Jenni Halpin
@halpin.bsky.social
Literature professor without a literature program. Teaching composition and having OPINIONS about uses of "AI." Scholar of literature and science.
Trying to feel hope and practice usefulness in these present times.
She/her.
Trying to feel hope and practice usefulness in these present times.
She/her.
Reposted by Jenni Halpin
Victor Manuel Diaz was kidnapped from Minneapolis. He was my neighbor and he died in an American concentration camp. He was not "illegal," he was a human being made in the image of the divine. May his memory be a blessing, and may the rest of us fight like hell until we stop this brutality.
This is the sixth death in ICE custody in 18 days. This isn’t enforcement, it’s a system that cages people, outsources care, and shrugs when they die. Abolish ICE.
January 18, 2026 at 10:29 PM
Victor Manuel Diaz was kidnapped from Minneapolis. He was my neighbor and he died in an American concentration camp. He was not "illegal," he was a human being made in the image of the divine. May his memory be a blessing, and may the rest of us fight like hell until we stop this brutality.
Drinking tea and mashing my face into the side of the mug to treat the headache arising from the noise of the neighborhood yard service landing on top of incredibly dry air. I'm a minor accident waiting to happen.
January 17, 2026 at 7:08 PM
Drinking tea and mashing my face into the side of the mug to treat the headache arising from the noise of the neighborhood yard service landing on top of incredibly dry air. I'm a minor accident waiting to happen.
Reposted by Jenni Halpin
the only reason "abolish ICE" is seen as radical is that no one will say it but the far left. if every normie Democrat started saying it tomorrow it would move the overton window so far you'd have to squint to find it. my kingdom for leaders who understand they can shape public opinion.
Democrats officially going all in on the mealy mouthed “ICE needs training” narrative.
No. ABOLISH ICE.
No. ABOLISH ICE.
WARNER: It used to take 5 to 6 months to get trained. They've now lowered the training period to 47 days. Why 47 days? Because Donald Trump's the 47th president. Tell me that's a rational approach
KERNEN: I'm not taking that bait
WARNER: Joe! You can't pick your facts
KERNEN: I'm not taking that bait
WARNER: Joe! You can't pick your facts
January 12, 2026 at 1:49 PM
the only reason "abolish ICE" is seen as radical is that no one will say it but the far left. if every normie Democrat started saying it tomorrow it would move the overton window so far you'd have to squint to find it. my kingdom for leaders who understand they can shape public opinion.
Reposted by Jenni Halpin
Registration is open for the @thebsls.bsky.social Winter Symposium "Alternate Histories of the Body" on January 30! It's free and online, and we're re-evaluating the human body, the stories we tell about it, and their impact. Come check it out!
Full programme here: drive.google.com/file/d/18kep...
Full programme here: drive.google.com/file/d/18kep...
BSLS Winter Symposium: Alternate Histories of the Body
Alternate Histories of the Body is the 2026 British Society for Literature and Science Winter Symposium
www.eventbrite.com
January 12, 2026 at 11:03 AM
Registration is open for the @thebsls.bsky.social Winter Symposium "Alternate Histories of the Body" on January 30! It's free and online, and we're re-evaluating the human body, the stories we tell about it, and their impact. Come check it out!
Full programme here: drive.google.com/file/d/18kep...
Full programme here: drive.google.com/file/d/18kep...
I am ready for Monday, the first day of classes.
Let us refrain from consideration of any further point in the future!
Let us refrain from consideration of any further point in the future!
January 9, 2026 at 11:44 PM
I am ready for Monday, the first day of classes.
Let us refrain from consideration of any further point in the future!
Let us refrain from consideration of any further point in the future!
Reposted by Jenni Halpin
This is true. But what is happening is greater disillusionment with law enforcement and the criminal legal system. Majorities now regularly report that they do not believe people are treated equally under the law & that the system doesn’t work. That’s not a solution but it is a political opportunity
I want people to realize prosecuting the police is always a long shot and even when successful that it hasn’t produced any observable change in behavior from the police in general.
