Amy Ryall

Reminder that this will mark our 10th currently scheduled strike day (there will be more as university management isn't coming back to the table with any changed position). If you're in Edinburgh it'd be great if you'd come along in support.

Ten Longbarrow hardbacks, arranged diagonally, spines facing outwards.

Special offer from Longbarrow Press: any 3 hardbacks for £32. Includes collections by Steve Ely, Angelina D'Roza, Rob Hindle, Peter Riley, Nancy Gaffield, Mark Goodwin, Matthew Clegg, Chris Jones, Fay Musselwhite, 'The Footing' anthology, and more

longbarrowpress.com/current-publ...

Extreme Long shot but, if anyone visited the Permanent Exhibition at the National Museum of Finland between 1995-2016 and has any pictures of the interpretation panels/display/presentation of the Suontaka sword then I'd be extremely grateful for copies!

Many thanks!

The Guardian has a strategic partnership with OpenAI so nothing it says about AI can be trusted

Yup, LLMs are so woefully bad at history, so I'm never trusting them with anything else... but I keep meeting smart people who "ask ChatGPT" for so many things, and it's driving me to despair

Happy Friday. 🎉

I did make it there and back but not before having to leap in front of the outward bus (despite wearing a bright yellow coat and waving an umbrella) and having to keep my nerve when the first bus displayed back was an hour later than the one I’d planned to get.

Rural buses are not user friendly.

*Waving back*

(Train goes to next village, meaning a walk, partly along a road with no pavement.) Also taking car key in case bus doesn't show up for the outward journey and I have to drive last minute. Public transport should not be like this.

a close up of a man 's face with his eyes closed Alt: Man puts hand to forehead and rubs eyes in frustration.

Attempting to be better by getting bus for meeting two villages away. Service is so unreliable and infrequent that contingency includes warning colleagues I might be late, making sure I have shoes that I can walk in and a head torch if bus fails and I have to get the train back...

I'm so sorry to be missing the UCU ARPS meeting this year - the first one I haven't made in a while.

Thanks @vickyblake.bsky.social for enabling following from afar (in between meetings) These discussions are so important to enable ARPS staff recognition of their roles as beyond 'support'.

You shouldn't have to be a significant person in the history of disability arts in order to get ATW ... but it's pretty telling of what the DWP are up to when they slash such a notable person's ATW.

Aw, bless you! I hope you enjoy it. 😊

Two joyous things today. #TinyJoys

Heard my first curlew of the year and went to the book launch of a marvellous woman’s first published book.

Congratulations @annacaig.bsky.social You da boss. xx

#TheWiseWitchOfOrkney

I know. 😬

This ARPS member just posted her ballot. 🙌

I can’t make the ARPS meeting this week because of a day of wild clashes but it‘s always a great day meeting fellow ARPS members. Hope it goes well @fleurione.bsky.social & the rest of the committee.

Post your ballots, ARPS members.

Every day we learn new stuff about unexpected side effects from the covid vaccine and literally all of them are positive

Appalling, short sighted and completely unnecessary.

Solidarity with Mark and his colleagues in SEAS at Sheffield University as they battle yet another management ‘review’.

I see the University of York is offering a fixed-term post in public history for the same salary (£37k) I earned for a fixed-term post in public history, also in Yorkshire, in 2012. Had the rate risen with inflation it would now be £53k.

PERFECT SHOW FOR RACHEL | Zoo Co Theatre Perfect Show for Rachel | This award-winning show tours to Brighton Festival and the Barbican in May and June 2024. Discover how a learning disabled artist has the power to lead the creation of her ‘P...

If you’re in Birmingham, Oxford or Leeds it’s touring in April, May and June and there are still a few tickets for Sheffield on Saturday. You won’t regret it. www.wearezooco.co.uk/shows/perfec...

I know Director Rachel O’Mahoney doesn’t care but #PerfectShowForRachel was pretty perfect for its @sheffieldtheatres.bsky.social audience tonight too. Superb production from @zooco.bsky.social and @improbable1.bsky.social Bravo for theatre that is relaxed, fun, inclusive and thought-provoking.

London Museum workers and a pigeon are striking for fair pay

Fair pay for museum workers! #prospect #strike #solidarity #pigeon

Yeah, quite key: it's not £21 million that is going directly to those 6500 students...

The only ones winning anything (other than maybe £2000 per student) are the firm raking in the £7 million and the people keen to crash universities.

Grim day for #UKHE.

The acolytes of this firm came to leaflet at QMUL as well. They were fairly open about why they had chosen UCL as the first case: moneyed parents, many with law background. Implied dismissiveness of my students.

I feel genuinely sorry for students, but these firms are not in it for the greater good

I regularly see people wondering how it's possible that there are so many musicians and writers and film makers and artists from a tiny nation like Iceland.

And the answer is really simple: State funding for art education and artists. I literally get a salary from the government to write books.

If you’re reading reports of students suing their universities for a poor experience during Covid lockdowns and sympathising, please also read this.

Colleagues absolutely did their best under the most difficult of circumstances. I’m not sure what else they could have done during a global pandemic.

For the Monday morning folk: I’ll be skeeting my answers to the #ucu VP hustings each day this week.

Intro comments out yesterday and now the first member-submitted question (and my shortest answer at 42 seconds):

“What political parties, if any, are you a member of?”

I urge you to fill in this consultation if you can - with this very helpful support from Amnesty International - although AND because ! it is heart-breaking that this country has sunk so low that Amnesty suggest in a number of cases to provide no answer as the terms of the question are so evil

You’re too kind. 🤣 Different law firm so don’t think that explains it in this case but it must have scuppered a few other purchases for sure.