iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

How does this end? How do the media and the chronically online white supremacist thugs of the internet get held accountable? How do we protect ourselves?

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

It’s also generally easier (and more fun) to just do our work. Most of us love this, our institutions make it hell to do our work. We wouldn’t waste our lives with them if we didn’t love the actual work.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

And the petty gag is most prolific Black authors and Black scholars rely on institutions that block AI without carefully rationed tokens and don’t earn enough in this awful economy to pay out of pocket for an LLM that could produce anything resembling “good work.” It’s cheaper to just do the work.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

The mainstream media has learned nothing from Arday… nothing.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Like I care about Black literature, I value Black creativity, but the WSJ writing about rumors about Orélien, in a climate where Haitians in the U.S. are suffering so much some are unaliving themselves amid this xenophobic regime and policies… *sigh* there is so much news and so little reporting…

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

It’s interesting how major mainstream news outlets now report “international news” about unsubstantiated rumors that Black scholars and authors wrote books using AI, while fee report on how AI continues to abet the proliferation of white supremacy, gun violence, and sexual violence and harassment.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

It’s interesting how major mainstream news outlets now report “international news” about unsubstantiated rumors that Black scholars and authors wrote books using AI, while white university provosts who admittedly champion and write with AI are only the subject of minor academic news outlets.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Everything is urgent. Then there is also the long slow work. Writing, writing…

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

It’s an honor every time. I hope more medical schools continue to find ways to include diverse medical histories (by historians not just practitioners) in their curriculum. The students get so much out of it and we historians are so happy when our work reaches them.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Every year for the last 3 years I’ve gotten to give a lecture about the Black Atlantic history of smallpox inoculation to medical students at Jefferson. This year the talk was so popular we ran out of seats!

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Reposted by Elise A. Mitchell

The Organization of American Historians @oah.org · 29/09/2026

Congratulations to OAH members Elizabeth Ellis and Ariel Ron on being named MacArthur Fellows! To learn more about Dr. Ellis and Dr. Ron, plus the other 2026 Fellows, please go to www.macfound.org/programs/awards/fe….

Portraits of Elizabeth Ellis and Ariel Ron, congratulating them for being named MacArthur Fellows.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

Why? I’ve heard some great ones and heard bad ones, just as I’ve heard great ones by professional voice actors and also heard bad ones where the actor routinely mispronounced words, places, and names that the author would’ve pronounced correctly.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

I know it takes time and can be frustrating but “I’m an artist (historian lol) and I’m sensitive about my sh*t.”

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

Any advice about how ask a press and to train for something like this are welcome.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

I am sick of hearing mispronunciations on audiobooks and mine will be tricky as it contains terms and place names in other languages. It’s also important to me that my book is narrated by a Black person. Plus I kind of want to do it…

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

Question… Audiobook narration training, where can one get it? How? I know nothing. As I wrap up edits on my first book for peer review, I am tempted to ask my press if I can be the audiobook narrator when it comes out years from now…

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

Closure in academia?! Wow I love this

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

Love this practice. I’m a neophyte so I rely on lesson plans to keep time and have an (inconsistently updated) section where I make notes about what worked and what didn’t per class. But on the syllabus itself might make more sense - easier to glance at. Thank you all for these tips!

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

There must be a way. I’m clearly still new at this and haven’t figured it out, help! (Yes, I print everything because screens distract me)

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

The books are alphabetized and annotated so I know how to find them and passages I’ve taught before. But I just haven’t figured out how to do this effectively with articles - they are in disorganized piles on shelves I don’t touch lol

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

Professors, Help: How do you organize your course readings (specifically journal articles) after you’ve taught a course?

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

Ok, back to the work. I have a Black feminist oriented history of capitalism class to prep and meetings with Black feminist (anti/critical of AI) DH collectives to go meet with. The work is happening. I’m privileged to be a small part of it… the racism (intentional or not) is always a distraction.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

Also Big Tech’s AI money is running out… this is giving bubble… where will we be when it pops?

