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June 2011

Praying the people who hold the reservation for this seat don't turn up. Off to Manchester for Arthritis Research UK funding panel.

Where did this notion that strikes are supposed to garner "public sympathy" come from? They are to demonstrate the value of labour. #j30

If you were to publish in an Open Access journal that wanted to also go libre, what would be your preferred license? Mine: CC-BY-NC #phdchat

Although I'm disappointed I didn't make it (along with the other 990+ applicants), congratulations to the AHRC NGTs

I kid you not. No trains from here to central London because of overhead line overheating. Not teaching that workshop at Sussex after all.

"That is also why...we are returning to a situation in which workers are denied the right to strike" – Mandel, Intro to Capital, 1976

I have a really serious dislike for package manager upgrade errors on components like glibc. Dare I reboot?

Scholarly publishing in hums: delievered book chapter 8 months ago. Final revisions sent off today. Outside chance it'll be out this year.

My dream academic project is really going to happen! Sorry for being cryptic, but need to share while keeping under wraps.

Hurrah! Article on Pynchon's and DFW's 21st-century work commissioned for @gylphi's new journal, C21. #phdchat

If you want to know about trans-Atlanticism in Pynchon's work, Glasgow on Friday is the place! I'm part of a 3 strong panel speaking on this

Hmmm. This paper for Glasgow is, I feel, a little dense. At an impasse on how to unpick it and run out of time to do so! #phdchat

Anybody else get Zeno's Paradox when nearing article submission? Last few minor changes take twice as long as all others before. #phdchat

Look Facebook. STOP EMAILING ME. I've clicked unsubscribe everywhere I can find and told you not to email me.

Unfortunately I shan't be able to put Qs to the VCs on @GdnHigherEd's session tomorrow as I'm speaking at the conference at that time.

A very pleasant journey spent re-reading the last hundred pages of Pynchon's Mason & Dixon while listening to Orbital 1.

OK, I was going to respond to comments, but it's descended to pure Have Your Say-esque rubbish now. Oh well! @jennifermjones

Final version of "The Driver’s Whip is an evil thing: Enlightenment as Mass Enslavement in the Works of Thomas Pynchon" ready for Portsmouth

Does anybody have that top X number of famous academics link that was going around on Twitter a while back?

OK, so they don't know it, and they couldn't care less, but my friends are getting married on Michel Foucault's 85th birthday.

Should probably say, as a disclaimer, that I arrived at my PhD with a comprehensive plan, broken down into chapters #phdchat

Just received a lovely email from one of my undergraduate lecturers who noticed I was speaking at his university.

Sigh. Humanities in the States: "online-only publication not viewed very favorably". I really, truly despair.

I don't think politicians understand the concept of an "average". Average means "below average" must exist.

Anybody in Portsmouth this Friday, don't forget I'm speaking at the University on Pynchon, slavery and Enlightenment.

Wonder how long it will take my hosts to realise they have lost all connectivity, including telephone, to their data centre.

Have an obscure journal article on Scott of Antarctic from 1913. Will still be in copyright in 2027, so can't just share. Madness.

"Emails will be actioned upon my return." Will they, will they really? #getthatverbsorted #youllhavetoomanyemailstobother

Queued up many a Pynchon in Public Day report post. Follow @PynchonInPublic to get 'em as they come out!

Listening to Dub Syndicate while reading Pynchon. Thought it sounded good, then read of affiliation with Skip McDonald and knew it must be.

Tomorrow is hideous Methotrexate day. However, my Sennheiser PXC350s will arrive. No matter how ill I feel, my mood will improve.

Utopias do not exist at the expense of others/environment - Francis Spufford > what about Swift's genocidal Houhynhyms? #outofthisworld

Disagree with questioner who thinks that all utopias are rooted in elitism. Maybe produced by elite, but supposed to remove #outofthisworld

The catastrophe of the 20th Century threw us off course and made the concept of Utopia almost untenable - Gregory Claeys #outofthisworld

Gregory Claeys gave controversial history of Utopia - moved beyond standard regulative idea. #outofthisworld

Does #NCH's no PhD tutors policy devalue the PhD, making it pre-req for teaching undergrads? Where are DPhils to get teaching experience?

If #NCH gets access to UoL libraries, it will be hailed as a free market success while profiting from state support.