Rutger K. 🟥
@anotheraspirin.bsky.social
Friendly, non-threatening rewriter of medieval history. Operates out of the Low Countries. Purveyor of Fine Puns.
Reposted by Rutger K. 🟥
This👇. When grading this week, I found myself wondering more than once whether the student was using AI or not, which kinda kills the joy of grading well-written papers
The thing I hate the absolute most about the proliferation of GenAI in "writing" is that I'm now being trained to become suspicious when I read a student paper that is Actually Good, instead of just celebrating its quality and congratulating the student on a Job Well Done.
February 6, 2026 at 9:27 AM
This👇. When grading this week, I found myself wondering more than once whether the student was using AI or not, which kinda kills the joy of grading well-written papers
The thing I hate the absolute most about the proliferation of GenAI in "writing" is that I'm now being trained to become suspicious when I read a student paper that is Actually Good, instead of just celebrating its quality and congratulating the student on a Job Well Done.
February 6, 2026 at 8:58 AM
The thing I hate the absolute most about the proliferation of GenAI in "writing" is that I'm now being trained to become suspicious when I read a student paper that is Actually Good, instead of just celebrating its quality and congratulating the student on a Job Well Done.
Reposted by Rutger K. 🟥
"A truly sensational find" made by my friend and colleague Adrian C. Pirtea 👀👇
#Syriac
#ChristianArabic
#ChristianEast
#Syriac
#ChristianArabic
#ChristianEast
medieval worlds • no. 23 • 2025
A truly sensational find is presented in volume 23 of Medieval Worlds: a newly discovered Christian world chronicle in Arabic, which Adrian C. Pirtea examines in a preliminary case study. We furthermo...
medievalworlds.net
February 5, 2026 at 10:33 AM
"A truly sensational find" made by my friend and colleague Adrian C. Pirtea 👀👇
#Syriac
#ChristianArabic
#ChristianEast
#Syriac
#ChristianArabic
#ChristianEast
Reposted by Rutger K. 🟥
Today, is the feast of St Agnes of Rome. She lived during Diocletian's reign, & was one of the first virgin martyrs to be widely venerated as a saint, largely due to the promotion of her cult by Ambrose of Milan. According to her legend, she refused to marry. (1/n)
January 21, 2026 at 9:40 AM
Today, is the feast of St Agnes of Rome. She lived during Diocletian's reign, & was one of the first virgin martyrs to be widely venerated as a saint, largely due to the promotion of her cult by Ambrose of Milan. According to her legend, she refused to marry. (1/n)
Reposted by Rutger K. 🟥
Our first RHS lecture of 2026 is '"Alike in Appearance but not in Scope": Queens and the Making of Medieval Europe', with Prof Charles West (Edinburgh) bit.ly/49GlmMR
6pm, Friday 6 February. In-person booking is now full but registration to attend this event online remains open #Skystorians
6pm, Friday 6 February. In-person booking is now full but registration to attend this event online remains open #Skystorians
'Queens and the Making of Medieval Europe': RHS Lecture, online
Royal Historical Society Lecture, 6 February 2026
bit.ly
January 6, 2026 at 1:45 PM
Our first RHS lecture of 2026 is '"Alike in Appearance but not in Scope": Queens and the Making of Medieval Europe', with Prof Charles West (Edinburgh) bit.ly/49GlmMR
6pm, Friday 6 February. In-person booking is now full but registration to attend this event online remains open #Skystorians
6pm, Friday 6 February. In-person booking is now full but registration to attend this event online remains open #Skystorians
Silly CIA, thinking you can maintain something like a "factbook" in this day and age... 🤷♂️
apnews.com/article/cia-...
apnews.com/article/cia-...
CIA ends publication of its popular World Factbook reference tool
The CIA is ending the publication of its popular World Factbook reference manual. The agency announced the decision Wednesday but gave no reason for it.
apnews.com
February 5, 2026 at 5:16 PM
Silly CIA, thinking you can maintain something like a "factbook" in this day and age... 🤷♂️
apnews.com/article/cia-...
apnews.com/article/cia-...
Reposted by Rutger K. 🟥
Ik heb nooit columnist willen worden, maar toen @mareonline.nl me vroeg kon ik onmogelijk nee zeggen. Mijn eerste column gaat over de ik-kon-nou-eenmaal-niet-anders-retoriek van bestuurders en nonnen.
www.mareonline.nl/opinie/ik-wi...
www.mareonline.nl/opinie/ik-wi...
