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Adrian Vickers

@avick.bsky.social

2.2K followers 1.4K following 980 posts

Professor Emeritus. Historian and art historian, especially of Indonesia/Bali. DH, cricket, representation. Comments personal and not related to my university’s views. Projects include http://balipaintings.org/ and https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/ .. more

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Adrian Vickers is an Australian author, historian and professor of Southeast Asian Studies at the University of Sydney. He writes a blog on Indonesian subjects. He has studied and documented Gambuh dance traditions, Panji (prince) stories, and other Indonesian art and cultural subjects as well as historiography and colonialism. He has a BA and PhD from the University of Sydney, is the Professor of Southeast Asian Studies and Director of the Asian Studies Program. Vickers' most recent book, The Pearl Frontier, co-written with Julia Martínez, won the University of Southern Queensland History Book Award at the 2016 Queensland Literary Awards. He is a fellow of the Australian Academy of the Humanities. .. more

Political science 45%

Sociology 38%

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Adrian Vickers @avick.bsky.social · Nov 19

The Virtual Museum of Balinese Painting has undergone a major make-over. We're still fixing some things (like the bibliography link), but thanks to the Systemik team, I've been able to add a lot more: heurist-usyd.cloud.edu.au/heurist/?db=...

The Virtual Museum of Balinese Painting

Enter a concise description of the Heurist database / website here, which will be used eg. in lists of websites and in search engine discovery. Remember to indicate the institution and/or project, t...

heurist-usyd.cloud.edu.au

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Reposted by Adrian Vickers

The Guardian @theguardian.com · 7h

Philippines earthquake: tsunami warning issued after 7.4 quake hits Mindanao

The Philippines seismology agency said it strongly advises people in coastal towns in central and southern Philippines to immediately evacuate Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the earthquake in the Philippines. A quake measuring 7.4 has struck the Mindanao region, triggering a tsunami warning. The Philippines seismology agency has warned of damage and aftershocks after the quake struck the southern island. Continue reading...

www.theguardian.com

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Reposted by Peter Thorne, Juan Cole, Stephen D. Murphy , and 1 more Peter Thorne, Juan Cole, Stephen D. Murphy, Adrian Vickers

Julia Simon @juliaradio.bsky.social · 17h

When the power went out in Spain this spring, many people immediately pointed the finger at the country's solar and wind power as the cause.

That wasn't the trigger, but a new survey finds that all that misinformation?

It had an impact.

Read more here, only on @npr.org 🎧⬇️

After Spain's blackout, critics blamed renewable energy. It's part of a bigger attack

When millions lost power in Spain and Portugal this spring, some were quick to blame too much solar and wind power. That wasn't the cause, but the misinformation had an impact.

www.npr.org

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Reposted by Adrian Vickers

Ted McCormick @tedmccormick.bsky.social · 21h

Imagine studying a technology whose presence in the classroom is so detrimental to the development of writing and research skills (including even the will to know the sources behind claims!) that mitigating its effects becomes a central goal of course design, and concluding with tips on adopting it.

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Jon Piccini @jonpiccini.bsky.social · 22h

So I submitted the complete manuscript of my new book to the publisher. Hope it'll be out in the world late next year. It's about why Australia's role as an overseas coloniser was strikingly obvious to all and sundry till the 1970s, then was abruptly (and conveniently) forgotten.

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Reposted by Margaret Mitchell, Colin Murray, Martin Paul Eve , and 11 more Margaret Mitchell, Colin Murray, Martin Paul Eve, Robert Black, Robert C. Richards, David R. Miller, Robert Wolfe, Adrian Vickers, Michael D. McDonald, Ben Rosamond, Tom Stoppard, Anthony Burke, Daxton R. Stewart, Evan Roberts

Lux "Nightmare" Alptraum @luxalptraum.com · 1d

TFW you paid $1400 to see Beckett’s most famous work without knowing anything about it

