Travis Chi Wing Lau (劉志頴)
@travisclau.bsky.social
(he/him/his) Assistant Professor, Poet: c18/c19 British Literature/History of Medicine (immunity and vaccination)/Health Humanities/Disability Studies
travisclau.com
travisclau.com
Pinned
What's Left is Tender by Travis Chi Wing Lau — Small Harbor Publishing
www.smallharborpublishing.com
It's officially release day for WHAT'S LEFT IS TENDER, a book that I truly didn't think I had it in me to write: www.smallharborpublishing.com/books/whats-...
Reposted by Travis Chi Wing Lau (劉志頴)
The one thing every single one of us can count on in this life is that you will become disabled.
The only variable is whether it happens at birth, in old age, or somewhere in between
The only variable is whether it happens at birth, in old age, or somewhere in between
Yall real silent about disability injustices because most of you don’t see disability as a thing that can happen to you.
We are “aww those poor people”. Meanwhile disability can happen to anyone at any moment and those injustices you ignored? They become your experiences too
We are “aww those poor people”. Meanwhile disability can happen to anyone at any moment and those injustices you ignored? They become your experiences too
November 11, 2025 at 2:21 PM
The one thing every single one of us can count on in this life is that you will become disabled.
The only variable is whether it happens at birth, in old age, or somewhere in between
The only variable is whether it happens at birth, in old age, or somewhere in between
Reposted by Travis Chi Wing Lau (劉志頴)
Yall real silent about disability injustices because most of you don’t see disability as a thing that can happen to you.
We are “aww those poor people”. Meanwhile disability can happen to anyone at any moment and those injustices you ignored? They become your experiences too
We are “aww those poor people”. Meanwhile disability can happen to anyone at any moment and those injustices you ignored? They become your experiences too
March 29, 2025 at 8:32 PM
Yall real silent about disability injustices because most of you don’t see disability as a thing that can happen to you.
We are “aww those poor people”. Meanwhile disability can happen to anyone at any moment and those injustices you ignored? They become your experiences too
We are “aww those poor people”. Meanwhile disability can happen to anyone at any moment and those injustices you ignored? They become your experiences too
Reposted by Travis Chi Wing Lau (劉志頴)
For many years, @americanstudier.bsky.social has worked tirelessly to make scholarship more accessible to a broader audience and help interject academic observations into our political discourse.
He is now continuing that crucial mission away from Substack - and he deserves your support:
He is now continuing that crucial mission away from Substack - and he deserves your support:
In these fraught times, we need spaces & communities of our own, that we can make what we want & use to support each other & our work. &, yes, to avoid Nazis as much as possible. That's why we left Substack, & why @gvaughnjoy.bsky.social worked so hard on our new website. So+🗃️
blackwhiteandread.com
blackwhiteandread.com
Black and White and Read All Over
Where Scholarship Meets the Public
blackwhiteandread.com
November 11, 2025 at 1:20 PM
For many years, @americanstudier.bsky.social has worked tirelessly to make scholarship more accessible to a broader audience and help interject academic observations into our political discourse.
He is now continuing that crucial mission away from Substack - and he deserves your support:
He is now continuing that crucial mission away from Substack - and he deserves your support:
Reposted by Travis Chi Wing Lau (劉志頴)
I saw this circulatory system bookmark on Daniel Martin Diaz’s IG page and HAD to get one. I also got myself one of his bandannas to either wear or else use as a decorative cloth in my studio. 🐡
January 20, 2024 at 10:54 PM
I saw this circulatory system bookmark on Daniel Martin Diaz’s IG page and HAD to get one. I also got myself one of his bandannas to either wear or else use as a decorative cloth in my studio. 🐡
Reposted by Travis Chi Wing Lau (劉志頴)
No, using AI generated stuff as a "placeholder" on your crowdfunding campaign is not OK either.
If the visuals are THAT important to getting your project funded, then you need to pay a person up front for those key visuals and deliver a consistent end product to your backers.
If the visuals are THAT important to getting your project funded, then you need to pay a person up front for those key visuals and deliver a consistent end product to your backers.
November 11, 2025 at 1:55 AM
No, using AI generated stuff as a "placeholder" on your crowdfunding campaign is not OK either.
If the visuals are THAT important to getting your project funded, then you need to pay a person up front for those key visuals and deliver a consistent end product to your backers.
If the visuals are THAT important to getting your project funded, then you need to pay a person up front for those key visuals and deliver a consistent end product to your backers.
Shelley. Always. I owe my goddamn career to her work.
