Background

Roles and Responsibilities

School Director of Excellence in Learning and Teaching (2014-17; 2020-21)
Director of Undergraduate Studies (2017-2020)
Degree Programme Director L200 and L241 (2017-2019)
Co-Convenor, BISA Learning and Teaching Working Group (2015-16)
Associate Editor, Politics (PSA; 2012-2016)
Degree Programme Director for Politics and Economics (2011-2013)
Politics Subject Advisor for Combined Honours (2011-2013)

Background

I am a native of Pennsylvania. I came to England for postgraduate study in 1998 after teaching for several years in Jiangxi, China and Luxor, Egypt.

Qualifications

PhD: University of Durham: Philosophy (Biomedical Ethics and Genetic Epidemiology)
MA: University of Durham: Theological Research
BA: York College of Pennsylvania: International Studies/Government

Previous Positions

2004-2006: BIOS Centre, London School of Economics: Research Fellow
2001-2004: PEALS, University of Newcastle: Research Associate

Languages

Mandarin Chinese: intermediate

Research

Research Interests

philosophy as a way of life; art of living; interdisciplinarity; autoethnography; mental health; bioethics; medical humanities 

Postgraduate Supervision

I have successfully supervised 6 PhD students: i) Yuanyuan Liu on similarities between the framing of the Cultural Revolution and the Xi era (2019); ii) Cheng Qian on the rise of China as represented through US television (2018); iii) Ji-Jen Hwang on cybersecurity (2012); iv) Andrew Campion on energy security (2014); v) Ben Coulson on Sino-US relations (2017) and vi) Sarina Theys on the soft power of small states (2017).

Esteem Indicators

Nominated for Newcastle Teaching Award for Innovative Methods, 2018; 2013

Nominated for Vice-Chancellor's Distinguished Teaching Award and Student Union LATE Teaching Award, 2012

Contributor to Dual Use Bioethics Educational Module Resource, an open access resource to support life scientists and educators in learning about biosecurity, 2010

HASS Faculty Futures participant, 2008/09.

Visiting Fellow, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences/Peking Union Medical College (Xiehe Yiyuan), Spring 2008

Funding

PVC Teaching Development Fund, 2016-17

Biosecurity Capacity Building in China, UK Foreign Office, 2012-13

Newcastle University HASS Faculty REF Fund, 2010

Alfred P Sloan Foundation, Sustaining a Global Network for Biosecurity: The Life Sciences and Dual Use Research, collaboration on grant with PI Dr Brian Rappert (Exeter), and Prof Malcolm Dando (Bradford), 2009-2010

UK-China Fellowship of Excellence, Department of Innovation, Universities, and Skills, 2008.

Wellcome Witness Seminar: Medical Ethics Education in Britain 1963-1993. Oral history conference funds, 2006.

Wellcome Trust Biomedical Ethics Grant. A comparative study of participation and non-participation in the North Cumbria Community Genetics project (with Haimes as PI), 2001-2003.

Teaching

Current Teaching

HSS8007 An Introduction to the Nature of Explanation and Enquiry (Postmodernism)

Previous Teaching

POL1046 Order and Disorder: The Shaping of the 21st Century (2011-2014; 2020-21)
POL1131 Studying Political Economy (2010-2014)
POL1045 Truth, Lies and Politics: Research Methods (2011-2012)
POL2084 Contemporary Chinese Politics (2009-2013)
POL3104 The Fall & Rise of China (2014-2017; 2020-21)
POL8052 The Rise of China (2010-2014)
POL8055 The 'I' in IR: Autoethnography and Political Storytelling (2014-16)

