The British Academy is the UK’s national academy for the humanities and social sciences. We mobilise these disciplines to understand the world and shape a brighter future.
From artificial intelligence to climate change, from building prosperity to improving well-being – today’s complex challenges can only be resolved by deepening our insight into people, cultures and societies.
We invest in researchers and projects across the UK and overseas, engage the public with fresh thinking and debates, and bring together scholars, government, business and civil society to influence policy for...
Statistics are vital in helping us tell stories – we see them in the papers, on social media, and we hear them used in everyday conversation - and yet in this era of fake news we doubt them more than ever. In his timely new book 'How to Make the World Add Up', Tim Harford navigates a world of...
Published 10/01/20
The course of human history has been shaped by war, disease and natural disaster. Whether the Black Death, world wars or COVID-19, these crises have sent shockwaves across the globe, with far-reaching social, political and economic consequences. In this event, distinguished historian Margaret...
Published 08/21/20
Governments across the world are using behavioural ‘nudges’ to help slow the spread of coronavirus: wash your hands, don’t touch your face, stay at home. Based on an idea popularised by Cass Sunstein and Richard Thaler, nudge theory encourages us to do the “right thing” by making the desired...
Published 08/21/20