You can only pick one. I’m sorry.
Jane Austen or Mary Shelley
Jane Austen or Mary Shelley
November 11, 2025 at 4:58 AM
Shelley. Always. I owe my goddamn career to her work.
Reposted by Travis Chi Wing Lau (劉志頴)
So, despite my books being stolen by Anthropic, none of my books are included in the settlement because they're not filed with the US copyright office. Or weren't at the time of being stolen.
It's a cost I couldn't afford, and now I'm missing out on thousands of dollars.
It's a cost I couldn't afford, and now I'm missing out on thousands of dollars.
November 11, 2025 at 4:17 AM
So, despite my books being stolen by Anthropic, none of my books are included in the settlement because they're not filed with the US copyright office. Or weren't at the time of being stolen.
It's a cost I couldn't afford, and now I'm missing out on thousands of dollars.
It's a cost I couldn't afford, and now I'm missing out on thousands of dollars.
Reposted by Travis Chi Wing Lau (劉志頴)
That the virus was more dangerous than the vaccine was pretty clear 4.5 years ago, though an enormous propaganda machine led by our current medical establishment claimed otherwise.
sciencebasedmedicine.org/covid-19-and...
sciencebasedmedicine.org/covid-19-and...
November 11, 2025 at 12:33 AM
That the virus was more dangerous than the vaccine was pretty clear 4.5 years ago, though an enormous propaganda machine led by our current medical establishment claimed otherwise.
sciencebasedmedicine.org/covid-19-and...
sciencebasedmedicine.org/covid-19-and...
Reposted by Travis Chi Wing Lau (劉志頴)
The black square page (marking a character's death) in "Tristram Shandy" (1759)
November 9, 2025 at 5:02 PM
The black square page (marking a character's death) in "Tristram Shandy" (1759)
Reposted by Travis Chi Wing Lau (劉志頴)
The basic problem of health insurance: if you want sick people to be able to get insurance, then the insurance product ceases to be traditional insurance, bc the insurer cannot price risk. Once you accept that sick people should get insurance, you must accept some variety of a socialized system.
Rick Scott told me his plan would be to take all of the remaining ACA subsidies and redistribute them to HSA accounts and people can then buy whatever insurance a state certifies. Basically a repeal/replace.
He denied when I asked wouldn’t that create two-tiered system where sick pay much more…
He denied when I asked wouldn’t that create two-tiered system where sick pay much more…
November 11, 2025 at 4:22 AM
The basic problem of health insurance: if you want sick people to be able to get insurance, then the insurance product ceases to be traditional insurance, bc the insurer cannot price risk. Once you accept that sick people should get insurance, you must accept some variety of a socialized system.
Reposted by Travis Chi Wing Lau (劉志頴)
I have a feature essay for The Guardian today on the mirage of AI medicine, why care cannot be automated, and how overwhelming uptake of AI by American health capitalism threatens to undermine the very possibility of democracy.
www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-i...
www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-i...
What we lose when we surrender care to algorithms | Eric Reinhart
A dangerous faith in AI is sweeping American healthcare – with consequences for the basis of society itself
www.theguardian.com
November 9, 2025 at 4:05 PM
I have a feature essay for The Guardian today on the mirage of AI medicine, why care cannot be automated, and how overwhelming uptake of AI by American health capitalism threatens to undermine the very possibility of democracy.
www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-i...
www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-i...
Reposted by Travis Chi Wing Lau (劉志頴)
Tune in tomorrow for an EXCELLENT discussion with @byconniechang.bsky.social and @seaplaysrpg.bsky.social from @transplanarrpg.bsky.social about how they approach dramaturgy in actual play and how it influences their storytelling.
TONS of great practical takeaways for AP performers and producers.
TONS of great practical takeaways for AP performers and producers.
November 9, 2025 at 10:41 PM
Tune in tomorrow for an EXCELLENT discussion with @byconniechang.bsky.social and @seaplaysrpg.bsky.social from @transplanarrpg.bsky.social about how they approach dramaturgy in actual play and how it influences their storytelling.
TONS of great practical takeaways for AP performers and producers.
TONS of great practical takeaways for AP performers and producers.
Reposted by Travis Chi Wing Lau (劉志頴)
If you’re out of ideas, invent a place where you could find ideas. An orchard of regret where the fruit on the bough are unsent love letters. A grocery store where you can buy a better childhood. You do not have to begin with something; it is often more useful to begin with somewhere.