Ik wilde niet. Maar toen Mare me vroeg, kon ik onmogelijk nee zeggen
Soms zijn er verplichte dingen in het leven, die door goddelijk ingrijpen toch niet mogelijk blijken te zijn. 'Ik snak zelf ook wel eens naar een dergelijk wonder.'
www.mareonline.nl
January 29, 2026 at 10:29 AM
Ik heb nooit columnist willen worden, maar toen @mareonline.nl me vroeg kon ik onmogelijk nee zeggen. Mijn eerste column gaat over de ik-kon-nou-eenmaal-niet-anders-retoriek van bestuurders en nonnen.
www.mareonline.nl/opinie/ik-wi...
www.mareonline.nl/opinie/ik-wi...
[hope all the people who answered can see this, too]
THANKS everyone! That helped a lot, especially finding different search terms and indeed for simply realizing that my author got this from ... somewhere.
Hooray for asking, hooray for answering, and hooray for academic cooperation! :-)
THANKS everyone! That helped a lot, especially finding different search terms and indeed for simply realizing that my author got this from ... somewhere.
Hooray for asking, hooray for answering, and hooray for academic cooperation! :-)
Hey #MedievalSky Hivemind! Here's a 14c Norwegian altarpiece with the Persian king Khosrow II sitting in a glass sphere constructed so he could pretend to be God and make it rain on his subjects. I found references to this story in Norse sources but nowhere else - am I overlooking something obvious?
January 27, 2026 at 9:40 PM
[hope all the people who answered can see this, too]
THANKS everyone! That helped a lot, especially finding different search terms and indeed for simply realizing that my author got this from ... somewhere.
Hooray for asking, hooray for answering, and hooray for academic cooperation! :-)
THANKS everyone! That helped a lot, especially finding different search terms and indeed for simply realizing that my author got this from ... somewhere.
Hooray for asking, hooray for answering, and hooray for academic cooperation! :-)
Hey #MedievalSky Hivemind! Here's a 14c Norwegian altarpiece with the Persian king Khosrow II sitting in a glass sphere constructed so he could pretend to be God and make it rain on his subjects. I found references to this story in Norse sources but nowhere else - am I overlooking something obvious?
January 26, 2026 at 8:41 AM
Hey #MedievalSky Hivemind! Here's a 14c Norwegian altarpiece with the Persian king Khosrow II sitting in a glass sphere constructed so he could pretend to be God and make it rain on his subjects. I found references to this story in Norse sources but nowhere else - am I overlooking something obvious?
Reposted by Rutger K. 🟥
An extraordinary medieval manuscript has been discovery at Shrewsbury School giving fresh insight into the development of medieval Christian writing
www.myshrewsbury.co.uk/blog/medieva...
www.myshrewsbury.co.uk/blog/medieva...
Medieval Manuscript Discovery at Shrewsbury School
The only complete copy of Richard Rolle’s Emendatio vitae found in Shrewsbury School’s Taylor Library, revealing new insight into medieval English literature.
www.myshrewsbury.co.uk
January 14, 2026 at 3:39 PM
An extraordinary medieval manuscript has been discovery at Shrewsbury School giving fresh insight into the development of medieval Christian writing
www.myshrewsbury.co.uk/blog/medieva...
www.myshrewsbury.co.uk/blog/medieva...
Reposted by Rutger K. 🟥
Can anyone recommend a good article summarizing the current status quaestionis of the horse domestication/Indo-European origins/kurgans/chariots debate for an upper level undergraduate course? It could be a popular article.
January 14, 2026 at 3:15 PM
Can anyone recommend a good article summarizing the current status quaestionis of the horse domestication/Indo-European origins/kurgans/chariots debate for an upper level undergraduate course? It could be a popular article.
Sometimes I just open Partridges Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English (4th ed, 1951) and wish we'd still use words like 'galopshus'.
January 14, 2026 at 2:42 PM
Sometimes I just open Partridges Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English (4th ed, 1951) and wish we'd still use words like 'galopshus'.
Reposted by Rutger K. 🟥
AI being synonymous with some of the worst, most depraved crimes possible, and spearheaded by the worst people in the world, tells you all you need to know
January 2, 2026 at 9:37 PM
AI being synonymous with some of the worst, most depraved crimes possible, and spearheaded by the worst people in the world, tells you all you need to know
Reposted by Rutger K. 🟥
🚨Phd Position in #Digital #Medieval Manuscripts Studies
You will be part of an international research project, applying innovative computational methods to the study of the transmission history of the Latin Physiologus and the Bestiary.
