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megsmith.bsky.social
dr. meg smith
@megsmith.bsky.social
2.2K followers 1.9K following 890 posts
• Interim Director & Research Asst Prof of Digital Humanities at @siueiris.bsky.social
• Medieval/early modern Irish historian
• Public transit enthusiast & urban cyclist
• Die-hard Packers fan
• Avid quilter/xstitcher
• Margaret, not Megan
• She/her
• STL
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megsmith.bsky.social
dr. meg smith @megsmith.bsky.social · Jan 1
How it started, how it’s going, #DigitalHumanities style
A screenshot of my Bluesky profile, where my bio shows that I am research assistant professor of digital humanities at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville’s IRIS Center A screenshot of my Bluesky profile with the “profile updated” badge, where my bio now shows that I am research assistant professor of digital humanities and interim director of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville’s IRIS Center
Reposted by dr. meg smith
siueiris.bsky.social
This Friday! Join us for our next Morning Bytes, where Dr. Jill Anderson (English) will present on her work producing a biographical chronology for the Catharine Maria Sedgwick Online Letters project.

#DigitalHumanities @mhs1791.bsky.social
IRIS Center Morning Bytes Jill Anderson, Ph.D. Department of English Friday, Nov. 14 10:00-11:00 AM IRIS Center (Peck 2226) Grappling with Contexts for an Archive of 19th-Century Letters In this Morning Bytes, Dr. Jill Anderson (English) will present her Spring 2025 sabbatical project, a series of contributions to the Catharine Maria Sedgwick Online Letters project contained within the Primary Source Cooperative at the Massachusetts Historical Society. The presentation will include a brief introduction to this influential early American writer and a discussion of Anderson's process in producing a biographical chronology connecting Sedgwick's early letters with 19th-century historical and personal contexts.
November 10, 2025 at 11:41 PM
Reposted by dr. meg smith
megsmith.bsky.social
The “no, this is Patrick” meme. In the top cell, Patrick from SpongeBob answers the phone. The text reads “is this the end of the last phase of the late woodland period?” In the bottom cell, Patrick responds “No, this is Patrick!”
November 5, 2025 at 2:22 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
My new favorite fact about the archaeological chronology of the American Bottom. What other names should we give to archaeological periods? Our current moment gives strong Chad energy.
An excerpt from Pauketat’s The Ascent of Chiefs, a monograph on political authority in Cahokia, describing the archaeological chronology of the American Bottom. The highlighted text reads “In the Northern Bottom Expanse, the end of the last phase of the Late Woodland period, called Patrick…”
November 5, 2025 at 2:18 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
CFP alert! If you're working on digitization, replicas and reproductions, living history practices, or other forms of surrogate sources, we'd love to see a proposal for organized sessions at the 2026 Symposium on Medieval and Renaissance Studies. #DigitalHumanities #LivingHistory #CFP #MedievalSky
