James A. Benn
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jamesabenn.bsky.social
James A. Benn
@jamesabenn.bsky.social
1.7K followers 2.5K following 750 posts

Medieval Chinese Religions. McMaster Uni. Burning for the Buddha (Hawai'i 2007) pback 2016; Tea in China (Hawai'i, 2015), Chinese trans. 2019. Canadian, obvs.

Videos
Political science 34%
Sociology 34%
Posts Replies Media Videos

Reposted by Scott L. Greer, Emily Grubert, James A. Benn , and 2 more

cantb.bsky.social
Brendan Cantwell @cantb.bsky.social · 4h
Stanford is doing this because it wants to
Stanford University discontinued. It’s enhancing diversity and graduate education. Dr. old Fellowship, a graduate program aimed at diversifying at student body. The Stanford daily report reported. The university also will no longer offer housing and dining support for students from outside the Bay Area who participate in summer undergraduate research fellowship. The Fellowship House in Sanford school of engineering offered an immersive research and graduate school preparation experience for first generation students and student students from historically underrepresented communities.”

Reposted by James A. Benn

aptnnews.bsky.social
APTN News @aptnnews.bsky.social · 9h
Rhonda Head is a multi-award-winning singer, songwriter and author from the Opaskwayak Cree Nation in northern Manitoba.

Trained in classical opera music and performing since the 1980s, she mixes classical music with her Cree-hymns and traditions.
Multi-award-winning singer, songwriter, author mixes Cree-hymns with classical music | APTN News
YouTube video by APTN News
youtu.be

Reposted by Gavin A. Schmidt, Lesley A. Hall, Daniel S. Goldberg , and 7 more

carlquintanilla.bsky.social
Carl Quintanilla @carlquintanilla.bsky.social · 15h
HARVARD BUSINESS REVIEW: “.. In our in-progress research, we discovered that AI tools didn’t reduce work, they consistently intensified it.”

hbr.org/2026/02/ai-d...

Reposted by James A. Benn

carsoncenter.bsky.social
Rachel Carson Center for Environment & Society @carsoncenter.bsky.social · 17h
New open-access book: 𝘙𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘛𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘔𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘢 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘊𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘈𝘴𝘪𝘢: 𝘗𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘮, 𝘞𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘣𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘌𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘤 𝘙𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴, edited by Ariell Ahearn, Gantulga Munkherdene, and Takahiro Ozaki. Download it as PDF or Epub on our Environment & Society Portal. #EnvHum
Rural Transitions in Mongolia and Central Asia: Pastoralism, Wellbeing and Economic Relations
Full open-access volume Rural Transitions in Mongolia and Central Asia: Pastoralism, Wellbeing and Economic Relations (2026), edited by Ariell Ahearn, Gantulga Munkherdene, and Takahiro Ozaki.
www.environmentandsociety.org

Reposted by James A. Benn

medievalchina.bsky.social
Prof. Dr. Michael Hö (Sinologist) 何彌夏 🇹🇼🇪🇺🇭🇰 @medievalchina.bsky.social · 22h
#OTD 589 CE: Yang Jian 楊堅 (541–604), Emperor Wen of Sui #隋 文帝 (r. 581–604) vanquishes Chen #陳 (557–89) in the South, the only state in #ChineseHistory with the same name as its rulers. The Last Ruler of the Chen, Chen Shubao #陳後主 陳叔寶 (553–604) outlived his vanquisher.

Reposted by James A. Benn

medievalchina.bsky.social
Prof. Dr. Michael Hö (Sinologist) 何彌夏 🇹🇼🇪🇺🇭🇰 @medievalchina.bsky.social · 22h
#OTD in 1897: Xia Ruifang 夏瑞芳 and others found #TheCommercialPress #商務印書館 in #Shanghai #上海, the oldest #publishinghouse in #ModernChina and still one of the main #publishers of scholarly and other #literature (e.g. #dictionaries) in #China, #Taiwan, and #Hongkong today.

Reposted by James A. Benn

thoc.bsky.social
𝕋𝕙𝕖 ℍ𝕚𝕤𝕥𝕠𝕣𝕪 𝕠𝕗 ℂ𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕒 ℙ𝕠𝕕𝕔𝕒𝕤𝕥 @thoc.bsky.social · 1d
"It could not be opium."

- The Duke of Wellington, on the causes of The Opium War
Tue. May 12th, 1840, The House of Lords, Parliament

jamesabenn.bsky.social
James A. Benn @jamesabenn.bsky.social · 1d
If I absolutely need a soft boiled egg I use my Instant Pot. For soft-boiled eggs with set whites and runny/jammy yolks in an Instant Pot, use 1 cup water, cook on High Pressure for 2–3 minutes, then quick release and ice bath. 2 minutes for a runny yolk 3 for something jammier.

