Rhiannon Grant
@rhiannonbookgeek.bsky.social
I research, write, and teach about the Quaker tradition. I also write fiction (mainly sapphic romance novels set in prehistory) and poetry. She/her.
Pinned
There are several versions of this going round, and this is something I'd considered posting anyway (sometimes I've made a pinned thread or similar which covers it). So let's play this evening: one like, one piece of my writing. Could be nonfiction, academic, fiction, poetry.
Reposted by Rhiannon Grant
I’m not interested in making autistic humans infinitely resilient.
Resilience to what?
Sensory pain?
Exploitation?
Impossible workloads?
Constant masking?
Being treated like shit?
Sometimes becoming “more resilient” just means becoming better at ignoring the shit that's hurting you.
Resilience to what?
Sensory pain?
Exploitation?
Impossible workloads?
Constant masking?
Being treated like shit?
Sometimes becoming “more resilient” just means becoming better at ignoring the shit that's hurting you.
September 22, 2026 at 4:12 PM
I’m not interested in making autistic humans infinitely resilient.
Resilience to what?
Sensory pain?
Exploitation?
Impossible workloads?
Constant masking?
Being treated like shit?
Sometimes becoming “more resilient” just means becoming better at ignoring the shit that's hurting you.
Resilience to what?
Sensory pain?
Exploitation?
Impossible workloads?
Constant masking?
Being treated like shit?
Sometimes becoming “more resilient” just means becoming better at ignoring the shit that's hurting you.
Reposted by Rhiannon Grant
“We should stop and think about the tech we are using, or even discussing, and what it actually does.”
“AI” does not think. “AI” does not feel. “AI” does not have agency. We need to stop talking about “AI” like it is a person and talk about it instead as technologies with specific functionalities.
“AI” does not think. “AI” does not feel. “AI” does not have agency. We need to stop talking about “AI” like it is a person and talk about it instead as technologies with specific functionalities.
How to talk about "AI" without adding to the anthropomorphization
Emily M. Bender and Nanna Inie In our op-ed for Tech Policy Press ("We Need to Talk About How We Talk About 'AI'"), we made the case against the...
buttondown.com
September 22, 2026 at 7:10 AM
“We should stop and think about the tech we are using, or even discussing, and what it actually does.”
“AI” does not think. “AI” does not feel. “AI” does not have agency. We need to stop talking about “AI” like it is a person and talk about it instead as technologies with specific functionalities.
“AI” does not think. “AI” does not feel. “AI” does not have agency. We need to stop talking about “AI” like it is a person and talk about it instead as technologies with specific functionalities.
Reposted by Rhiannon Grant
The UK government is making upwards of £4.9bn in profit from visa fees, citizenship fees & the immigration health surcharge. Meanwhile, people are getting into thousands of pounds of debt or going without food just to afford to these immigration fees.
www.thebureauinvestigates.com/stories/2026...
www.thebureauinvestigates.com/stories/2026...
Government makes £5bn a year from immigration fees while applicants…
Home Office’s fees are up to 10 times the processing cost – and rising every year
www.thebureauinvestigates.com
September 15, 2026 at 6:41 AM
The UK government is making upwards of £4.9bn in profit from visa fees, citizenship fees & the immigration health surcharge. Meanwhile, people are getting into thousands of pounds of debt or going without food just to afford to these immigration fees.
www.thebureauinvestigates.com/stories/2026...
www.thebureauinvestigates.com/stories/2026...
Reposted by Rhiannon Grant
We must act now or lose bookshops and theatres forever, warns Maia Snow, The Bookseller’s news editor. 👇
We must act now or lose bookshops and theatres forever
ebx.sh
September 20, 2026 at 6:46 AM
We must act now or lose bookshops and theatres forever, warns Maia Snow, The Bookseller’s news editor. 👇
Reposted by Rhiannon Grant
Happy #StandingStoneSunday 🥳🌞
This is one of the taller stones (nearly twice head height) in the remote & spectacular Drizzlecombe stone row complex at Yelverton, Dartmoor 🥰
Well worth a visit!
📷 My own, May 2026
This is one of the taller stones (nearly twice head height) in the remote & spectacular Drizzlecombe stone row complex at Yelverton, Dartmoor 🥰
Well worth a visit!
📷 My own, May 2026
September 20, 2026 at 5:33 AM
Happy #StandingStoneSunday 🥳🌞
This is one of the taller stones (nearly twice head height) in the remote & spectacular Drizzlecombe stone row complex at Yelverton, Dartmoor 🥰
Well worth a visit!
