Ruth Ahnert
@ruthahnert.bsky.social
Digital humanist; literary historian; early modernist; collaborator; feminist; parent; FEA. Queen Mary University of London: & The Alan Turing Institute, UK. She/her
Pinned
Ruth Ahnert
@ruthahnert.bsky.social
· Nov 11
Hi to new followers, a bit about me: I’m an early modernist by training but I have worked more and more on collaborative digital humanities projects in recent years. Here’s a thread of a few things I’ve published recently.
Reposted by Ruth Ahnert
Delighted to be series editor for Cambridge Elements in Women, Gender and Sexuality in Premodern Literature and Culture. If you have something cool and interesting you’d like to work with us on please get in touch (micrograph 20-30k)
www.cambridge.org/core/publica...
www.cambridge.org/core/publica...
Women, Gender and Sexuality in Premodern Literature and Culture
Welcome to Cambridge Core
www.cambridge.org
February 14, 2026 at 5:08 AM
Delighted to be series editor for Cambridge Elements in Women, Gender and Sexuality in Premodern Literature and Culture. If you have something cool and interesting you’d like to work with us on please get in touch (micrograph 20-30k)
www.cambridge.org/core/publica...
www.cambridge.org/core/publica...
Reposted by Ruth Ahnert
Just in time for reading week, in the Transactions of the @royalhistsoc.org: historians and our uses of data; sources, GLAM collections, newspapers, access and more...
#dh 🗃️
A pleasure thinking and writing with @ruthahnert.bsky.social and @kmcdono.bsky.social
www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
#dh 🗃️
A pleasure thinking and writing with @ruthahnert.bsky.social and @kmcdono.bsky.social
www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
Show Me the Data: New Practices for Historical Sources | Transactions of the Royal Historical Society | Cambridge Core
Show Me the Data: New Practices for Historical Sources
www.cambridge.org
February 13, 2026 at 1:09 PM
Just in time for reading week, in the Transactions of the @royalhistsoc.org: historians and our uses of data; sources, GLAM collections, newspapers, access and more...
#dh 🗃️
A pleasure thinking and writing with @ruthahnert.bsky.social and @kmcdono.bsky.social
www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
#dh 🗃️
A pleasure thinking and writing with @ruthahnert.bsky.social and @kmcdono.bsky.social
www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
Reposted by Ruth Ahnert
Last summer, I got super into plotting addresses of nineteenth-century British pornographers that I'd collected as part of a project using the National Library of Scotland's Georeferenced Maps. Collecting the data was a painstaking process, as was plotting it as many of these addresses no longer +
February 13, 2026 at 12:12 PM
Last summer, I got super into plotting addresses of nineteenth-century British pornographers that I'd collected as part of a project using the National Library of Scotland's Georeferenced Maps. Collecting the data was a painstaking process, as was plotting it as many of these addresses no longer +
New article for my pinned thread: bsky.app/profile/ruth...
@kmcdono.bsky.social @danielwilson.bsky.social and I have a new OA article out: eur01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com?url=https%3A... It’s about the fragmented landscape of historical data, and what we can do about it to improve discoverability, sustainability and reuse.
Show Me the Data: New Practices for Historical Sources | Transactions of the Royal Historical Society | Cambridge Core
Show Me the Data: New Practices for Historical Sources
eur01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com
February 13, 2026 at 12:37 PM
New article for my pinned thread: bsky.app/profile/ruth...
@kmcdono.bsky.social @danielwilson.bsky.social and I have a new OA article out: eur01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com?url=https%3A... It’s about the fragmented landscape of historical data, and what we can do about it to improve discoverability, sustainability and reuse.
Show Me the Data: New Practices for Historical Sources | Transactions of the Royal Historical Society | Cambridge Core
Show Me the Data: New Practices for Historical Sources
eur01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com
February 13, 2026 at 12:33 PM
@kmcdono.bsky.social @danielwilson.bsky.social and I have a new OA article out: eur01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com?url=https%3A... It’s about the fragmented landscape of historical data, and what we can do about it to improve discoverability, sustainability and reuse.
