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Philip Seargeantr

Senior Lecturer in Applied Linguistics, The Open University

Philip Seargeant is a Senior Lecturer in Applied Linguistics at the Open University. He has published extensively on topics from language and social media, to English around the world, to language and creativity.

His publications include 'The idea of English in Japan' (2009), 'Exploring World Englishes' (2012), and 'From Language to Creative Writing' (with Bill Greenwell, 2013), and the edited collections 'English in Japan in the Era of Globalization' (2011, Palgrave Macmillan), 'English in the World: history, diversity, change' (with Joan Swann, 2012), 'English and development' (with Elizabeth J. Erling, 2013), 'Futures for English Studies' (with Ann Hewings and Lynda Prescott, 2016), and 'Creativity in language: From everyday style to verbal art' (with Zsofia Demjen, 2016).

How AI threatens free speech – and what must be done about it

Jan 19, 2024 10:08 am UTC| Insights & Views Technology

Headlines about the threats of artificial intelligence (AI) tend to be full of killer robots, or fears that when theyre not on killing sprees, these same robots will be hoovering up human jobs. But a serious danger which...

From Z to Q: when letters become political symbols

Mar 23, 2022 13:38 pm UTC| Politics

Painted on the side of tanks and emblazoned on the shirt of Russian gymnast Ivan Kuliak, the letter Z has come to represent support for Russias invasion of Ukraine. It has even been incorporated into the spelling of place...

The real reason you can't quit Facebook? Maybe it's because you can judge your friends

Jul 12, 2017 19:02 pm UTC| Technology

Facebook recently announced that it now has over 2 billion monthly users. This makes its population larger than that of China, the US, Mexico and Japan combined. Its popularity, and with it the influence it has in society,...

Truthiness and alternative facts: meaning is a moveable feast

Jan 28, 2017 06:18 am UTC| Insights & Views Politics

Sales of George Orwells Nineteen Eighty-Four have apparently surged since Kellyanne Conway introduced the phrase alternative facts into public discourse. For many, the term is reminiscent of Orwells dystopian Newspeak,...

Why Tolkien's fantastic imaginary languages have had more impact than Esperanto

Jan 11, 2017 17:44 pm UTC| Life

A hundred years ago this month, JRR Tolkien began writing The Fall of Gondolin while on medical leave from the war. This is the first story in what would become his legendarium the mythology that underpins The Lord of the...

US Election Series

The filter bubble isn't just Facebook's fault -- it's yours

Dec 06, 2016 07:43 am UTC| Technology Politics

Following the shock results of Brexit and the Trump victory, a lot of attention has focused on the role that Facebook might have played in creating online political ghettos in which false news can easily spread. Facebook...

Economy

Gold Prices Edge Higher as Markets Await Key U.S. PCE Inflation Data

Gold prices moved higher in Asian trading on Friday, supported by a weakening U.S. dollar and strong expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates at its upcoming December 910 meeting. Spot gold rose 0.5%...

Asia’s IPO Market Set for Strong Growth as China and India Drive Investor Diversification

Asias equity capital markets are poised for another strong year as a surge of high-profile IPOs from China and India attracts global investors seeking diversification beyond U.S. assets. In 2025, Asian ECM...

Spain’s Industrial Output Records Steady Growth in October Amid Revised September Figures

Spains industrial sector posted a moderate yet encouraging rise in October, with industrial output increasing 1.2% compared to the same month last year, according to new data released by the National Statistics Institute...

European Stocks Rise as Markets Await Key U.S. Inflation Data

European stock markets edged higher on Friday as investors looked ahead to the delayed release of the Federal Reserves preferred inflation metric, a key indicator ahead of next weeks policy meeting. By early European...

European Oil & Gas Stocks Face 2026 With Cautious Outlook Amid Valuation Pressure

European oil and gas equities are entering 2026 on a more cautious footing as J.P. Morgans latest EU Oils Outlook highlights tightening valuations and growing concerns over a projected global oil oversupply. Despite Brent...

