Joumana Medlej
@majnouna.com
Artist-scholar, specialised in early Arabic (Kufi) scripts & historical/natural materials. Interest in material culture & things real. Beirut émigré in Oxford. Earth lover, plastic-free. Contemplative. Whovian/Gallifrey…
Links: https://linktr.ee/Majnouna
Links: https://linktr.ee/Majnouna
We went to two museums today. The National one didn’t take our money because the cashier hadn’t turned up so they just waved us in. At the minerals one, they said “we’re not selling any more tickets today but you can make a donation,” which still baffles me. TAKE OUR MONEY, PEOPLE.
January 6, 2026 at 7:31 PM
We went to two museums today. The National one didn’t take our money because the cashier hadn’t turned up so they just waved us in. At the minerals one, they said “we’re not selling any more tickets today but you can make a donation,” which still baffles me. TAKE OUR MONEY, PEOPLE.
To anyone with a passion for minerals and/or crystals, the mineral museum (MIME) should be sufficient reason to fly to Beirut. Between this and Jeita grotto, you’re basically a pig in mud.
I’m going to post some pics below…
I’m going to post some pics below…
January 6, 2026 at 4:56 PM
To anyone with a passion for minerals and/or crystals, the mineral museum (MIME) should be sufficient reason to fly to Beirut. Between this and Jeita grotto, you’re basically a pig in mud.
I’m going to post some pics below…
I’m going to post some pics below…
This may be the first time I spend Christmas in one country then again in another 😜
January 6, 2026 at 4:41 PM
This may be the first time I spend Christmas in one country then again in another 😜
Reposted by Joumana Medlej
This is why, after years of saying I’d go down with the ship, I changed my mind. This was beyond imagination for how I thought Twitter might go and there is no pride left in staying on deck. It’s safer in with the jokeless icebergs
Not even the prompts. If you are a Twitter user in the UK and Twitter sticks a Grok CSAM image in your feed for WHATEVER reason, well congrats your device just downloaded child porn. And you are legally responsible for that.
Even if nobody wants to take action against Musk for building a CSAM generator, there are people using it who are based in the UK and those prompts are absolutely something that would get you on the sex offender's register. Absolutely no justification not to try to identify and prosecute users.
January 5, 2026 at 5:00 PM
This is why, after years of saying I’d go down with the ship, I changed my mind. This was beyond imagination for how I thought Twitter might go and there is no pride left in staying on deck. It’s safer in with the jokeless icebergs
Someone randomly walked in to this cafe and said to us (the only sitting patrons): "Happy new year! I don't think it's going to be, but we can hope! This country runs on hope."
January 5, 2026 at 3:53 PM
Someone randomly walked in to this cafe and said to us (the only sitting patrons): "Happy new year! I don't think it's going to be, but we can hope! This country runs on hope."
We briefly got away to the cedars of the Barouk today, the eastern flank of #Lebanon’s largest nature reserve.
January 5, 2026 at 2:19 PM
We briefly got away to the cedars of the Barouk today, the eastern flank of #Lebanon’s largest nature reserve.
Reposted by Joumana Medlej
"if you scoff at the idea that one should have any ethical boundaries at all, and think that there’s no reason to care about the overall utilitarian impact of this technology, that it’s worth using no matter what else it does as long as it makes you 5% better at your job, that’s sociopath behavior."
Deciphering Glyph ::
How To Argue With Me About AI, If You Must
Deciphering Glyph, the blog of Glyph Lefkowitz.
blog.glyph.im
January 5, 2026 at 8:05 AM
"if you scoff at the idea that one should have any ethical boundaries at all, and think that there’s no reason to care about the overall utilitarian impact of this technology, that it’s worth using no matter what else it does as long as it makes you 5% better at your job, that’s sociopath behavior."
Reposted by Joumana Medlej
JOB ALERT!
3-year postdoc at @girtoncollege.bsky.social - research anything you like in History, Archaeology or Anthropology in a wonderful, welcoming scholarly community.
PLEASE SHARE! Closes 12 January
www.girton.cam.ac.uk/job-vacancie...
3-year postdoc at @girtoncollege.bsky.social - research anything you like in History, Archaeology or Anthropology in a wonderful, welcoming scholarly community.
