At a more local level, in the UK the public sector has been forced into a rapid period of adaptation and rationalisation in the light of a financial crisis that was not widely foreseen. Stewart Clegg’s study of bureaucracy (see box out, p. 21) is thus highly pertinent at a time of spending cuts. Public sector bodies are being asked to imagine new ways of delivering their valuable functions, to operate more efficiently and flexibly in the face of fast-changing demographics and reduced budgets. One bureaucracy that has come under particular scrutiny in recent years is children’s social services. To develop new research in this vital area, Clegg forged links with Durham’s Business School to collaborate on a research application to study Organizational Change in Children’s Social Services.


Mirroring the broader developments in the public sector, the institution of the university is also involved in a process of change and reform. The question of what role universities can and should play in public life is a lively one at present. As the endeavours outlined in this Report show, the IAS demonstrates the value of thinking about broad themes from a variety of disciplinary perspectives. In this spirit, asserting the value of the humanities


alongside – or even as part of – the sciences, Mikhail Epstein declared a new manifesto for ‘How the Humanities Can Transform the World.’ Through presenting seventeen seminar papers, and through numerous conversations, he engaged in a public debate about the role the humanities can play within society and within the university. A formal outcome of this debate came in his Insightspaper, which took the form of a dialogue with the IAS Fellow and novelist, Andrew Crumey.


Turning from society to science, one of the benefits of an IAS Fellowship is that it allows scientists to step back from day-to-day life in the laboratory, and engage in projects that may initially seem speculative, but can turn out to have a major impact. Martin S. Banks did just this as he worked with Gordon Love from Durham’s Biophysical Sciences Institute to build a new device to allow us to view 3D images in a more comfortable and less tiring way than at present. In the near future, 3D televisions and games devices will find a place in every home. It is not surprising, therefore, that a number of multinational media companies have expressed an interest in using these insights.


Mikhail Epstein’s lecture on ‘The Future of the Humanities’ can be downloaded from: www.durham.ac.uk/ias/events/fellowslectures201011/epstein/


Visions


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