One Star Review of Waiting for Godot on Broadway
I recently attended Waiting for Godot on Broadway and spent over $1,400 for two Row C seats (103 and 104). I'm a longtime admirer of Broadway productions and even hold a season pass for Shea's Performing Arts Theatre, so I came in with genuine enthusiasm and high expectations. Unfortunately, this show was unlike anything ! have ever experienced —and not in a good way.
What I encountered was not the artistry, music, or emotional storytelling I usually associate with Broadway, but instead what felt like an endless cycle of nonsensical conversation between characters who seemed trapped in their own madness. I tried-truly tried-to find meaning, symbolism, or even a thread of emotional resonance. I stayed through the first half hoping the second would offer clarity. But by intermission, it was clear: this was a waste of both time and money.
Keanu Reeves is an actor I respect greatly, but I cannot fathom why he would agree to participate in such a disjointed, inaccessible production. His talent was lost in a performance that defied reason rather than provoked insight.
To anyone considering attending: unless you are drawn to highly abstract, nearly incomprehensible theater, I strongly caution you against this show. For the average, educated, thoughtful theatergoer, it is far more frustrating than fulfilling. In my opinion, this was the single most disappointing Broadway experience I've ever had - an unfortunate waste of money and, more importantly, of time.

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Adrian Vickers @avick.bsky.social · 1d

Going down in a screaming heap

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Adrian Vickers @avick.bsky.social · 1d

What streamer? Doesn’t appear on Kayo

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Adrian Vickers @avick.bsky.social · 2d

Definitely not 65, I don’t think that’s still current

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Adrian Vickers @avick.bsky.social · 2d

Last year’s fashion?

Adrian Vickers @avick.bsky.social · 3d

“The reason AI models resort to guessing when they are short on real information is that they also possess an innate desire to please the one asking the question. And this desire means…” just no

Adrian Vickers @avick.bsky.social · 3d

A number of worrying passages in that report

Reposted by Adrian Vickers

Ketan Joshi @ketanjoshi.co · 3d

A complete flip of the usual pattern we see in these updates - China's and India's emissions fell, and EU and US emissions increased.....

ember-energy.org/latest-insig...

@ember-energy.org

Global CO2 emissions plateau
Global CO2 emissions from the power sector fell marginally by 12 MtCO2 (-0.2%) to 6,963 MtCO2 in the first half of 2025. The decline was possible because solar and wind power exceeded demand growth and led to a slight fall in fossil fuel use. Without solar and wind growth, emissions would have risen by an estimated 236 MtCO2 (+3.9%) globally, which is equivalent to almost all emissions (251 MtCO2) from Africa in H1-2025.

At the country level, there was significant variation. Among the four economies that account for the majority of global emissions (64%), emissions fell in China (-46 MtCO2, -1.7%) and India (-24 MtCO2, -3.6%), as clean electricity outpaced growth in demand in those countries.

In contrast, emissions rose in the EU (+13 MtCO2, +4.8%), where strong growth in solar was outweighed by shortfalls in wind, hydro and bioenergy, leading to higher gas and coal generation. Emissions also rose in the US (+33 MtCO2, +4.3%), as clean electricity growth was smaller than demand growth, leading to an increase in coal generation, which was exacerbated by gas-to-coal switching.

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Australian Historical Studies @ahsjournal.bsky.social · 3d

Kate Ariotti reviews ‘Gull Force: Australian POWs on Ambon and Hainan, 1941–45’ by Joan Beaumont
@newsouthpublishing.bsky.social

www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

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Reposted by Adrian Vickers

MiMi Aye @meemalee.bsky.social · 3d

It’s the full moon of Thadingyut today - the Burmese Buddhist festival of lights.

I make the same wish that I have done for the last five years.

အရေးတော်ပုံအောင်ရမည် 🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽

May the revolution succeed in Myanmar 🔥🔥🔥

#WhatsHappeningInMyanmar #Thadingyut

Five small white candles burning in a row

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Reposted by Adrian Vickers

Mongabay @mongabay.com · 3d

The five Mekong countries lost nearly 1 million hectares (2.5 million acres) of tree cover in 2024, with nearly a quarter of which was primary forest, and more than 30% of losses occurring inside protected areas.

