Joanne Begiato
@jbhist.bsky.social
Prof of History & Material Culture Studies. Associate Dean for Research @lcflondon.bsky.social. The Victorian Hand Project funded by AHRC. Happily married to @medhistoryman.bsky.social
Reposted by Joanne Begiato
It is EXHAUSTING not only being made responsible for coming up with new kinds of assignments for our students; it's also tedious reading op-eds that suggest the core problem is a crisis in teaching. But, as Chris and I lay out here, this isn't a crisis in teaching; it's an attack on learning.
"We envision a resistance that is...a repudiation of the efficiencies that automated algorithmic education falsely promises: a resistance comprising the collective force of small acts of friction."
"How to Resist AI in Education" by me & @cnygren.bsky.social
www.publicbooks.org/four-frictio...
"How to Resist AI in Education" by me & @cnygren.bsky.social
www.publicbooks.org/four-frictio...
Four Frictions: or, How to Resist AI in Education - Public Books
We are calling for resistance to the AI industry’s ongoing capture of higher education.
www.publicbooks.org
December 24, 2025 at 7:39 PM
It is EXHAUSTING not only being made responsible for coming up with new kinds of assignments for our students; it's also tedious reading op-eds that suggest the core problem is a crisis in teaching. But, as Chris and I lay out here, this isn't a crisis in teaching; it's an attack on learning.
Reposted by Joanne Begiato
This is very good and goes in front of my MA students next term for sure. It's a lot better than the various medium posts I've written but it's reassuring to see so many people arrive at the same answer after checking. No, AI is not capable of "replacing" historians. Not even close, wrong timezone.
If anyone remembers that list which said historians were second in line to be replaced by AI, I've had some thoughts about it... and how it relates to some aspects of public history and the current climate facing historians.
www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
The Historian in the Age of AI | Transactions of the Royal Historical Society | Cambridge Core
The Historian in the Age of AI
www.cambridge.org
December 10, 2025 at 12:02 PM
This is very good and goes in front of my MA students next term for sure. It's a lot better than the various medium posts I've written but it's reassuring to see so many people arrive at the same answer after checking. No, AI is not capable of "replacing" historians. Not even close, wrong timezone.
Resharing our #Handoftheweek posts
We’re launching our #handoftheweek series!
This week is Dr Hippolyte Baraduc, who tried to photograph the human soul via 'the most perfect organ after the brain', the hand.
Baraduc’s photos blend science and occult, showing how hands were seen as windows onto the inner self in the 19th century.
This week is Dr Hippolyte Baraduc, who tried to photograph the human soul via 'the most perfect organ after the brain', the hand.
Baraduc’s photos blend science and occult, showing how hands were seen as windows onto the inner self in the 19th century.
December 17, 2025 at 8:01 AM
Resharing our #Handoftheweek posts
Reposted by Joanne Begiato
'Founded in 1878 by the City of London and a group of 16 livery companies, the original institute developed a national system of technical education, offering qualifications and apprenticeships in fields ranging from manufacturing and mechanical engineering to hairdressing and horticulture.' 1/2
City & Guilds to shrink UK workforce amid £22m cost-cutting drive
Training and qualifications body, acquired by private Greek firm in October, to become ‘leaner organisation’
www.theguardian.com
December 14, 2025 at 10:27 AM
'Founded in 1878 by the City of London and a group of 16 livery companies, the original institute developed a national system of technical education, offering qualifications and apprenticeships in fields ranging from manufacturing and mechanical engineering to hairdressing and horticulture.' 1/2
Reposted by Joanne Begiato
✋ This 1845 daguerreotype captured the branded hand of Jonathan Walker - marked ‘SS’ for ‘slave stealer’ after he tried to help enslaved people escape Florida. Intended as punishment, it became an abolitionist symbol, though his story often overshadowed those of the enslaved people he sought to aid.
December 12, 2025 at 2:15 PM
✋ This 1845 daguerreotype captured the branded hand of Jonathan Walker - marked ‘SS’ for ‘slave stealer’ after he tried to help enslaved people escape Florida. Intended as punishment, it became an abolitionist symbol, though his story often overshadowed those of the enslaved people he sought to aid.
Reposted by Joanne Begiato
Hands can be subject to punishment and agents of resistance or in this fascinating case, both at the same time.
✋ This 1845 daguerreotype captured the branded hand of Jonathan Walker - marked ‘SS’ for ‘slave stealer’ after he tried to help enslaved people escape Florida. Intended as punishment, it became an abolitionist symbol, though his story often overshadowed those of the enslaved people he sought to aid.
December 12, 2025 at 2:26 PM
Hands can be subject to punishment and agents of resistance or in this fascinating case, both at the same time.
