Thibaud Flament speaks for all of us 🙃

I’m not at a Russell Group university but the pattern is the same; fewer professional services and academic staff; lower pay and wise conditions, but more and more top earners on ever-higher salaries. It’s just pillage.

Watching everyone who still has papers hosted here pull them down.

That last repost has prompted us to start shifting stuff from Substack back over to the blog, starting here: boakandbailey.com/2025/01/your...

Call for survey participants - Current & past part-time PhD students - AND their supervisors. Looking at experiences of PT PGRs. Run by U of Salford. If your institution gets >30 responses, you get a findings report specific to your institution. app.onlinesurveys.jisc.ac.uk/s/salford/st...

One of my fave memes, god grant me strength to attend a library webinar without the mention of ai 📚📜

I have my own take on this as a PhD student who started in part time October 2020. I didn’t meet my supervisors in person until Summer 2021. I didn’t get to meet any other students. But a forced move to online and normalising hybrid participation means I can do more as a part-time student.

This is an excellent and well written thread. Everyone I know working in Higher Education during covid was working incredibly hard to deliver a good experience during a very difficult time.

Spent yesterday feeling depressed on the sofa instead of doing any PhD work. Probably would have felt a bit better if I'd managed to just get started on some tasks. But will try not to dwell on that and start afresh this week with a new to do list.

Sunshine after living in an actual cloud for more days than I care to count. The depression cloud which has slowly been destroying me has lifted slightly too.

🧪🏺 Update - authors have new paper showing how useless gen- #AI is for archaeological illustration. All 400 images were multiply inaccurate (physically, socially, technologically, environmentally), even with improved prompts. JUST USE HUMAN EXPERTS & ARTISTS www.cambridge.org/core/journal...

Huge solidarity with @ucuessex.bsky.social and @ucunorthumbria.bsky.social, both out on strike today over threats to jobs and pensions. Let’s do this #UCU #UKHE

My SNRI is likely the cause of my ridiculously exhausting vivid dreams. I forgot to ask my GP about this yesterday because I am currently a bit useless at appointments. I like Duloxetine but can’t imagine coping with these dreams long term. Urgh. Silly side effects.

Not sure how much longer I can cope with never ending oppressive low cloud season. View from my window is particularly stunning today.

We all know that person, who does the invisible work, who quietly coordinates and holds projects together. They sadly rarely get credit for it though. It’s hard to measure, and often overlooked. We need to find leaders who can see and reward this invisible work.

Unfollowing anyone who posts an AI generated image of themselves at work could be a good way to overhaul my personal Instagram account.

Fine. The discourse. The NYT article isn't about writing. Or ai. Seriously. It's about yet another Kindle Unlimited scam. The same kind of "gaming the algorithm" scams that have been going on since KU started. Generate garbage, get a few dozen sales, collect money, move on to next pile of garbage.

Earlier today me: feeling pleased with less fatigue Evening me: on the sofa and everything hurts

Realising that it’s 7 months since my GP convinced me I could be brave and try this medication. It’s terrifying how unwell I feel if I miss even one dose but it’s worth it. Dramatically reduced my debilitating headaches and stiff aching muscle pain. I worry less about fatigue crashes.

It’s the year 2006. Every Friday afternoon I have to fax my timesheet. The fax machine is the reception/security office which means potentially getting stuck with a security guard whilst failing to remember how to use a fax machine.

A metadata-only version of the British Library’s sorely missed PhD thesis repository will be a pale imitation of the service that disappeared more than two years ago after a cyberattack, experts have warned. @jgro-the.bsky.social reports #academicsky ow.ly/H01r50Y4VAb

Every week I ask the same question. Why does Wakefield Kirkgate station look so creepy?

Observation of the day: Meadowhall station is not a pleasant place to wait for a train but at least I was able to kill time in a big M&S. Thanks rail engineering works.