📷 My own, May 2026
This is one of the taller stones (nearly twice head height) in the remote & spectacular Drizzlecombe stone row complex at Yelverton, Dartmoor 🥰
Well worth a visit!
📷 My own, May 2026
Reposted by Rhiannon Grant
Reposted by Rhiannon Grant
AI is screwing up journal papers:
Journal editor asks authors of 10 submitted papers to meet and discuss their paper. Of the 7 that showed up, 3 were unable to answer basic questions about the paper and 3 had difficulty when asked further questions on technical details…
medium.com/@TmlrOrg/ask...
Journal editor asks authors of 10 submitted papers to meet and discuss their paper. Of the 7 that showed up, 3 were unable to answer basic questions about the paper and 3 had difficulty when asked further questions on technical details…
medium.com/@TmlrOrg/ask...
Asking Authors About Their Own Papers
By Nihar B. Shah
medium.com
September 17, 2026 at 5:56 PM
AI is screwing up journal papers:
Journal editor asks authors of 10 submitted papers to meet and discuss their paper. Of the 7 that showed up, 3 were unable to answer basic questions about the paper and 3 had difficulty when asked further questions on technical details…
medium.com/@TmlrOrg/ask...
Journal editor asks authors of 10 submitted papers to meet and discuss their paper. Of the 7 that showed up, 3 were unable to answer basic questions about the paper and 3 had difficulty when asked further questions on technical details…
medium.com/@TmlrOrg/ask...
Reposted by Rhiannon Grant
Swamp animism is simple: It has a mind and a will. From sunning gators to dragonfly sentinels, the Okefenokee is crowded with spirits and old watchers. When I take photos or share lore, it’s not content - it’s reciprocity offered back to the living waters. #FolkWitchFriday #WitchSky
September 18, 2026 at 11:17 AM
Swamp animism is simple: It has a mind and a will. From sunning gators to dragonfly sentinels, the Okefenokee is crowded with spirits and old watchers. When I take photos or share lore, it’s not content - it’s reciprocity offered back to the living waters. #FolkWitchFriday #WitchSky
Reposted by Rhiannon Grant
The bluebells are asleep 😴
This is when the hard work starts as it’s the only time humans step on the bluebell fields
Poorly trees come down, & paths are replaced with them. Also the brambles encroaching on the paths can be trimmed now the resident birds are not nesting
This is when the hard work starts as it’s the only time humans step on the bluebell fields
Poorly trees come down, & paths are replaced with them. Also the brambles encroaching on the paths can be trimmed now the resident birds are not nesting
September 18, 2026 at 11:30 AM
The bluebells are asleep 😴
This is when the hard work starts as it’s the only time humans step on the bluebell fields
Poorly trees come down, & paths are replaced with them. Also the brambles encroaching on the paths can be trimmed now the resident birds are not nesting
This is when the hard work starts as it’s the only time humans step on the bluebell fields
Poorly trees come down, & paths are replaced with them. Also the brambles encroaching on the paths can be trimmed now the resident birds are not nesting
Reposted by Rhiannon Grant
Autism acceptance isn't about pretending everything is fine if it isn't. It means understanding why autistic people do things, not blaming them (or your autistic self) when it's hard, or when you have competing needs. Ideally, it also means cherishing joy harder. (So much harder.) #neurodiversity
September 18, 2026 at 5:13 AM
Autism acceptance isn't about pretending everything is fine if it isn't. It means understanding why autistic people do things, not blaming them (or your autistic self) when it's hard, or when you have competing needs. Ideally, it also means cherishing joy harder. (So much harder.) #neurodiversity
Reposted by Rhiannon Grant
It seems like this is a good time to tell you all why LLMs are never, and can never be, conscious.
Are AI companies being extremely irresponsible with incomplete and badly defined parameters for their LLMs? Yes!
Are they unwittingly creating Skynet? No. Grow up. Come on
Are they unwittingly creating Skynet? No. Grow up. Come on
September 16, 2026 at 10:15 PM
It seems like this is a good time to tell you all why LLMs are never, and can never be, conscious.
Reposted by Rhiannon Grant
#OnThisDay - 11 September - in one of the most famous Vindolanda Letters, Claudia Severa invites Sulpicia Lepidina to a birthday party. While a secretary wrote the main text, she herself added the postscript. #History 🏺
Image: British Museum (1986,1001.64). Link - britishmuseum.org/collection/o...
Image: British Museum (1986,1001.64). Link - britishmuseum.org/collection/o...
