Ben Gross
@bhgross144.bsky.social
John Merritt Associate Director for Research Services at the Harry Ransom Center; Author of The TVs of Tomorrow-How RCA's Flat-Screen Dreams Led to the First LCDs (Chicago 2018). Posting in a personal capacity.
What’s that…you want to consult Ernest Lehman’s papers & learn about his work on classic films like #NorthByNorthwest, #WestSideStory & The #SoundOfMusic?
I know a #humanities research center that can help you out!
research.hrc.utexas.edu/fasearch/fin...
#filmsky #ShamelessPlug #OnThisDay 🗃️📜🎥
I know a #humanities research center that can help you out!
research.hrc.utexas.edu/fasearch/fin...
#filmsky #ShamelessPlug #OnThisDay 🗃️📜🎥
December 8, 2025 at 11:58 PM
What’s that…you want to consult Ernest Lehman’s papers & learn about his work on classic films like #NorthByNorthwest, #WestSideStory & The #SoundOfMusic?
I know a #humanities research center that can help you out!
research.hrc.utexas.edu/fasearch/fin...
#filmsky #ShamelessPlug #OnThisDay 🗃️📜🎥
I know a #humanities research center that can help you out!
research.hrc.utexas.edu/fasearch/fin...
#filmsky #ShamelessPlug #OnThisDay 🗃️📜🎥
Reposted by Ben Gross
Hello, Bluesky!
We want to fund your research!
Check out our grants and fellowships!
Here: www.hagley.org/research/gra...
We want to fund your research!
Check out our grants and fellowships!
Here: www.hagley.org/research/gra...
Grants & Fellowships
Hagley invites serious researchers to apply for one of our grants to defray the costs of an extended stay intended to use our collections. Grants and fellowships are administered by the Center for the...
www.hagley.org
November 11, 2024 at 3:09 PM
Hello, Bluesky!
We want to fund your research!
Check out our grants and fellowships!
Here: www.hagley.org/research/gra...
We want to fund your research!
Check out our grants and fellowships!
Here: www.hagley.org/research/gra...
Reposted by Ben Gross
"A specific risk is that generative AI tools always produce an answer, even when the historical sources are incomplete or silent. ... If you received an archival reference or document description from an AI chatbot, please keep in mind that it may be inaccurate."
I wish a notice like this wasn't necessary.
www.icrc.org/en/article/i...
www.icrc.org/en/article/i...
Important notice: AI-generated archival references
www.icrc.org
December 8, 2025 at 12:17 PM
"A specific risk is that generative AI tools always produce an answer, even when the historical sources are incomplete or silent. ... If you received an archival reference or document description from an AI chatbot, please keep in mind that it may be inaccurate."
Today's #ScholarSunday reading: @jrndohoney.bsky.social's Nuncius article on "armchair alchemist" Pierre Le Lorrain (abbé de Vallemont), who sought reconcile Cartesian mechanism & "occult physics" through his botanical investigations
brill.com/view/journal...
#histSTM #envhist #AgHist #alchemy 📜🗃️
brill.com/view/journal...
#histSTM #envhist #AgHist #alchemy 📜🗃️
December 7, 2025 at 8:36 PM
Today's #ScholarSunday reading: @jrndohoney.bsky.social's Nuncius article on "armchair alchemist" Pierre Le Lorrain (abbé de Vallemont), who sought reconcile Cartesian mechanism & "occult physics" through his botanical investigations
brill.com/view/journal...
#histSTM #envhist #AgHist #alchemy 📜🗃️
brill.com/view/journal...
#histSTM #envhist #AgHist #alchemy 📜🗃️
Excited to see my @ransomcenter.bsky.social colleague Jenny Romero discussing #LiveFromNewYork on @wgntv.com!
Learn more about the exhibition and stop by when you're in Austin: www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/...
#LorneMichaels #SNL #comedy #TVSky #filmsky #ATX 📺📽️
Learn more about the exhibition and stop by when you're in Austin: www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/...
#LorneMichaels #SNL #comedy #TVSky #filmsky #ATX 📺📽️
'Live from New York: The Lorne Michaels Collection'
YouTube video by WGN News
youtu.be
December 5, 2025 at 11:18 PM
Excited to see my @ransomcenter.bsky.social colleague Jenny Romero discussing #LiveFromNewYork on @wgntv.com!
