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. […]
Scott
I think it’s lovely. And it throws your opponent off center. Very strategic.
Mum
The article’s great. The picture’s gorgeous and the interviewee comes over as completely is gorgeous. Just thought you’d like a completely objective evaluation.
Toril
Nice interview, Jill. In case you didn’t know it; I think you ARE the humanistic
informatics department!! So needless to say, you should be the head of our
department, and young is GREAT.
Sbu
Gee, you are going to give stuffy academics a bad name if you keep pulling moves like this! What are you thinking in this picture? You actually come across quite cheeky and funny but in a serious kind of way! Perfect. Now what is the interview about?
Anon Ymous
Got to say, you’re a cute one! Having a prof that’s easy on the eyes is a distinct advantage. I’m sure you’re a good teacher too, but I can’t read Norwegian, so I’ll just have to settle for the eye candy.
Elin
It’s an Ann Taylor sweather -beautiful!
You look mischievous:-)
E.
Jill
Elin, I think I bought that sweater with you! Remember, I eyed it, then decided I couldn’t do the folded down neck thing, then we saw someone else wearing it and agreed that yes, sure, that would work. And we went back and I bought it 🙂
The rest of you are crazy and yes, flattery will get you everywhere!
New Kid on the Hallway
It is a good picture. I have no idea what this means, but it’s so not how I pictured you! I imagined you much more stern and forbidding looking. Don’t ask me why. (Probably b/c you’ve been blogging so much longer than I have, and you write about blogs, so you are Authoritative and Informaed and Established and all those kinds of things, and therefore must look that way!)
Anthony
Cool! Great portrait. Moving over to the Babelfish URL to find a translation option …
Jill
New Kid, that’s hilarious that you thought I’d look sterner. I feel so utterly un-stern! Maybe I should revert to my old blog design – it used to be the way my publications page still is. Hardly stern. Nah, I got sick of seeing my head up big like that all the time…
And I have to admit, if I ever met you, New Kid, or Profgrrrl or BitchPhD at a conference I’d be so nervous I probably wouldn’t dare talk to you. Of course I wouldn’t KNOW I’d met you, you tricky things. And there you’d all be giggling together in a corner and going quiet with wicked grins on your collaboratively anonymous faces every time I walked past.
🙂