I’ve also got a short paper based on mushrooms which is one of my current nerdy special interests. It’s a conceptual paper about information literacy in risky leisure using mushroom foraging as a focus for discussion. It comes with my zine about information and mushrooms #LILAC26

Draft programme for LILAC is out. I’ll be representing University of Sheffield with two papers. The exciting to have a long paper from one of my PhD chapters. Will be talking the information literacy practices of runners and content creators to break through the noise of social media. #LILAC26

Just discovered there are no trains between Meadowhall and Sheffield this week 😭😭😭😭

Checked my credit card balance and panicking about why I have a huge bill. Then remembered I had to pay for LILAC myself and claim back as the admin team didn’t want to pay on card via PayPal. Good to realise I haven’t gone mad with impulsive spending this month after all.

First yoga class in over 3 weeks this morning. My balance skills are usually my strength at yoga but it’s humbling to learn how much more difficult balance is with a broken toe.

Blue sky! Genuinely can’t remember the last time I saw the sun. I’m in Sheffield. I’ve got a new thesis chapter to start working on. This is going to be a good day.

Very helpful and reassuring chat with my GP this morning. I’ve finally decided that I’m going to appeal the rejection of my ADHD referral. I don’t believe a physician associate triage is appropriate for someone with my complex neurological history.

Given the appalling abuses of human rights around the world right now, as well as systemic animal rights abuses, maybe we can focus on living things that definitely can feel first?

That feeling when your pro-AI ad for your hot new vibe coded AI wrapper is mistaken for an ironic anti-AI shitpost to anyone who’s actually held or used a pen in their lifetime — User prompt: write me a critique of my new ad campaign GPT: … Flawlesss. Brilliant! Perfect! No notes. Ship it, boss!

A really excellent piece on how badly apple is fucking up their UI design in macOS and iOS

I’ve made it through the day with 41% battery left. Well done battery.

LILAC conference is booked! Very excited to be able to attend the full conference as a final year PhD student in my home institution. Very grateful to the School of Information, Journalism and Communication for providing funding.

I have forgotten to pack my laptop power cable today but hopefully the MacBook Air battery life will prove itself as a hero.

Going to work with a painful broken toe is exhausting. I am exhausted.

Solidarity with my colleagues who are experiencing this - as the leaflets we handed out to students on the picket lines said - when you go on strike you lose your wage because you stop working. It's ridiculous to have to make up the work you've already lost pay for 😡

Today I have ‘deal with the emails you have been avoiding’ as an item on my to do list. Nearly faced up to all my emails.

I'm running a popular romance course at the University of Liverpool... but only if enough people sign up! Come and join us! www.liverpool.ac.uk/continuing-e...

Absolutely top marks to the graphic designer who picked a map that doesn't have Holyhead Island on it even though it's one of the top 2000

There is always an XKCD

I’ve not been to a wedding since my brother got married in 2018 and now I have 3 to attend this year. Going to need to seek input on a glamorous outfit.

I’ve currently got 5 prescription meds in my routine. Thankfully some are only short term. Whilst I feel I’ve spent a lot of money on meds this month, imagine the financial woes without the NHS.

Feeling extremely proud of myself for managing to swallow one of these giant Clarithromycin beasts thanks to help of a spoonful of porridge. I haven’t taken antibiotics since 2008 though so feeling very worried about side effects.

The wonderful kindness of strangers. Waiting in minor injuries about my toe. Medical trauma and health anxiety is sky high. A lady who is here with a relative must have seen me crying so brought tissues and offered to sit with me.

Had a weight dropped on my toe whilst we were clearing up after circuits tonight. I’m freaking out because there was a lot of blood from my toenail. Suspect I won’t be running for a while.

Great to see the #AoIR2026 🇲🇽 full CFP now up and accepting submissions! aoir.org/aoir2026/ [Disclaimer: Any fandom references purely coincidental, I'm sure! ;) ]

Applications are now open for the Rowena Macrae-Gibson Student Award, which provides a sponsored place at #LILAC26 for two students registered on a UK study programme in information/library studies or #infolit. Closing date 6 Feb (17:00 GMT).