Learn more about the exhibition and stop by when you're in Austin: www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/...
#LorneMichaels #SNL #comedy #TVSky #filmsky #ATX 📺📽️
Learn more about the exhibition and stop by when you're in Austin: www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/...
#LorneMichaels #SNL #comedy #TVSky #filmsky #ATX 📺📽️
For the record, I think this is the first time one of my Bluesky posts has been labeled as featuring adult content!
I suppose that's what happens when a library's social media team include an early modern image of Hell in a promotional graphic...
(Which image? www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q309392...)
I suppose that's what happens when a library's social media team include an early modern image of Hell in a promotional graphic...
(Which image? www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q309392...)
"What is it that defines a monster? What, exactly, makes something or someone so monstrous?
Find out the answers to these ?s tonight @ 7 PM, CST when @drsurekhadavies.bsky.social discusses her latest book @ a webinar hosted by the Linda Hall Library.
events.lindahall.org/humansamonst... #histSTM
Find out the answers to these ?s tonight @ 7 PM, CST when @drsurekhadavies.bsky.social discusses her latest book @ a webinar hosted by the Linda Hall Library.
events.lindahall.org/humansamonst... #histSTM
December 4, 2025 at 6:54 PM
For the record, I think this is the first time one of my Bluesky posts has been labeled as featuring adult content!
I suppose that's what happens when a library's social media team include an early modern image of Hell in a promotional graphic...
(Which image? www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q309392...)
I suppose that's what happens when a library's social media team include an early modern image of Hell in a promotional graphic...
(Which image? www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q309392...)
"What is it that defines a monster? What, exactly, makes something or someone so monstrous?
Find out the answers to these ?s tonight @ 7 PM, CST when @drsurekhadavies.bsky.social discusses her latest book @ a webinar hosted by the Linda Hall Library.
events.lindahall.org/humansamonst... #histSTM
Find out the answers to these ?s tonight @ 7 PM, CST when @drsurekhadavies.bsky.social discusses her latest book @ a webinar hosted by the Linda Hall Library.
events.lindahall.org/humansamonst... #histSTM
December 4, 2025 at 6:47 PM
"What is it that defines a monster? What, exactly, makes something or someone so monstrous?
Find out the answers to these ?s tonight @ 7 PM, CST when @drsurekhadavies.bsky.social discusses her latest book @ a webinar hosted by the Linda Hall Library.
events.lindahall.org/humansamonst... #histSTM
Find out the answers to these ?s tonight @ 7 PM, CST when @drsurekhadavies.bsky.social discusses her latest book @ a webinar hosted by the Linda Hall Library.
events.lindahall.org/humansamonst... #histSTM
This 1964 poster reminds us that there's nothing quite like watching a #Shakespeare play through the miracle of ⚡ELECTRONOVISION ⚡!
Visit @ransomcenter.bsky.social's IG feed for more #Hamlet materials from our collection: www.instagram.com/p/DRzqcDNDEe...
#theater #drama #booksky 🗃️📜📚🎭
Visit @ransomcenter.bsky.social's IG feed for more #Hamlet materials from our collection: www.instagram.com/p/DRzqcDNDEe...
#theater #drama #booksky 🗃️📜📚🎭
![[Poster for Hamlet starring Richard Burton], 1964. Hoblitzelle Interstate Theatre Circuit Collection, Flat File 11.01 Folder 4.
Harry Ransom Center
University of Texas at Austin](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:gctqfxnif4zrn7rw76gnzzcu/bafkreibnp6lkcleeulcpcky5lglqeq7bh6yi6sld227qphmmckdst3qszu@jpeg)
December 4, 2025 at 2:44 AM
This 1964 poster reminds us that there's nothing quite like watching a #Shakespeare play through the miracle of ⚡ELECTRONOVISION ⚡!
Visit @ransomcenter.bsky.social's IG feed for more #Hamlet materials from our collection: www.instagram.com/p/DRzqcDNDEe...
#theater #drama #booksky 🗃️📜📚🎭
Visit @ransomcenter.bsky.social's IG feed for more #Hamlet materials from our collection: www.instagram.com/p/DRzqcDNDEe...