Call for Papers 13th Annual Symposium on Medieval and Renaissance Studies 8-10 June 2026 Saint Louis University Representing the Past: Material and Digital Surrogates in the Practice of History Organizers: Thomas Morin, Saint Louis University, and Margaret Smith, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Increasing reliance on surrogates has transformed historians' avenues for inquiry and methodologies for interpreting information. The creation of digital surrogates has increased access to historical materials, but also raises questions about representation, conservation, and democratization. Parallel to these developments, the production of physical replicas of historical objects has also expanded immensely in the last several decades, bringing with it new teaching tools and research aids. But the production of these material surrogates has also heightened the tensions between access and authenticity. These replicas, both in the physical and digital spheres, have opened new paths and discussions about how scholars engage with history both academically and pedagogically, and in public spaces.   These sessions invite papers that explore the creation, use, and interpretation of surrogates in historical practice. How do digital and material surrogates mediate the relationship between researchers, objects, and audiences? How do they complement or challenge one another as forms of preservation and interpretation? We welcome contributions that address the processes of surrogate creation, the theoretical and ethical dimensions of representation, and the role of surrogates in pedagogy, public history, and digital humanities.   By bringing together scholars working across media, these panels seek to create dialogue on how historical knowledge is shaped through acts of reproduction, translation, and substitution. Prospective presenters should email their 100-200 word proposals to either thomas.morin@slu.edu or margars@siue.edu by 15 December 2025.
November 4, 2025 at 4:31 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
I’m watching a very old Jeopardy episode with a contestant who, when she was in high school, mailed her fingernails to a lady in California who would use them as false nails for celebrities. And like… I don’t think that lady was real?
November 2, 2025 at 12:32 AM
megsmith.bsky.social
Let this be a lesson to us all 🚵🍷
cbsnews.com CBS News @cbsnews.com · 10d
A French cyclist survived for three days after a horrendous 130-foot fall into a ravine, kept alive by the bottles of red wine he had in his shopping bag, police said.
Cyclist falls down 130-foot ravine in France, survives 3 days by drinking wine he had in shopping bag
A helicopter airlifted him to hospital, with a rescue doctor calling his survival "a miracle."
cbsn.ws
October 31, 2025 at 5:13 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
Happy Halloween from the definitely-not-haunted lamp that appeared at my metro station this morning!
A tall, sort of old-fashioned bronze lamp with no shade or bulb sitting on the sidewalk against the metro station fence. Oddly, no visible cord either — probably powered by ectoplasm or something
October 31, 2025 at 1:27 PM
Reposted by dr. meg smith
siueiris.bsky.social
This Wednesday! @hrambsy.bsky.social will share his work on the Black Lit Network, a #DigitalHumanities project that brings scholarship on African American literary studies to public audiences and provides innovative discovery tools that link people to books based on their interests.
Poster for a lecture co-sponsored by African American Literary Studies, the IRIS Center, and the Black Lit Network Dr. Howard Rambsy "The Literary Navigator: Curation and Discovery on the Black Literature Network" Wednesday, October 29, 11:00 AM Redmond Center classroom, Lovejoy Library 2nd floor
October 27, 2025 at 10:39 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
We’ll happily take donations from non-SIUE folks too, and although I can’t promise a university pennant, I do have some snazzy stickers I’d be happy to mail!
siueiris.bsky.social IRIS Center for Digital Humanities and Social Sciences @siueiris.bsky.social · 20d
📣Calling all SIUE faculty and staff📣

