James Cummings
@jamescummings.bsky.social
Reader in Digital Textual Studies and Late Medieval Literature at @newcastleuni.bsky.social
Expertise in: Text Encoding Initiative (#TEI Board of Directors), digital scholarly editions, #medieval #drama, #REED, #DigitalHumanities #DH #DHAwards, #HTR, #AI
Expertise in: Text Encoding Initiative (#TEI Board of Directors), digital scholarly editions, #medieval #drama, #REED, #DigitalHumanities #DH #DHAwards, #HTR, #AI
Pinned
James Cummings
@jamescummings.bsky.social
· Nov 13
Having an avalanche of new followers, (probably Twitter dying more and the creation of more Starter Packs), here is a short bio with more detailed interests.
I'm into late #medieval #drama, #digital #scholarly #editions, #TEI, #digitaltext, #HTR, #LLMs, and sensible #AI at #NCL #Newcastle uni.
I'm into late #medieval #drama, #digital #scholarly #editions, #TEI, #digitaltext, #HTR, #LLMs, and sensible #AI at #NCL #Newcastle uni.
Reposted by James Cummings
Remember that #DH Awards 2025 nominations are open for another month. Nominate a #DigitalHumanities resource, tool, publication, dataset etc now!
Nominating is the only way things get on the ballot. If your kind of DH isn't there, then why aren't you nominating it?
dhawards.org/dhawards2025...
Nominating is the only way things get on the ballot. If your kind of DH isn't there, then why aren't you nominating it?
dhawards.org/dhawards2025...
DH Awards 2025 – Call For Nominations | Digital Humanities Awards
dhawards.org
January 25, 2026 at 12:55 AM
Remember that #DH Awards 2025 nominations are open for another month. Nominate a #DigitalHumanities resource, tool, publication, dataset etc now!
Nominating is the only way things get on the ballot. If your kind of DH isn't there, then why aren't you nominating it?
dhawards.org/dhawards2025...
Nominating is the only way things get on the ballot. If your kind of DH isn't there, then why aren't you nominating it?
dhawards.org/dhawards2025...
While AI chatbots outputs can have italics (usually using markdown), this disappears when you copy-paste only the so-called 'plain text' rather than rich text because you want to hide its provenance.
The rise of genAI weirdly correlates with fewer student essays I'm marking italicising titles. 🙄
The rise of genAI weirdly correlates with fewer student essays I'm marking italicising titles. 🙄
January 24, 2026 at 4:41 PM
While AI chatbots outputs can have italics (usually using markdown), this disappears when you copy-paste only the so-called 'plain text' rather than rich text because you want to hide its provenance.
The rise of genAI weirdly correlates with fewer student essays I'm marking italicising titles. 🙄
The rise of genAI weirdly correlates with fewer student essays I'm marking italicising titles. 🙄
Reposted by James Cummings
Ahead of Burns Night on Sunday we thought we'd do some last minute revision, and we've found these very helpful books in our 19th Century Collection to help us along.
[Refs. 19thCColl: 821.67 BUR]
[Refs. 19thCColl: 821.67 BUR]
January 23, 2026 at 2:53 PM
Ahead of Burns Night on Sunday we thought we'd do some last minute revision, and we've found these very helpful books in our 19th Century Collection to help us along.
[Refs. 19thCColl: 821.67 BUR]
[Refs. 19thCColl: 821.67 BUR]
"Only slowly, it seems, did the idea catch on that vernacular English
plays with ‘merry’ content and generally positive outcomes might
be consistently described as ‘comedies’."
plays with ‘merry’ content and generally positive outcomes might
be consistently described as ‘comedies’."
“If you grow vegetables, you must have a hoe.”
Pick up the nearest book. Turn to page 42, and post the second sentence.
'He was engaged in gay parties, or with his courtly bow at some episcopal levée, when he should have been attending upon us.'
'He was engaged in gay parties, or with his courtly bow at some episcopal levée, when he should have been attending upon us.'
January 21, 2026 at 9:26 PM
"Only slowly, it seems, did the idea catch on that vernacular English
plays with ‘merry’ content and generally positive outcomes might
be consistently described as ‘comedies’."
plays with ‘merry’ content and generally positive outcomes might
be consistently described as ‘comedies’."
Tangerine Hitler: "No one had heard of AI before 2 years ago"
Yes, great grandad, get off the stage.
Yes, great grandad, get off the stage.
January 21, 2026 at 2:50 PM
Tangerine Hitler: "No one had heard of AI before 2 years ago"
Yes, great grandad, get off the stage.
Yes, great grandad, get off the stage.
Reposted by James Cummings
Excited to share my letterpress poster design for the Vitale II Media Lab for Book History + Digital Humanities! The subtractive print colors (CMY) are highlighted by the additive light colors (RGB) to reveal, "BOOK HISTORY", "DESIGN" and "DIGITAL HUMANITIES" #DHMakes
January 20, 2026 at 3:39 PM
Excited to share my letterpress poster design for the Vitale II Media Lab for Book History + Digital Humanities! The subtractive print colors (CMY) are highlighted by the additive light colors (RGB) to reveal, "BOOK HISTORY", "DESIGN" and "DIGITAL HUMANITIES" #DHMakes
Reposted by James Cummings
The Call for Papers for the #TEI 2026 Annual Meeting is out! See tei2026.tei-c.org/CFP.html for details. The submission deadline is February 19th.