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

At a time when individual humanities and social science departments and even some colleges and universities are becoming critical of or outright refusing AI, it’s bizarre that one would have a conference on the subject without sustained attention to the possibilities of criticism and refusal.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

The field of DH and History as well as computational history is vibrant and quite diverse. However, it is also politically diverse… that diversity includes many many people who refuse and are critical of AI.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

For additional context re: the overwhelming whiteness of the AI & History conference. I have attended DH workshops and conferences in the past with hundreds of attendees most of whom were people of color.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

These are just some initial observations that made me hesitant to register for the conference and concerned about what such a conference means for the future of the discipline and AHA’s position on AI…

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

While it was cool to see a such a wide range of scholars, those who were white men seemed to consistently out rank those who were not.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

I was perturbed but unsurprised the speakers at the conference are overwhelmingly white despite the conference being hosted at JHU, an institution that has become a hub for thinking about Black and Indigenous histories within the digital humanities.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

I was perturbed but unsurprised to see so many sessions about AI application, without any sessions dedicated to criticism, refusal, or concerns about the negative ramifications of AI.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

I’ve been curious about the AHA’s upcoming AI & History conference. So I spent some time on the site today deciding whether I would attend virtually. Some thoughts…

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

Yes, that means they are willing to prioritize wealthy technofascist anti-intellectual companies over putting books and computers in students hands. 🤯

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

I am grateful to work at a school where most/all of the students’ course books and computers can be covered with financial aid. There are plenty of places that don’t do that yet and want AI in the class.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

There’s been all this flurry opeds from higher ed admin calling for AI in the curriculum. Me, as a lowly assistant professor, all I want is for money to renovate the library and a printer that doesn’t jam. That’s all. That’s it.

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Reposted by Elise A. Mitchell

Julia Lynch @jlynch13.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Welp, there goes the research agenda. Fortunately for me, political scientists are used to doing this work without NIH funding. But it’s going to make it a lot harder for health policy people who are in soft money jobs in schools of public health and medicine.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Haiti is as close as we get to an anti-slavery politic worth celebrating. That’s it. Britain is owed nothing and owes everything.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

It’s a great magazine. Check it out and subscribe.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Cold email DEMANDS for application materials. When I ignored it [redacted] kept emailing me anyway. I think of students I’ve mentored (many POC) who’ve been nervous to ask me for letters or to review apps. I’m like folks, we are so good ask! There are wild people asking in wild ways. You are fine.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

6) Most profs are busy. We can sometimes take time to get back to folks. Urgent email requests on the eve of a deadline (or even within a week of a deadline) to someone you barely know never go over well.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

5) You are you. Asserting you are the next [insert wildly successful academic mentor of mine’s name here] in an email will not impress me. I find those types of proclamations egotistical and strange because you are you. Just be yourself.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

4) On the flip side, if we have met and I’ve encouraged you and expressed support for your career and you want me to read something, ask! If I have time, I’ll probably say yes. I think this goes for most people.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Apps contain personal info, many of us aren’t ok sharing them with complete strangers especially when your ask is more of a demand.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

3) If we’ve never met and no mutual friend connected us, it feels a bit wild to demand I share application materials with you. Maybe some people do this cold. I like to think I’m generous but I’m not that generous.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

2) If you clearly haven’t read my work, please don’t assume you know what it’s about and misrepresent it in your email. Just do your research or inquire.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

1) If we don’t know each other, go with Dr. or Professor as an honorific until I tell you differently. This goes for most people in my profession.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

I don’t want to be the “manners police.” But I also want to talk about cold email etiquette in academia because my inbox has been wild and the year just started.

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Elise A. Mitchell @bydreamphd.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Consult a literal doctor if you’re hesitant. For the vast, vast majority people vaccines (new and old) are safe and effective. If that vast majority takes them, the world is safer for the precious few who can’t.

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