Francesca Chiu @francescachiu.bsky.social · 04/08/2026Academic publishing asks early career researchers to be patient. Academic hiring asks them to publish quickly. Both expectations are understandable on their own. Living with both at the same time, however, is much harder. It makes me wonder who can actually afford to be patient. 020
Francesca Chiu @francescachiu.bsky.social · 15/04/2026That seems to be true across many fellowships and funding schemes lately. 000
Francesca Chiu @francescachiu.bsky.social · 25/03/2026Tired of people responding to videos of ICE arrests with “are they (migrants) illegal?” as if that settles anything. 010
Francesca Chiu @francescachiu.bsky.social · 23/03/2026I’m happy to share my first book—At the Feet of a War Elephant: Land, Displacement, and Urbanization in Myanmar—is forthcoming with @cornellupress.bsky.social in Mar 2027. It explores the slow violence of urban growth under capitalism and how dispossession is normalized even without formal planning 042
Reposted by Francesca Chiu Xun-ling Au 歐迅灵 🏴 @xunlingau.bsky.social · 19/03/2026I got some heart-breaking messages from Myanmar friends about this new passport law. Many fear that they will be forced to return to renew their passports, running the risk of arrest or conscription. Not to mention all the other additional problems with the law www.irrawaddy.com/news/burma/m... 12332
Francesca Chiu @francescachiu.bsky.social · 20/03/2026[Question] What’s one phrase that, the moment you hear it, tells you exactly what kind of person you’re dealing with? Mine: “reverse #racism”. #academia #academicchatter 031
Francesca Chiu @francescachiu.bsky.social · 05/03/2026Haven’t used #Grammarly for a while and just saw its new “AI Grader” feature, which predicts lecturers’ feedback on assignments without their input or consent--literally "putting words in someone's mouth". Reminds me of Ulrich Beck’s risk society and how we can become victims of our own “progress”. 002
Francesca Chiu @francescachiu.bsky.social · 24/02/2026This development is alarming. The app can automatically log in on behalf of students, potentially posing a serious risk to personal and university data security if they surrender passwords and other credentials to an AI company which is in no way an education provider, period. 054
Reposted by Francesca ChiuSeva @seva.bsky.social · 13/01/2026I just finished a three-year term as an editor at an international relations journal. I began at the start of the LLM era but ended right in the middle of it. Our volume of submissions tripled and our desk reject rate rose to 75%. I have some thoughts. open.substack.com/pub/hegemon/...open.substack.comThe Age of Academic Slop is Upon Uswhat happens when AI automates "normal science"? 25651274
Francesca Chiu @francescachiu.bsky.social · 12/01/2026New study: On #Myanmar’s urban outskirts, ward administrators often told me they had one job—‘Don’t cause trouble.’ They certainly weren’t talking about following the law, though. They meant: don’t attract attention, trigger inspections, or make the ward visible to higher authorities. 1/4 121
Francesca Chiu @francescachiu.bsky.social · 15/12/2025Revising a manuscript is realizing that parts of it work and parts don’t yet, and being very grateful a reviewer caught the obvious oversights before production. 040
Francesca Chiu @francescachiu.bsky.social · 12/12/2025An observation on how #AI is shaping student work: almost none of my students this year included page numbers when citing books or articles in their final essays. Despite repeated reminders, page numbers seem to be disappearing. A troubling shift in how students now engage with reading materials. 123
Francesca Chiu @francescachiu.bsky.social · 09/12/2025I have an article in the Journal of Contemporary Asia on the nationwide university boycott in #Myanmar after the 2021 coup. Drawing on literature on youth and waiting, I explore how students spend their time while rejecting military-controlled education. Free copy here: tinyurl.com/3wmkff3xtinyurl.comReclaiming the Future: Waiting, Resistance, and Expectations in Myanmar’s Post-Coup University BoycottsUniversity boycotts have been used by students to champion change and challenge oppressive systems around the world. This article focuses on the boycotts carried out by university students in Myanm... 030
Reposted by Francesca ChiuOlivia Guest · Ολίβια Γκεστ @olivia.science · 06/09/2025Finally! 🤩 Our position piece: Against the Uncritical Adoption of 'AI' Technologies in Academia: doi.org/10.5281/zeno... We unpick the tech industry’s marketing, hype, & harm; and we argue for safeguarding higher education, critical thinking, expertise, academic freedom, & scientific integrity. 1/n 11341512055
Francesca Chiu @francescachiu.bsky.social · 14/11/2025Urgent help needed: how do I turn off the #Copilot feature in MS 365? After restarting my Mac yesterday, the Copilot icon now shows up in Word (bottom right + Home panel). I don’t want it and can’t find any setting to disable it. 010
Reposted by Francesca Chiuijurresearch.bsky.social @ijurresearch.bsky.social · 12/11/2025Small-scale land speculation on Mandalay’s outskirts reveals how everyday actors—not just developers—reshape peri-urban space and contribute to displacement in the global South. By Francesca Chiu 📖 www.ijurr.org/article/beyo... 022
Francesca Chiu @francescachiu.bsky.social · 08/11/2025The 2025 National Games are happening and #HongKong is hosting a number of events including #handball. This brought to mind a research project I worked on before my PhD. The project was about electoral representation in the sports and arts functional constituency: doi.org/10.1080/2327... 1/8 262
Francesca Chiu @francescachiu.bsky.social · 06/11/2025My article on land speculation in #Myanmar is featured in the latest @ijurresearch.bsky.social. I show how even without developer mega-projects or evictions, small-scale speculation in Mandalay still leads to urban displacement and inequality. Open access: tinyurl.com/24z2yr48tinyurl.comBEYOND PLANNED DEVELOPMENTS: Small‐Scale Land Speculation and Displacement in Peri‐Urban MyanmarLand speculation is a significant factor contributing to the displacement of poor populations in global South cities. While extensive research has examined how urban expansion increases land values—p.... 081
