Nora Van den Bosch
@nvdb.bsky.social
Sinologist interested in digital humanities, curator Modern China Biographical Database
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1881-5801
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1881-5801
Pinned
Nora Van den Bosch
@nvdb.bsky.social
· Nov 22
Modern China Biographical Database
MCBD is a freely accessible relational database that aims at recording all the historical actors who were active in China in the Late Qing and Republican periods (1830–1949). Based on the Heurist web ...
heurist.huma-num.fr
Hey,
I am Nora, a sinologist interested in Digital Humanities and Digital history.
I curate the Modern China Biographical Database, which covers over 170,000 individuals who lived in the Late Qing and the Republican era. You can check out the link if you want to.
#digitalhumanities
I am Nora, a sinologist interested in Digital Humanities and Digital history.
I curate the Modern China Biographical Database, which covers over 170,000 individuals who lived in the Late Qing and the Republican era. You can check out the link if you want to.
#digitalhumanities
Reposted by Nora Van den Bosch
If you missed yesterday's @ihr.bsky.social Digital History seminar from Aleksandra Kaye and colleagues on 'Science Across Borders: Text-Mining and Network Analysis Insights into the Polish Diasporic Periodical Press, 1830-1930', it is now on our seminar youtube channel #dhist
youtu.be/tio0nDGDGjw
youtu.be/tio0nDGDGjw
Aleksandra Kaye: Text-Mining & Network Analysis of the Polish Diasporic Periodical Press, 1830-1930
YouTube video by IHR Digital History Seminar
youtu.be
December 10, 2025 at 8:53 AM
If you missed yesterday's @ihr.bsky.social Digital History seminar from Aleksandra Kaye and colleagues on 'Science Across Borders: Text-Mining and Network Analysis Insights into the Polish Diasporic Periodical Press, 1830-1930', it is now on our seminar youtube channel #dhist
youtu.be/tio0nDGDGjw
youtu.be/tio0nDGDGjw
Lately, some China pundits have drawn flimsy parallels from Qing-era episodes (Self-Strengthening Movement, Macartney mission, Opium Wars) to comment on today’s EU. Although I won't deny the challenges that the EU is facing, these comparisons are superficial, not to mention incredibly tacky.
November 28, 2025 at 8:35 PM
Lately, some China pundits have drawn flimsy parallels from Qing-era episodes (Self-Strengthening Movement, Macartney mission, Opium Wars) to comment on today’s EU. Although I won't deny the challenges that the EU is facing, these comparisons are superficial, not to mention incredibly tacky.
Reposted by Nora Van den Bosch
Looks like LLMs are *very* vulnerable to attack via poetic allusion: "curated poetic prompts yielded high attack-success rates (ASR), with some providers exceeding 90% ..."
https://arxiv.org/html/2511.15304v1
https://arxiv.org/html/2511.15304v1
November 20, 2025 at 5:06 PM
Looks like LLMs are *very* vulnerable to attack via poetic allusion: "curated poetic prompts yielded high attack-success rates (ASR), with some providers exceeding 90% ..."
https://arxiv.org/html/2511.15304v1
https://arxiv.org/html/2511.15304v1
Popcorn time!
Episode 46: Sapiens
It's an ambitious goal to write the entire history of humanity in just 400 pages. It's even more ambitious to do it without reading any research.
It's an ambitious goal to write the entire history of humanity in just 400 pages. It's even more ambitious to do it without reading any research.
Sapiens
Podcast Episode · If Books Could Kill · 11/20/2025 · 1h 38m
podcasts.apple.com
November 20, 2025 at 10:30 PM
Popcorn time!
Reposted by Nora Van den Bosch
Episode 46: Sapiens
It's an ambitious goal to write the entire history of humanity in just 400 pages. It's even more ambitious to do it without reading any research.
It's an ambitious goal to write the entire history of humanity in just 400 pages. It's even more ambitious to do it without reading any research.
Sapiens
Podcast Episode · If Books Could Kill · 11/20/2025 · 1h 38m
podcasts.apple.com
November 20, 2025 at 2:52 PM
Episode 46: Sapiens
It's an ambitious goal to write the entire history of humanity in just 400 pages. It's even more ambitious to do it without reading any research.
It's an ambitious goal to write the entire history of humanity in just 400 pages. It's even more ambitious to do it without reading any research.
Reposted by Nora Van den Bosch
“We moeten besparen. België geeft te veel uit. Vooral aan sociale bescherming en zorg. Nieuwe belastingen? Kan niet. We zijn al belastingkampioen! En die raken enkel de middenklasse & schaden de economie.”