Reposted by Ruth Ahnert
One for Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences (SHAPE) researchers interested in open science, and hot off the press (as well as, naturally, open access).
Openness in the arts, humanities and social sciences: Documenting open research practices beyond STEM (A MORPHSS Project Report)
Conceptual frameworks of 'Open Science' and their implementation by funders, journals, institutions and other organisations have been criticised on the grounds that they are tailored primarily to quan...
works.hcommons.org
February 10, 2026 at 1:23 PM
One for Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences (SHAPE) researchers interested in open science, and hot off the press (as well as, naturally, open access).
Reposted by Ruth Ahnert
I’m a little disappointed by some of the responses to this (not Matt’s, which I take to be plain wit). But there is obviously a long tradition of studying low culture, mass culture, kitsch, & etc., and we ignore this latest aesthetic category at our peril. To pretend otherwise is anti-intellectual.
February 4, 2026 at 10:38 PM
I’m a little disappointed by some of the responses to this (not Matt’s, which I take to be plain wit). But there is obviously a long tradition of studying low culture, mass culture, kitsch, & etc., and we ignore this latest aesthetic category at our peril. To pretend otherwise is anti-intellectual.
Reposted by Ruth Ahnert
🚨History Job: Assistant Professor in Early Modern British History (Permanent) 🗃️
Come work with us at Warwick! You will join a group of excellent early-modernists and one of the nicest bunches of historians around!
👇👇👇
@uni-of-warwick.bsky.social
warwick-careers.tal.net/vx/lang-en-G...
Come work with us at Warwick! You will join a group of excellent early-modernists and one of the nicest bunches of historians around!
👇👇👇
@uni-of-warwick.bsky.social
warwick-careers.tal.net/vx/lang-en-G...
Assistant Professor in Early Modern British History (111286-0126) - University of Warwick
Title: Assistant Professor in Early Modern British History (111286-0126). Application Deadline: . Position Type: Permanent
warwick-careers.tal.net
February 4, 2026 at 11:13 AM
🚨History Job: Assistant Professor in Early Modern British History (Permanent) 🗃️
Come work with us at Warwick! You will join a group of excellent early-modernists and one of the nicest bunches of historians around!
👇👇👇
@uni-of-warwick.bsky.social
warwick-careers.tal.net/vx/lang-en-G...
Come work with us at Warwick! You will join a group of excellent early-modernists and one of the nicest bunches of historians around!
👇👇👇
@uni-of-warwick.bsky.social
warwick-careers.tal.net/vx/lang-en-G...
Reposted by Ruth Ahnert
Important! AHRC is looking for a new Executive Chair. A critical role for arts and humanities. £160k - £170k. Please share widely to help get the best possible field!
fa-evzn-saasfaukgovprod1.fa.ocs.oraclecloud.com/hcmUI/Candid...
fa-evzn-saasfaukgovprod1.fa.ocs.oraclecloud.com/hcmUI/Candid...
February 3, 2026 at 9:21 AM
Important! AHRC is looking for a new Executive Chair. A critical role for arts and humanities. £160k - £170k. Please share widely to help get the best possible field!
fa-evzn-saasfaukgovprod1.fa.ocs.oraclecloud.com/hcmUI/Candid...
fa-evzn-saasfaukgovprod1.fa.ocs.oraclecloud.com/hcmUI/Candid...
Oof - relating to this hard the week. The admin sprawl is such a killer of both productivity and joy.
January 30, 2026 at 5:02 PM
Oof - relating to this hard the week. The admin sprawl is such a killer of both productivity and joy.
Reposted by Ruth Ahnert
Closing date for the Society's PhD funding scheme: 31 January 2026 #Skystorians
PhD funding for early career historians completing a doctorate.
