Helen CzerskiUniversity College London shoutout! UCL is unwilling to set up a Mastodon account now, but they say that if there's lots of UCL presence here already it will nudge them in this direction. If you're at UCL or know someone who is, and you're on here, please reply to this to let us know! Current chief plotters: @sellathechemist , me and maybe more)
@sellathechemist THANK YOU to everyone who has replied so far. This is all really helpful (and hopefully you're finding each other through the replies too). I'm not sure what the ethics are of posting full list of all the handles I collected, but if people think that's a good idea maybe I can do that. But the good thing is that there are LOADS of us here! #UCL
Professor Kerstin Sailer@helenczerski @sellathechemist
Hello there! 👋 Me of course... 🙃
There is also @UCLSociology @gpollara @MichaelLondonSF @per @mhaklay @chrischirp @SusanMichie @urban_stevie as well as Bartlett colleagues: @jonathankendall @timwaterman @adam_dennett @dunc @kimonkrenz @urban_formation
Hello there! 👋 Me of course... 🙃
There is also @UCLSociology @gpollara @MichaelLondonSF @per @mhaklay @chrischirp @SusanMichie @urban_stevie as well as Bartlett colleagues: @jonathankendall @timwaterman @adam_dennett @dunc @kimonkrenz @urban_formation
Danny Garside
Frank Sonntag@helenczerski @sellathechemist On FediScience we have 21 accounts with an ucl.ac.uk email address and there will be even more UCL people using some other email domain.
Ross Mounce@FrankSonntag @helenczerski @sellathechemist
Have you got these?
@david_colquhoun @uclpress
@leotanczt
@cepeo_ucl
@SusanMichie
@DrKate99
@benlauderdale
@antoniahamilton
@SimonBralee
@CombineLab
@mikarv
@chrischirp
@marie_ahoi
@LidiaPanico
@smfleming
@smithmordak
@hugospiers
@Haim
@nickbradbeer
@jonandali
@per
@gpollara
@jasondittmer
@jfa
@ikosmidis (Honorary Professor of Statistics at UCL)
@sjmurdoch
@buraksonmez
@ilankelman
@davidrypel
@mscroggs
@RadicalAnthro
Michael Veale@helenczerski also @divijualsuspect @petros @annajsaunders @vmantouvalou @israblack @pschilling although we mostly all are on our server which I run. i’m a bit wary of our employer running our social media account platform no? i mean some of @vmantouvalou’s research is all about what happens when this goes terribly wrong…
@helenczerski unless you just mean a UCL account rather than a UCL server? in which case sure!
@mikarv @helenczerski Yes, an account. I see no need for them to run bc a server.
@helenczerski i think a server makes sense for their institutional accounts.
Jed Brown@helenczerski @sellathechemist
Also worth nothing the initative in Germany to get universities off X and joining Mastodon:
https://bewegung.social/@neuSoM/112008304095938070
Also worth nothing the initative in Germany to get universities off X and joining Mastodon:
https://bewegung.social/@neuSoM/112008304095938070
Aktionsb. neue Soziale Medien (@[email protected])
Es geht auch ohne #X Aus den #Hochschulen ist oft zu hören, X/Twitter sei für die elektronische Kommunikation unverzichtbar. Doch die #Uni_Bremen #FH_Aachen #H_Darmstadt #Uni_Mannheim und #HS_Mannheim … zeigen, dass es auch ohne geht. Und warum mit der Hochschulkommunikation das Fediverse aussparen? Die Zahl seiner Nutzer:innen wird bald die Marke von 15 Millionen erreichen. #unisinsfediverse @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected] @[email protected]
eLearningTechie@kerstinsailer @helenczerski @sellathechemist Plus Germany's government is running its own instance > https://mastodon.online/@FediFollows/107843022757513829
FediFollows has moved! (@[email protected])
Bund.de is the official German government portal for doing government-related paperwork online. They have now created their own Mastodon instance at social.bund.de which contains some official accounts. You can find them on the instance's directory page: ➡️ https://social.bund.de/explore (in German) This is a really promising sign! The Fediverse can allow citizens to interact with public officials without having to give away personal data. #BundDe #Germany #Deutschland #Deutsch #Government
Muki Haklay@helenczerski @sellathechemist 👋 Been promoting the use of Mastodon (and open source tools) for years from within ISD. - See also @dvdgc13
Mike Taylor 🦕@helenczerski @sellathechemist I was previously a research associate at UCL (now at Bristol) and would love to see the university on the Fediverse!
Cassana 🍻@helenczerski @sellathechemist I believe the Lady of the Torcs, @tess_machling has links to UCL, though does independent research now, but she may know others that are around.
Dr Tess Machling@cassana @helenczerski @sellathechemist hiya! I'm UCL alumni, and the organisation I work for is based at UCL.
WiltClan@helenczerski @sellathechemist
I know someone at UCL!
(Know = know in real life, not just follow on here.
Someone = happens to be in department other than yours, if that’s relevant)
@WiltClan @sellathechemist Yes, this isn't a department thing - it's a whole-university thing. If they don't mind sharing who they are on Mastodon, that would be great.
@helenczerski @WiltClan @sellathechemist
Pretty sure this person is not on this network. I don’t want to name as of yet either, because I’m pretty anonymous on here, using this account for mostly silliness and hobbies, not professional reasons.