📍Radbout University (NL)
📆15 Jan 2026
▶️ tinyurl.com/3wtcxpfc
You will be part of an international research project, applying innovative computational methods to the study of the transmission history of the Latin Physiologus and the Bestiary.
📍Radbout University (NL)
📆15 Jan 2026
▶️ tinyurl.com/3wtcxpfc
PhD Position in Medieval Manuscript Studies | Radboud University
Do you want to work as a PhD Candidate in Medieval Manuscript Studies at the Faculty of Arts? Check our vacancy!
tinyurl.com
January 9, 2026 at 9:53 AM
🚨Phd Position in #Digital #Medieval Manuscripts Studies
You will be part of an international research project, applying innovative computational methods to the study of the transmission history of the Latin Physiologus and the Bestiary.
📍Radbout University (NL)
📆15 Jan 2026
▶️ tinyurl.com/3wtcxpfc
You will be part of an international research project, applying innovative computational methods to the study of the transmission history of the Latin Physiologus and the Bestiary.
📍Radbout University (NL)
📆15 Jan 2026
▶️ tinyurl.com/3wtcxpfc
Reposted by Rutger K. 🟥
𝗪𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻 𝗶𝗻 𝗟𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗔𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗾𝘂𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗘𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆 𝗠𝗶𝗱𝗱𝗹𝗲 𝗔𝗴𝗲𝘀
𝗦𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗪𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻 𝗘𝘂𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗡𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝗔𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗮
Éric Fournier, Maijastina Kahlos (eds)
More Info: bit.ly/49KnjI8
#Women #Antiquity #Medieval #Womensstudies #Europe #Africa #History #Medievalsky #Medievalists
𝗦𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗪𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻 𝗘𝘂𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗡𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝗔𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗮
Éric Fournier, Maijastina Kahlos (eds)
More Info: bit.ly/49KnjI8
#Women #Antiquity #Medieval #Womensstudies #Europe #Africa #History #Medievalsky #Medievalists
January 8, 2026 at 7:44 AM
𝗪𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻 𝗶𝗻 𝗟𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗔𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗾𝘂𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗘𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆 𝗠𝗶𝗱𝗱𝗹𝗲 𝗔𝗴𝗲𝘀
𝗦𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗪𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻 𝗘𝘂𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗡𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝗔𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗮
Éric Fournier, Maijastina Kahlos (eds)
More Info: bit.ly/49KnjI8
#Women #Antiquity #Medieval #Womensstudies #Europe #Africa #History #Medievalsky #Medievalists
𝗦𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗪𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻 𝗘𝘂𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗡𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝗔𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗮
Éric Fournier, Maijastina Kahlos (eds)
More Info: bit.ly/49KnjI8
#Women #Antiquity #Medieval #Womensstudies #Europe #Africa #History #Medievalsky #Medievalists
Reposted by Rutger K. 🟥
Publication – « La Nature et le Droit médiéval. Entre savoirs et normes », éd. Pierre-Anne Forcadet, Corinne Leveleux-Teixeira
rmblf.be/2026/01/09/p...
rmblf.be/2026/01/09/p...
Publication – « La Nature et le Droit médiéval. Entre savoirs et normes », éd. Pierre-Anne Forcadet, Corinne Leveleux-Teixeira
Dans un article de 1967, Lynn White attribuait au christianisme médiéval une vision prédatrice du monde. Ce débat, relancé par la crise écologique, reste peu exploré par les juristes. Le présent ou…
rmblf.be
January 9, 2026 at 7:05 AM
Publication – « La Nature et le Droit médiéval. Entre savoirs et normes », éd. Pierre-Anne Forcadet, Corinne Leveleux-Teixeira
rmblf.be/2026/01/09/p...
rmblf.be/2026/01/09/p...
Reposted by Rutger K. 🟥
Publication – « Speculations: The Centennial Issue » (Speculum, 101, janv. 2026)
rmblf.be/2026/01/09/p...
rmblf.be/2026/01/09/p...
Publication – « Speculations: The Centennial Issue » (Speculum, 101, janv. 2026)
Speculations: The Centennial Issue, Speculum, t. 101, janv. 2026. Table des matières : Editors’ Introduction — Mohamad Ballan, Cecily J. Hilsdale, Katherine L. Jansen, Sierra Lomuto, and Pegg…
rmblf.be
January 9, 2026 at 7:06 AM
Publication – « Speculations: The Centennial Issue » (Speculum, 101, janv. 2026)
rmblf.be/2026/01/09/p...
rmblf.be/2026/01/09/p...
Reposted by Rutger K. 🟥
Ungrateful little shits.