#theater #drama #booksky 🗃️📜📚🎭
Reposted by Ben Gross
"Librarians teach students how to navigate databases, locate and interpret scholarly content, evaluate online information, and understand the ethics of research and citation. These are skills students carry into every discipline — and well beyond college."
scholarlykitchen.sspnet.org/2025/12/02/g...
scholarlykitchen.sspnet.org/2025/12/02/g...
Guest Post — What Do College Students Lose When Libraries Are Ignored? - The Scholarly Kitchen
Today's guest post argues that academic libraries are an investment in the very foundation of quality scholarship and responsible publishing.
scholarlykitchen.sspnet.org
December 2, 2025 at 2:50 PM
"Librarians teach students how to navigate databases, locate and interpret scholarly content, evaluate online information, and understand the ethics of research and citation. These are skills students carry into every discipline — and well beyond college."
scholarlykitchen.sspnet.org/2025/12/02/g...
scholarlykitchen.sspnet.org/2025/12/02/g...
Reading about the issues w/this remaster (HT @rauchway.bsky.social) makes me glad Matthew Weiner donated the #MadMen archive to @ransomcenter.bsky.social so future researchers can get a sense of the care & thought that went into the original version.
norman.hrc.utexas.edu/fasearch/fin... #TVsky 🗃️📜
norman.hrc.utexas.edu/fasearch/fin... #TVsky 🗃️📜
HBO Max’s ‘Mad Men’ Vomit Scene Proves ‘Remastered’ Doesn’t Mean ‘Better’
The errors in one of the most beautiful shows ever made continue a modern tradition of reformatting things that are better off left alone.
www.wired.com
December 3, 2025 at 3:04 PM
Reading about the issues w/this remaster (HT @rauchway.bsky.social) makes me glad Matthew Weiner donated the #MadMen archive to @ransomcenter.bsky.social so future researchers can get a sense of the care & thought that went into the original version.
norman.hrc.utexas.edu/fasearch/fin... #TVsky 🗃️📜
norman.hrc.utexas.edu/fasearch/fin... #TVsky 🗃️📜
Tyger Tyger, blogging bright,
In the forests of the night;
What immortal hand or eye,
Could shape the discourse on Bluesky?
In the forests of the night;
What immortal hand or eye,
Could shape the discourse on Bluesky?
Byron would’ve been on every social media and dating app, but William Blake would only have been on Bluesky
December 3, 2025 at 2:48 PM
Tyger Tyger, blogging bright,
In the forests of the night;
What immortal hand or eye,
Could shape the discourse on Bluesky?
In the forests of the night;
What immortal hand or eye,
Could shape the discourse on Bluesky?
Finally found time to watch @kenlburns.bsky.social’s #AmericanRevolution.
Nobody told me that the town where I grew up was referenced in Episode 3!
( #Simsbury was the site of an abandoned mine that served as a prison for captured Loyalists: revolutionarywarjournal.com/simsbury-min...) #CTHistory
Nobody told me that the town where I grew up was referenced in Episode 3!
( #Simsbury was the site of an abandoned mine that served as a prison for captured Loyalists: revolutionarywarjournal.com/simsbury-min...) #CTHistory
December 3, 2025 at 3:18 AM
Finally found time to watch @kenlburns.bsky.social’s #AmericanRevolution.
Nobody told me that the town where I grew up was referenced in Episode 3!
( #Simsbury was the site of an abandoned mine that served as a prison for captured Loyalists: revolutionarywarjournal.com/simsbury-min...) #CTHistory
Nobody told me that the town where I grew up was referenced in Episode 3!
( #Simsbury was the site of an abandoned mine that served as a prison for captured Loyalists: revolutionarywarjournal.com/simsbury-min...) #CTHistory
Rosencrantz: Did you ever think of yourself as actually dead, lying in a box with a lid on it?
Guildenstern: No.
Rosencrantz: Nor do I, really. It's silly to be depressed by it.
RIP, Tom Stoppard...
Guildenstern: No.
Rosencrantz: Nor do I, really. It's silly to be depressed by it.
RIP, Tom Stoppard...