Another #Handoftheweek - exploring marks inscribed on the hand and their capacity to be read in multiple ways. Please share more widely.
✋ This 1845 daguerreotype captured the branded hand of Jonathan Walker - marked ‘SS’ for ‘slave stealer’ after he tried to help enslaved people escape Florida. Intended as punishment, it became an abolitionist symbol, though his story often overshadowed those of the enslaved people he sought to aid.
December 12, 2025 at 2:26 PM
Another #Handoftheweek - exploring marks inscribed on the hand and their capacity to be read in multiple ways. Please share more widely.
Reposted by Joanne Begiato
⚔️ Götz von Berlichingen lost his hand to a cannonball in 1504 and commissioned an iron prosthesis with hinged, lockable fingers for use in battle.
He later adopted a more advanced model - one of the earliest functioning mechanical prosthetic hands - which he used across his military career.
He later adopted a more advanced model - one of the earliest functioning mechanical prosthetic hands - which he used across his military career.
December 5, 2025 at 3:21 PM
⚔️ Götz von Berlichingen lost his hand to a cannonball in 1504 and commissioned an iron prosthesis with hinged, lockable fingers for use in battle.
He later adopted a more advanced model - one of the earliest functioning mechanical prosthetic hands - which he used across his military career.
He later adopted a more advanced model - one of the earliest functioning mechanical prosthetic hands - which he used across his military career.
What an amazing #Handoftheweek 👏 👏
⚔️ Götz von Berlichingen lost his hand to a cannonball in 1504 and commissioned an iron prosthesis with hinged, lockable fingers for use in battle.
He later adopted a more advanced model - one of the earliest functioning mechanical prosthetic hands - which he used across his military career.
He later adopted a more advanced model - one of the earliest functioning mechanical prosthetic hands - which he used across his military career.
December 5, 2025 at 5:45 PM
What an amazing #Handoftheweek 👏 👏
Reposted by Joanne Begiato
Graduate of the American Studies programme that the University of Nottingham wishes to close wins 2025 Wolfson History Prize for Survivors: The Lost Stories of the Last Captives of the Atlantic Slave Trade.
History, it's a long game. Divest in haste, repent for the longue durée.
History, it's a long game. Divest in haste, repent for the longue durée.
The Wolfson History Prize - Celebrating Outstanding History
The Wolfson History Prize is awarded annually to promote and recognise outstanding history written for a general audience.
www.wolfsonhistoryprize.org.uk
December 3, 2025 at 8:44 AM
Graduate of the American Studies programme that the University of Nottingham wishes to close wins 2025 Wolfson History Prize for Survivors: The Lost Stories of the Last Captives of the Atlantic Slave Trade.
History, it's a long game. Divest in haste, repent for the longue durée.
History, it's a long game. Divest in haste, repent for the longue durée.
Reposted by Joanne Begiato
Solidarity with every trans person struggling to keep their heads in the game today. Along with everything else, this is absolutely a war against our collective and individual mental and emotional health - against our very sense of self.
It's expected to feel the blow. But we stay fighting.
It's expected to feel the blow. But we stay fighting.
December 3, 2025 at 12:12 PM
Solidarity with every trans person struggling to keep their heads in the game today. Along with everything else, this is absolutely a war against our collective and individual mental and emotional health - against our very sense of self.
It's expected to feel the blow. But we stay fighting.
It's expected to feel the blow. But we stay fighting.
Reposted by Joanne Begiato
Annual shameless Xmas or other seasonal holiday gift suggestion for those interested in any of material culture, empire or British country houses. Over 500 pages & 100 illustrations. Paperback a mere £30. (Alternatively, free to download from @uclpress.bsky.social or @jstor.bsky.social ).
The East India Company at Home, 1757-1857
The East India Company at Home, 1757-1857 explores how empire in Asia shaped British country houses, their interiors and the lives of their residents. It includes chapters from researchers based in a ...
uclpress.co.uk
November 30, 2025 at 12:22 PM
Annual shameless Xmas or other seasonal holiday gift suggestion for those interested in any of material culture, empire or British country houses. Over 500 pages & 100 illustrations. Paperback a mere £30. (Alternatively, free to download from @uclpress.bsky.social or @jstor.bsky.social ).
Reposted by Joanne Begiato
Rachel Reeves says on Laura Kuenssberg that she's asking working people to pay a little bit more.
This was all under the cover of a made up "black hole" whilst refusing to tax the super rich.
This Labour Government showing again exactly who they are and who they serve.
This was all under the cover of a made up "black hole" whilst refusing to tax the super rich.
This Labour Government showing again exactly who they are and who they serve.
November 30, 2025 at 11:38 AM
Rachel Reeves says on Laura Kuenssberg that she's asking working people to pay a little bit more.