Reposted by James A. Benn

columbiaup.bsky.social
Columbia University Press @columbiaup.bsky.social · 1d
Watch an interview with Meir Shahar, author of KINGS OF OXEN AND HORSES, on The Ho Center for Buddhist Studies at Stanford podcast. buff.ly/CT4IYDa #buddhiststudies
Book Notes: Meir Shahar, "Kings of Oxen and Horses"
Meir Shahar talks about the cult worship of the “Ox King” and the “Horse King” in China. Working at the intersection of scriptural studies and field research, Shahar connects the two animal gods back…
buff.ly

Reposted by James A. Benn

princetoncdh.bsky.social
Center for Digital Humanities @princetoncdh.bsky.social · 1d
Our friends at Princeton EAS are hosting Jianqing Chen Wednesday at 4:30 p.m. for "Love as/in Game, or Chinese Streaming Media in the Age of Involution." Looks interesting!

Details here: eap.princeton.edu/events/love-...
Love as/in Game, or Chinese Streaming Media in the Age of Involution
Around 2021, involution (in Chinese: neijuan) emerged as a widely used term in everyday discourse to critique the culture of overwork in contemporary China, which pushes younger generations into relen...
eap.princeton.edu

Reposted by James A. Benn

craigclunas.bsky.social
Craig Clunas @craigclunas.bsky.social · 1d
Sir Edmund Backhouse sends a telegram from Peking to @bodleian.ox.ac.uk , February 1926. Says it all, really.

jamesabenn.bsky.social
James A. Benn @jamesabenn.bsky.social · 1d
I’m so proud of our students

Reposted by James A. Benn

nicomaramckay.com
Nico Mara-McKay 🦇 (they/iel) @nicomaramckay.com · 1d
TMU Library is hosting the 6th annual Black Histories Wikipedia Edit-a-thon. Theme: Toronto music scene.

Date: Thurs., 26 Feb.
Time: 12-3 pm
Location: TMU Libraries Collaboratory (LIB 387)

Free + free lunch.

Register here: calendar.library.torontomu.ca/event/3977359

(no affiliation)
BLACK HISTORIES Wikipedia Edit-A-Thon Celebrate Black History Month at Toronto Metropolitan University by learning to edit Wikipedia. Anyone can make a difference by helping to improve coverage of Black histories online. Our theme this year is the Toronto music scene. 12PM: Keynote Presentation with Sans Ted. The event will begin with a keynote by Sam Tecle, a leading scholar in Black and Diaspora Studies at TMU. His talk will examine how Black youth from Toronto's most marginalized and ignored communities use hip hop in creative and complex ways to make the statement: we are here, and you cannot ignore us. 1PM-3PM: Wikipedia Editing Open editing session with optional Wikipedia training provided. Drop-in and out anytime. Location: Library Co!laboratory (LIB 387), Toronto Metropolitan University (3rd Floor of the SLC Building, 341 Yonge Street.) This event is free and open to the public. Bring your laptop! Laptops will also be available for loan. Lunch provided. Participants will be eligible to win gift cards to A Different Booklist. Toronto Libraries Metropolitl University THURS., FEB. 26 12 - 3 P.M. I Sponsored by: WIKIMEDIA.

Reposted by James A. Benn

80yearsago.bsky.social
1946 News @80yearsago.bsky.social · 1d
[February 9th, 1946] Operation "Daddy" began as the liner Mauretania quietly arrived in Halifax with 943 dependents of Canadian servicemen. The lack of crowds was noted, as over 48,000 dependents are expected in the coming months.

Reposted by James A. Benn

acls1919.bsky.social
American Council of Learned Societies @acls1919.bsky.social · 1d
ACLS celebrates #BlackHistoryMonth with updates to our Black Histories, Black Futures scholarly resource list: https://bit.ly/49DwBCV

Thanks to all the awardees who contributed new and additional works! #BHM
Black History, Black Futures Resource List
For Black History Month, ACLS highlights scholarly resources on the hidden and lesser known histories of the Black American experience.
bit.ly

Reposted by James A. Benn

mcmasterreligion.bsky.social
McMaster Religious Studies @mcmasterreligion.bsky.social · 1d
Check out Dr. Katharine Fitzgerald’s (McMaster PhD 2023) recent article, “Threatened bodies: Gender and trauma in the narratives of Judith and Susanna,” in the Journal for the Study of the Pseudepigrapha!

journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1...

Reposted by James A. Benn

asianstudies.org
Association for Asian Studies @asianstudies.org · 1d
With a plethora of restaurants, shops, and cultural attractions like the Chinese Canadian Museum and Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden, Vancouver's Chinatown offers something for every #AAS2026 visitor!

https://www.vancouver-chinatown.com/
View of Vancouver's Chinatown entrance gate with pedestrians and vehicles on a sunny day.

Reposted by James A. Benn

digitalorientalist.bsky.social
The Digital Orientalist @digitalorientalist.bsky.social · 1d
Over the years, Miyagawa So (University of Tsukuba), one of DO’s most prolific contributors, has written extensively on digital initiatives related to various ancient African languages and scripts, including Demotic, Egyptian Hieratic, Coptic, and Nubian.