January 7, 2026 at 7:35 PM
This is true. But what is happening is greater disillusionment with law enforcement and the criminal legal system. Majorities now regularly report that they do not believe people are treated equally under the law & that the system doesn’t work. That’s not a solution but it is a political opportunity
Reposted by Jenni Halpin
Time again to share the incredible and poingant "Christmas Tree" by James Merrill. Written during what he knew would be his last illness as he was looked after by friends and family.
December 25, 2025 at 1:10 AM
Time again to share the incredible and poingant "Christmas Tree" by James Merrill. Written during what he knew would be his last illness as he was looked after by friends and family.
Merry Christmas to you all, bringers of joy, humor, whimsy, and thoughtfulness to my skyline.
December 25, 2025 at 12:00 PM
Merry Christmas to you all, bringers of joy, humor, whimsy, and thoughtfulness to my skyline.
Solstice.
Gratitude for a bright, dry day here. Relief at the prospect of lengthening days. Hopeful in the restoration to be brought by a fallow season.
Gratitude for a bright, dry day here. Relief at the prospect of lengthening days. Hopeful in the restoration to be brought by a fallow season.
December 21, 2025 at 2:09 PM
Solstice.
Gratitude for a bright, dry day here. Relief at the prospect of lengthening days. Hopeful in the restoration to be brought by a fallow season.
Gratitude for a bright, dry day here. Relief at the prospect of lengthening days. Hopeful in the restoration to be brought by a fallow season.
50 pages into Emily Tesh's THE INCANDESCENT. Very much hooked.
Can y'all think of other academic novels (SFF or otherwise) that are both told from the perspective of a faculty member and set at a secondary school?
Seems to me that overlap is underpopulated.
Can y'all think of other academic novels (SFF or otherwise) that are both told from the perspective of a faculty member and set at a secondary school?
Seems to me that overlap is underpopulated.
December 20, 2025 at 3:13 AM
50 pages into Emily Tesh's THE INCANDESCENT. Very much hooked.
Can y'all think of other academic novels (SFF or otherwise) that are both told from the perspective of a faculty member and set at a secondary school?
Seems to me that overlap is underpopulated.
Can y'all think of other academic novels (SFF or otherwise) that are both told from the perspective of a faculty member and set at a secondary school?
Seems to me that overlap is underpopulated.
On @emmanewman.bsky.social's podcast episode for day 18 of Advent she's just mentioned "the end of the autumn sowing season" and I, despite all contextual information to the contrary, have misheard it as "sewing season."
(This also runs my mind off to "The Soote Season.")
Is sowing like sewing?
(This also runs my mind off to "The Soote Season.")
Is sowing like sewing?
December 17, 2025 at 2:08 PM
On @emmanewman.bsky.social's podcast episode for day 18 of Advent she's just mentioned "the end of the autumn sowing season" and I, despite all contextual information to the contrary, have misheard it as "sewing season."
(This also runs my mind off to "The Soote Season.")
Is sowing like sewing?
(This also runs my mind off to "The Soote Season.")
Is sowing like sewing?
The rosemary in the pot pie in the oven is wafting its fragrance throughout the house, feeding my soul while my belly rumbles.
December 14, 2025 at 10:38 PM
The rosemary in the pot pie in the oven is wafting its fragrance throughout the house, feeding my soul while my belly rumbles.
Reposted by Jenni Halpin
Total success to the first college/university that pledges to be AI-free and brand it as an opportunity to receive a real education.
My employer, Dartmouth College, today boasts it's 1st Ivy "to launch AI at an institutional scale." It is doing this by partnering--"more than a collaboration"--with Anthropic, a company that stole the books of many faculty, me included, which many of us are suing.
December 5, 2025 at 3:35 PM
Total success to the first college/university that pledges to be AI-free and brand it as an opportunity to receive a real education.
Sunlight and cloud cover are absolutely pulling for opposing goals here this morning.
Indoors I have lit the lights and begun putting some metaphorical potential energy into my plans for the day and the week.
Time to light candles for hope and peace.
Indoors I have lit the lights and begun putting some metaphorical potential energy into my plans for the day and the week.
Time to light candles for hope and peace.
