Very serious people say the challenge is to figure out which 1-3 oversight investigations to prioritize with limited staff. Every year since Watergate, the House and Senate have voted not to increase oversight capacity. Why is it so hard to think about changing our institutions to meet the moment?

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Coming out next year - "The Problem Factory", a sort of quasi sequel focusing on why it's hard to build things

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The Trust is thrilled to announce the 2026 Philip Leverhulme Prize winners. Congratulations to this year’s cohort. Thirty extraordinary researchers from across a range of disciplines: www.leverhulme.ac.uk/news/2026PLP

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Not convinced by the claim that the UK’s underinvestment can be entirely explained by excess regulation.

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Academia increasingly reminds me of Joseph Tainter's Collapse of Complex Societies. Universities grow increasingly complex to solve problems created by their own, or funders', bureaucratic machine. Ethical permits, security assessments, data management plans, work plans, heavy grant applications.

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