CFP: Contested Conceptions of Atlantic Animals. I’m looking for interested scholars working on the histories of animals on Atlantic islands & in the Atlantic Ocean in the early modern period to join a panel at the ESHS/HSS conference next June in Edinburgh. #histsci #animalhistory #earlymodern

This week I wrote about Thevet’s claim that wine is necessary for human life and the role of alcohol in culture & ritual. #earlymodern #winehistory #frhistory wednesdayblog.org/2025/09/24/o...

This week, I wrote about breaking down bigger projects into smaller pieces in the twin contexts of #academic writing & #cooking. #phd wednesdayblog.org/2025/09/17/o...

I don't think I'm going to be in Toronto anytime soon, but this exhibit on Flemish masterworks looks like it'll be a good one. #earlymodern #arthistory www.rom.on.ca/whats-on/exh...

The table of contents for this one looks great. #earlymodern #FrHistory

wednesdayblog.org/2025/09/03/t... This week on my blog I drew from the Renaissance humanist proclivity to have everything refer back to antiquity to make a point about finding a work-life balance in grad school. #earlymodern

Inné, chuaigh mé ar stáitse le mo chairde ag an Fhéile Éireannach in KC mar áit labhraíomar faoi ár ranganna Gaeilge ar an Chultúrlann Éireannach. Bhí sé an-deas comhrá agus tá mé ag súil ag feiceáil breis daoine inár ranganna san Fómhair seo. #Gaeilge #GaelMeiriceánach

Applications are open for the Renaissance Society of America's short-term research fellowships, including many that give preference to contingent faculty and independent scholars -- apply by September 16th, applicants must be @rsaorg.bsky.social members: www.rsa.org/general/cust... #earlymodern

The recording of my lightning talk with the @rsaorg.bsky.social in June is now available. I really enjoyed spending the afternoon listening to what my fellow grad students are working on in Renaissance studies. There's a lot of great research going on today. #earlymodern youtu.be/x8n9i4DFxXM?...

The Francophone secondary literature that my work is in conversation with tends to be harder to find at the various libraries here in KC, so this news hits pretty hard. www.cbsnews.com/news/europea... #earlymodern #histsci

This week on my blog, I argue that we must have some degree of artifice to organize our thoughts and recognize the things we see in our world following a new book about Buffon & Linnaeus by @jsnr.bsky.social. #earlymodern #histci #hps #naturalhistory wednesdayblog.org/2025/08/13/o...

My first peer-reviewed article is out! “A Sloth in the First French Colony in the Americas” is a good summary of my research on André Thevet’s observations of a 3 toed sloth which are one of the key singularities in his “Singularitez”. doi.org/10.1080/0082... #earlymodern #histsci #hps

Really enjoyed thus essay by Martin Woessner. www.commonwealmagazine.org/all-things-s...

This week, on my blog I address how we recognize knowledge in comparison to the various fields of inquiry through which we refine our understanding of things. #earlymodern #histsci #hps wednesdayblog.org/2025/07/30/o...

Congress has abdicated their responsibility to fund public broadcasting in this country, so it's up to us now to do our part. For those of you here in KC, here is a Linktree with links to all 3 local stations (KCUR, KCPT, & 90.9 the Bridge). Please help out all three of them. linktr.ee/KCPublicMedia

There’s a lot in here that resonated with my experiences.

CALL FOR SUPPORT: Secure the Future of BHL Following the Smithsonian Institution’s decision to conclude its long-standing role as BHL’s host on 1 January 2026. #HistSTM #HistSci #Biodiversity #Ecology #EnvHist #NatHist #EnvironmentalStudies about.biodiversitylibrary.org/call-for-sup...

Got to spend a couple hours this morning at the Newberry Library reading through sections of Vol. 3 of Ramusio’s “Navigationi et Viaggi” that were sources for Thevet’s “Singularitez” beyond Brazil. Good information for my translation project & several papers I’m working on. #earlymodern

wednesdayblog.org/2025/06/11/o... This week, the fourth in several scribblings about my research: borrowing from Oscar Wilde, the importance of being earnest with one’s sources. #EarlyModern

Excited to participate in this webinar next week. Will be presenting a short paper titled “Animals Adapting to Changes in Nature: Perceptions of Animal Intelligence in the Renaissance?” #earlymodern #histsci #hps

The limits of AI from @kenjennings.bsky.social's NYT op ed: #dh www.nytimes.com/2025/06/05/o...

wednesdayblog.org/2025/06/04/a... This week, the third in several scribblings about my research: how studying André Thevet and his world fulfills a need to find purpose in life. #EarlyModern #FrHistory

This time last summer I was preparing to embark on a drastically shortened European research & conference tour (6 weeks became 10 days) when my already small budget suddenly was cut in half by having to pay for new brakes on my Mazda. This summer, I’m not planning on going far; save money & write.

This week on my blog, the second in several scribblings about my research: why I chose to study André Thevet and build my career on the mound of his works. #EarlyModern #FrHistory wednesdayblog.org/2025/05/28/w...

This week on my blog I wrote about my methodology in discerning modern placenames from the 16th century counterparts in Thevet’s “Singularitez.” Part of the translation I’m preparing for publication. #earlymodern #frhistory wednesdayblog.org/2025/05/21/o...

Stirring stuff. The degree to which I engage with indigenous Tupinambá sources in my research is something I want to improve. The better to write a balanced history.