Applications are invited for the Society's Centenary PhD Fellowships for the academic year 2026-27 bit.ly/49MzqmT.
Two awards of £8500 per student, held jointly with @ihr.bsky.social. Closing date: 31 January 2026 #Skystorians
Applications are invited for the Society's Centenary PhD Fellowships for the academic year 2026-27 bit.ly/49MzqmT.
Two awards of £8500 per student, held jointly with @ihr.bsky.social. Closing date: 31 January 2026 #Skystorians
January 30, 2026 at 4:36 PM
Closing date for the Society's PhD funding scheme: 31 January 2026 #Skystorians
Reposted by Ruth Ahnert
Closing date for the Society's new Applied History Fellowships, jointly with @ihr.bsky.social and DC Thomson: 31 January 2026 #Skystorians
Closing date 31 January: applications are now invited for the Society's new Applied History Fellowships with
@ihr.bsky.social & DC Thomson: bit.ly/4ijiuII
Fellowships support recent post-doc historians and demonstrate the appeal of historical skills for employers. £12,000 for 6 months #Skystorians
@ihr.bsky.social & DC Thomson: bit.ly/4ijiuII
Fellowships support recent post-doc historians and demonstrate the appeal of historical skills for employers. £12,000 for 6 months #Skystorians
Society launches call for new Applied History Fellowships, with the Institute of Historical Research and DC Thomson - RHS
In November 2025, the Society joins with partners the Institute of Historical Research (IHR) and publisher DC Thomson to launch a new Applied History Fellowship programme to support recent post-doctor...
bit.ly
January 30, 2026 at 4:38 PM
Closing date for the Society's new Applied History Fellowships, jointly with @ihr.bsky.social and DC Thomson: 31 January 2026 #Skystorians
Reposted by Ruth Ahnert
I think I might take one of these "under 20 minutes" AI skills courses the UK Govt. seems very keen on everyone doing and live-post it here... Maybe we can all learn something together! The press release sends me to aiskillshub.org.uk/aiskillsboost/ - let's go and see!
AI Skills Boost - AI Skills Hub
aiskillshub.org.uk
January 28, 2026 at 12:07 PM
I think I might take one of these "under 20 minutes" AI skills courses the UK Govt. seems very keen on everyone doing and live-post it here... Maybe we can all learn something together! The press release sends me to aiskillshub.org.uk/aiskillsboost/ - let's go and see!
Reposted by Ruth Ahnert
I want to say a bit more about our initiative to hire scholars to 3yr Research Associate positions.
None of us know what the twinning of humanities research support and employment will look like in another 5(?) years. But we do know that we need it. As a matter of social and cultural health. 1/
None of us know what the twinning of humanities research support and employment will look like in another 5(?) years. But we do know that we need it. As a matter of social and cultural health. 1/
Please share widely!
The JCB is hiring two three-year research associates for collaborative work on religions and freedoms in the early Americas.
Details at jcblibrary.org!
The JCB is hiring two three-year research associates for collaborative work on religions and freedoms in the early Americas.
Details at jcblibrary.org!
January 28, 2026 at 12:27 PM
I want to say a bit more about our initiative to hire scholars to 3yr Research Associate positions.
None of us know what the twinning of humanities research support and employment will look like in another 5(?) years. But we do know that we need it. As a matter of social and cultural health. 1/
None of us know what the twinning of humanities research support and employment will look like in another 5(?) years. But we do know that we need it. As a matter of social and cultural health. 1/
Reposted by Ruth Ahnert
[Job 📣] Are you curious about #AI applications in the #humanities? My Print and Probability research group (@print-and-prob.bsky.social) is hiring a postdoc! Come help us develop computational methods for identifying clandestine early modern printers!
cmu.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com/CMU/job/Pitt...
cmu.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com/CMU/job/Pitt...
