1. More Intelligent Life – The Perils of Popularising Science

[To be accurate, or to simplify to the point of distraction?  This entertaining article is a joy to read.  And you’ve got to love a piece of writing that ends:

“an unfortunate fact of life in disciplines where so little is known with any certainty: often the rewards for winning arguments are much greater than the rewards for being right.”]

2. Write to Done – with the legendary man who brings us Zen Habits

[Leo Babauta does it again.  As well as announcing a book deal, Leo has started a new blog about “the craft and the art of writing”.  I suggest you check out these current articles, as they may help get you in the mood for writing those essays:

Edit to Done: Revision and the Art of Being Concise

How to Write First Thing in the Morning

10 Steps to Create the Habit of Writing

How to Write Without Distractions

The very best of luck to Leo in all his ventures.]

3. Independent {Music} – Class of 2008

[25 indie acts looking likely to make it big (or bigger) very soon.  I’m ashamed I only knew 11 out of the 25 artists.  Anyway, keep an eye out for gigs near you while they’re getting established.]

4. BBC News – Student bursaries ‘go unclaimed’

[Madness.  “…the current system is failing to deliver…”]

5. Lifehack.org – The Ultimate Student Resource List

[Clearly one to bookmark, this massive collection contains free applications, online tools, websites for students (including this one…shucks!), previous student related articles from Lifehack, and online research resources.]

6. Britannica Blog – How to Encyclopediate

[Infinity isn’t welcome in an encyclopedia…]

1. Mindful Ink – Me, Me, Me: Find Your Voice and Make it Shout

Self-promotion time!  I wrote a guest post for Gideon’s wonderful blog, Mindful Ink.  A lot of development and productivity can come directly from you.  It’s time to see if you can unearth that inner-goodness!

2. Happy Brain Storming – How to figure people out

One huge article that outlines different character traits in people and how you can read them to your advantage. All traits, good and bad, make a difference to the way we see the world. In tapping into what makes a person tick, a lot more can be discovered. I found this link through Lifehacker.

3. College Students Rule! – 7 Ways To Recover From Your First “F” This Semester

Fantastic advice to get you back on track if you ever get a bad grade. You owe it to yourself to pick yourself up, be honest, and do all you can to make sure it doesn’t happen again. Now, be truthful, were you really trying your best…?

4. Tal Ben-Shahar – Positive Psychology

Tal Ben-Shahar has been referred to as the bridge between self-help books and academia.  Check out some of his tips and articles here.

5. Fruitful Time – How to Concentrate

More tips on closing all distractions out of your mind.

6. Education Guardian Weekly – Tara Brabazon: Bowling Google a googly

Fascinating interview.  It’s clear that Google is used more than scholarly textbooks by some students, but I don’t know to what extent this happens.  I still see people using the library and studying with textbooks, but maybe a lot of extended research is being lost to simple searches over the Internet.

I like some of the ideas Tara Brabazon is using, and I understand why she’s championing them.  However, in asking students to exclusively use the references she has chosen, that can be just as stifling as only using info from Google.  Either way, the transition between school/college and uni is a strange one that Brabazon is looking to tackle, and I think she’s doing a good job.

7. Ian’s Messy Desk – 22 Annoying Things to do in an Elevator

This caught me as very funny. I went back to it later and still found it funny. I also noticed a few things that I’d done before. Like 5. And 7. And 8. And 9. And…well, quite a lot of them. I’m just a big kid really.

8. Telegraph – How safe are your daily supplements?

Everything seems to be good one day, terrible the next. No wonder we end up making our own decisions on so many things! I take vitamin and mineral supplements (point 9 in my Healthy Hits post), and I’m aware that studies are just as likely to question their benefits, but I’m going to stick with them for now.  Anyway, here’s another article for you to consider…

9. University of Nottingham – U-Now Open Courseware

Yay! More free learning tools. There seems to be more out there with every new day that passes!

Just after I write about the definition of a university, along comes the Times Higher Education and has a big feature article and leader along those lines.  I’ve not read it yet, but I’m looking forward to doing so later…it’s a good stop press EduLink, which is why I’m a little later delivering the post…

Times Higher Education – Diversity Challenge

Times Higher Education – Leader: Cardinal lessons and virtues

[Here you go.  “What is a university?” discussed in a big way.  At least, I think that what it’s going to be about…At time of writing, I’ve not read it yet.  But I’m very much looking forward to.]

Student Help Forum – How to Enact Damage Control After a Classroom Catnap

[Some sound advice here.  If you go and fall asleep in lectures or – even worse – seminars, it’s time for a little bit of damage limitation.]

Lifehack.org – Tips and tricks for distraction free writing

[Why is everything out to distract us?  We even seem out to distract ourselves.  This article at the ever-helpful Lifehack will take some of those distractions away.  I especially like the idea of wearing headphones when people are around, even if you aren’t going to listen to any music.  You may still look for distractions yourself, but people are less likely to bother you if they think you’re in the middle of a particularly satisfying riff…]

JISC – ‘Google Generation’ is a myth, says new research

[My questions for you: Do you live an Internet life beyond Google and Wikipedia?  Are you impatient when searching for information?  Do you feel that searching skills should be taught on a regular basis?  Are you excited by new information resources, or is it just another annoying thing to remember?]

Achieve-IT! – 32 Disciplines & Psychological Stunts That Bring Optimism, Upgrade Visualization Skills and Make You Unstoppable

[If nothing on this list helps to motivate you more, I don’t know what will!]

Dumb Little Man – Keep Your Day Super Productive

[The article may begin, “As a freelancer, entrepreneur, or everyday office worker…”, but the tips here are totally relevant to students too.  Schedule time for social networking, limit your e-mail, plan your day…it’s all there.]

Education Guardian – How to be a student: The art of writing an essay

[Another of the Guardian’s ‘How to be a student’ column.  Lots of good, punchy advice here.  Even if you’ve heard it all before, it’s a good one to keep hold of so you can remind yourself each time you sit down to work on your essays.  Print it out, tack it up, use it!]

UPDATE: In all the fuss of the THE articles, I forgot one of the EduLinks I had noted.  Silly me.  Here it is:

Study Hacks – How to Edit Your Paper in Three Passes or Less

[Yes, I could wait until the next lot of EduLinks, but I don’t like to deprive you lot.  And if you’ve never edited your essays without asking the question, “Am I completely insane!?” you really need to read this and change your ways.  Quickly, before it’s too late!]

Asking the question “What is a university?” is similar to asking “What is a restaurant?”

You can give a vague answer, but it’s only tapping the surface.

On Wikipedia, the first paragraph on the word ‘Restaurant’ is:

“A restaurant is a retail establishment that serves prepared food to customers. Service is generally for eating on premises, though the term has been used to describe take-out establishments and food delivery services. The term covers many types of venues and a diversity of styles of cuisine and service.”

So the term is used loosely, it covers a number of situations, and it refers to many different types of food and service.

A university is similar. We know it’s a place of study for all types of Higher Education, but where do you go from there?

The basic concept is fine, but it’s such a wide-ranging term that you’d have difficulty getting much further without breaking into the specifics regarding individual universities.

So I guess the only good answer to “What is a university?” is a subjective one.  So let me ask…what is a university to you? What is your experience and how do you understand the concept to work best?