TEI 2026 Call for Papers – TEI2026
tei2026.tei-c.org
January 20, 2026 at 5:21 PM
The Call for Papers for the #TEI 2026 Annual Meeting is out! See tei2026.tei-c.org/CFP.html for details. The submission deadline is February 19th.
Reposted by James Cummings
The inkless doodles of Eadburg, an 8th-c. nun, discovered by new technology: now published by Jessica Hendy-Hodgkinson in EME doi.org/10.1111/emed... (Open access)
January 19, 2026 at 8:27 AM
The inkless doodles of Eadburg, an 8th-c. nun, discovered by new technology: now published by Jessica Hendy-Hodgkinson in EME doi.org/10.1111/emed... (Open access)
Always been an issue, we put our privacy in the hands of those securing the systems that store our data. Not just the potential for NHS data but as we move into more private systems the risk exponentially grows. I hope companies like BetterHelp have rigorous security, but nothing is unhackable.
This story is one of lapses in cybersecurity and digital preservation. I read it thinking of Palantir and its access to NHS data… what could go wrong for the people of the UK? www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
He called himself an ‘untouchable hacker god’. But who was behind the biggest crime Finland has ever known?
How would you feel if your therapist’s notes – your darkest thoughts and deepest feelings – were exposed to the world? For 33,000 Finnish people, that became a terrifying reality, with deadly conseque...
www.theguardian.com
January 18, 2026 at 11:16 AM
Always been an issue, we put our privacy in the hands of those securing the systems that store our data. Not just the potential for NHS data but as we move into more private systems the risk exponentially grows. I hope companies like BetterHelp have rigorous security, but nothing is unhackable.
Reposted by James Cummings
This is your occasional reminder that, while a student, Robert Jenrick ran unopposed for JCR President and was beaten by “reopen nominations”.
January 15, 2026 at 12:52 PM
This is your occasional reminder that, while a student, Robert Jenrick ran unopposed for JCR President and was beaten by “reopen nominations”.
Reposted by James Cummings
Thinking about postgraduate study at Newcastle University? Our graduates can receive an exclusive 20% tuition fee reduction on eligible courses. Find out more:
tinyurl.com/bdcwc86b
#WeAreNCL #PostgraduateFunding #NewcastleUni
tinyurl.com/bdcwc86b
#WeAreNCL #PostgraduateFunding #NewcastleUni
January 14, 2026 at 2:40 PM
Thinking about postgraduate study at Newcastle University? Our graduates can receive an exclusive 20% tuition fee reduction on eligible courses. Find out more:
tinyurl.com/bdcwc86b
#WeAreNCL #PostgraduateFunding #NewcastleUni
tinyurl.com/bdcwc86b
#WeAreNCL #PostgraduateFunding #NewcastleUni
For me, this is like asking how much poetry you write yourself or how often reading books you still do yourself. When I write code it is because I want to. I may Google for help but I've not outsourced the creative, pleasurable bit ... yet.(But it isn't my profession, thinking about it is.)
I really want to know now. How much code do you still write yourself?
January 13, 2026 at 8:40 PM
For me, this is like asking how much poetry you write yourself or how often reading books you still do yourself. When I write code it is because I want to. I may Google for help but I've not outsourced the creative, pleasurable bit ... yet.(But it isn't my profession, thinking about it is.)
Reposted by James Cummings
Entirely believable. Satire is dead.
January 13, 2026 at 5:55 PM
Entirely believable. Satire is dead.
Reposted by James Cummings
Nominate your favourite #DigitalHumanities resources for #DH Awards.
Nominations are open for DH Awards 2025.
Anyone can nominate things that are #DigitalHumanities, available to voters, and updated in 2025. #DH
Nominations close 2026-02-26 and the only way something gets on the ballot. You only need to nominate something once.
dhawards.org/dhawards2025...
Anyone can nominate things that are #DigitalHumanities, available to voters, and updated in 2025. #DH
Nominations close 2026-02-26 and the only way something gets on the ballot. You only need to nominate something once.
dhawards.org/dhawards2025...
DH Awards 2025 – Call For Nominations | Digital Humanities Awards
dhawards.org
January 13, 2026 at 9:07 AM
Nominate your favourite #DigitalHumanities resources for #DH Awards.
I think that the EU improving the mechanisms of third country associations for Horizon Europe research funding so that the UK and various other countries, and now Japan, could become associates is one of the few Brexit benefits I can identify.
sciencebusiness.net/news/horizon...
sciencebusiness.net/news/horizon...
January 12, 2026 at 5:03 PM
I think that the EU improving the mechanisms of third country associations for Horizon Europe research funding so that the UK and various other countries, and now Japan, could become associates is one of the few Brexit benefits I can identify.
sciencebusiness.net/news/horizon...
sciencebusiness.net/news/horizon...