January 22, 2026 at 10:00 PM
[Job 📣] Are you curious about #AI applications in the #humanities? My Print and Probability research group (@print-and-prob.bsky.social) is hiring a postdoc! Come help us develop computational methods for identifying clandestine early modern printers!
cmu.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com/CMU/job/Pitt...
cmu.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com/CMU/job/Pitt...
Reposted by Ruth Ahnert
The British Library’s PhD placement scheme for 26/27 is now open. My team are offering an exciting placement aiming to raise the profile of our illustrated newspaper collection: www.bl.uk/services/res...
PhD placement scheme
Our annual placement scheme offers doctoral researchers from all disciplines the chance to develop and apply skills and expertise outside the university sector.
www.bl.uk
January 27, 2026 at 9:29 AM
The British Library’s PhD placement scheme for 26/27 is now open. My team are offering an exciting placement aiming to raise the profile of our illustrated newspaper collection: www.bl.uk/services/res...
Reposted by Ruth Ahnert
One month left to apply for our 2026-27 senior/mid-career Fellowships, and three months left to apply for our postdoctoral Fellowship programmes!
www.iash.ed.ac.uk/fellowship-p...
www.iash.ed.ac.uk/fellowship-p...
Fellowship programmes | IASH
www.iash.ed.ac.uk
January 27, 2026 at 9:08 AM
One month left to apply for our 2026-27 senior/mid-career Fellowships, and three months left to apply for our postdoctoral Fellowship programmes!
www.iash.ed.ac.uk/fellowship-p...
www.iash.ed.ac.uk/fellowship-p...
Reposted by Ruth Ahnert
Today the @softwaresaved.bsky.social alongside our international partners launches the 2026 Research Software Engineering Survey. If you write code for academic research we want to hear from you - even if you have a different job title.
@society-rse.org @ukiedh.bsky.social @dariaheu.bsky.social
@society-rse.org @ukiedh.bsky.social @dariaheu.bsky.social
🔍 We are happy to announce that the 2026 International RSE Survey is now open for submissions. The survey will close on Friday 20 March, and can be completed in English, French, German or Spanish.
Find out more about the survey and how to participate at www.software.ac.uk/news/2026-in...
Find out more about the survey and how to participate at www.software.ac.uk/news/2026-in...
January 20, 2026 at 10:18 AM
Today the @softwaresaved.bsky.social alongside our international partners launches the 2026 Research Software Engineering Survey. If you write code for academic research we want to hear from you - even if you have a different job title.
@society-rse.org @ukiedh.bsky.social @dariaheu.bsky.social
@society-rse.org @ukiedh.bsky.social @dariaheu.bsky.social
Reposted by Ruth Ahnert
In case you missed it, here is a set of academic book proposals that I wrote and that succeeded. I do not claim them as exemplars of the genre, but offer them for any interested parties to see what form they took.
Here are 8 successful *proposals* for academic books/monographs. I am hoping that these help someone who is starting out trying to write one and wants to see what worked for me. They are provided as examples, rather than exemplars. A lot of it was just finding my own way eve.gd/2026/01/16/s...
Some example academic book proposal forms in case they help
A pivotal moment in my academic career, or at least one I remember clearly, was when a very senior professor in the US sent me his book proposal for an acade...
eve.gd
January 19, 2026 at 9:35 AM
In case you missed it, here is a set of academic book proposals that I wrote and that succeeded. I do not claim them as exemplars of the genre, but offer them for any interested parties to see what form they took.
Giving this a boost before the deadline Sunday!
We’re hiring a two-year DH postdoc for our HAVI project, to work on a new type of knowledge graph architecture for the humanities (and beyond). Deadline soon (18 Jan)! www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/researc...
Research Assistant/Research Associate (Fixed Term)
Applications are invited for a full time post doctoral researcher to work on an international collaboration to develop AI-based solutions for research on archival materials as part of the Humanities
www.cam.ac.uk
January 16, 2026 at 4:49 PM
Giving this a boost before the deadline Sunday!