PLEASE SHARE! Closes 12 January
www.girton.cam.ac.uk/job-vacancie...
January 5, 2026 at 9:00 AM
JOB ALERT!
3-year postdoc at @girtoncollege.bsky.social - research anything you like in History, Archaeology or Anthropology in a wonderful, welcoming scholarly community.
PLEASE SHARE! Closes 12 January
www.girton.cam.ac.uk/job-vacancie...
3-year postdoc at @girtoncollege.bsky.social - research anything you like in History, Archaeology or Anthropology in a wonderful, welcoming scholarly community.
PLEASE SHARE! Closes 12 January
www.girton.cam.ac.uk/job-vacancie...
Reposted by Joumana Medlej
A sort of apology blog post, with books and activities, since I didn't manage a post before my Christmas break. Featuring books by @majnouna.com @dannybate.bsky.social @timbrookes.bsky.social among other things.
viewsproject.wordpress.com/2026/01/04/t...
viewsproject.wordpress.com/2026/01/04/t...
The festive epigraphist – with books and crafts
I didn’t manage to write a post before taking a break for Christmas (sorry), but after having a particularly writing-themed festive season, I thought some of my experiences might be of intere…
viewsproject.wordpress.com
January 5, 2026 at 1:16 PM
A sort of apology blog post, with books and activities, since I didn't manage a post before my Christmas break. Featuring books by @majnouna.com @dannybate.bsky.social @timbrookes.bsky.social among other things.
viewsproject.wordpress.com/2026/01/04/t...
viewsproject.wordpress.com/2026/01/04/t...
Phenomenal number of red flags in this contact form submission. Artists should be aware of these: no use of my name, vague generic praise, and a "digital collection"? The only reason I'm not responding to tell them where to shove it is I don't want to hand over my email (hence the contact form).
January 5, 2026 at 12:45 PM
Phenomenal number of red flags in this contact form submission. Artists should be aware of these: no use of my name, vague generic praise, and a "digital collection"? The only reason I'm not responding to tell them where to shove it is I don't want to hand over my email (hence the contact form).
Reposted by Joumana Medlej
"fallen into the hands of a woman"
Following the capture of President Nicolás Maduro during a US military operation in Venezuela, the command of the South American country has fallen into the hands of a woman: Executive Vice President Delcy Rodríguez. https://cnn.it/3YnGph0
January 4, 2026 at 7:25 AM
"fallen into the hands of a woman"
Reposted by Joumana Medlej
I am not going to go into politics or current news coverage.
I am, however, going to emphasise you cannot trust your own eyes. Images will be generated and manipulated.
While image manipulation has always been part of war, the sheer scale is new.
I am, however, going to emphasise you cannot trust your own eyes. Images will be generated and manipulated.
While image manipulation has always been part of war, the sheer scale is new.
THREAD: I'll fact-check all the viral misinformation about the US military operation in Venezuela in this thread
This image, purporting to show the US military arresting Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, is AI-generated.
According to Google's SynthID detector, it was created using Google AI.
This image, purporting to show the US military arresting Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, is AI-generated.
According to Google's SynthID detector, it was created using Google AI.
January 3, 2026 at 7:22 PM
I am not going to go into politics or current news coverage.
I am, however, going to emphasise you cannot trust your own eyes. Images will be generated and manipulated.
While image manipulation has always been part of war, the sheer scale is new.
I am, however, going to emphasise you cannot trust your own eyes. Images will be generated and manipulated.
While image manipulation has always been part of war, the sheer scale is new.
Reposted by Joumana Medlej
It’s an empire and it‘s doing empire things. The peace rhetoric is an *inherent part* of imperial war machine. Some people need to brush up on history. And yes, this will get worse.
January 3, 2026 at 7:58 PM
It’s an empire and it‘s doing empire things. The peace rhetoric is an *inherent part* of imperial war machine. Some people need to brush up on history. And yes, this will get worse.
Cats of Batroun and Byblos
January 3, 2026 at 2:48 PM
Cats of Batroun and Byblos
Reposted by Joumana Medlej
The Black Archive is a series of books which take an in-depth look at individual Doctor Who stories.
We're calling for submissions to the Black Archive from disabled authors and authors of colour, who we know have been underrepresented in the range.
