Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Jenny @jtownes.bsky.social · 2d

An excellent diversion.

punctum books: spontaneous acts of scholarly combustion @punctumbooks.bsky.social · 2d

Are the executive orders getting you down? Caught between $100,000 immigration visas & making federal architecture beautiful again? You NEED the People's EXECUTIVE ORDERS:

By the fleece vested in us, we hereby order a freezer cake!

#OpenAccess & FREE to download:

tinyurl.com/zsrat342

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Jenny @jtownes.bsky.social · 4d

Behold! I wrote a thing! katinamagazine.org/content/arti...

When Focusing on Terminology Becomes a Hurdle to Open Access Outreach

Conversations about open access can be riddled with distracting language. But what if we treated these failures to communicate as opportunities to learn more?

katinamagazine.org

Reposted by Jenny

Fobazi M. Ettarh @fobettarh.bsky.social · Aug 7

Fobazi is currently in the ICU and could use your support. Apologies to those I haven’t been able to reach out to yet. You can message me for more info and I will be posting updates to GoFundMe. Please share, send healing thoughts, prayers, etc. ❤️ -Elena

gofund.me/c8485b58

Donate to Fobazi’s road to recovery: Kidney and liver transplant, organized by Ysabel Gerrard

Hello all, my name is Ysabel and I’m fundraising for my friends … Ysabel Gerrard needs your support for Fobazi’s road to recovery: Kidney and liver transplant

gofund.me

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Jenny @jtownes.bsky.social · Jul 23

I'm researching the language around the concept of "open." What are the different terms you have heard researchers use to denote "Open Access"?
I'll start: open source, free
I'm really curious, so drop a comment, even if it's a repeat of something someone else said.
#OENEngage25

Jenny @jtownes.bsky.social · Jun 26

I ran across that C&RL author's name yesterday in the course of doing other research and immediately felt my blood pressure rise.

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Jenny @jtownes.bsky.social · Jun 26

Are rights retention policies the new open access policy?

coar-repositories.org/news-updates...

Unfair publisher fees for deposit into repositories highlight the need for authors to exercise their rights

Image: Adobe Stock Image Scientific knowledge is a public good Science and scholarship are about sharing and advancing knowledge, and many open access policies have been diligently designed in orde…

coar-repositories.org

Jenny @jtownes.bsky.social · Jun 18

Question for the librarians and information professionals:
What are the different terms you have heard researchers use to denote "Open Access"?
I'll start:
open source (all. the. time.)
online

I'm really curious, so drop a comment, even if it's a repeat of something someone else said.
#openaccess

Jenny @jtownes.bsky.social · Jun 17

Ugh, allergies really blow. Haha, get it? Like "blow your nose?"
Anyway, another thing that blows is a masked secret police force kidnapping people.
That REALLY blows.

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Jenny @jtownes.bsky.social · Jun 15

This isba thing that happened yesterday and I honestly love this for them. youtu.be/jhBaJpzAR2k?...

Musicians surround Proud Boys, drown them out with tubas at 'No Kings' protest in Atlanta

YouTube video by Tennessean

youtu.be

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Jenny @jtownes.bsky.social · Jun 13

you word good.

Jenny @jtownes.bsky.social · Jun 4

Tapdancing bullshit.
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

Exclusive: US veterans agency orders scientists not to publish in journals without clearance

Move that seeks political control of doctors’ and scientists’ published research fits a pattern of censorship by the Trump administration, veterans advocates say

www.theguardian.com

Jenny @jtownes.bsky.social · Jun 4

Being an elder-millennial-probably-autistic parent with an ASD child is a marvelous opportunity to just spout random facts at each other all day without shame.

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Jenny @jtownes.bsky.social · May 30

yes good... thank you!

Jenny @jtownes.bsky.social · May 30

Links that don't open in a new tab are supremely annoying.

Reposted by Jenny

Jess Schomberg @schomj.bsky.social · May 27

Open Letter to College & Research Libraries from the academic wing of #CripLib

Open Letter to CRL from the academic wing of #CripLib - ACRLog

Editor's note: We welcome a guest blog post from the academic librarians of #CripLib, which focuses on the intersection of disability and library work. Note: The focus is on our concerns about the qua...

acrlog.org

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Jenny @jtownes.bsky.social · May 23

Neat. www.acls.org/news/acls-an...