This was all under the cover of a made up "black hole" whilst refusing to tax the super rich.
This Labour Government showing again exactly who they are and who they serve.
This was all under the cover of a made up "black hole" whilst refusing to tax the super rich.
This Labour Government showing again exactly who they are and who they serve.
Reposted by Joanne Begiato
What do UK graduates do? Lots of information in this annual report.
A reminder that Humanities graduates are quite employable. Compare unemployment rates for Biology (8.4%), Chemistry (5.9%) and Physics (8.0%) with English literature (6.4%), History (7.6%) and Languages (7.6%) for example.
A reminder that Humanities graduates are quite employable. Compare unemployment rates for Biology (8.4%), Chemistry (5.9%) and Physics (8.0%) with English literature (6.4%), History (7.6%) and Languages (7.6%) for example.
graduatemarkettrends.cdn.prismic.io
November 28, 2025 at 2:18 PM
What do UK graduates do? Lots of information in this annual report.
A reminder that Humanities graduates are quite employable. Compare unemployment rates for Biology (8.4%), Chemistry (5.9%) and Physics (8.0%) with English literature (6.4%), History (7.6%) and Languages (7.6%) for example.
A reminder that Humanities graduates are quite employable. Compare unemployment rates for Biology (8.4%), Chemistry (5.9%) and Physics (8.0%) with English literature (6.4%), History (7.6%) and Languages (7.6%) for example.
Reposted by Joanne Begiato
I wrote a bit about touch and travel writing over on @victorianhand.bsky.social - read more at the link below!
🌎 What happens when a travel writer navigates the world through touch?
This month’s blog explores the journeys of James Holman, the self-described ‘Blind Traveller’, and how his haptic encounters challenged the visual conventions of travel writing.
www.thevictorianhand.uk/gallery/the-...
This month’s blog explores the journeys of James Holman, the self-described ‘Blind Traveller’, and how his haptic encounters challenged the visual conventions of travel writing.
www.thevictorianhand.uk/gallery/the-...
November 28, 2025 at 2:18 PM
I wrote a bit about touch and travel writing over on @victorianhand.bsky.social - read more at the link below!
Read @rosscmrn.bsky.social's fabulous blog post! And please repost 😊
🌎 What happens when a travel writer navigates the world through touch?
This month’s blog explores the journeys of James Holman, the self-described ‘Blind Traveller’, and how his haptic encounters challenged the visual conventions of travel writing.
www.thevictorianhand.uk/gallery/the-...
This month’s blog explores the journeys of James Holman, the self-described ‘Blind Traveller’, and how his haptic encounters challenged the visual conventions of travel writing.
www.thevictorianhand.uk/gallery/the-...
November 28, 2025 at 8:40 PM
Read @rosscmrn.bsky.social's fabulous blog post! And please repost 😊
⬇️⬇️
@jbhist.bsky.social & I are pleased to see that our article on the sensory, emotional, & material history of the Royal Military Exhibition of 1890 is now formally out in November's issue of Historical Research. It's completely Open Access, so please check it out ...
academic.oup.com/histres/arti...
academic.oup.com/histres/arti...
Exhibiting Tommy Atkins: senses, spectacle and military modernity in late Victorian Britain
Abstract. This article considers the conjunction of senses, emotions and objects in the Royal Military Exhibition of 1890 to deepen our understanding of po
academic.oup.com
November 28, 2025 at 5:48 PM
⬇️⬇️
Reposted by Joanne Begiato
This is spot on and so important: we have to change the language we use to talk about what universities are and their purpose.
Partly an effect of the business speak (and approach) applied to universities. “Providers” “exit markets” all the time. It’s how The market works! Collective institutions of public good…now those are different things.
7 x 3000+ students + 17 smaller institutions must mean 30,000+ affected students. That’s about the same size as Sheffield uni, which employs 8000ish staff. Why is the government tolerating the impending collapse of up to 24 related employers and 8000+ more lost jobs? Where is the sense of crisis?
November 26, 2025 at 9:32 AM
This is spot on and so important: we have to change the language we use to talk about what universities are and their purpose.
Reposted by Joanne Begiato
7 x 3000+ students + 17 smaller institutions must mean 30,000+ affected students. That’s about the same size as Sheffield uni, which employs 8000ish staff. Why is the government tolerating the impending collapse of up to 24 related employers and 8000+ more lost jobs? Where is the sense of crisis?
Chief exec of OfS 'said the OfS believes there are 24 institutions at risk of exiting the market in the next 12 months, seven of which are large providers with more than 3,000 students. There are another 25 or so institutions of various sizes at risk over a two- to three-year period, she added.'
