Angela K. VandenBroek, PhD

Anthropology and AI Anthropology and AI explores the complex intersection of artificial intelligence and human society through a diverse collection of anthropological and social scientific perspectives. Artificial intell...

📖 You can pre-order now (or request that your library orders a copy!) starting tomorrow December 2! 👉 www.routledge.com/Anthropology...

My individual contribution introduces the concept of "bullshit epistemics" to challenge us to think beyond the critique of AI confabulations + shift our attention to how AI changes how we understand and evaluate knowledge when it is radically unsituated, decontextualized, and unaccountable. 😬

In the conclusion, we editors discuss the future of Anthropology and AI from each of our different vantage points—drawing out the tensions and possibilities at the intersections of these two fields going forward.

The volume includes ten chapters that present a snapshot of current conversations in the anthropology of AI from across applied and academic approaches—offering challenges, frameworks, and applications for both the fields of AI and anthropology.

Cover of Anthropology and AI. Book series: Anthropology of Now. Edited by Lora Koycheva, Angela K. VandenBroek, and Matt Artz. Published with Routledge. The cover design is an abstract network of lines and circles.

We start off with a deep dive on anthropology's long history with artificial intelligence—all the way back to its earliest days in the 1940s 🤩 —as anthropologists have built, shaped, critiqued, and challenged AI throughout its history.

Exciting news! Lora Koycheva, my, and Matt Artz's new book ⭐ Anthropology and AI ⭐ is available for preorder starting tomorrow from Routledge Books—as part of the Anthropology of Now series edited by David Eller! anthropologyandai.com

Where can TXST Anthropology take you next? Join us for a virtual graduate school open house! Join us for a virtual open house to learn about graduate programs in anthropology at TXST on October 17 at 10AM.

Where can TXST Anthropology take you next? Join us for a virtual open house to learn about grad programs in anthro at TXST. Meet our faculty, explore our centers and labs, and get details on our MA and Applied PhD programs.

📅 Fri, Oct 17, 10AM-12:45PM (Central)
🔗 Register: go.txst.edu/u1e

Me, a white lady with purple hair and a blue jumpsuit.

Good morning #4s2025 in Seattle! I'm excited to learn and mingle with STS folks! Starting off at the AI and Ground Truth with Dietmar Offenhuber, Beth Coleman and Gabriella Coleman. 🤩 Come say "Hi 👋" if you see me.

Come work with me at @txst.edu! 🤩

Tenure-track Asst Prof in cultural anth with a #MedAnth focus. We seek a broadly trained cultural or linguistic anth whose expertise focuses on the study of health, illness and the institutional and social forces that shape them.

jobs.hr.txstate.edu/postings/53850

🫶 The Committee for the Anthropology of Science, Technology, & Computing has been promoting the anthropology technoscience since 1991 with an all volunteer staff generating a blog, podcast, mentorship network, spring conference, and much more!

Stick with us! CASTAC is growing—and so is our commitment to supporting this vibrant community. This year, we’re excited to launch a sticker campaign as a small thank-you to our supporters. It’s a fun, visible way to show your connection to CASTAC, and help us keep doing the work that matters. Sticker supporter: One random sticker! $5. Sticker surprise: Two random stickers! $10 Sticker super fan: All three stickers! $15.

CASTAC has stickers! 🤩 Donate and receive 4" vinyl stickers to show your CASTAC support! 💰 Every contribution goes directly toward sustaining CASTAC’s current initiatives and building new ones.

🔗 castac.org/donate

#anthropology #STS #technoscience #fundraising #donate @castac.bsky.social

Me and undergraduate student Adrienne

Ian talking with a man

Students in the San Marcos river still wearing their regalia

I love these days where we come together, faculty and students, to celebrate our achievements and time together @txst.anthro 💜

Anthropology faculty in regalia

Manar holding her graduation cap decorated to look like the end portal from Minecraft

Two students posing with Manar

Me, Manar, and Ian in our regalia

Today I got to celebrate the graduation of my two brilliant students, Manar Naser & Ian Whitehead, who completed their MA today. 🥳 It has been such a privilege to spend the last two years thinking with these inspirational students. You'll both be missed! Congratulations! 👏

Friday, May 2, 2025. Episode 18. AnthroPuzzled. Angela k. VandenBroek, Innovative Anthropologies. Listen now. anthropuzzled.com By Abby Letsinger.