De onuitgesproken uitgangspunten van de begrotingsdiscussie. Kloppen ze? 🧵
De onuitgesproken uitgangspunten van de begrotingsdiscussie. Kloppen ze? 🧵
October 8, 2025 at 1:41 PM
“We moeten besparen. België geeft te veel uit. Vooral aan sociale bescherming en zorg. Nieuwe belastingen? Kan niet. We zijn al belastingkampioen! En die raken enkel de middenklasse & schaden de economie.”
De onuitgesproken uitgangspunten van de begrotingsdiscussie. Kloppen ze? 🧵
De onuitgesproken uitgangspunten van de begrotingsdiscussie. Kloppen ze? 🧵
Reposted by Nora Van den Bosch
Kennis koesteren, doorgeven, zelf maken ... is een maatschappelijk functie van de #universiteiten, ongeacht of die op onmiddellijk "iets oplevert". Het is een maatschappelijk goed, geen economische parameter.
October 6, 2025 at 11:05 AM
Kennis koesteren, doorgeven, zelf maken ... is een maatschappelijk functie van de #universiteiten, ongeacht of die op onmiddellijk "iets oplevert". Het is een maatschappelijk goed, geen economische parameter.
Ik denk dat afhankelijk van AI in schrijfopdrachten wijst op grotere problemen: gebrek aan informatievaardigheden, weinig lezen en het feit dat schrijven nooit serieus aangeleerd wordt.
August 19, 2025 at 9:44 PM
Ik denk dat afhankelijk van AI in schrijfopdrachten wijst op grotere problemen: gebrek aan informatievaardigheden, weinig lezen en het feit dat schrijven nooit serieus aangeleerd wordt.
I misread the feed name “Air Canada strike” as “Canada Airstrike.” I didn’t know how I did it but I had a small heart attack.
August 19, 2025 at 8:26 PM
I misread the feed name “Air Canada strike” as “Canada Airstrike.” I didn’t know how I did it but I had a small heart attack.
Reposted by Nora Van den Bosch
For my China studies friends here: new Wilkinson just dropped. 7th edition, huge news. On Pleco, too.
If you don’t know what that means, do you even sinologize, bro?
@pleco.com
#Sinology🀄️📚
If you don’t know what that means, do you even sinologize, bro?
@pleco.com
#Sinology🀄️📚
August 19, 2025 at 7:15 AM
For my China studies friends here: new Wilkinson just dropped. 7th edition, huge news. On Pleco, too.
If you don’t know what that means, do you even sinologize, bro?
@pleco.com
#Sinology🀄️📚
If you don’t know what that means, do you even sinologize, bro?
@pleco.com
#Sinology🀄️📚
Reposted by Nora Van den Bosch
This is one of the most beautiful things I have witnessed, the craft here is impeccable.
August 13, 2025 at 6:06 AM
This is one of the most beautiful things I have witnessed, the craft here is impeccable.
Reposted by Nora Van den Bosch
België zou over #ChatControl eens duidelijk in het NEE-kamp kunnen gaan staan, en daar blijven, in plaats van telkens het probleem vooruit te porren en te hopen dat er de onvermijdelijke volgende keer minder ophef rond is.
August 15, 2025 at 12:58 PM
België zou over #ChatControl eens duidelijk in het NEE-kamp kunnen gaan staan, en daar blijven, in plaats van telkens het probleem vooruit te porren en te hopen dat er de onvermijdelijke volgende keer minder ophef rond is.
Reposted by Nora Van den Bosch
In b4 someone barges in with "no, you're doing it wrong, you must ask for python code to do this"
No. A system being marketed as "a team of PhD-level scientists in your pocket " should not struggle with this.
Tokenization remains a *fundamental* problem.
No. A system being marketed as "a team of PhD-level scientists in your pocket " should not struggle with this.
Tokenization remains a *fundamental* problem.
August 8, 2025 at 7:45 AM
In b4 someone barges in with "no, you're doing it wrong, you must ask for python code to do this"
No. A system being marketed as "a team of PhD-level scientists in your pocket " should not struggle with this.
Tokenization remains a *fundamental* problem.
No. A system being marketed as "a team of PhD-level scientists in your pocket " should not struggle with this.
Tokenization remains a *fundamental* problem.
Through social media osmosis I’ve learned about the existence that is Labubu. I don’t know what Labubu is and after spotting one in the wild I have now more determination not to learn what it is.
August 5, 2025 at 11:20 AM
Through social media osmosis I’ve learned about the existence that is Labubu. I don’t know what Labubu is and after spotting one in the wild I have now more determination not to learn what it is.