Francesca Chiu @francescachiu.bsky.social · 22/10/2025It’s no secret the academic job market has become increasingly precarious. Many early-career researchers are struggling to find stable positions, and this challenge is global. In Asia, things have recently become more complex due to defunding of Western universities. 1/6 121
Reposted by Francesca Chiujamelle @jamellebouie.net · 08/10/2025i desperately want everyone involved in the destruction of USAID to have to, st the very least, answer to the american people for the suffering and misery they have caused apnews.com/article/myan...apnews.comStarving children screaming for food as US aid cuts unleash devastation and death across MyanmarU.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has repeatedly said “no one has died" because of his government’s decision to gut its foreign aid program. 277142435127
Reposted by Francesca ChiuReuters @reuters.com · 15/09/2025Students killed at Myanmar boarding school as junta escalates air war reut.rs/47Kc95Ireut.rsStudents killed at Myanmar boarding school as junta escalates air warA Myanmar military airstrike on a school last week killed at least 19 students, an ethnic militia said, as the war-torn nation's ruling junta steps up a campaign to retake territory ahead of a planned election in December. 21811
Reposted by Francesca ChiuDan Nexon @dhnexon.net · 10/09/2025It's our fucking job to present students with uncomfortable facts and challenge their worldviews. The point isn't to change their beliefs but to ensure that they can better defend whatever positions they take. 212438
Reposted by Francesca ChiuMiles Kenney-Lazar @mklaz.bsky.social · 05/09/2025My first book, Socializing Land: Plantations, Dispossession, and Resistance in Laos (University of Hawai'i Press, 2025), exists in this world! Check it out at: uhpress.hawaii.edu/title/social... 1/4 1338
Reposted by Francesca ChiuThe New York Times @nytimes.com · 27/08/2025In Opinion In the 1,000 days since ChatGPT’s release, it has disrupted the university approach to learning, meant to stop students from relying on A.I. “We, of course, do not want our students to fail, but we don’t want them to fail to learn, either,” Clay Shirkey, a vice provost at NYU, writes.nyti.msOpinion | The Only Real Solution to the A.I. College Cheating CrisisSince A.I. has made the mental effort of writing and problem solving optional, universities need new ways to require the work needed for learning. 1412733
Reposted by Francesca ChiuMizzima News @mizzimadailynews.substack.com · 25/08/2025EDUCATION IN A WAR ZONE: Karenni Alternative Schools Defying the Odds to Give Kids a Better Life open.substack.com/pub/mizzimad...open.substack.comEDUCATION IN A WAR ZONE: Karenni Alternative Schools Defying the Odds to Give Kids a Better LifeMizzima Weekly Analysis & Insights, Issue-19, Vol-02, August 14, 2025 033
Francesca Chiu @francescachiu.bsky.social · 20/08/2025An important question not asked in this incident: why is the government still buying bottled water instead of installing filters, which are more eco-friendly and cost-saving? 011
Francesca Chiu @francescachiu.bsky.social · 12/08/2025Thrilled to share my latest open-access article for @ijurresearch.bsky.social! I dig into what drives so many people to spend their life savings on informal claims to urban land in places so quiet and remote many municipal officials barely know they exist. Please read and share! 021
Francesca Chiu @francescachiu.bsky.social · 10/08/2025At Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, I was walking into the immigration hall when a staffer took one look at me and yelled: “You don’t have a US passport.” They hadn’t even checked my documents. This is how US immigration operates these days. No check. No question. Just assumption & racism. 010
Reposted by Francesca ChiuDVB English News @dvbenglish.bsky.social · 08/07/2025Nearly half the world’s supply of heavy rare earths is extracted from mines in Kachin State, including those north of Bhamo, a strategically-vital garrison town. They are then shipped to China for processing into magnets english.dvb.no/why-chinas-u... #WhatsHappeningInMyanmar #rareearth #kachinstateenglish.dvb.noWhy China's ultimatum to Myanmar rebels threatens global supply of heavy rare earths - DVBThe global supply of heavy rare earths hinges in part on the outcome of a months-long battle between a resistance army and the Chinese-backed military regime in the hills of northern Myanmar. The Kach... 021
Francesca Chiu @francescachiu.bsky.social · 30/06/2025As an early-career researcher, I hope senior colleagues remember what it felt like starting out. Advocate for us, use your voice to help where we can’t, and challenge the systems that once held you back. 050
Francesca Chiu @francescachiu.bsky.social · 25/06/2025People often say #HongKong landlords are greedy for not lowering rents, and sure, some are. But there’s another side to the issue we rarely talk about: many landlords actually can’t afford to lower rent, even if they want to. 1/x hongkongfp.com/2025/06/24/h...hongkongfp.comHK bakery chain Taipan shuts down after 41 years, owing salaries, rentHK bakery chain Taipan Bread & Cakes, which created the famous snowy mooncakes, has shut down all its stores after 41 years in operation, reportedly owing salaries and rent. 111
Francesca Chiu @francescachiu.bsky.social · 23/06/2025I have a new open-access article about #Myanmar in @ijurresearch.bsky.social examining how small-scale land speculation drives intimate displacement and social stratification in urban peripheries. Please read and share! onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...onlinelibrary.wiley.comBEYOND PLANNED DEVELOPMENTS: Small‐Scale Land Speculation and Displacement in Peri‐Urban MyanmarLand speculation is a significant factor contributing to the displacement of poor populations in global South cities. While extensive research has examined how urban expansion increases land values—p... 081