Protected areas hit hard as Mekong countries’ forest cover shrank in 2024

BANGKOK — The Mekong countries of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam lost a combined area of tree cover of nearly a million hectares in 2024, or an area almost the size of Lebanon. That’s…

news.mongabay.com

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Reposted by Adrian Vickers

Andreas Harsono @andreasharsono.bsky.social · 3d

In Canberra, Singapore's PM Lawrence Wong wants to expand its military ties with Australia, discussing a bigger Australian troop presence in the island state, concerns about possible conflict in Taiwan and the impact of Trump's tariffs on Singapore www.youtube.com/watch?v=rnhn...

Singapore PM talks Taiwan, Trump tariffs and Australian military presence | ABC NEWS

YouTube video by ABC News (Australia)

www.youtube.com

Reposted by Adrian Vickers

Reposted by Adrian Vickers, Margot C. Finn

Hetan Shah @hetanshah.bsky.social · 4d

‘The hundreds of billions of dollars companies are investing in AI now account for an astonishing 40 per cent share of US GDP growth this year… Outside of the AI plays, even European stock markets have been outperforming the US this decade’
on.ft.com/4pTQ3US

America is now one big bet on AI

It’s seen as the magic fix for every threat to the US economy

on.ft.com

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Reposted by Adrian Vickers

3wombats @3wombats.bsky.social · 4d

Tell Japan: shut down the ivory market, save elephant lives. action.eko.org/a/japan-ivor...

Tell Japan: Shut down the ivory market.

Every year, tens of thousands of elephants are butchered for their tusks despite a global ivory ban -- and Japan’s massive domestic market remains one of the main drivers.But we have a once-in-a-gener

action.eko.org

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Reposted by Adrian Vickers

Nick Brumfield @nickjbrumfield.bsky.social · 4d

I can already tell this framing of global protests as "Gen Z" is going to age like milk

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Adrian Vickers @avick.bsky.social · 4d

I need a sedative

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Adrian Vickers @avick.bsky.social · 4d

Sometimes rugby league can be amazing

Adrian Vickers @avick.bsky.social · 5d

I swear at machines all the time

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Adrian Vickers @avick.bsky.social · 5d

Although the latter case revealed the true nature of the Fat Controller

Adrian Vickers @avick.bsky.social · 5d

Sheffield Shield first round is going well, except for a couple of commentators who think they’re still in the 1970s

Reposted by Lesley A. Hall, Adrian Vickers, Margot C. Finn

Martin Paul Eve @eve.gd · 5d

Wikipedia. Not unproblematic, but still perhaps the greatest thing to come out of internet utopianism and optimism about collective behaviour. And they want to destroy it.

Patrick McCray @patrickmccray.bsky.social · 5d

When the goal is just to destroy everything...

www.wsj.com/tech/wikiped...

Why Conservatives Are Attacking ‘Wokepedia’

A crusade is growing against Wikipedia, which says it is intent on keeping a neutral point of view.

www.wsj.com

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Reposted by Martin Paul Eve, Adrian Vickers

Patrick McCray @patrickmccray.bsky.social · 5d

When the goal is just to destroy everything...

www.wsj.com/tech/wikiped...

Why Conservatives Are Attacking ‘Wokepedia’

A crusade is growing against Wikipedia, which says it is intent on keeping a neutral point of view.

www.wsj.com

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Reposted by Adrian Vickers

Al Jazeera English @aljazeera.com · 6d

Authorities say they are using heavy equipment to look for the 49 people who remain missing.

Death toll from Indonesia school collapse rises to 14 as more victims found

Authorities say they are using heavy equipment to look for the 49 people who remain missing.

bit.ly

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Reposted by Adrian Vickers

The Wall Street Journal @wsj.com · 6d

Japan is set to have its first female prime minister after the ruling party elected Sanae Takaichi as its leader.

Japan Set for First Female Prime Minister Amid U.S. Friction Over Trade, Security

Sanae Takaichi, elected leader of the ruling party, wants more spending and has floated reopening trade agreement struck with Trump.

on.wsj.com

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Reposted by Adrian Vickers

Evan @evansmithhist.bsky.social · 6d

As it's October and the 'Halloween as an imported American thing' discourse has begun, I thought I'd mention that in Australia, the Scottish diaspora, especially in the first half of the 20th century, celebrated Halloween as a particular Scottish tradition, as attested to by many articles on Trove.

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