Seven ‘large providers’ at risk of going under in the next year
Skills minister says no higher education institutions are at imminent risk of collapse this year but OfS confirms more than 20 providers are being closely monitored
www.timeshighereducation.com
November 26, 2025 at 8:57 AM
7 x 3000+ students + 17 smaller institutions must mean 30,000+ affected students. That’s about the same size as Sheffield uni, which employs 8000ish staff. Why is the government tolerating the impending collapse of up to 24 related employers and 8000+ more lost jobs? Where is the sense of crisis?
You can still register for this amazing conference in an amazing venue. Please check it out and share widely!
General registration is now open for our upcoming conference The Hand: Emotions, Embodiment and Identity at London College of Fashion, 8-9 January!
Visit our website to register: www.thevictorianhand.uk/conference
Visit our website to register: www.thevictorianhand.uk/conference
November 24, 2025 at 4:41 PM
You can still register for this amazing conference in an amazing venue. Please check it out and share widely!
Reposted by Joanne Begiato
'It is notable that in the last Research Excellence Framework exercise the Department of American Studies at Nottingham was ranked third in the Area Studies unit of assessment and was one of the top-performing units across the whole of the University of Nottingham.' 1/2
RED ALERT: the University of Nottingham is threatening to close its Department of American Studies, putting all staff at risk of redundancy, and ending any American specialist knowledge in the Faculty of Arts.
Sign the petition here to save jobs:
www.change.org/p/save-ameri...
Sign the petition here to save jobs:
www.change.org/p/save-ameri...
Sign the Petition
SAVE AMERICAN STUDIES TEACHING AT THE UNIVERSITY OF NOTTINGHAM
www.change.org
November 23, 2025 at 1:38 PM
'It is notable that in the last Research Excellence Framework exercise the Department of American Studies at Nottingham was ranked third in the Area Studies unit of assessment and was one of the top-performing units across the whole of the University of Nottingham.' 1/2
Reposted by Joanne Begiato
Our #Handoftheweek
In 1895 Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen discovered mysterious ‘X-rays’. His image of his wife’s hand - bones and wedding ring visible - captivated Europe.
X-rays transformed medicine, revealing the body’s interior without surgery. Early radiologists paid a price, as missing hands became a mark of the work.
X-rays transformed medicine, revealing the body’s interior without surgery. Early radiologists paid a price, as missing hands became a mark of the work.
![A faint image of the bones inside a hand with a wedding ring. The picture is framed with green card with the title 'Hand mit Ringen [Hand with Ring]' and stamped by Wurzburg University.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:esngkbyspvv7ct3wyrog3ipx/bafkreifllb323g3xpedi7w4yzycio36ogbwwv6ohajjce4dn2l3svdxfii@jpeg)
November 21, 2025 at 5:14 PM
Our #Handoftheweek
Our #Handoftheweek
In 1895 Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen discovered mysterious ‘X-rays’. His image of his wife’s hand - bones and wedding ring visible - captivated Europe.
X-rays transformed medicine, revealing the body’s interior without surgery. Early radiologists paid a price, as missing hands became a mark of the work.
X-rays transformed medicine, revealing the body’s interior without surgery. Early radiologists paid a price, as missing hands became a mark of the work.
November 21, 2025 at 5:14 PM
Our #Handoftheweek
Reposted by Joanne Begiato
In 1895 Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen discovered mysterious ‘X-rays’. His image of his wife’s hand - bones and wedding ring visible - captivated Europe.
X-rays transformed medicine, revealing the body’s interior without surgery. Early radiologists paid a price, as missing hands became a mark of the work.
X-rays transformed medicine, revealing the body’s interior without surgery. Early radiologists paid a price, as missing hands became a mark of the work.
November 21, 2025 at 2:48 PM
In 1895 Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen discovered mysterious ‘X-rays’. His image of his wife’s hand - bones and wedding ring visible - captivated Europe.
X-rays transformed medicine, revealing the body’s interior without surgery. Early radiologists paid a price, as missing hands became a mark of the work.
X-rays transformed medicine, revealing the body’s interior without surgery. Early radiologists paid a price, as missing hands became a mark of the work.
Reposted by Joanne Begiato
Just a reminder that if you're attending our seminar in person rather than online this evening, we're in the Institute of Education rather than at the IHR (which is closed for Founders' Day). All welcome! #Skystorians
‘Such a silly fellow I fear his making some mistake’: The convergence of medical and maternal approaches to domestic childcare in Georgian England
www.history.ac.uk
November 19, 2025 at 8:12 AM
Just a reminder that if you're attending our seminar in person rather than online this evening, we're in the Institute of Education rather than at the IHR (which is closed for Founders' Day). All welcome! #Skystorians