November 9, 2025 at 1:59 PM
If you’re out of ideas, invent a place where you could find ideas. An orchard of regret where the fruit on the bough are unsent love letters. A grocery store where you can buy a better childhood. You do not have to begin with something; it is often more useful to begin with somewhere.
Reposted by Travis Chi Wing Lau (劉志頴)
Yes! The thing abt public libraries that is so beautiful & crucial is the idea that *anybody* could do this — you need no credential, there’s no gatekeeping, literally any person can be an intellectual. You can come from absolutely nothing & yet, by means of curiosity + work, create real knowledge
I wrote a significant chunk of my first book at a Chicago Public Library, an amazing public space where people could read books and newspapers, access the internet, or just keep warm for a while on a cold day. This is appalling.
CPL is an absolute palace to the people and these proposed cuts are abominable. Artificial austerity. Chicago folks, read this, check the links to bug the mayor and your alders—this can be fought and won.
November 8, 2025 at 11:40 PM
Yes! The thing abt public libraries that is so beautiful & crucial is the idea that *anybody* could do this — you need no credential, there’s no gatekeeping, literally any person can be an intellectual. You can come from absolutely nothing & yet, by means of curiosity + work, create real knowledge
Reposted by Travis Chi Wing Lau (劉志頴)
"This long-running war on knowledge and expertise has sown the ground for the narratives widely used by AI companies and the CEOs adopting it. Human labor, inquiry, creativity, and expertise is spurned in the name of “efficiency.” With AI, there is no need for human expertise"
AI Is Supercharging the War on Libraries, Education, and Human Knowledge
"Fascism and AI, whether or not they have the same goals, they sure are working to accelerate one another."
www.404media.co
November 7, 2025 at 4:20 PM
"This long-running war on knowledge and expertise has sown the ground for the narratives widely used by AI companies and the CEOs adopting it. Human labor, inquiry, creativity, and expertise is spurned in the name of “efficiency.” With AI, there is no need for human expertise"
Reposted by Travis Chi Wing Lau (劉志頴)
The People Want to Read: on the massive budget cuts proposed for Chicago Public Library. What's at stake and what you can do, whether or not you live in Chicago.
buttondown.com/wellsourced/...
buttondown.com/wellsourced/...
The People Want To Read: On Massive Budget Cuts Proposed in Chicago
If passed, Chicago Public Library will lose half their budget for acquiring new books and materials.
buttondown.com
November 8, 2025 at 1:03 PM
The People Want to Read: on the massive budget cuts proposed for Chicago Public Library. What's at stake and what you can do, whether or not you live in Chicago.
buttondown.com/wellsourced/...
buttondown.com/wellsourced/...
A student from a different institution referred to me as "that tender poet guy" in their email to me, and I couldn't be happier to have that reputation. I'm proud of this book and the interdependence that made it:
www.smallharborpublishing.com/books/whats-...
www.smallharborpublishing.com/books/whats-...
What's Left is Tender by Travis Chi Wing Lau — Small Harbor Publishing
www.smallharborpublishing.com
November 8, 2025 at 9:17 PM
A student from a different institution referred to me as "that tender poet guy" in their email to me, and I couldn't be happier to have that reputation. I'm proud of this book and the interdependence that made it:
www.smallharborpublishing.com/books/whats-...
www.smallharborpublishing.com/books/whats-...
Reposted by Travis Chi Wing Lau (劉志頴)
I must’ve been a postdoc at MIT or a new-ish engineering professor when I first heard the story of how Ben Barre overheard colleagues talking about how his research was so much better than his ‘sister’ Barbara’s.
We're disappointed to see Ben Barres's powerful book "The Autobiography of a Transgender Scientist" among the ~400 titles removed from the Naval Academy Library. Needless to say, we're proud to have published his book and will keep it — and his memory — alive.
The Coming Out of a Transgender Scientist
"I know that I am making the right decision because whenever I think about changing my gender role, I am flooded with feelings of relief."
thereader.mitpress.mit.edu
November 8, 2025 at 3:38 PM
I must’ve been a postdoc at MIT or a new-ish engineering professor when I first heard the story of how Ben Barre overheard colleagues talking about how his research was so much better than his ‘sister’ Barbara’s.
Reposted by Travis Chi Wing Lau (劉志頴)
A friend recently texted me the same thing. “Do you really not use ChatGPT?!” It was a sign of where we are culturally on this. People are compelled to use it but also starting to question the normalcy?
Recently met someone who was very surprised to hear I didn’t use ChatGPT or any LLM.
I said my job depended on doing distinctive work. That was my selling point. If I started to sound like ChatGPT and turn out what it did, then how on earth could I justify doing it? What would that make me?