Please spread this as widely as you can, as we want it to reach as many eligible authors as possible. Thank you.
obversebooks.co.uk/blackarchive...
Please spread this as widely as you can, as we want it to reach as many eligible authors as possible. Thank you.
obversebooks.co.uk/blackarchive...
January 3, 2026 at 11:17 AM
The Black Archive is a series of books which take an in-depth look at individual Doctor Who stories.
I wish I had totally stayed off the timeline today.
January 3, 2026 at 2:09 PM
I wish I had totally stayed off the timeline today.
I’ve always wanted to meet this Batroun celebrity 😭
January 3, 2026 at 8:08 AM
I’ve always wanted to meet this Batroun celebrity 😭
Reposted by Joumana Medlej
OMG 😭
Huntington's is an inherited disease that's like Alzheimers + Parkinson's all in one. NOW: "once the gene therapy has been delivered into the brain... [it] injects a piece of DNA to reprogram the neuron to become a factory for its own cure."
LIFE SAVING!
www.youtube.com/watch?v=bhEx...
Huntington's is an inherited disease that's like Alzheimers + Parkinson's all in one. NOW: "once the gene therapy has been delivered into the brain... [it] injects a piece of DNA to reprogram the neuron to become a factory for its own cure."
LIFE SAVING!
www.youtube.com/watch?v=bhEx...
Huntington's disease successfully treated for first time | BBC News
YouTube video by BBC News
www.youtube.com
September 25, 2025 at 9:27 PM
OMG 😭
Huntington's is an inherited disease that's like Alzheimers + Parkinson's all in one. NOW: "once the gene therapy has been delivered into the brain... [it] injects a piece of DNA to reprogram the neuron to become a factory for its own cure."
LIFE SAVING!
www.youtube.com/watch?v=bhEx...
Huntington's is an inherited disease that's like Alzheimers + Parkinson's all in one. NOW: "once the gene therapy has been delivered into the brain... [it] injects a piece of DNA to reprogram the neuron to become a factory for its own cure."
LIFE SAVING!
www.youtube.com/watch?v=bhEx...
Reposted by Joumana Medlej
I think about this one a lot
January 3, 2026 at 4:19 AM
I think about this one a lot
Thoughts for my partner, who’s only on his third day and already a veteran of power cuts.
January 2, 2026 at 4:18 PM
Thoughts for my partner, who’s only on his third day and already a veteran of power cuts.
A day of cats and palaces.
January 2, 2026 at 2:20 PM
A day of cats and palaces.
Reposted by Joumana Medlej
The copyright protection that Labour intends to remove from artists is the one that also protects people from having their holiday snaps turned into porn on twitter. If it is fair game for generative AI to slopify books, films and music, then your personal photos will also be fair game.
January 2, 2026 at 12:37 PM
The copyright protection that Labour intends to remove from artists is the one that also protects people from having their holiday snaps turned into porn on twitter. If it is fair game for generative AI to slopify books, films and music, then your personal photos will also be fair game.
Writing about جمّيز (gemmayz, Ficus sycomorus) while sitting in Gemmayzeh is highly satisfying.
January 1, 2026 at 1:42 PM
Writing about جمّيز (gemmayz, Ficus sycomorus) while sitting in Gemmayzeh is highly satisfying.
I thought everything would be shut today but the indescribable Jeita Grotto was open + free of noisy hordes that spoil the experience (we even got to do the lower grotto just before it closed due to the water rising fast). jeita-grotto.com
AND neighbourhood cafés are like "yeah 'course we're open."
AND neighbourhood cafés are like "yeah 'course we're open."
Jeita Grotto Lebanon – A Must-See Natural Wonder Near Beirut
Explore Jeita Grotto Lebanon, a breathtaking cave system with underground rivers and limestone formations just a short drive from Beirut.
jeita-grotto.com
January 1, 2026 at 12:29 PM
I thought everything would be shut today but the indescribable Jeita Grotto was open + free of noisy hordes that spoil the experience (we even got to do the lower grotto just before it closed due to the water rising fast). jeita-grotto.com
AND neighbourhood cafés are like "yeah 'course we're open."
AND neighbourhood cafés are like "yeah 'course we're open."