Join the SIUE Faculty and Staff Fundraising Campaign and make a direct impact on the programs and projects that inspire you most. If that inspiration includes digital humanities, experiential learning, and community-engaged pedagogy, keep reading!
A banner for an SIUE Foundation campaign targeting faculty and staff with the slogan “It’s a Cougar Thing, We Give Back”
October 21, 2025 at 1:56 PM
Reposted by dr. meg smith
siueiris.bsky.social
IRIS (fund 4332) fosters collaborations among students, faculty, and community members that use digital tools to explore the intersections of technology and culture. Donations support tech upgrades, equipment for check-out, and student workers and GAs who support the Center’s teaching and research.
October 21, 2025 at 1:48 PM
Reposted by dr. meg smith
siueiris.bsky.social
CODES (fund 4251) provides students the opportunity to work in small research teams with a faculty member and a community org to consider how the world's vital issues impact communities near SIUE. Donations fund student research supplies, graduation stoles, student mentors, internships, and more.
October 21, 2025 at 1:48 PM
Reposted by dr. meg smith
siueiris.bsky.social
📣Calling all SIUE faculty and staff📣

Join the SIUE Faculty and Staff Fundraising Campaign and make a direct impact on the programs and projects that inspire you most. If that inspiration includes digital humanities, experiential learning, and community-engaged pedagogy, keep reading!
A banner for an SIUE Foundation campaign targeting faculty and staff with the slogan “It’s a Cougar Thing, We Give Back”
October 21, 2025 at 1:48 PM
Reposted by dr. meg smith
librarymistress.bsky.social
"Mapping the Black Digital and Public Humanities" invites Black Digital and Public Humanities project directors to submit their projects to an interactive map and searchable database of 650+ international #Black #DigitalHumanities and #PublicHumanities projects. networks.h-net.org/group/announ...
Mapping the Black Digital and Public Humanities - Call for Projects | H-Net
Mapping the Black Digital and Public Humanities formally invites Black Digital and Public Humanities project directors to submit their projects to our interactive map and searchable database of 650+ i...
networks.h-net.org
September 29, 2025 at 1:58 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
People think coding is a sedentary job, but when you’re trying to debug a user location feature, it can involve a lot of steps.
A screenshot of a map with dozens of overlapping blue circles showing my location on a map with varying degrees of accuracy. The distribution of the circles shows that I was walking loops around my building to see how the location was behaving.
October 13, 2025 at 5:21 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
When the people demand donuts for Friday morning meetings, who am I to deny them? This morning’s border-crossing baked goods are brought to you by Donut Drive-in, Metrolink, and Madison County Transit.
A box of donuts from Donut Drive-In in St. Louis, which the box proudly describes as “Serving the finest Coffee in town.” Beyond the box, you can see the other side of a metro car and the Gateway Arch through the window.
October 10, 2025 at 1:08 PM
Reposted by dr. meg smith
wbez.org
University of Illinois campuses pays a for-profit company to recruit students for online programs — a practice that would be illegal if done by the universities themselves, a WBEZ investigation found.
Students for profit? University of Illinois campuses pay company per online student
Consumer protection advocates say the practice incentivizes the company to enroll as many students as possible, regardless of whether they'll benefit. The university says their standards aren't compromised.
trib.al
October 9, 2025 at 1:12 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
“Dusty archives” aside, this is what really got my goat. 1) DH is a sprawling field that comprehends a huge number of qualitative approaches, and 2) a facial recognition algorithm is absolutely a quantitative method. Don’t conflate how you would handle a task with what happens in the machine.
A quote from the historian Jürgen Matthäus quoted in the Guardian article: "Digital tools in the humanities have massively increased in use, but it's usually for the processing of mass data, not so much for qualitative analysis," he said about the potential for the use of Al in his field.
October 2, 2025 at 1:19 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
lol what a day for Josh Hawley to finally write me back about FY26 appropriations with a bullshit “don’t blame me 🤷‍♂️” email. I can’t even remember when I sent it.
An email from Senator Josh Hawley, the text of which reads “Dear Margaret, Thank you for contacting me about congressional appropriations in fiscal year 2026. I appreciate the time and effort you took to share your perspective with me on this important issue, and welcome the opportunity to respond. As you may know, Congress has the final say over government spending, and I take this responsibility very seriously. Although I am not a member of the Committee on Appropriations, I will keep your thoughts in mind as the Senate continues to work on its FY2026 appropriations legislation. As always, I truly appreciate hearing your concerns. Please do not hesitate to contact me in the future on other issues important to you and your community. It is a privilege to be your voice in Congress. If you would like to get regular updates on my work in the Senate, please visit my website at www.hawley.senate.gov or follow me on social media at @SenHawleyPress. Sincerely, Josh Hawley United States Senator”
October 1, 2025 at 7:37 PM
Reposted by dr. meg smith
gconnolly314.bsky.social
Today at 3:30 p.m.
BOA Public Infrastructure Committee hearing on #BOAres111 for data centers.