September 11, 2026 at 10:01 AM
#OnThisDay - 11 September - in one of the most famous Vindolanda Letters, Claudia Severa invites Sulpicia Lepidina to a birthday party. While a secretary wrote the main text, she herself added the postscript. #History 🏺
Image: British Museum (1986,1001.64). Link - britishmuseum.org/collection/o...
Image: British Museum (1986,1001.64). Link - britishmuseum.org/collection/o...
Reposted by Rhiannon Grant
There are very real safety concerns we need to address with generative LLMs. Deepfakes, privacy, AI psychosis, etc
We don't need to entertain goofy nonsense from people claiming they're inventing the torment nexus from the science fiction classic "Dipshit That's Not The Torment Nexus Go Outside."
We don't need to entertain goofy nonsense from people claiming they're inventing the torment nexus from the science fiction classic "Dipshit That's Not The Torment Nexus Go Outside."
September 11, 2026 at 12:14 AM
There are very real safety concerns we need to address with generative LLMs. Deepfakes, privacy, AI psychosis, etc
We don't need to entertain goofy nonsense from people claiming they're inventing the torment nexus from the science fiction classic "Dipshit That's Not The Torment Nexus Go Outside."
We don't need to entertain goofy nonsense from people claiming they're inventing the torment nexus from the science fiction classic "Dipshit That's Not The Torment Nexus Go Outside."
Reposted by Rhiannon Grant
Great to see peer mediation featured on Newsround! As one pupil says, "it helps people make friends again and gives them ideas of what to do"
https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/videos/c24yr8d0nrjo
https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/videos/c24yr8d0nrjo
How older pupils are helping younger children solve conflict
Nina finds out all about peer mediation, which is where pupils help other kids at their school - sometimes called their peers - to become friends again after a disagreement.
www.bbc.co.uk
September 11, 2026 at 10:45 AM
Great to see peer mediation featured on Newsround! As one pupil says, "it helps people make friends again and gives them ideas of what to do"
https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/videos/c24yr8d0nrjo
https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/videos/c24yr8d0nrjo
My novel Carving a New Shape is included in this week's category for @jaeauthor.bsky.social's Sapphic Book Bingo - books with autistic main characters. Full list: jae-fiction.com/sapphic-book...
September 11, 2026 at 12:01 PM
My novel Carving a New Shape is included in this week's category for @jaeauthor.bsky.social's Sapphic Book Bingo - books with autistic main characters. Full list: jae-fiction.com/sapphic-book...
I'm looking forward to joining Saffron Walden Quakers for their book club - there'll be a chance to talk about the book first, and I'll join for the last half hour of the online session. Details on the poster/in alt text.
September 11, 2026 at 7:14 AM
I'm looking forward to joining Saffron Walden Quakers for their book club - there'll be a chance to talk about the book first, and I'll join for the last half hour of the online session. Details on the poster/in alt text.
Reposted by Rhiannon Grant
Gerrard Winstanley, who died 350 years ago today:
“Was the earth made to preserve a few covetous, proud men to live at ease, and for them to bag and barn up the treasures of the earth from others, that these may beg or starve in a fruitful land; or was it made to preserve all her children?”
“Was the earth made to preserve a few covetous, proud men to live at ease, and for them to bag and barn up the treasures of the earth from others, that these may beg or starve in a fruitful land; or was it made to preserve all her children?”
September 10, 2026 at 8:10 PM
Gerrard Winstanley, who died 350 years ago today:
“Was the earth made to preserve a few covetous, proud men to live at ease, and for them to bag and barn up the treasures of the earth from others, that these may beg or starve in a fruitful land; or was it made to preserve all her children?”
“Was the earth made to preserve a few covetous, proud men to live at ease, and for them to bag and barn up the treasures of the earth from others, that these may beg or starve in a fruitful land; or was it made to preserve all her children?”
Reposted by Rhiannon Grant
As both an academic and a writer, I am repelled by the "this looks like a long document. Would you like me to summarize it for you?" that seems to appear at the top of every pdf viewer now.
NO. The *entire point* of good writing (either books or journal papers) is that every sentence has a purpose.
NO. The *entire point* of good writing (either books or journal papers) is that every sentence has a purpose.
September 10, 2026 at 6:39 PM
As both an academic and a writer, I am repelled by the "this looks like a long document. Would you like me to summarize it for you?" that seems to appear at the top of every pdf viewer now.
NO. The *entire point* of good writing (either books or journal papers) is that every sentence has a purpose.
NO. The *entire point* of good writing (either books or journal papers) is that every sentence has a purpose.