Sorry can’t be more helpful
@helenczerski @sellathechemist Yes - UCL postdoc here!
Katie Steckles
Dragon-sided D@helenczerski @sellathechemist I attended UCL’s summer program in Chem Engineering 25 years ago. And I am on Mastodon now. So it’s destiny!
Helen "Good Morning!" Caton 🇬🇧@helenczerski @sellathechemist
I work as coach to some of your lovely UCL geniuses...
Dan Gusset
Rob Agar🐀@helenczerski my brother’s a prof there, I’ll bug him to get on mastodon :)
K.G. Jewell
Tirial@helenczerski @sellathechemist I did my PhD at UCL, and am kind of planning to set up a collaboration with them again.
Jon Agar@helenczerski @sellathechemist waving from the UCL STS department
SellaTheChemist@JonAgar @helenczerski Consider yourself stalked!!
Scott V Burger@helenczerski @sellathechemist
Msc astrophysics from UCL reporting in
Dr Susi Arnott
jstutters@helenczerski @sellathechemist UCL research IT person here 👋
Bruno Amaral@helenczerski if you build it, they will come.
Gavin Chait;@helenczerski @sellathechemist I'm a UCL fellow, that count?
Louise Pryor@helenczerski @sellathechemist
I'm an Hon Prof at Bartlett SSC if that counts... #UCL
@louisepryor @helenczerski Oh neat! I’m only just learning about the SSC. So many interesting ideas and expertise we could draw on.
Mark Burton@helenczerski @sellathechemist And lots of us alumni.
Emma Byrne PhD@helenczerski @sellathechemist I'm an alum...
Jose@helenczerski @sellathechemist Well, worked in UCL for 14 years, now made my way south to the other college by the Thames:-) Hopefully, UCL might encourage #KCL to appear here as well!
Gabriele Pollara@helenczerski @sellathechemist 👋 from fellow #UCL person. I've long thought universities should have their own #fediverse instance, control their output and not be at the mercy of or indirectly supporting unpalatable content on other networks....
Facundo Muñoz
Pascal Antoniou@helenczerski @sellathechemist Hi, UCL alumni here.
Sergio Graziosi - has moved@helenczerski @sellathechemist
I'm here! Just one, but I am still here, and would love to see a UCL Mastodon instance. I guess an official UCL Mastodon account would be a start...
But an instance that anyone associated with UCL (Students, Staff, Alummni) could use would be transformative to both the making and communication of scienctific/academic works.
All unis should have their own, TBH, the size of UCL means it can set the example for the UK.
@helenczerski @sellathechemist
Also: I see many ppl here don't agree with me about an UCL instance, so I'll try to find the time to explain why I wish it will happen...
Also: I see many ppl here don't agree with me about an UCL instance, so I'll try to find the time to explain why I wish it will happen...
@helenczerski @sellathechemist
Why do I think that UCL should have its own Mastodon instance, open to anyone connected to UCL (students, staff, alumni)?
Stems from my 10+ years on the Birdsite. I soon stopped counting the number of positive interactions I had, which collectively expanded my interests, allowed me to keep in touch with academic topics I would have otherwise neglected; I found tons of potential collaborators, and so on.
In short, it has been academically extremely useful.
1/7
@helenczerski @sellathechemist
When SpaceKaren bought the Birdsite, all of that quickly dried up (along with lots of other good things I got through it).
What I've learned is that:
1. For academics, young and old, aspiring and established, what they could get from the Birdsite was priceless.
2. It's not possible to trust ANY privately owned / for profit corporation to sustainably provide the value of 1.
2/7
@helenczerski @sellathechemist
I moved to Mastodon, and found that the BIGGEST reason for people not to do the same is the complications due to the need to finding/choosing an instance, get an account there, and only to discover afterwards the consequences of the choice made.
I can also see that the federation idea could mean we might get the value mentioned above in a reliable (within limits) way. Simply because no single entity could have the power to obliterate it in a few months.
3/7
@helenczerski @sellathechemist
In all seriousness, we could get ALL* of the academic value that the Birdsite used to deliver, and it's not difficult to see how.
All it takes is for Universities to provide access to their own Mastodon instance to students, staff, alumni. As normal - the same way we all get email addresses.
Would it be perfect? Of course not, nothing is. Unis will need to do some moderation, which is tricky and bad mistakes WILL be made.
4/7
*yes, in here, we do get some of it
@helenczerski @sellathechemist
But would it be better than now?
I believe it would be. All academic chit chat could automatically happen on the fediverse because the core people would automatically have access to ti (cfr. the "biggest" problem I found) and would be easily discoverable, and in a very concrete manner "verified". Opening the channel towards media people and public engagement.
TBH, I think it would be significantly better than how it was on the Birdsite.
5/7
@helenczerski @sellathechemist
How do we reach this "ideal outcome"? It's not difficult - critical mass needs to be built. And critical mass CAN be built by a big University.
Should UCL instantiate their own instance and make it very obvious for students, staff (and alumni?) to start using it - ta-dah - a considerable proportion of the critical mass will materialise.
Get just a handful of similarly sized unis to do the same, and very soon, all others will need to follow.
6/7