Tom Stoppard, playwright of dazzling wit and playful erudition, dies aged 88
A theatrical sensation since the 1960s, whose dramas included Arcadia, The Real Thing and Leopoldstadt, Stoppard also had huge success as a screenwriter
www.theguardian.com
November 29, 2025 at 5:52 PM
Rosencrantz: Did you ever think of yourself as actually dead, lying in a box with a lid on it?
Guildenstern: No.
Rosencrantz: Nor do I, really. It's silly to be depressed by it.
RIP, Tom Stoppard...
Guildenstern: No.
Rosencrantz: Nor do I, really. It's silly to be depressed by it.
RIP, Tom Stoppard...
L. Sprague de Camp, influential #scifi & #fantasy author who occasionally delved into #histSTM, was born on #OnThisDay in 1907.
Researchers can consult De Camp’s papers @ransomcenter.bsky.social: https://www.hrc.utexas.edu/research/guides/DetectiveFantasyandScienceFiction #booksky #histsci 🗃️📜
Researchers can consult De Camp’s papers @ransomcenter.bsky.social: https://www.hrc.utexas.edu/research/guides/DetectiveFantasyandScienceFiction #booksky #histsci 🗃️📜
November 27, 2025 at 4:12 PM
L. Sprague de Camp, influential #scifi & #fantasy author who occasionally delved into #histSTM, was born on #OnThisDay in 1907.
Researchers can consult De Camp’s papers @ransomcenter.bsky.social: https://www.hrc.utexas.edu/research/guides/DetectiveFantasyandScienceFiction #booksky #histsci 🗃️📜
Researchers can consult De Camp’s papers @ransomcenter.bsky.social: https://www.hrc.utexas.edu/research/guides/DetectiveFantasyandScienceFiction #booksky #histsci 🗃️📜
Reposted by Ben Gross
Roses are redde
Noble are the manatees
For a bettir future
We neede artes and humanityes
artshumanities.berkeley.edu/news/humanit...
Noble are the manatees
For a bettir future
We neede artes and humanityes
artshumanities.berkeley.edu/news/humanit...
"The humanities really are a resource — a confidence for living in our times.” Dean Sara Guyer on the modern utility of humanities degrees | Division of Arts & Humanities
artshumanities.berkeley.edu
November 27, 2025 at 2:34 AM
Roses are redde
Noble are the manatees
For a bettir future
We neede artes and humanityes
artshumanities.berkeley.edu/news/humanit...
Noble are the manatees
For a bettir future
We neede artes and humanityes
artshumanities.berkeley.edu/news/humanit...
Back in the old days, people used to hate the Phlegmatic Screen of Death...
#histmed #histSTM
#Microsoft #Windows
#histmed #histSTM
#Microsoft #Windows
November 26, 2025 at 8:40 PM
Back in the old days, people used to hate the Phlegmatic Screen of Death...
#histmed #histSTM
#Microsoft #Windows
#histmed #histSTM
#Microsoft #Windows
Question: Does this also apply to fellowship and/or grant applications?
(Asking for a friend...)
(Asking for a friend...)
Pope Leo XIV told students not to use artificial intelligence for homework, saying that AI ‘won’t stand in authentic wonder before the beauty of God’s creation.’
Even God Is Worried About ChatGPT
Pope Leo XIV told students not to use artificial intelligence for homework, saying that AI ‘won’t stand in authentic wonder before the beauty of God’s creation.’
www.vulture.com
November 26, 2025 at 3:53 PM
Question: Does this also apply to fellowship and/or grant applications?
(Asking for a friend...)
(Asking for a friend...)
The final sale prices for those #MuppetChristmasCarol busts.
(I'm not sure why Dante sold for less than the other three authors.)
#Muppets
(I'm not sure why Dante sold for less than the other three authors.)
#Muppets
November 26, 2025 at 2:02 PM
The final sale prices for those #MuppetChristmasCarol busts.
(I'm not sure why Dante sold for less than the other three authors.)
#Muppets
(I'm not sure why Dante sold for less than the other three authors.)
#Muppets
Imagining an alternate history where Splinter named the #TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles after major literary figures...
(Aristotle leads,
Dante does machines.
Moliere is cool but rude.
William Shakespeare is a party dude.)