Publications

• Barr M. Book Review: The Selected Writings of Pierre Hadot: Philosophy as Practice, and Simone Kotva, Effort and Grace: On the Spiritual Exercise of Philosophy. Metaphilosophy 2020, 51(5), 776-770.
• Barr M. Autoethnography as Pedagogy: Writing the “I” in IR. Qualitative Inquiry 2019, 25(9-10), 1106-1114.
• Zhang J, Barr M. The transformative power of commoning and alternative food networks. Environmental Politics 2019, 28(4), 771-789.
• Barr M, Wright P. Training graduate teaching assistants: What can the discipline offer?. European Political Science 2019, 18(1), 143-156.
• Barr M. The Geography of the Ocean: Knowing the Ocean as a Space. The Cartographic Journal 2018, 55(3), 302-302.
• Barr M. Governing the Commons in China. The China Quarterly 2017, 231, 815-817.
• Barr M. Earth governance: trusteeship of the global commons. Environmental Politics 2017, 26(3), 548-550.
• Barr M, Feklyunina V, Theys S. Introduction: The Soft Power of Hard States. Politics 2015, 35(3-4), 213-215.
• Barr M. Chinese cultural diplomacy: old wine in new bottles?. In: Kerr, D, ed. China's Many Dreams: Comparative Perspectives on China’s Search for National Rejuvenation. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2014, pp.180-200.
• Zhang JY, Barr M. Green Politics in China: Environmental Governance and State-Society Relations. London: Pluto Press, 2013.
• Zhang JY, Barr M. Recasting subjectivity through the lenses: new forms of environmental mobilisation in China. Environmental Politics 2013, 22(5), 849-865.
• Barr M. Nation Branding as Nation Building: China's Image Campaign. East Asia 2012, 29(1), 81-94.
• Barr M. How Chinese identity politics shapes its depictions of Europe. Review of European Studies 2012, 4(3), 45-53.
• Barr M. Who's Afraid of China? The Challenge of Chinese Soft Power. London: Zed Books, 2011.
• Barr M. Mythe et réalité du "Soft Power" de la Chine. Etudes Internationales 2010, 41, 503-520.
• Barr M, Zhang JY. Bioethics and Biosecurity Education in China: Rise of a Scientific Superpower. In: Rappert, B, ed. Education and Ethics in the Life Sciences: Strengthening the Prohibition of Biological Weapons. Canberra: Australian National University Press, 2010, pp.115-129.
• Barr M. The role of China as an international biosecurity actor. In: B Rappert and C Gould, ed. Biosecurity: Origins, Transformations and Practice. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2009, pp.121-132.
• Barr MT, Rose D. The great ambivalence: factors likely to affect service user and public acceptability of the pharmacogenomics of antidepressant medication. Sociology of Health and Illness 2008, 30(6), 944-958.
• Barr MT. Cures that kill: biosecurity and the dual use dilemma. China Security 2008, 4(4), 35-43.
• Barr MT. Beyond biosafety: biosecurity as an ethical concern. Eubios Journal of Asian and International Bioethics 2008, 18, 71-74.
• Barr MT. 'I'm not really read up on genetics': biobanks and the social context of informed consent. BioSocieties 2006, 1(2), 251-262.
• Barr MT. Informed consent and the shaping of US and UK population based genetic research. In: Guston DH; Sarewitz D, ed. Shaping Science & Technology Policy: The Next Generation of Research. Madison, Wisconsin, USA: The University of Wisconsin Press, 2006, pp.291-311.
• Barr MT, Singh I, Rose N. The pharmacogenomics of depression: mapping the social and ethical impact. Journal of Public Mental Health 2005, 4(3), 33-41.
• Haimes E, Barr M. Levels and styles of participation in genetic databases : A case study of the North Cumbria Community Genetics Project. In: Tutton R; Corrigan O, ed. Genetic Databases: Socio-ethical issues in the collection and use of DNA. London: Routledge, 2004, pp.57-77.
• Haimes E, Barr M. Key issues in genetic epidemiology: Lessons from a UK based empirical study. Trames 2004, 8(1/2), 150-163.
• Barr M. Singer's World. International Studies Review 2003, 5(3), 406-408.
• Barr M. Clinical ethics teaching in Britain: a history of the London Medical Group. New Reviews in Bioethics 2003, 1(1), 73-84.
• Barr M. Human Genetics and Genetic Politics [book review]. New Genetics and Society 2003, 22(1), 117-118.
• Haimes E, Barr M. Competing perspectives on reasons for participation and non-participation in the North Cumbria Community Genetics Project. In: Knoppers BM, ed. Populations and Genetics: Legal Socio-Ethical Perspectives. Leiden: Brill Academic Publishers, 2003, pp.199-216.
• Barr M. Review: Historical and Philosophical Perspectives on Biomedical Ethics. Wellcome History 2002, (21).
• Barr M. Medical Ethics in Historical Contexts. Medicine, Health Care and Philosophy 2001, 4(2), 233-235.