Alice Cann
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alicecann.bsky.social
Alice Cann
@alicecann.bsky.social
Uni business librarian, Mum, Researcher. #SystematicReview, searching. Books & reading, esp. scifi (& on tv). Hashtag obsessive. Blogger: https://researcherlibrarian.wordpress.com #AliceWrites

Past focuses: left wing politics, aphantasia, gentle parenting
Pinned
My 2nd blog post of the week, and 2nd in my series about saving searches, is all about changing to the new EBSCO platform. My initial perspective on good and bad things, and a focus on the process I used to prepare, ensuring I continue to have access to all my #SystematicReview searches #AliceWrites
EBSCO changes: adjusting and preparing
An academic librarian’s report on exploring the old and new EBSCOhost database platforms for literature searching, with a process for keeping access to saved searches.
researcherlibrarian.wordpress.com
Looking to see how many people have clicked yes to the invite to training I’m doing tomorrow is a very good way of incentivising me to focus on my prep for this and not getting distracted with emails (which are also important, but…)
November 25, 2025 at 11:20 AM
Whenever I open Teams, this pops up. I hate that the options are Maybe Later or Pin now. The convincing people to using Copilot for everything. The fact that it appears like the institution is encouraging you to use it, rather than it being an option for you to evaluate & decide whether you want it
November 25, 2025 at 9:51 AM
Reposted by Alice Cann
Today my daughter (and me, vicariously) got some unexpected good news, following a certainty that something hadn’t been passed, when it had actually been passed and more. There’s room for hope when you’re doubting yourself. #NotableNovember #Day24
November 24, 2025 at 10:43 PM
Today my daughter (and me, vicariously) got some unexpected good news, following a certainty that something hadn’t been passed, when it had actually been passed and more. There’s room for hope when you’re doubting yourself. #NotableNovember #Day24
November 24, 2025 at 10:43 PM
On the BBC News homepage!

I’m continually grateful to be part of the chess world (while not being able to play chess…) And to be able to follow other children’s progress, including/especially Bodhana’s, as well as my own.
Bodhana Sivanandan: Ten-year-old chess prodigy dazzles at women’s event
Bodhana Sivanandan wins the UK Women’s Blitz Championship, putting her in the top 50 women in the world in the category.
www.bbc.co.uk
November 24, 2025 at 7:00 PM
Every day I get so frustrated with EBSCO. I just want to be able to edit my search by putting words into separate boxes for my concepts, rather than adding things to brackets (for demonstrating). And limit to the last 3 years without going through a whole rigamarole. Is that so much to ask?
November 24, 2025 at 10:05 AM
Reposted by Alice Cann
Today I started hemming our front room curtains. One of which has been hemmed too short for many years, and one longer and not hemmed at all. I’m doing it with the curtains still hanging up - which seemed easier for getting the lengths right and for doing it (very!) gradually #NotableNovember #Day23
November 23, 2025 at 11:45 PM
Today I started hemming our front room curtains. One of which has been hemmed too short for many years, and one longer and not hemmed at all. I’m doing it with the curtains still hanging up - which seemed easier for getting the lengths right and for doing it (very!) gradually #NotableNovember #Day23
November 23, 2025 at 11:45 PM
Reposted by Alice Cann
I flew to Canada this week to go to a Paul McCartney concert and I wrote about it here:

open.substack.com/pub/naomiald...
going through hell, keeping going
on art, grief, and the emotional heroism of just bloody keeping on making your work
open.substack.com
November 23, 2025 at 8:23 AM
Reposted by Alice Cann
Today we went to visit a college for post-year 11, which was really great. My husband I and I both would quite like to be doing this kind of study again!

Then I accompanied my son to a chess game and I went on an unsuccessful hunt for a jacket potato, in the pouring rain.
#NotableNovember #Day22
November 22, 2025 at 9:12 PM
Some great recipes here. Saved in the recipes tab on my phone to look at tomorrow and consider making.
Made @alomshaha.bsky.social's simple kitchari (a sort of rice and lentil porridge) for dinner tonight and that is some cracking winter comfort food. So delicious esp with extra butter and salt. Can download his recipe booklet with it here alomshaha.com/wp-content/u...
alomshaha.com
November 22, 2025 at 9:25 PM
Today we went to visit a college for post-year 11, which was really great. My husband I and I both would quite like to be doing this kind of study again!

Then I accompanied my son to a chess game and I went on an unsuccessful hunt for a jacket potato, in the pouring rain.
#NotableNovember #Day22
November 22, 2025 at 9:12 PM
Reposted by Alice Cann
Today, after finishing work early (due to extra earlier in the week) I lay on the settee and dozed. This is so rare in the afternoon that my son presumed I was ill! But it was very much worthwhile in enabling to stay awake nicely through the evening. #NotableNovember ##Day21
November 21, 2025 at 10:57 PM
Today, after finishing work early (due to extra earlier in the week) I lay on the settee and dozed. This is so rare in the afternoon that my son presumed I was ill! But it was very much worthwhile in enabling to stay awake nicely through the evening. #NotableNovember ##Day21
November 21, 2025 at 10:57 PM
Reposted by Alice Cann
This afternoon I was feeling pretty drained and exhausted with the tiredness, workload and never done to do list. Talking with my colleagues (having a moan and discussing other work and personal things) did me a world of good #NotableNovember #Day20
November 20, 2025 at 10:59 PM
‘Students are afraid to fail, and AI presents itself as a savior. But what we learn from history is that progress requires failure. It requires reflection. Students are not just undermining their ability to learn, but to someday lead.’
There is something intensely bleak about students using gAI in an assignment asking them to respond to a text about enslaved people--so sad.
Students are being misled into stripping themselves of the ability to read, write, think by our own universities and Big Tech
www.huffpost.com/entry/histor...
November 21, 2025 at 6:20 AM
This afternoon I was feeling pretty drained and exhausted with the tiredness, workload and never done to do list. Talking with my colleagues (having a moan and discussing other work and personal things) did me a world of good #NotableNovember #Day20
November 20, 2025 at 10:59 PM
A perfect cup of coffee!
November 20, 2025 at 9:54 AM
I completely forgot to do my #NotableNovember #Day19 yesterday. It was a day which included multiple interesting conversation with researching students, reminding me of the joy of being part of an academic community, with so many people working of a wide variety of topics.
November 20, 2025 at 9:11 AM
Reposted by Alice Cann
This evening (following an intense day at work) was calm and companionable at home. Cooking, card playing reading and chatting, including about the reading. (I was mostly cooking and chatting myself) #NotableNovember #Day18
November 18, 2025 at 11:36 PM
This evening (following an intense day at work) was calm and companionable at home. Cooking, card playing reading and chatting, including about the reading. (I was mostly cooking and chatting myself) #NotableNovember #Day18
November 18, 2025 at 11:36 PM
Past me (half an hour ago in the staff room) decided that I don’t need another coffee.

Current me (about to teach) is in disagreement about this.
November 18, 2025 at 1:57 PM
For me it’s more things in other people’s syllabi (many of them). And yet I keep making plans to be in this position, with things to prep for that I don’t have the time for, in the future again.
It's about that time of year again....
November 18, 2025 at 1:31 PM