Clearly, we need to give more money to the national trust so it can do more of its good work in city centres.
January 12, 2026 at 8:52 AM
Clearly, we need to give more money to the national trust so it can do more of its good work in city centres.
Reposted by James Cummings
Three short paragraphs, and you've got the whole mind-bending mess that is #UKHE finance & governance neatly laid out.
This is why it's all so exhausting: our managers declare there's only one static frame, while we know their framing is part of the issue.
💡 www.hepi.ac.uk/2026/01/10/w...
This is why it's all so exhausting: our managers declare there's only one static frame, while we know their framing is part of the issue.
💡 www.hepi.ac.uk/2026/01/10/w...
January 10, 2026 at 12:28 PM
Three short paragraphs, and you've got the whole mind-bending mess that is #UKHE finance & governance neatly laid out.
This is why it's all so exhausting: our managers declare there's only one static frame, while we know their framing is part of the issue.
💡 www.hepi.ac.uk/2026/01/10/w...
This is why it's all so exhausting: our managers declare there's only one static frame, while we know their framing is part of the issue.
💡 www.hepi.ac.uk/2026/01/10/w...
Reposted by James Cummings
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
Analogy: imagine a person who teaches people techniques for shoplifting being outraged that someone has stolen their syllabus.
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
Analogy: imagine a person who teaches people techniques for shoplifting being outraged that someone has stolen their syllabus.
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
January 11, 2026 at 9:01 AM
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
Analogy: imagine a person who teaches people techniques for shoplifting being outraged that someone has stolen their syllabus.
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
Analogy: imagine a person who teaches people techniques for shoplifting being outraged that someone has stolen their syllabus.
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
And even more of them, wrongly believe that immigration is a bad thing.
Two-thirds of UK voters wrongly think immigration is rising, poll finds.
Net migration to the UK fell by more than two-thirds to a post-pandemic low in the year ending June 2025, but 67% of the people polled thought it had increased
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...
Net migration to the UK fell by more than two-thirds to a post-pandemic low in the year ending June 2025, but 67% of the people polled thought it had increased
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...
Two-thirds of UK voters wrongly think immigration is rising, poll finds
Exclusive: Voters say they have little confidence that government can control borders despite sharp falls in net migration
www.theguardian.com
January 11, 2026 at 8:41 AM
And even more of them, wrongly believe that immigration is a bad thing.
You know that thing where Google Scholar alerts you to a new article that cites a publication of yours, and it looks interesting, so you go read it and find the note that cites you randomly attached to a sentence that bears absolutely no relation to anything you've ever written or said. That. 🙄
January 11, 2026 at 8:38 AM
You know that thing where Google Scholar alerts you to a new article that cites a publication of yours, and it looks interesting, so you go read it and find the note that cites you randomly attached to a sentence that bears absolutely no relation to anything you've ever written or said. That. 🙄
Reposted by James Cummings
Adoption of artificial intelligence in academic libraries: A systematic review of current practices, challenges, and research opportunities www.sciencedirect.com/science/articl… #AI #libraries
January 11, 2026 at 6:31 AM
Adoption of artificial intelligence in academic libraries: A systematic review of current practices, challenges, and research opportunities www.sciencedirect.com/science/articl… #AI #libraries
Reposted by James Cummings
#ICYMI Our Pre-Christmas blog explored how mining engineer, surveyor and diarist Thomas Sopwith celebrated Christmas with his family as recorded in his meticulous diary entries.
Read about how he celebrated here: blogs.ncl.ac.uk/speccoll/202...
Read about how he celebrated here: blogs.ncl.ac.uk/speccoll/202...
January 8, 2026 at 3:16 PM
#ICYMI Our Pre-Christmas blog explored how mining engineer, surveyor and diarist Thomas Sopwith celebrated Christmas with his family as recorded in his meticulous diary entries.
Read about how he celebrated here: blogs.ncl.ac.uk/speccoll/202...
Read about how he celebrated here: blogs.ncl.ac.uk/speccoll/202...
Reposted by James Cummings
I think about this famous passage from Orwell’s 1984 a lot these days: ‘The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command.’
January 8, 2026 at 12:22 PM
I think about this famous passage from Orwell’s 1984 a lot these days: ‘The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command.’
Reposted by James Cummings
Exhibition now open! Padua to Edinburgh: Cultures of Art and Medicine in European Anatomical Drawings, free to all, Special Collections exhibition space on L2 of the Philip Robinson Library. Find out more before you visit: www.ncl.ac.uk/library/special-collections/exhibitions/padua-to-edinburgh
Padua to Edinburgh | University Library | Newcastle University
Cultures of Art and Medicine in European Anatomical Drawings
www.ncl.ac.uk
January 7, 2026 at 2:25 PM
Exhibition now open! Padua to Edinburgh: Cultures of Art and Medicine in European Anatomical Drawings, free to all, Special Collections exhibition space on L2 of the Philip Robinson Library. Find out more before you visit: www.ncl.ac.uk/library/special-collections/exhibitions/padua-to-edinburgh