Politics

Taiwan Opposition Criticizes Plan to Block Chinese App Rednote Over Security Concerns

Taiwans political landscape heated up after the government announced a plan to suspend access to the Chinese social media platform Rednoteknown as Xiaohongshufor one year. The interior ministry said the proposed ban stems...

China’s Expanding Maritime Military Presence Alarms Taiwan and Japan

Taiwan and Japan expressed growing concern on Friday over Chinas expanding military activity across East Asian waters, following a Reuters report revealing Beijings largest maritime deployment to date. According to...

Honduras Election Turmoil Intensifies as Nasralla Blames Trump for Shift in Results

Honduran presidential candidate Salvador Nasralla says last-minute interference by former U.S. President Donald Trump undermined his chances in the countrys tightly contested election. Speaking with Reuters, Nasralla, a...

Australia and Japan Strengthen Defence Cooperation Amid Rising Regional Tensions

Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles will travel to Japan on Saturday for high-level defence talks with his counterpart, Shinjiro Koizumi, as both nations deepen security cooperation in response to growing regional...

U.S. Justice Department Orders Intensified Probe Into Antifa and Domestic Extremist Groups

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi has directed federal law enforcement agencies to significantly ramp up investigations into the antifa movement and other groups deemed potential domestic extremist threats, according to an...

Science

Senate Sets December 8 Vote on Trump’s NASA Nominee Jared Isaacman

The U.S. Senate Commerce Committee announced it will vote on December 8 on President Donald Trumps renewed nomination of private astronaut and tech entrepreneur Jared Isaacman to lead NASA. Isaacman, known for his...

NASA Cuts Boeing Starliner Missions as SpaceX Pulls Ahead

NASA has significantly scaled back Boeings Starliner program after years of technical issues and delays, announcing that the next Starliner mission to the International Space Station (ISS) will fly without astronauts. The...

Blue Origin’s New Glenn Achieves Breakthrough Success With First NASA Mission

Blue Origins massive New Glenn rocket marked a major milestone as it completed its first mission for paying customers, sending two NASA satellites toward Mars and successfully landing its reusable booster at sea. The...

Cogent Biosciences Soars 120% on Breakthrough Phase 3 Results for Bezuclastinib in GIST Treatment

Cogent Biosciences (NASDAQ: COGT) shares skyrocketed over 120% after the biotech company announced groundbreaking results from its Phase 3 PEAK trial evaluating bezuclastinib in combination with sunitinib for patients with...

Trump and Merck KGaA Partner to Slash IVF Drug Costs and Expand Fertility Coverage

U.S. President Donald Trump and German pharmaceutical company Merck KGaA have announced a groundbreaking deal aimed at lowering the cost of in-vitro fertilization (IVF) treatments while boosting access to fertility care in...

Technology

EU Prepares Antitrust Probe Into Meta’s AI Integration on WhatsApp

The European Commission is reportedly preparing to launch a new antitrust investigation into Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ: META) over the companys recent rollout of artificial intelligence features within WhatsApp....

Sam Altman Reportedly Explored Funding for Rocket Venture in Potential Challenge to SpaceX

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman reportedly explored raising significant capital to acquire or partner with a rocket company, a move that could have created direct competition with Elon Musks SpaceX. According to a report from the...

Wikipedia Pushes for AI Licensing Deals as Jimmy Wales Calls for Fair Compensation

Wikipedia is seeking additional licensing deals with major technology companies to address the growing financial burden caused by artificial intelligence firms heavily scraping its platform, according to co-founder Jimmy...

Firelight Launches as First XRP Staking Platform on Flare, Introduces DeFi Cover Feature

Firelight reaches 25M XRP deposit cap within hours of launch; ushers in a new era for decentralized XRP staking. A new XRP staking platform, Firelight, has officially launched on the Flare blockchain, marking the first...

OpenAI Moves to Acquire Neptune as It Expands AI Training Capabilities

OpenAI has confirmed plans to acquire Neptune, a startup known for its advanced tools that help companies track, monitor, and optimize AI model training workflows. Although the company did not release the financial details...