Perspectives are essays that express our interests and point of view. Their topics range from the value of basic science to how to fund research to the culture of the Institute. Published in leading periodicals, they are shaping the national debate on how to organise discovery.

  • Talking is thinking

    Talking is thinking

    Talking engages robust muscles of thought—not least when mathematicians take their problems to the blackboard, argues Thomas Hodgkinson.

  • Let's talk about science

    Let's talk about science

    For its 225th birthday, our writer Thomas Hodgkinson hails the Royal Institution as proof of the vital importance of science communication.

  • Making waves

    Making waves

    A team including Oleksandr Gamayun has made the first mechanical metamaterial that transmits topological solitons in just one direction.

  • Science goes pro

    Professional sport has a lot to teach scientists about pushing the limits of human achievement—so why are we still content to be amateurs?

  • THE TIMES

    The language of maths

    Tom Whipple of The Times explains how, thanks to our Arnold and Landau Fellowships, mathematicians divided by war find a common denominator.

  • TROITSKY VARIANT

    Science without borders

    Our Arnold and Landau Fellowships continue a tradition of contact and collaboration between British and Russian scientists dating back to Newton.

  • The times

    The beautiful game

    The beautiful game of mathematics, accelerating discovery by seeing patterns among the patterns, deserves a Nobel prize all of its own.

  • The times

    Landau lives on

    Creating Fellowships for scientists affected by the war in Ukraine will not only help them, it will also be a major boost for British science.

  • THE DAILY TELEGRAPH

    History repeats itself

    The Royal Institution supported scientists fleeing 1930s authoritarianism. Now, thanks to our Arnold Fellowships, history repeats itself.

  • THE DAILY TELEGRAPH

    From Russia with math

    History suggests our new posts for physicists and mathematicians from Russia, Ukraine and Belarus will have an enduring impact on UK science.

  • Designing web design

    To mark our Webby nomination, we describe the design principles behind our website and how they evolved in tandem with the Institute itself.

  • THE SPECTATOR

    Why we must boldly go

    The human impulse to look beyond the horizon, “to boldly go where no man has gone before”, leads us to the most transformative discoveries.

  • THE TIMES

    23 mathematical challenges

    To mark the launch of ARIA, which aims to tackle the toughest problems, we made a list of the top 23 mathematical challenges of our time.

  • THE DAILY TELEGRAPH

    The intelligent organisation

    Showing up for work makes organisations more intelligent, because it let’s workers switch between focus and interaction in an unplanned way.

  • THE SPECTATOR

    Britain’s version of DARPA

    As the government creates its Advanced Research and Invention Agency, it could learn from the exceptional history of the Royal Institution.

  • Move to the Royal Institution

    The London Institute has moved into the iconic Royal Institution, where it will expand its programme of curiosity-driven theoretical science.

  • SCIENCE IN PARLIAMENT

    Independent science

    Supporting non-university research institutes with core funding will finally give aspiring researchers an alternative to a university job.

  • THE SPECTATOR

    Roger Penrose’s singular mind

    Physicist Roger Penrose discusses the art of science, AI hype and links between playfulness and profundity in an interview with Thomas Fink.

  • the guardian

    The value of theory

    From Newton to Maxwell to Penrose, Britain has always excelled at theoretical science—so why doesn't the government do more to support it?

  • LIMS-Bit.Bio partnership

    The cell coding company Bit.Bio has joined forces with the London Institute on their moonshot mission to programme every human cell type.

  • THE SPECTATOR

    Back to basic science

    Basic science—the kind done without consideration of its usefulness—leads to the biggest breakthroughs, which is why we need to protect it.

  • open access government

    Basic science after Brexit

    EU funding favours applied research over basic science, but Brexit is a chance to redress the bias and protect curiosity-driven research.

  • TIMES HIGHER EDUCATION

    A new kind of science

    More independent research centres would provide an alternative to the university model of research, where teaching is bolted to science.