jobale.bsky.social about Europe's radical right. Read more @lseeuroppblog.bsky.social 👇

What situations warrant #humanitarian #intervention, and does it always help those it aims to protect? The Ethics of Humanitarian Intervention by Jonathan Parry @lsephilosophy.bsky.social examines the moral complexities, high stakes and consequences involved @lsereviewofbooks.bsky.social.

Would you like to work at LSE Blogs? We are #hiring for a new Managing Editor of LSE Business Review @lsebr.bsky.social. Applications are open now until Tuesday 9 September – find details and apply below. #JobOpportunity #Business #Editing

"Unlike countries that are used to high temperatures, the UK isn’t set up for the new climate reality." Read the latest LSE blog post from GSoS Acting Dean, @profejzrobinson.bsky.social, and @shourodasgupta.bsky.social, on workers' health and climate change ⬇️ @lseblogs.bsky.social

The #UK Government would like to get more people who are currently on #disability benefits back to #work. But @catherinehale.bsky.social argues that the current labour market does not accommodate disabled people to return to work. Flex Plus jobs could be a way forward @lsepoliticsblog.bsky.social.

#Israel & #Turkey are reshaping #Syria into fragmented zones of influence, using proxy alliances & minority protection narratives to take control. This affects not only Syrians, but could be copied elsewhere in the region @sasofos.bsky.social @sfuhumanities.bsky.social @lsemiddleeast.bsky.social.

In June, #Trump introduced new measures to restrict the entry of #InternationalStudents to the US. These policies raise questions about academic mobility, international collaboration and whether US #HigherEd can sustain its global reputation @lseusablog.bsky.social. blogs.lse.ac.uk/usappblog/20...

#NATO’s move to increase #defence #spending presents a daunting challenge for many European governments who already exceed the 60% #debt benchmark. Iain Begg @lse-ei.bsky.social proposes a “coalition of the borrowing” that would allow countries to raise debt collectively @lseeuroppblog.bsky.social

"The humanitarian principles from 1965 have worked well enough but perhaps they are from a bygone age." Hugo Slim on the history of #humanitarian #reset: major overhauls of the system often in response to changes in funding or political environment or major failures. @duncangreenlse.bsky.social

The #Trump administration cast itself as the #crypto capital of the world. Where do these disparate visions come from? On @lsebr.bsky.social Taku Kinai finds ideological parallels in the British #currency controversies of the 19th century. Read more 👉 blogs.lse.ac.uk/businessrevi...

US policy under #Trump is upending global #trade patterns. But regional trade can help Africa fill the gap and safeguard the continent against future shocks, writes Kasper Vrolijk on @africaatlse.bsky.social. Read more 👉 blogs.lse.ac.uk/africaatlse/...

In an age of social media, contacting political candidates should be easy. Yet Edward de Quay @granthamlse.bsky.social @lsepoliticsblog.bsky.social finds only 1 in 4 candidates in the recent local #elections provided a campaign email. Without ways for voters to ask questions, #democracy suffers.

Charting #Bangladesh’s remarkable progress on a range of social indicators since the 1970s, Naila Kabeer @lseid.bsky.social draws on her book, Renegotiating Patriarchy @lsepress.bsky.social to highlight the key role #women’s agency played in the nation's development @lseinequalities.bsky.social.

Would you like to work at LSE Blogs? We are #hiring for a new Managing Editor of LSE Business Review @lsebr.bsky.social. Applications are open now until Tuesday 9 September – find details and apply below. #JobOpportunity #Business #Editing