#booksky
Last year I read Our Share of Night by Mariana Enriquez. It had an intriguing plot about a cult in contact with the supernatural during a dictatorship, supplemented with a masterful rending of atmosphere.
Last year I read Our Share of Night by Mariana Enriquez. It had an intriguing plot about a cult in contact with the supernatural during a dictatorship, supplemented with a masterful rending of atmosphere.
July 29, 2025 at 4:48 PM
#booksky
Last year I read Our Share of Night by Mariana Enriquez. It had an intriguing plot about a cult in contact with the supernatural during a dictatorship, supplemented with a masterful rending of atmosphere.
Last year I read Our Share of Night by Mariana Enriquez. It had an intriguing plot about a cult in contact with the supernatural during a dictatorship, supplemented with a masterful rending of atmosphere.
Reposted by Nora Van den Bosch
I call it "The Scream," but the red-tailed hawk didn't actually make any sound. I don't know if it was trying to cough up a pellet, or if was annoyed by something stuck to its beak, but it was only like this for a moment, and then it flew off and caught some breakfast.
July 16, 2025 at 6:49 PM
I call it "The Scream," but the red-tailed hawk didn't actually make any sound. I don't know if it was trying to cough up a pellet, or if was annoyed by something stuck to its beak, but it was only like this for a moment, and then it flew off and caught some breakfast.
Reposted by Nora Van den Bosch
July 16, 2025 at 5:30 PM
My biggest pet peeve on social media platforms is videos that play the moment you pass by while scrolling. I wish to have the power to choose whether a video is worth my attention instead of being constantly hijacked.
July 4, 2025 at 6:14 PM
My biggest pet peeve on social media platforms is videos that play the moment you pass by while scrolling. I wish to have the power to choose whether a video is worth my attention instead of being constantly hijacked.
Reposted by Nora Van den Bosch
#China
Tenure-track position (tenure-track in a postdoctoral position and tenured as associate professor) in contemporary Chinese society is available at the Department of Culture, Religion, Asian and Middle Eastern Studies (IKOS), University of Oslo.
www.jobbnorge.no/en/available...
Tenure-track position (tenure-track in a postdoctoral position and tenured as associate professor) in contemporary Chinese society is available at the Department of Culture, Religion, Asian and Middle Eastern Studies (IKOS), University of Oslo.
www.jobbnorge.no/en/available...
Tenure-track position in contemporary Chinese society (283182) | University of Oslo
Job title: Tenure-track position in contemporary Chinese society (283182), Employer: University of Oslo, Deadline: Monday, October 27, 2025
www.jobbnorge.no
July 3, 2025 at 9:56 AM
#China
Tenure-track position (tenure-track in a postdoctoral position and tenured as associate professor) in contemporary Chinese society is available at the Department of Culture, Religion, Asian and Middle Eastern Studies (IKOS), University of Oslo.
www.jobbnorge.no/en/available...
Tenure-track position (tenure-track in a postdoctoral position and tenured as associate professor) in contemporary Chinese society is available at the Department of Culture, Religion, Asian and Middle Eastern Studies (IKOS), University of Oslo.
www.jobbnorge.no/en/available...
HistText 1 - Create and Account and Sign In
YouTube video by ENP China
m.youtube.com
June 21, 2025 at 9:08 PM
Today I learned that French institutions of higher education can be so old-fashioned that using zoom or teams is out of the question for even a short job interview, no matter how much money a candidate has to spend on transport and/or accommodation. It is common today which makes it even more weird.
June 20, 2025 at 9:58 PM
Today I learned that French institutions of higher education can be so old-fashioned that using zoom or teams is out of the question for even a short job interview, no matter how much money a candidate has to spend on transport and/or accommodation. It is common today which makes it even more weird.
Reposted by Nora Van den Bosch
It's always a good day to revisit this one.
Why Do Historians Still Have To Go To Archives?
Why do historians go to archives? Hasn’t everything already been digitized?
contingentmagazine.org
June 17, 2025 at 1:57 AM
It's always a good day to revisit this one.
Van de laatste column moet ik zeggen dat Mia Doornaert een misantroop in hart en nieren is. Ik snap niet waarom De Standaard haar labelt als “onafhankelijke experte in buitenlandse betrekkingen” als haar schrijfsels niets anders dienen dan gewoon om haar gal te spuiten is voor wat anders is.
June 16, 2025 at 3:48 PM
Van de laatste column moet ik zeggen dat Mia Doornaert een misantroop in hart en nieren is. Ik snap niet waarom De Standaard haar labelt als “onafhankelijke experte in buitenlandse betrekkingen” als haar schrijfsels niets anders dienen dan gewoon om haar gal te spuiten is voor wat anders is.