Anna Kent

Well, it's a little clearer now why billionaires are so invested in technology that produces better written emails.

*a chunk (of course 🤦‍♂️)

International students and the Australian community | National Library of Australia (NLA) Join Dr Anna Kent for a discussion about her recent Fellowship research focused on Australia's international education history.

I have spent chunk of the year at the National Library of Australia and am now converting all of that reading, and thinking, and rethinking into something coherent to express the wonder this research has been. Come along! www.library.gov.au/whats-on/eve...

Australia's first treaty with Aboriginal people becomes law in Victoria Victoria's first treaty with Aboriginal people has been signed by members of the Aboriginal community, the premier and state governor.

A historic day for Victoria.

Australia will see its first ever treaty with Aboriginal people signed and formalised as law today.

www.abc.net.au/news/2025-11...

With few exceptions, pretty much everyone knew these were bad men. They did much of their evil right out in plain sight. And what wasn’t in plain sight was loudly whispered about.

But the endless “benefit of the doubt” that powerful men are freely given allows this kind of thing to keep happening.

Application to change Companions and Pets Party name and logo The Victorian Electoral Commission (VEC) has received an application to change the name and logo of a registered political party in accordance with the Electoral Act 2002 (the Act). Current name of party: Companions and Pets Party Current abbreviation: Companions and Pets Current initials: CAP Current logo: Pictures of animals in a logo Proposed name: End Mass Immigration – Reform AU Proposed logo: Picture of Australia with "REFORM" inside

Wild VEC political party name change alert

Gorgeous from @mikepbowers.bsky.social

thepoint.com.au/opinions/251...

Pictured: Sir John Kerr passes his responsibilities as Governor General of Papua New Guinea to Sir John Guise, September 16 1975. In his speech, Kerr welcomed how PNG independence was achieved peacefully and democratically, in accordance with the constitution.

Kerr's life was otherwise uneventful.

Some of you may be interested in this symposium on 'truth-telling' (in its many guises) being held at the University of Melbourne this week. Students and mob can attend for free, Unimelb staff get a 20% discount, and unwaged scholars get a 75% discount. I will be there for some of Friday's sessions!

Congratulations Frank!

Delighted that the University of Canberra has announced my appointment as Donald Horne Professor of History and Public Ideas, and Director of UC's new Vice-Chancellor's Centre of Public Ideas. Looking forward to developing this exciting initiative from early 2026. www.canberra.edu.au/about-uc/med...

Two frames.1: Background lists “undermining the judiciary; ignoring due process; defying the constitution; seeking retribution against political enemies; inciting mob violence; punishing (dissent); under(mining free press); extra-(judicial killing); mass (deportations); param(ilitary crackdowns); cult of (personality); militaristic symbols; purging minorities; rewrit(ing/eras)ing history; state(propa(ganda)”. Commentator in cardigan with patched elbows and reading glasses says, “To call Trump fascist would be a wild exaggeration *snort*” 2: Back-ground lists “free childcare; free buses; rent freezes; affordable housing; city-owned grocery stores; taxing billionaires; boost minimum wages”. Same commentator throws hands in air, glasses fly, says, “AAAAK!! MAMDANI’S A COMMUNIST!”

PANIC!!
My @smh @theage cartoon

Why the anger with Billie Eilish? Because it’s against the rules to say what we all know about billionaires | Zoe Williams The singer is giving away millions – but the parameters for criticising the super-rich are very narrow, and hardly anyone qualifies, says Guardian columnist Zoe Williams

www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Power and Vision: Australia and the South Pacific Commission | National Library of Australia (NLA) 2025 National Library of Australia Fellow, Dr Alexis Bergantz shares his Fellowship research on the history of the South Pacific Commission.

2025 NLA Fellow Alexis Bergantz will be presenting on his Fellowship research at the NLA today! Head along to hear his presentation “Power and Vision: Australia and the South Pacific Commission”. Register at the link! www.library.gov.au/whats-on/eve...

It's been... some time in coming. But ehh it's a history book so the topics are just all a little longer ago than planned. "The Social Survey in Global Perspective." Coming soon; but for now, please recommend it to a librarian for purchase! ftp.berghahnbooks.com/title/Greenh...