Reposted by Rhiannon Grant
The Odin Stone at Stennis in Orkney was where ‘two persons, generally lovers, desirous to take the promise of Odin,’ would clasp hands through the stone, according to Sir Walter Scott in 1814. When a farmer later destroyed the stone, locals set his house on fire. #WyrdWednesday
🎨 Lady Stafford
🎨 Lady Stafford
September 9, 2026 at 11:47 AM
The Odin Stone at Stennis in Orkney was where ‘two persons, generally lovers, desirous to take the promise of Odin,’ would clasp hands through the stone, according to Sir Walter Scott in 1814. When a farmer later destroyed the stone, locals set his house on fire. #WyrdWednesday
🎨 Lady Stafford
🎨 Lady Stafford
Reposted by Rhiannon Grant
Media presenters in UK may have skewed perceptions of balamce of Jewish opinion towards Israeli govt. Centre of gravity aligns with Miliband (attached to Israel & critical of Netanyahu). Varies by faith/denomination & politics: many cons & mainstream orthodox disapprove Netanyahu govt too. See IJPR
Jewish views by denom+ politics
Strictly orthodox are pro-Netanyahu outliers. Prog disapproval universal.
Most right-leaning/Cons Jews in Britain disapprove of Netanyahu. A quarter approve.
Voters for Cons/Reform x20 more likely to approve than left voters. But most on right disapprove too
IJPR
Strictly orthodox are pro-Netanyahu outliers. Prog disapproval universal.
Most right-leaning/Cons Jews in Britain disapprove of Netanyahu. A quarter approve.
Voters for Cons/Reform x20 more likely to approve than left voters. But most on right disapprove too
IJPR
September 9, 2026 at 11:55 AM
Media presenters in UK may have skewed perceptions of balamce of Jewish opinion towards Israeli govt. Centre of gravity aligns with Miliband (attached to Israel & critical of Netanyahu). Varies by faith/denomination & politics: many cons & mainstream orthodox disapprove Netanyahu govt too. See IJPR
Reposted by Rhiannon Grant
"So I am proud of my Jewishness and unwavering in my support for the State of Israel. And there is absolutely no contradiction between this and my support for the State of Palestine. Indeed quite the opposite"
"the two-state solution ... is the North Star of this government’s policy"
"the two-state solution ... is the North Star of this government’s policy"
September 8, 2026 at 3:20 PM
"So I am proud of my Jewishness and unwavering in my support for the State of Israel. And there is absolutely no contradiction between this and my support for the State of Palestine. Indeed quite the opposite"
"the two-state solution ... is the North Star of this government’s policy"
"the two-state solution ... is the North Star of this government’s policy"
I had a week off work and ended up having a week off social media too. I had a good time, mostly relaxed, mostly writing and catching up with reading, but also recording Pause for Thought and having a few local outings.
www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...
www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...
August 23, 2026 at 6:48 AM
I had a week off work and ended up having a week off social media too. I had a good time, mostly relaxed, mostly writing and catching up with reading, but also recording Pause for Thought and having a few local outings.
www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...
www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...
Reposted by Rhiannon Grant
No one, ever, in all of history, has believed everything written in a religious text or performed all of the actions dictated therein, not because people are imperfect but because that is simply not how religion works, anywhere, ever, for anyone.
What’s a thing from your area of expertise (or special interest) that you think it would behoove everyone else to know?
August 17, 2026 at 4:32 AM
No one, ever, in all of history, has believed everything written in a religious text or performed all of the actions dictated therein, not because people are imperfect but because that is simply not how religion works, anywhere, ever, for anyone.
Reposted by Rhiannon Grant
A little reminder for your day: Read books. Be kind. Stay weird.
Created with bold colors and playful typography to celebrate curiosity, kindness, and individuality.
#Typography #Art #BookLovers #BeKind #StayWeird #CreativeArt #DigitalArt #PosterDesign #DesignInspiration #IndieArtist
Created with bold colors and playful typography to celebrate curiosity, kindness, and individuality.
#Typography #Art #BookLovers #BeKind #StayWeird #CreativeArt #DigitalArt #PosterDesign #DesignInspiration #IndieArtist
August 16, 2026 at 3:23 AM
A little reminder for your day: Read books. Be kind. Stay weird.
Created with bold colors and playful typography to celebrate curiosity, kindness, and individuality.
#Typography #Art #BookLovers #BeKind #StayWeird #CreativeArt #DigitalArt #PosterDesign #DesignInspiration #IndieArtist
Created with bold colors and playful typography to celebrate curiosity, kindness, and individuality.
#Typography #Art #BookLovers #BeKind #StayWeird #CreativeArt #DigitalArt #PosterDesign #DesignInspiration #IndieArtist