#TMNT #TurtlePower
(Aristotle leads,
Dante does machines.
Moliere is cool but rude.
William Shakespeare is a party dude.)
#TMNT #TurtlePower
November 25, 2025 at 3:26 PM
Imagining an alternate history where Splinter named the #TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles after major literary figures...
(Aristotle leads,
Dante does machines.
Moliere is cool but rude.
William Shakespeare is a party dude.)
#TMNT #TurtlePower
(Aristotle leads,
Dante does machines.
Moliere is cool but rude.
William Shakespeare is a party dude.)
#TMNT #TurtlePower
The Jim Henson Company's 70th Anniversary Auction is today. If I had the funds, I would love to expand @ransomcenter.bsky.social's collection of author busts by purchasing these props from The Muppet Christmas Carol.
www.juliensauctions.com/en/auctions/...
#Muppets #JimHenson #booksky #filmsky 📚📽️
www.juliensauctions.com/en/auctions/...
#Muppets #JimHenson #booksky #filmsky 📚📽️
November 25, 2025 at 2:33 PM
The Jim Henson Company's 70th Anniversary Auction is today. If I had the funds, I would love to expand @ransomcenter.bsky.social's collection of author busts by purchasing these props from The Muppet Christmas Carol.
www.juliensauctions.com/en/auctions/...
#Muppets #JimHenson #booksky #filmsky 📚📽️
www.juliensauctions.com/en/auctions/...
#Muppets #JimHenson #booksky #filmsky 📚📽️
November 25, 2025 at 1:59 AM
Reposted by Ben Gross
I! M! L! S!
"The ruling nullifies the Administration’s actions to dismantle IMLS and permanently prohibits the Administration from taking such actions in the future. The ruling has immediate nationwide effect."
www.ala.org/news/2025/11...
"The ruling nullifies the Administration’s actions to dismantle IMLS and permanently prohibits the Administration from taking such actions in the future. The ruling has immediate nationwide effect."
www.ala.org/news/2025/11...
November 24, 2025 at 9:05 PM
I! M! L! S!
"The ruling nullifies the Administration’s actions to dismantle IMLS and permanently prohibits the Administration from taking such actions in the future. The ruling has immediate nationwide effect."
www.ala.org/news/2025/11...
"The ruling nullifies the Administration’s actions to dismantle IMLS and permanently prohibits the Administration from taking such actions in the future. The ruling has immediate nationwide effect."
www.ala.org/news/2025/11...
Pleased to see several familiar names on @wired.com's list of Great Tech Books, including @ashleyshoo.bsky.social, @margaretomara.bsky.social & @ruha9.bsky.social.
#histSTM #STS
#histtech #BigTech 🗃️📜
#histSTM #STS
#histtech #BigTech 🗃️📜
This is a surprisingly good list of tech books to gift from Wired, including some aged classics and some new work destined to be classics down the line (*cough* @ashleyshoo.bsky.social's book *cough*)
25 Great Tech Books to Gift (or Keep for Yourself)
Give the techie in your life access to the inner workings of the companies and characters shaping Big Tech.
www.wired.com
November 24, 2025 at 9:49 PM
Pleased to see several familiar names on @wired.com's list of Great Tech Books, including @ashleyshoo.bsky.social, @margaretomara.bsky.social & @ruha9.bsky.social.
#histSTM #STS
#histtech #BigTech 🗃️📜
#histSTM #STS
#histtech #BigTech 🗃️📜
"And if there is any hope for any of us in this giant explosion in which we inhabit, then surely that's it. Intellect and romance triumph over brute force and cynicism..."
(Happy #DoctorWhoDay, everybody!)
#DoctorWho #scifi
(Happy #DoctorWhoDay, everybody!)
#DoctorWho #scifi
Craig Ferguson - The lost "Dr. Who" cold open.
YouTube video by The Local Shredder
youtu.be
November 24, 2025 at 3:08 AM
"And if there is any hope for any of us in this giant explosion in which we inhabit, then surely that's it. Intellect and romance triumph over brute force and cynicism..."
(Happy #DoctorWhoDay, everybody!)
#DoctorWho #scifi
(Happy #DoctorWhoDay, everybody!)
#DoctorWho #scifi