December 7, 2025 at 12:52 PM
Sunlight and cloud cover are absolutely pulling for opposing goals here this morning.
Indoors I have lit the lights and begun putting some metaphorical potential energy into my plans for the day and the week.
Time to light candles for hope and peace.
Indoors I have lit the lights and begun putting some metaphorical potential energy into my plans for the day and the week.
Time to light candles for hope and peace.
This is not just another anti-AI tirade. It's thoughtful, wide-ranging, and devastating.
Having read it, I weep.
"The real tragedy [is] that universities are teaching everyone—students, faculty, administrators—to stop thinking. We’re outsourcing discernment."
Having read it, I weep.
"The real tragedy [is] that universities are teaching everyone—students, faculty, administrators—to stop thinking. We’re outsourcing discernment."
“The math is brutal and the juxtaposition stark: millions for OpenAI while pink slips go out to longtime lecturers. The CSU isn’t investing in education—it’s outsourcing it, paying premium prices for a chatbot many students were already using for free.“
www.currentaffairs.org/news/ai-is-d...
www.currentaffairs.org/news/ai-is-d...
AI is Destroying the University and Learning Itself
Students use AI to write papers, professors use AI to grade them, degrees become meaningless, and tech companies make fortunes. Welcome to the death of higher education.
www.currentaffairs.org
December 3, 2025 at 6:50 PM
This is not just another anti-AI tirade. It's thoughtful, wide-ranging, and devastating.
Having read it, I weep.
"The real tragedy [is] that universities are teaching everyone—students, faculty, administrators—to stop thinking. We’re outsourcing discernment."
Having read it, I weep.
"The real tragedy [is] that universities are teaching everyone—students, faculty, administrators—to stop thinking. We’re outsourcing discernment."
It seems "cyber Monday" is becoming "cyber week."
Instead, maybe a month of minimal spending?
Groceries. Ongoing bills (rent, etc.). Auto fuel/public transport fares.
And, you know, indie/small business/locally owned sources for craft supplies and books (arts and entertainments are essentials).
Instead, maybe a month of minimal spending?
Groceries. Ongoing bills (rent, etc.). Auto fuel/public transport fares.
And, you know, indie/small business/locally owned sources for craft supplies and books (arts and entertainments are essentials).
December 1, 2025 at 4:31 PM
It seems "cyber Monday" is becoming "cyber week."
Instead, maybe a month of minimal spending?
Groceries. Ongoing bills (rent, etc.). Auto fuel/public transport fares.
And, you know, indie/small business/locally owned sources for craft supplies and books (arts and entertainments are essentials).
Instead, maybe a month of minimal spending?
Groceries. Ongoing bills (rent, etc.). Auto fuel/public transport fares.
And, you know, indie/small business/locally owned sources for craft supplies and books (arts and entertainments are essentials).
What I wouldn't give for the option to delay updates and just get on with the task for which I sat down fifteen minutes ago!
November 29, 2025 at 11:08 AM
What I wouldn't give for the option to delay updates and just get on with the task for which I sat down fifteen minutes ago!
I give thanks for the comforts and companionships in which I am nested. The sun shines brightly in a clear blue sky; moths and butterflies flutter about; dinner rolls are baking; I frolicked this morning in a driveway filled with crunchy leaves; and I can look forward to a dinner with friends.
November 27, 2025 at 5:00 PM
I give thanks for the comforts and companionships in which I am nested. The sun shines brightly in a clear blue sky; moths and butterflies flutter about; dinner rolls are baking; I frolicked this morning in a driveway filled with crunchy leaves; and I can look forward to a dinner with friends.
Reposted by Jenni Halpin
A book is not a luxury item.
(It can be, but so can food.)
Books are both amazing and cheap.
After all my years, I'm still thrilled by a new book.
Even a bad book is full of potential before you read it.
Read* more books. You'll see what the fuss is all about.
[*read paper or screen or listen]
(It can be, but so can food.)
Books are both amazing and cheap.
After all my years, I'm still thrilled by a new book.
Even a bad book is full of potential before you read it.