ACLS Announces Finalists for 2025 ACLS Open Access Book Prizes and Arcadia Open Access Publishing Awards

Twenty books advance to final round of $50,000 prize for open access titles in the humanities

www.acls.org

Jenny @jtownes.bsky.social · May 15

Collecting tales of weird and wild publishing... weirdness.
*Disability Studies Reader 5th edition
*The 38 Letters from J.D. Rockefeller

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Jenny @jtownes.bsky.social · May 7

What is the chicken fried fascism is this DEI article in C&RL? I agree, bring back library Twitter, just for a little bit. I haven't seen librarians drag someone to filth in a while.

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Jenny @jtownes.bsky.social · May 1

I know ours is impacted by a constant hammering of AI bots. coar-repositories.org/news-updates...

Open repositories are being profoundly impacted by AI bots and other crawlers: Results of a COAR Survey

April 30, 2025 There are a growing number of AI bots crawling repositories. These bots are sufficiently aggressive that they can cause service disruptions and outages in repositories. As a result, …

coar-repositories.org

Reposted by Jenny

Marguerite @marguerites.bsky.social · Apr 30

With @scalzi.com and others curating their spaces to encourage the use of alt text and other accessibility features, here’s a reminder about @veron4ica.com’s “capybara method” and other tools.

Veronica Lewis, M.Ed. 👩‍🦯 @veron4ica.com · Nov 29

I’m glad so many people have found my “capybara method” for how to write alt text and image descriptions helpful! However, I know conflicting access needs exist and not everyone can write their own #AltText, so here’s an ongoing thread of tools that can help. Inclusion in thread ≠ endorsement

An infographic titled “How To Write Alt Text” featuring a photo of a capybara. Parts of alt text are divided by color, including identify who, expression, description, colour, and interesting features. The finished description reads “A capybara looking relaxed in a hot spa. Yellow yuzu fruits are floating in the water, and one is balanced on the top of the capybara’s head.” Credit to Puzzle agency, original information from Veronica With Four Eyes and veroniiiica dot com

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Jenny @jtownes.bsky.social · Apr 23

The @aacu.org is still accepting signatures on "A Call for Constructive Engagement." It's not too late.

www.aacu.org/newsroom/a-c...

A Call for Constructive Engagement | AAC&U

A Call for Constructive Engagement

www.aacu.org

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Jenny @jtownes.bsky.social · Apr 16

Yes! The arts are essential, even children can learn this - "Frederick" by Leo Lionni is such an important lesson.

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Jenny @jtownes.bsky.social · Apr 15

Just a reminder, when a president ignores a court order, that's how you get the Trail of Tears.

Photo of an artwork by J. Ross Davis, featuring the text of the Indian Removal Act of 1830 integrated with a photo of Andrew Jackson

Photo of an art exhibit placard that reads:
J. Ross Davis, Cherokee Nation
Indian Removal Act of 1830, 2021
Digital graphic on canvas, 40x30x1"
Courtesy of the artist
This Act of US Congress enabled the President (Andrew Jackson) to set-up territory in the west for Indians then "residing" in states in exchange for their homeland, to support their removal and "extinguish the Indian claim." The image integrates the text of this act with a photo of Jackson, whose policy was to remove Indians in Southern states who followed their own las and customs. They could remain only by adhering to prevailing social structures. Years before, Jackson provided US military support to Southern states dealing with "Indian problems." He allied with pro-US tribal leaders such as John Ross, Davis' ancestor, who later found Jackson to be a false friend. In 1832, Ross led the Cherokee Nation to win a US Supreme Court case to remain in Georgia ,but President Jackson ignored it. The subsequent "Trail of Tears" is retraced annually in the Cherokee Remember the Removal bike ride.

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Jenny @jtownes.bsky.social · Apr 15

Due process is a right, not a privilege
Due process is a right, not a privilege
Due process is a right, not a privilege
Due process is a right, not a privilege
Due process is a right, not a privilege
Due process is a right, not a privilege
Due process is a right, not a privilege
💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥

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Jenny @jtownes.bsky.social · Apr 13

Okay @ioppublishing.bsky.social, the seeds went into the pot today with some dahlias. We will see which blooms first!

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