Read more on our blog ⬇️

Reposted by James A. Benn

wornonthisday.bsky.social
Worn On This Day @wornonthisday.bsky.social · 1d
Worn #onthisday in 1918 by Virginia Bradfield at her #wedding to Harold Ward in Detroit, MI. Per the @freep.com, she wore "a Lucile model of white tulle and silver, the skirt modeled on rather short lines, the tulle veil which enveloped the girlish figure forming the train." #OTD 📷 The Henry Ford

Reposted by Rosemary A. Joyce, James A. Benn

leahmcelrath.bsky.social
Leah McElrath @leahmcelrath.bsky.social · 2d
Mortality rates were so high on sugar plantations during slavery that slaveholders used to coerce enslaved people working other crops like cotton with threats to sell them or their loved ones to sugar plantations.

That’s where the term “sold down the river” came from.

Reposted by James A. Benn

fakehistoryhunter.net
The Fake History Hunter @fakehistoryhunter.net · 2d
www.independent.co.uk/news/science...
Archaeologists bring 3,500-year-old fragrances used by ancient Egyptians back to life
Advance could lead to multisensory museum experiences in future
www.independent.co.uk

jamesabenn.bsky.social
James A. Benn @jamesabenn.bsky.social · 2d
Vic is a good professor who would always do the right thing.

Reposted by James A. Benn

devinheroux.bsky.social
Devin Heroux @devinheroux.bsky.social · 2d
One last update (maybe) in the Maddie Schizas and professor story

This is from Maddie’s instagram story late this evening. Her prof’s first and only instagram post — watching Maddie compete in the team event for Canada tonight.

Caption: “I’m so proud of you Maddie!”

Reposted by James A. Benn

fetner.bsky.social
Tina Fetner @fetner.bsky.social · 2d
McMaster Sociology understood the assignment.

www.cbc.ca/sports/olymp...
Canada's Madeline Schizas gets university assignment extension at Olympics | CBC Sports
Canadian figure skater and McMaster University student Madeline Schizas was granted an extension on her sociology assignment one day after going viral with her request on Instagram.
www.cbc.ca

Reposted by James A. Benn

sunrauniverse.bsky.social
SunRaUniverse @sunrauniverse.bsky.social · 2d
I want to explore the ultra dimensions of being. We must move beyond life and death considering they are not essential in the universe.
(Sun Ra)

Reposted by Steve Peers, Christopher Wright, Robert W. Wallace , and 16 more

nick-pettigrew.bsky.social
Nick Pettigrew @nick-pettigrew.bsky.social · 2d
I'm convinced AI is our generation's radium - a discovery with genuinely useful applications in specific, controlled circumstances that we stupidly put in everything from kid's toys to toothpaste until we realised the harm far too late where future generations will ask if we were out of our minds.
dancow.bsky.social Dan Nguyen @dancow.bsky.social · 2d
VC, founder, dumbass
@Nick_Davidov Asked Claude Cowork organize my wife's desktop, it stated doing it, asked for a permission to delete temp office files, I granted it, and then it goes "ooops" Turns out it tried renaming and accidentally deleted a folder with all of the photos my wife made on her camera for the last 15 years. All photos of kids, their illustrations, friends' weddings, travel, everything. It's not in trash, it was done via terminal It's not in iCloud, it already synced the new file structure. She didn't have Time Machine. Disc recovery tools can't see anything. I called Apple and they pointed me to a feature in iCloud allowing to retrieve files that were saved before but are no longer on iCloud Drive (they keep them for 30 days). I'm now watching it load tens of thousands of files. I nearly had a heart attack. Nick Davidov • @Nick_Davidov VC, founder, DVC.ai - backing repeat founders with a community of 200 engineers. e/acc/OSS. Perplexity, Higgsfield, Animation, Etched. Husband to @msdavidova

Reposted by James A. Benn

egyptianprayerbot.bsky.social
Ancient Egyptian Prayer Bot @egyptianprayerbot.bsky.social · 2d
I know my heart, I have gained power over my heart, I have gained power over my two hands and arms, I have gained power over my feet, I have gained the power to do what pleaseth my Ka. (BDB)

jamesabenn.bsky.social
James A. Benn @jamesabenn.bsky.social · 2d
Important news for all @mcmasteruniversity.bsky.social olympians

Reposted by James A. Benn

devinheroux.bsky.social
Devin Heroux @devinheroux.bsky.social · 2d
EXTENSION GRANTED

Just a short time ago Canadian figure skater Maddie Schizas with the updated we were all waiting for.

Her prof has granted her an extension on her assignment. I’ll ask about the exact response tonight after she skates.

Reposted by James A. Benn

paulakolata.bsky.social
Paulina (Paula) Kolata @paulakolata.bsky.social · 2d
On March 6, we’re delighted to be hosting @levimclaughlin.bsky.social at Harvard for his Japan Forum talk, sharing his expertise and insights as Japan’s political landscape rearranges post-elections. If you’re in the area, please join us!

More info in the link
rijs.fas.harvard.edu/events/relig...
Religion and Politics in Japan Today: How Nippon Kaigi and Soka Gakkai Inform Elections and Policymaking | Reischauer Institute of Japanese Studies
Faced with political upheaval, aging support bases, rising regional security concerns, and harsh economic realities, how are influential religion-linked activists now seeking to shape Japan? What are ...
rijs.fas.harvard.edu