Testify at city hall or via Zoom.
Email comments to: boameetings@stlouis-mo.gov

We need a moratorium, by ordinance, on #datacenterSTL

#ArmoryTIF #SLU353

Details:
www.stlouis-mo.gov/events/event...
October 1, 2025 at 2:55 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
This can mean nothing good for student data.
benpatrickwill.bsky.social Ben Williamson @benpatrickwill.bsky.social · Oct 1
If your institution requires you to use Blackboard for teaching (like me), be aware its parent company is broke and it's getting new private equity owners whose plans for the platform, and how they'll capitalize on it, remain unknown (bet it includes "AI") onedtech.philhillaa.com/p/anthology-...
What This Means for the LMS and EdTech Markets For campus leaders: Blackboard will continue operating through the case, but the ownership and investment thesis behind the LMS are changing. This could affect long-term product direction and stability. For EdTech executives: This is a textbook example of distressed-debt control in our sector. It shows how private equity cycles, first driving aggressive expansion, now dictating asset sales, reshape vendor landscapes.
October 1, 2025 at 1:00 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
My autocorrect changed chat to Chat this morning, and I have achieved a new level of loathing for it. (Impressive, since it also autocorrects the Dr. in my title to my friend’s name Dru.)
September 30, 2025 at 2:07 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
Well, uh, psa: the trail at Saint Stanislaus is blocked, and if you try to go around the blockage, you might just slide down into Cowmire Creek and spend 15 minutes trying to claw your way back out of the 3ft deep muck. But at least my shorts will dry out as I bike back to the bus!
A selfie with a wry grin and soaked shirt and shorts A picture of my muddy, scraped up leg and mucky shoe A silver Bridgestone road bike propped up against the sign for Saint Stanislaus Conservation Area
September 28, 2025 at 6:41 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
Had she actually sought out readily available answers from wildlife rehabbers, she’d have found that newborn rabbits can’t be safely moved, and doing so is in fact illegal in some jurisdictions. Convenience culture kills, and not just bunnies.
Screenshot of several paragraphs from a St. Louis Post-Dispatch story on how St. Louisans are using AI. Transcript: Alyssa Chapman, 39, noticed a litter of newborn rabbits in her Webster Groves yard. She worried about her two dogs discovering the vulnerable kits, so she turned to her dependable source for advice. She asked ChatGPT what to do. The powerful Al chatbot suggested she move them to the front yard, away from the dogs, and place dandelion greens next to them. She followed the instructions. Half the bunnies died anyway. The same article continued. Transcript: "I'm bummed," she typed into Chat. She felt like she had done everything she could, but three still died. The Al immediately pulled up stats indicating that newborn rabbits have a high mortality rate. Then, it got personal. "I can tell you're a good person who wanted to help these animals," it said to her. Chat praised her character and pointed out that others might have ignored them, but she took the time to try to help. "Damn, that's so nice," Chapman thought. The compassionate response felt so human - not like a robot at all - and it genuinely made her feel better. More than half of U.S. adults say they use Al large language models like ChatGPT, Claude and Copilot, according to a national survey released in March by Elon University.
September 26, 2025 at 3:05 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
What’s medieval armor doing in a #DigitalHumanities class? Opening up questions about the role of surrogate sources! We often talk about the affordances of digital surrogates: gains like access and linked data, as well as limits like the inability to convey material, multisensory knowledge.
A student looks toward the camera smiling, wearing leather and metal armor on his arm and hand. Behind him, the screen displays two manuscripts with references to 14th century Genoese coyracies (or cuirasses).
September 26, 2025 at 1:33 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
The wide range of currencies and modes of exchange in the Middle Ages of course turns this specious analogy on its head. And don’t forget that trans people existed then too! #MedievalistsForTransRights
katjathieme.bsky.social Dr. Katja Thieme (she/they) @katjathieme.bsky.social · Sep 22
What it sounds like when philosophers who are also anti-trans activists submit an amicus brief to a US court where they argue for banning trans girls and women from women's sports.
30 the option of interpreting the Idaho and West Virginia statutes as motivated by the justified aim of excluding all males from female sports, it is quite invidious to interpret them as instead motivated by the unjustified aim of excluding males who identify as female in par- ticular. Consider a simple analogy. Imagine that we are back in Medieval Europe. Gold is the currency of the land. Consequently, many merchants prefer to accept gold and only gold as payment. However, a new move- ment is afoot, whose members are known as the alche- mists. The alchemists purport to have found a way of turning iron pyrite (fool’s gold) into gold. Some people are convinced by the claims of the alchemists, though many others are not. This difference in attitudes starts to lead to time-wasting interactions in which an alchemist or fellow traveler tries to purchase a good using iron pyrite from a merchant who, unmoved by well-publicized insistence on the part of the alche- mists that only irrational prejudice could lie behind lingering doubts about the possibility of converting iron pyrite into gold, continues to insist on only ac- cepting gold as payment. One such merchant, whose unofficial working policy has hitherto been to accept only gold as payment, decides to make his policy offi- cial by putting up a sign on his store saying, “Only gold accepted (no iron pyrite!).”
September 23, 2025 at 1:09 PM