I recently got to sit down with Abigail Letsinger to chat about anthropology careers and the applications of anthropology to business and entrepreneurship on AnthroPuzzled 🎙️! Check it out on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, YouTube, or anthropuzzled.com

👉 tinyurl.com/anthropuzzled

Final Call! CASPR 2025 starts 90 minutes! ⏰

👉 caspr2025.eventbrite.com

Come talk about Knowledge in Crisis with Alex Hanna, Emily Yates-Doerr, and Juno Salazar Parrenas at 11AM (CDT) TODAY!

Excited for this session with @castac.bsky.social next Friday!

My cat Ada with an intimidating face and pose saying "You better not forget to register for CASPR 2025"

CASPR: CASTAC in the Spring. Knowledge in Crisis: Navigating Science in Uncertain Times. Friday May 2, 2024, 11AM - 1PM (Central). Join us for a roundtable and Q&A with Alex Hanna (Distributed AI Research Institute), Emily Yates-Doerr (Oregon State), and Juno Salazar Parrenas (Cornell University), moderated by CASTAC Co-Chair Ana Carolina de Assis Nunes (Oregon State). Register: caspr2025.eventbrite.com

CASPR 2025 🌼"Knowledge in Crisis: Navigating Science in Uncertain Times" with @alexhanna.bsky.social, @eyatesd.bsky.social , & @youknowjuno.bsky.social—moderated by @castac.bsky.social. Panel + Breakout Q&A.

📅Friday May 2, 11AM - 1PM (Central) on Zoom
✍️Register: caspr2025.eventbrite.com

CASPR: CASTAC in the Spring. Knowledge in Crisis: Navigating Science in Uncertain Times. Join us for a roundtable discussion and Q&A with Alex Hanna (Distributed AI Research Institute), Emily Yates-Doerr (Oregon State), and Juno Salazar Parrenas (Cornell University), moderated by CASTAC Co-Chair Ana Carolina de Assis Nunes (Oregon State). Friday May 2, 2025 11-1PM.

[CASPR 2025] Knowledge in Crisis: Navigating Science in Uncertain Times

May 2 11AM CDT

Join us for a roundtable discussion and Q&A with Alex Hanna, Emily Yates-Doerr, & Juno Salazar Parrenas, moderated by CASTAC Co-Chair Ana Carolina de Assis Nunes

caspr2025.eventbrite.com #anthropology #STS

We don't always have the power, energy, finances, or representation to meaningfully affect national level problems. But where ever we can, it is so important to build care and solidarity in our communities—in whatever way is most appropriate and effective.

My two cats. One is looking over her shoulder at the camera, the other is cuddled up with her arm over her sister's shoulder.

My graduate students have taken to sending me photos of their animals when they send me drafts of their work. So far I've received cats, dogs, baby goats, cows, and a calf. I return photos of my cats. In these unsettled and unsettling times, these small moments of connection and care mean so much.

The 2025 David Hakken Graduate Student Prize is now open for submissions!

We invite current or recent graduate students to submit papers showcasing innovative research at the intersection of anthropology and STS.

🗓️ Deadline: June 1, 2025
🔗 Details: castac.org/castac-award...

🚨 Attention grad students!

The 2025 David Hakken Graduate Student Prize is now open! Submit your unpublished paper (7,000-8,000 words) on anthropology & STS by June 1, 2025.

Check the guidelines and learn more here: castac.org/castac-award...

#Anthropology #CASTAC #GradLife

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"I believe anyone should be allowed to critique or engage in knowledge production at any stage." —Me, in this thread.

I don't feel that we are having a productive dialogue at this point, as you've repeatedly misrepresented the plain-text of what I've said repeatedly. So, this is where I exit. 🚪👋

The problem isn't that researchers dedicating their time and energy to work through immensely complex and meaningful issues can't reduce them to a 6th grade reading level (for the average American) at every step of the process and before they're thoroughly understood and interrogated.

...restricting access to quality education with property taxes and excessive tuition, the inequitable distribution of privilege of time and energy, and so much more.

I believe anyone should be allowed to critique or engage in knowledge production at any stage. The problem is that many societies (including the US where I am) do not provide equitable access to flows of knowledge production—by hiding research behind corporate interests, ...

This usually arrives alongside heuristics, metaphors and vocab that capture the complexity of the phenomena in a way that it is more digestible to ppl who don't have the time or desire to dedicate to an expert level understanding but do want to know how to deploy these ideas in decision-making.

Knowledge is never "finished" but we do often reach (uneasy) consensus (knowing that it can always be upended by new perspectives, ideas and data) that stabilizes ideas for application and use.