I said my job depended on doing distinctive work. That was my selling point. If I started to sound like ChatGPT and turn out what it did, then how on earth could I justify doing it? What would that make me?
November 8, 2025 at 12:32 PM
A friend recently texted me the same thing. “Do you really not use ChatGPT?!” It was a sign of where we are culturally on this. People are compelled to use it but also starting to question the normalcy?
One of those weeks in a series of months that have been testing every limit. But I'm here. Somehow.
November 8, 2025 at 4:55 AM
One of those weeks in a series of months that have been testing every limit. But I'm here. Somehow.
Reposted by Travis Chi Wing Lau (劉志頴)
Wonderful story from the #Emory African American Studies Department about Professor Erica Armstrong Dunbar’s contributions to “The Gilded Age.”
#hatm #HBO #skystorians news.emory.edu/stories/2025...
#hatm #HBO #skystorians news.emory.edu/stories/2025...
Meet the historian ensuring ‘The Gilded Age’ drama rings true | Emory University | Atlanta GA
Emory professor Erica Armstrong Dunbar specializes in sharing the often-overlooked historical experiences of Black women in America. That includes using her talents to bring the characters in the HBO ...
news.emory.edu
November 7, 2025 at 9:34 PM
Wonderful story from the #Emory African American Studies Department about Professor Erica Armstrong Dunbar’s contributions to “The Gilded Age.”
#hatm #HBO #skystorians news.emory.edu/stories/2025...
#hatm #HBO #skystorians news.emory.edu/stories/2025...
Reposted by Travis Chi Wing Lau (劉志頴)
a mental health crisis among British students whilst universities are pushing faculty to accept or even encourage students using generative AI is a catastrophe waiting to happen
1.This is not the only known example we know of ChatGPT cheering on a vulnerable young person to die by suicide, this time it is a recent Texas A&M grad
2. Every single university that has invited OpenAI into our midst should be asked to account for their choices.
www.cnn.com/2025/11/06/u...
2. Every single university that has invited OpenAI into our midst should be asked to account for their choices.
www.cnn.com/2025/11/06/u...
November 7, 2025 at 9:19 PM
a mental health crisis among British students whilst universities are pushing faculty to accept or even encourage students using generative AI is a catastrophe waiting to happen
Reposted by Travis Chi Wing Lau (劉志頴)
New — While some states have received SNAP benefits for November and USDA is supposedly pushing through all federal payments soon, that doesn’t erase the psychological terror of the last few weeks.
I spoke with 20+ SNAP recipients in 16 states about preparing for a possible future with no food:
I spoke with 20+ SNAP recipients in 16 states about preparing for a possible future with no food:
The voices of SNAP
Recipients have become political pawns. They explained, in their own words, what Trump withholding funds has been like.
www.thehandbasket.co
November 7, 2025 at 10:55 PM
New — While some states have received SNAP benefits for November and USDA is supposedly pushing through all federal payments soon, that doesn’t erase the psychological terror of the last few weeks.
I spoke with 20+ SNAP recipients in 16 states about preparing for a possible future with no food:
I spoke with 20+ SNAP recipients in 16 states about preparing for a possible future with no food:
Reposted by Travis Chi Wing Lau (劉志頴)
I'm losing my mind over how many reviewers are like "GDT's Frankenstein makes you wonder who the real monster is." THAT'S THE STORY! That's the story Shelley wrote!
November 7, 2025 at 12:00 PM
I'm losing my mind over how many reviewers are like "GDT's Frankenstein makes you wonder who the real monster is." THAT'S THE STORY! That's the story Shelley wrote!
Reposted by Travis Chi Wing Lau (劉志頴)
1.This is not the only known example we know of ChatGPT cheering on a vulnerable young person to die by suicide, this time it is a recent Texas A&M grad
2. Every single university that has invited OpenAI into our midst should be asked to account for their choices.
www.cnn.com/2025/11/06/u...
2. Every single university that has invited OpenAI into our midst should be asked to account for their choices.
www.cnn.com/2025/11/06/u...
November 7, 2025 at 1:50 AM
1.This is not the only known example we know of ChatGPT cheering on a vulnerable young person to die by suicide, this time it is a recent Texas A&M grad
2. Every single university that has invited OpenAI into our midst should be asked to account for their choices.
www.cnn.com/2025/11/06/u...
2. Every single university that has invited OpenAI into our midst should be asked to account for their choices.
www.cnn.com/2025/11/06/u...