With plans for the coming academic year being firmed up: non-UK-based #EarlyModern #SkyStorians: let us know when & where you're passing through this little island. Would be lovely to grab a coffee or to get you to present your work where feasible.

D’fhoghlaimíomar an modh coinníollach i téarma na Bealtaine i mo rang grámadach na Gaeilge agus thuigfinn sé tar éis 5 seachtain. Tá mé mórálach as mo chairde & ár gcríochnú. Níl sí teanga easca duinn. /1 #Gaeilge #GaelMeiriceánach

NSF appears to be terminating hundreds of its grants to Harvard, per internal sources at NSF and at Harvard. At least one division has had all its grants cut.

With a keynote address by Sachiko Kusukawa on "how emblematic worldview shaped early modern scientific thought and representation, from Vesalius and Brahe to Gessner, Camerarius Jr, and Boyle." #earlymodern #HistSTM

I’ve got a lot of reading to do today but I’m thrilled to hear the new Pope is from my hometown! A Chicagoan in the Vatican, Leo XIV! From his speech I hope he is conscientious & humble. Now, in all seriousness, when is he throwing out the first pitch at Wrigley? #LeoXIV #Conclave2025 #Chicago

The thing about the film “Conclave” that’s a little off putting at this point in the voting is they sped up time somewhat. First round over, black smoke. Second round tomorrow. Lovely afternoon watching the Vatican seagull while reading. #Conclave2025

Lá Bealtaine shona daoibh! Cathain bhí mé san fochéimí ar Rockhurst chaint mé le banna an seancheoil amhrán trúbadóra as an Ocsatáin “Kalenda Maya” faoi an lá seo agus an samhradh seo chugainn. Is cuimhin liom mo pháirt fós. #earlymodern

Why funding NASA Science is important to our national interest. By @caseydreier.bsky.social who leads the Space Policy branch at the @planetarysociety.bsky.social, of which I'm a member. www.nytimes.com/2025/04/21/o...

This one feels different to me. Papa Frank was our pope: from the Americas, a Jesuit, and more open minded to the world. His Universal Synod will remain a testament to the man and his twelve years of service to our Church. 😔 #PopeFrancis #RIP

CFP: Any grad students interested in giving a lightning talk at @historyscience.bsky.social’s #HSS2025 meeting in New Orleans this November should submit their proposal at this link. Proposal deadline is today (Friday 11 April) #sciencehistory #historyphd docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...

The importance of double-checking footnotes is something I try not to forget. I'm reading Philippe Desan's biography of #Montaigne and am considering writing something further on the "myself now & myself a while ago are indeed two" quote from "De la vanité" only to be led on a wild goose chase 1/

I don't normally share my blog here because it isn't inherently academic in nature. That said, last week I wrote about my efforts & strategy in translating the "Singularitez de la France Antarctique" of #AndréThevet. #FrHistory #earlymodern wednesdayblog.org/2025/03/26/o...

Had a good few days at the #RSA2025 in Boston. My paper was well received (& the chair had complimentary things to say) and I renewed some fantastic contacts in our profession. Got to see a couple of specimens of species I’m writing about, and pay a visit to Fenway while I was in town. #earlymodern

On my way to the Renaissance Society of America’s annual meeting to discuss Nicolas Durand de Villegaignon and the disappearing middle ground between confessional factions in the last years before the eruption of the French Wars of Religion. #earlymodern #frenchhistory #reformationhistory #rsa2025

There are reports The White House is considering a 50% cut to NASA’s science programs, and 25% of its overall budget, which would be catastrophic for both current and planned missions. But, there is still time for the administration to reconsider. Read our full statement ⬇️

I’m using Blue Sky for professional networking within academia yet it’s impossible to ignore the world around us. For anything political see the @bluebrookside.bsky.social account. I’m proud to see my family actively organizing for #democracy in our neighborhood and now throughout KC. #indivisible

Looking forward to reading @drsurekhadavies.bsky.social’s new book “Humans: A Monstrous History.”

I’m honored to announce I was elected a Fellow of the Linnean Society of London in the January fellows’ vote. I hope my research into the history of Renaissance natural history will contribute to the scholarship in this country and beyond. @linneansociety.bsky.social

@biographic.bsky.social's article about finding stress hormones in whale baleen harvested post-WWII in 1946 has me wondering how long these hormones can last in furs & skins? Could this be a way of understanding animal interactions in the 16th or 17th centuries? www.biographic.com/how-whales-f...

Serious question here: I’ve never included a non-human in the author section of a citation before. Considering the full citation on this one does include Zippy the Pinniped of the Marine Mammal Center should I include Zippy in my footnote as well as Marianne Riedman? Chicago citations.

“To understand Doggerland as a lived and lost landscape is to consider it on its own terms.” This is a stark example of the efforts to understand historic & prehistoric lived environments in their own terms. From @hakaimagazine.com hakaimagazine.com/features/con...

In my undergrad I joined the Rockhurst early music ensemble adopting my training in Irish trad music to play the soprano & tenor recorders. Love seeing more historic music being played and studied. #earlymodern www.wbez.org/music/2024/1...

I'm excited to announce that my project preparing my translation of André Thevet's "Les Singularitez de la France Antarctique" was chosen to receive support from the Society for the History of Natural History Small Grant Fund. More on this project to come in 2025! #ThevetTranslation

Writing the family Christmas card message I realized that in 2024 I spoke at 4 academic conferences, & 1 workshop in the US, Canada, France, & Mexico. That’s got to be a personal record yet also great networking as I prepare for my defense & postdoctoral career.