Patricia Easteal, a University of Canberra legal academic, has accepted a ‘virtual sabbatical’ at Britain’s Durham University in what is believed to be a world first. Easteal will attend staff meetings taking place in Durham, teach students and turn up to morning coffee breaks, all without leaving her home in Canberra. She will also participate in a face-to-face sabbatical with the University of Melbourne’s law school. The Australian Higher Education, 24 June 2009