Society gave them so much, and when they're asked to pay just a little bit back, an amount they wouldn't even notice, they throw tantrums like the world's biggest babies.
Society gave them so much, and when they're asked to pay just a little bit back, an amount they wouldn't even notice, they throw tantrums like the world's biggest babies.
Google billionaire Larry Page copies the Jeff Bezos playbook, buying a $173 million Miami compound that will save him millions in taxes | Fortune
Critics warned a wealth tax in California would lead to a billionaire exodus. Florida says come on in, the water's warm.
fortune.com
January 9, 2026 at 7:03 AM
Ungrateful little shits.
Society gave them so much, and when they're asked to pay just a little bit back, an amount they wouldn't even notice, they throw tantrums like the world's biggest babies.
Society gave them so much, and when they're asked to pay just a little bit back, an amount they wouldn't even notice, they throw tantrums like the world's biggest babies.
Reposted by Rutger K. 🟥
Birkbeck is hiring a Lecturer in Medieval Studies (c.1300-1500), full-time and open-ended.
They will be formally based in English but expected to be able to contribute about 0.5FTE to History, including teaching and supervision.
Closing date Feb 23rd: cis7.bbk.ac.uk/vacancy/lect...
They will be formally based in English but expected to be able to contribute about 0.5FTE to History, including teaching and supervision.
Closing date Feb 23rd: cis7.bbk.ac.uk/vacancy/lect...
January 8, 2026 at 12:48 PM
Birkbeck is hiring a Lecturer in Medieval Studies (c.1300-1500), full-time and open-ended.
They will be formally based in English but expected to be able to contribute about 0.5FTE to History, including teaching and supervision.
Closing date Feb 23rd: cis7.bbk.ac.uk/vacancy/lect...
They will be formally based in English but expected to be able to contribute about 0.5FTE to History, including teaching and supervision.
Closing date Feb 23rd: cis7.bbk.ac.uk/vacancy/lect...
Reposted by Rutger K. 🟥
Ook voor de GGZ is het belang van de GK2026 groot. Ik ben dan ook trots op het programma van GL-PvdA in Doetinchem (mentaal welzijn krijgt daarin een belangrijke plaats). Je vindt mij op plek 18. Meer info over de lijst: www.doetinchemsvizier.nl/nieuws/polit...
January 8, 2026 at 7:18 PM
Ook voor de GGZ is het belang van de GK2026 groot. Ik ben dan ook trots op het programma van GL-PvdA in Doetinchem (mentaal welzijn krijgt daarin een belangrijke plaats). Je vindt mij op plek 18. Meer info over de lijst: www.doetinchemsvizier.nl/nieuws/polit...
Reposted by Rutger K. 🟥
PhD thesis FINISHED!!!
January 6, 2026 at 7:45 PM
PhD thesis FINISHED!!!
Reposted by Rutger K. 🟥
stop trying to make "future historians" happen. you can just say you've passed any hope of meaningful justice in this world onto an imagined secular afterlife. that's fine.
January 3, 2026 at 11:08 AM
stop trying to make "future historians" happen. you can just say you've passed any hope of meaningful justice in this world onto an imagined secular afterlife. that's fine.
Reposted by Rutger K. 🟥
Ah it's one of those weeks where 'trying to write a book' feels futile in the face of [what in the fresh hell IS this].
I try to maintain the feeling that the world needs a slightly irreverent book about Saint Nicholas more than [what in the fresh hell is THIS] but man oh man it's tough sometimes.
I try to maintain the feeling that the world needs a slightly irreverent book about Saint Nicholas more than [what in the fresh hell is THIS] but man oh man it's tough sometimes.
January 3, 2026 at 8:48 PM
Ah it's one of those weeks where 'trying to write a book' feels futile in the face of [what in the fresh hell IS this].
I try to maintain the feeling that the world needs a slightly irreverent book about Saint Nicholas more than [what in the fresh hell is THIS] but man oh man it's tough sometimes.
I try to maintain the feeling that the world needs a slightly irreverent book about Saint Nicholas more than [what in the fresh hell is THIS] but man oh man it's tough sometimes.
Reposted by Rutger K. 🟥
hey remember when a bunch of middle-aged drunk korean lawmakers climbed the locked gates to the national assembly to hold an emergency session after the president gave illegal orders to the military, all of which ended with said president being sentenced to prison
January 3, 2026 at 7:02 AM
hey remember when a bunch of middle-aged drunk korean lawmakers climbed the locked gates to the national assembly to hold an emergency session after the president gave illegal orders to the military, all of which ended with said president being sentenced to prison