"The university sector’s rolling scandals and ongoing governance crisis are causing it to lose the trust of the general public. OVER HALF OF AUSTRALIANS THINK THAT MAKING A PROFIT IS A PRIMARY PURPOSE FOR UNIVERSITIES." [my emphasis]

😱

AT X.com @primediscussion I know people seemingly don't care about this anymore (like at all), but one of the biggest tolls paid by the last 2 decades of politics is a generation of children witnessing outwardly vile, unkind and dishonest people and behaviors repeatedly rewarded.

I have shed tears repeatedly over this

Single frame. Left side: Storm clouds, lightening, house on fire among trees also burning, “HELP” coming from house. To the right, David Littleproud, behind him a huge wave. He says: “No point in us doing anything until the rest of the world is on board.”

No hurry.
My @smh @theage cartoon.

I simply cannot think about nuclear war on top of everything else. No mas.

She is so relatable in this moment

Chatbots — LLMs — do not know facts and are not designed to be able to accurately answer factual questions. They are designed to find and mimic patterns of words, probabilistically. When they’re “right” it’s because correct things are often written down, so those patterns are frequent. That’s all.

Tony Abbott and Rachel Griffiths are hosting rival TV shows with some surprising things in common Both take on frontier violence and the challenge of finding drama in a foundational moment that many Australians don’t appreciate.

I watched six hours of Australian history on TV so you don’t have to (though I think you should!)

www.smh.com.au/culture/tv-a...

Boris Johnson gushes over using ChatGPT while writing books: ‘I love that it calls me clever’ ‘I see great promise in this technology because we’re all simple. We’re human,’ says former prime minister Athena Stavrou Friday 17 October 2025 06:56 BST 0 Comments

Boris Johnson has admitted he “loves” AI and ChatGPT, and revealed that he uses it while writing his books. The former prime minister praised the AI platform for answering his questions, and said he appreciated it calling him “brilliant” and “excellent”. Mr Johnson has had a number of books published since 2001, including his most recent autobiography, Unleashed, which was released in 2024. Speaking to Al Arabiya English, he said: “One thing that really encourages me is AI. I love AI. I love ChatGPT. I love it. ChatGPT is frankly fantastic.” When asked what he uses it for, he said: “I’m writing various books. I just use it. I just ask questions. You know the answer, but ChatGPT always says, ‘Oh, your questions are clever. You’re brilliant. You’re excellent. You have such insight’. “I love it. I see great promise in this technology because we’re all simple. We’re human beings.”

we're in a cool time hey

Oh no, sorry to hear that Kate.

I wrote a little update on the Deakin archives project I am doing. Digging into the history of international education at the university has been really interesting and very fun!
blogs.deakin.edu.au/article/insi...

Louvre Thieves Given Immunity After Confirming Jewels Stolen For Purpose Of Training AI Software FRENCH POLICE have immediately ended all efforts to recover priceless Napoleon-era jewellery from the Louvre taken in a daring heist after it emerged the jewels were merely stolen for the purposes of ...

“When we realised these jewels were only stolen to inflate the share price of a company whose entire value relies on the wholesale theft of other people’s art, we had no choice but grant immunity,”

Genius from @waterfordwhispers.bsky.social

waterfordwhispersnews.com/2025/10/20/l...

Sandra @SandraH3llo on x posts image of Kombucha girl meme: bad face—weird AI music. Maybe face (with curly wig and accordion)—Weird Al music

This is very good

School of Humanities & Languages #unsw is hiring TWO postdoctoral fellows in history! 2 years fixed term, open to different specialisations. Deadline is Nov 2

external-careers.jobs.unsw.edu.au/cw/en/job/53...

American Historical Association Announces 2025 Prize Winners – AHA The American Historical Association is pleased to announce the winners of its 2025 prizes.

We’re thrilled to celebrate our colleague @lottelydia.bsky.social, whose book Imperial Island (Harvard University Press, 2024) has just been awarded the Herbert Baxter Adams Prize by the American Historical Association! This prestigious award acknowledges Charlotte’s thought-provoking work.

Is artificial intelligence the new colonialism? Pacific communities confront a digital future - ABC Pacific Artificial intelligence is everywhere, shaping our lives faster than we can keep up. It's generating stories, images and videos that blur the boundaries between truth and fiction. But for Pacific com...

A must listen episode about linking Pacific Islander culture and stories and GenAI:

AI ethicist Dr Karaitiana Taiuru poses a powerful question: "What do we do when our stories aren't our stories anymore?"

Please share.

#AI #colonisation #intellectualproperty #theft #digitalhumanities