Politics

A work exploding the myths surrounding so-called race riots wins David Gadd's enthusiastic approval

In the UK, the gulf between the political and the academic worlds seems all-but unbreachable while Americans flit easily between lecture halls and halls of power. Here Matthew Reisz examines why Whitehall seems so inhospitable to scholars, while overleaf Jon Marcus looks at why Washington is so accommodating

In America, it is common for academics to play a prominent political role. Jon Marcus reports

Fred Inglis is moved by a meditation on loss that transforms into an unforgettable study of America's soul

The role of class in the American democratic process can surprise, writes Richard Rose

Anthony Glees attacks university management as he heads to private sector, writes Melanie Newman

British author says 'kneejerk' censorship could put off overseas researchers. John Gill reports

Twenty years ago, Paul Kennedy provoked intense debate with his claims about the decline of US power. Huw Richards meets a man still unafraid of tackling the grand strategies of empire and war

A fortnightly series in which academics step outside their area of expertise. Terence Kealey reveals how hypocrisy, violence and torture in the America of George Washington have helped create the US of George Bush

Joseph S. Nye is part of a long line of US academics who have helped shape foreign policy. A former Clinton adviser, now in the Obama camp, he tells Huw Richards how America can restore its tattered reputation in the world

Howard Davies on a call for the citizenry to increase their level of involvement in democracy

Steve Tsang praises essential reading on China's troubled history with the Olympic Games