Reposted by Ruth Ahnert
3 x #dh roles at UCL; 1 week til deadline 🗃️
The Centre for the Study of the Legacies of British Slavery (CSLBS) is excited to announce 3 new roles on our groundbreaking Valuable Lives project!
🔍 Open roles:
• 2 x Research Assistant (Digital Humanities)
• 1 x Research Fellow (Digital Humanities)
🗓 Closing date: 23 Jan 2026
shorturl.at/OCpLP
🔍 Open roles:
• 2 x Research Assistant (Digital Humanities)
• 1 x Research Fellow (Digital Humanities)
🗓 Closing date: 23 Jan 2026
shorturl.at/OCpLP
Opportunities
Find opportunities to join UCL History in academic, research, teaching and learning, admin and other capacities below.
shorturl.at
January 16, 2026 at 12:39 PM
3 x #dh roles at UCL; 1 week til deadline 🗃️
Reposted by Ruth Ahnert
Interested to work on our collections? The Call for applications of the LECTIO – KU Leuven Visiting Fellowships 2026–2027 is now open. As in previous years, Special Collections offers a joint fellowship. We will be happy to welcome you!
Call for applications: LECTIO Visiting Fellowships 2026–2027
www.kuleuven.be
January 16, 2026 at 10:24 AM
Interested to work on our collections? The Call for applications of the LECTIO – KU Leuven Visiting Fellowships 2026–2027 is now open. As in previous years, Special Collections offers a joint fellowship. We will be happy to welcome you!
Reposted by Ruth Ahnert
'hollowing out...the humanities is no longer a theoretical threat: it is an active, policy-driven dismantling, creating vast regional “cold spots”....we are burning humanity’s maps just as we enter the least charted psychological & philosophical territory in our history: artificial intelligence.' 1/
Humanities cuts leave us defenceless in the age of AI
It is vital to examine what chatbots’ behaviour reveals about their underlying structures – and human responses to them, says Agnieszka Piotrowska
www.timeshighereducation.com
January 14, 2026 at 7:48 AM
'hollowing out...the humanities is no longer a theoretical threat: it is an active, policy-driven dismantling, creating vast regional “cold spots”....we are burning humanity’s maps just as we enter the least charted psychological & philosophical territory in our history: artificial intelligence.' 1/
Reposted by Ruth Ahnert
Of especial interest for UK researchers, research institutes/organisations and/or partnerships with higher education expertise and the ability to measure social & cultural infrastructure.
Deadline 17:00 GMT 4 February; duration 10 months; value c. £60k. 1/2
Deadline 17:00 GMT 4 February; duration 10 months; value c. £60k. 1/2
Call for proposals - Measurement of social and cultural infrastructure in the higher education sector
The British Academy is commissioning a major new research element as part of its work theme on social and cultural infrastructure. The research will investigate how social and cultural infrastructure ...
www.thebritishacademy.ac.uk
January 14, 2026 at 11:11 AM
Of especial interest for UK researchers, research institutes/organisations and/or partnerships with higher education expertise and the ability to measure social & cultural infrastructure.
Deadline 17:00 GMT 4 February; duration 10 months; value c. £60k. 1/2
Deadline 17:00 GMT 4 February; duration 10 months; value c. £60k. 1/2
Reposted by Ruth Ahnert
For anyone in or near Athens, GA, I'm giving a talk tomorrow (Thursday, January 15) at UGA on the conglomerate era in publishing calendar.uga.edu/event/dan-si...
Dan Sinykin: "Why These Books? The Conglomerate Era in Publishing"
calendar.uga.edu
January 14, 2026 at 12:20 PM
For anyone in or near Athens, GA, I'm giving a talk tomorrow (Thursday, January 15) at UGA on the conglomerate era in publishing calendar.uga.edu/event/dan-si...