Read* more books. You'll see what the fuss is all about.
[*read paper or screen or listen]
November 27, 2025 at 12:14 AM
A book is not a luxury item.
(It can be, but so can food.)
Books are both amazing and cheap.
After all my years, I'm still thrilled by a new book.
Even a bad book is full of potential before you read it.
Read* more books. You'll see what the fuss is all about.
[*read paper or screen or listen]
(It can be, but so can food.)
Books are both amazing and cheap.
After all my years, I'm still thrilled by a new book.
Even a bad book is full of potential before you read it.
Read* more books. You'll see what the fuss is all about.
[*read paper or screen or listen]
Reposted by Jenni Halpin
Journalist challenge: Use “Machine Learning” when you mean machine learning and “LLM” when you mean LLM. Ditch “AI” as a catch-all term, it’s not useful for readers and it helps companies trying to confuse the public by obscuring the roles played by different technologies. 🧪
November 22, 2025 at 4:50 PM
Journalist challenge: Use “Machine Learning” when you mean machine learning and “LLM” when you mean LLM. Ditch “AI” as a catch-all term, it’s not useful for readers and it helps companies trying to confuse the public by obscuring the roles played by different technologies. 🧪
Not yet 8 a.m.
Already on Plan C.
A very Monday Monday.
Already on Plan C.
A very Monday Monday.
November 17, 2025 at 12:26 PM
Not yet 8 a.m.
Already on Plan C.
A very Monday Monday.
Already on Plan C.
A very Monday Monday.
Unable to muster a reason not to, for the second time this week, go to bed before 7 p.m.
(It's 5:40 and I am exhausted. Also a bit loopy, as "the sun has gone to bed and so must I" is earworming me despite there still being light in the west.)
Goodnight, Skyline.
(It's 5:40 and I am exhausted. Also a bit loopy, as "the sun has gone to bed and so must I" is earworming me despite there still being light in the west.)
Goodnight, Skyline.
November 14, 2025 at 10:41 PM
Unable to muster a reason not to, for the second time this week, go to bed before 7 p.m.
(It's 5:40 and I am exhausted. Also a bit loopy, as "the sun has gone to bed and so must I" is earworming me despite there still being light in the west.)
Goodnight, Skyline.
(It's 5:40 and I am exhausted. Also a bit loopy, as "the sun has gone to bed and so must I" is earworming me despite there still being light in the west.)
Goodnight, Skyline.
Reposted by Jenni Halpin
Hoping this helps our colleagues across the industry
November 5, 2025 at 1:01 PM
Hoping this helps our colleagues across the industry
Today I got to read part of a draft of a doctoral dissertation. It's a privilege to offer thoughts on the work in progress and a gift to be so beautifully reminded of the intricacies of long-form scholarship.
November 12, 2025 at 11:25 PM
Today I got to read part of a draft of a doctoral dissertation. It's a privilege to offer thoughts on the work in progress and a gift to be so beautifully reminded of the intricacies of long-form scholarship.
Reposted by Jenni Halpin
Happy birthday to the only two women with elements named after them on the periodic table: #MarieCurie & #LiseMeitner.
As I do every year, I will once again repeat my proposal that November 7 should be International #WomenInSTEM Day!
#histSTM #chemistry #physics
#OnThisDay #OTD #PeriodicTable👩🔬🗃️📜
As I do every year, I will once again repeat my proposal that November 7 should be International #WomenInSTEM Day!
#histSTM #chemistry #physics
#OnThisDay #OTD #PeriodicTable👩🔬🗃️📜
November 7, 2025 at 2:29 PM
Happy birthday to the only two women with elements named after them on the periodic table: #MarieCurie & #LiseMeitner.
As I do every year, I will once again repeat my proposal that November 7 should be International #WomenInSTEM Day!
#histSTM #chemistry #physics
#OnThisDay #OTD #PeriodicTable👩🔬🗃️📜
As I do every year, I will once again repeat my proposal that November 7 should be International #WomenInSTEM Day!
#histSTM #chemistry #physics
#OnThisDay #OTD #PeriodicTable👩🔬🗃️📜