I just signed a petition calling for Norwegian universities to use research expertise on AI when deciding how to implement it, rather than having decisions be made mostly administratively. , If you are a researcher in Norway, please read it and sign it if you agree – and share with anyone else who might be interested. The petition was written by three researchers at UiT: Maria Danielsen (a philosopher who completed her PhD in 2025 on AI and ethics, including discussions of art and working life), Knut Ørke (Norwegian as a second language), and Holger Pötzsch (a professor of media studies with many years of research on digital media, video games, disruption, and working life, among other topics). This is not about preventing researchers from exploring AI methods in their research. It is about not uncritically accepting the hype that everyone must use AI everywhere without critical reflection. It is about not introducing Copilot as the default option in word processors, or training PhD candidates to believe they will fall behind if they do not use AI when writing articles, without proper academic discussion. Changes like these should be knowledge-based and discussed academically, not merely decided administratively, because they alter the epistemological foundations of research. Maria wrote to me a couple of months ago because she had read my opinion piece in Aftenposten in which I called for a strong brake on the use of language models in knowledge work. She was part of a committee tasked with developing UiT’s AI strategy and was concerned because there was so much hype and so few members of the committee with actual expertise in AI. I fully support the petition. There are probably some good uses for AI in research, but the uncritical, hype-driven insistence that we must simply adopt it everywhere is highly risky. There are many researchers in Norway with strong expertise in AI, language, ethics, working life, and culture. We must make use of this expertise. This is also partly about respect for research in the humanities, social sciences, psychology, and law. Introducing AI at universities and university colleges is not merely a technical issue, and perhaps not even primarily a technical one. It concerns much more: philosophy of science, methodological reflection, epistemology, writing, publishing, the working environment, and more. […]
raymon
take care
Robert
Hope you’re okay…
jon
what keeps me coming back to your blog on a daily basis is the strength of the voice that comes thru in your writing, embodying enthusiasm and acerbic wit.
showing another side of your voice makes compelling reading, and is the kind of thing that is often hard to push writers to explore, even Creative Writing students.
but the personal aspect of what you wrote today touched me. for the first time i read something on your blog that reminded me that there is a person beneath this – a jill.
when you write, the ether whirls. Thru your words I make connections and links. Find possibilities.
I hope you find strength.
chris
I did notice but at the time didn’t know why. Hope you are okay. You are right – blogging is about creating something else than yourself.
Tinka
How we hide behind words. And I have been there too. I cannot offer anything but words – and so I should really keep silent. But take care.
christian
Klem fra Christian…. Unn deg noe fint i pÂsken..
HÂvard
Det var sterk lesning!! Voner det gÂr bra med deg. Du gjorde inntrykk p oss p ifi d du presenterte blogging og du gjer det igjen.
“Don`t panic”
HÂvard
Rich
I’m sorry to hear. . .hope you’re okay.
Elin
Who said men are not supportive:-)
It is interesting to see that so far, 7 out of 9 who commented are men!
When one door closes, other doors will open. I guarantee you that something great is lurking round the corner:-)
superKlem,
E.
David (TEFL Smiler)
Sorry to hear about it, Jill. You’ll now be on that roller-coaster that only time will sort out. (And time WILL sort it out, of course, as hard as that seems to believe at the time.)
So right now probably isn’t the most convenient time to have to make a decision such as: do you split your blog in two, one more personal and the other more professional? Or do you combine both elements within one single blog, but with a stronger personal aspect if that’s what you need right now?
It’s a hard call, especially as any kind of decision-making becomes impossible when someone leaves you (I think it’s a depression thing), so I wish you the best of luck with it, whatever you decide. A straw poll, perhaps?
Nostradamus
We can be amazingly resilient, when we don’t spend too much time reflecting on whether or not we are resilient. I’m extremely pessimistic about the world; but I have no doubts people do have the capacity to roll through most problems. Best wishes.
meredith
Oh Jill-
I’m so sorry to hear that. Hope you’re doing ok.
Thinking of you. Think it was good, and brave, to put it on your blog.
boynton
I’ve been thinking about this lately myself.(obliquely) Alas,the confessional is just not my genre. Reminds me of the Micahel Ondaatje poem: “Translations of My Postcards”…
“when I speak of the weather
I mean business
A blank postcard says
I am in the wilderness”
Best wishes
Jill
Oblique confessionals, then, Boynton? And when you don’t blog, does that mean that you are in the wilderness? Or just busy? 😉
Thank you everyone.
Esther
So many words to say and none really say what we want to, so just two from me:
Take care,
E xx
Hot Soup Girl
Best wishes and best luck, Jill.
Lisa
You don’t know me, but hugs anyway.
Alan McCallum
Jill,
Sorry to hear about this setback in your life.
To understand I only need to imagine what it would be like if I was separated from or lost the one I love. Easy to understand i think.
I can’t say anything more except that life goes on. Best wishes
Alan
Ed
Very sorry to hear. Best wishes, Jill, on the future. There isn’t any need to defend how you express yourself, or what blogging is. It’s a different thing for different people and it does open up food for thought. The ultimate thing that matters is that we feel comfortable about how we express ourselves.
j
hey jil – i so rarely come by here – and hope that by now you are feeling a little better.
another email coming your way soon… hopefully a visit!
kaa
jill,
not once have i written on my newborn (40-day-old) blog that a very special year long relationship i was in ended a month before i began the blog. i created it with gusto and energy for a class but never once referred to the real reason i was writing. i was/am healing. in my personal print diary i would reflect on my heartache before lying down to cry myself to sleep, but i have never once brought those feelings to the blog. i actually blog to escape the pain sometimes, but slowly that is fading and changing…and my writing energizes me.
your post really touched me…you have created a powerful voice, as i have begun to do now too, but only we really know what that voice is saying on the inside…
ps – my ex is an aussie (saw your southern cross post today) and i fell in love with him and his country…
Mishka
Mishka rules !
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