Prof Maz Hardey

Prof Maz Hardey

@thatprofmaz.substack.com

Professor @ Durham University. Unravelling the mess of Tech, Education & AI. 🧶 Author of books on Disinformation | Women in Tech | GenAI | Health Tracking; reading everything else. I see we’re all Stacking now https://open.substack.com/pub/thatprofmaz

1.2K followers1.9K following1.7K posts

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Prof Maz Hardey
@thatprofmaz.substack.com

The Learner. She is curious. Diligent. The one who asked if she could. "Could I?..." She would like to experiment. Play. But she got shamed. Over and over again. Stuck. Using Gen AI in Education, by me. Image and Text.

Prof Maz Hardey reposted

Marina Jirotka
@marenka.bsky.social

Google plans to bulldoze a wildlife haven in Essex – home to rare species – for a data centre. Sign the petition now to help save it before it’s gone forever 🐝🦋 you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/sa...

you.38degrees.org.ukSave Arena Essex- Tell Google to search elsewhere!  Wedged between the Mar Dyke Valley and Lakeside Retail Park, the former Arena Essex Raceway is not your usual wildlife haven. Where once stock cars and speedway bikes lined up to cross the fini...
Prof Maz Hardey
@thatprofmaz.substack.com

Ah, ‘demand management’, or rather demanding cost-cutting and incompetence. I fear the tense is incorrect in this article… “will turn,” oh it’s happening…

Research Professional News@resprofnews.bsky.social

Ex-UKRI chief warns against leaning on AI in funding decisions. Ottoline Leyser champions “subjective decisions” amid expectations universities will turn to AI for demand management. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-r...

researchprofessionalnews.comEx-UKRI chief warns against leaning on AI in funding decisions - Research Professional NewsOttoline Leyser champions “subjective decisions” amid expectations universities will turn to AI for demand management

Prof Maz Hardey reposted

Bat Krown 🦇🎃
@katbrownwrites.com

The irony that the BBC blurred out the Protect the Dolls slogan on a Strictly contestant’s tshirt for their social accounts as “political” but will happily dedicate a two-part doc to the woman who uses her billions to fund lawsuits to persecute transgender people www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/...

bbc.co.ukTwo-part documentary on J.K. Rowling announced by BBC Factual and BBC ScotlandThe documentary will use her life as a lens through which to explore three decades of profound social, political and technological change
Prof Maz Hardey
@thatprofmaz.substack.com

🦔 better than 💰

Marina Jirotka@marenka.bsky.social

c.org/TnDxr6CLC2 “Putting a hedgehog on a bank note when you don’t know how valuable they truly are … “

c.orgThe Value of Hedgehogs!!!You may remember that I was asking you all to 'vote hedgehog' in the call for ideas for the new bank notes ... well ... the VERY exciting news is that ... WE WON!! Please pop over to this version Alongside our hedgehog, there will also be the buff-tailed bumblebee, the barn owl, and the puffin. I do feel it a bit much that we have two birds ... and no representation from amphibians and reptiles -…

Prof Maz Hardey reposted

Elizabeth Spiers
@espiers.bsky.social

I was raped at a frat party. It’s a shockingly common experience and preventative interventions in college are way too late.

The Nation Magazine@thenation.com

In the aftermath of the Cornell rape case, @espiers.bsky.social reflects on her own experiences with sexual assault, and how our current models of consent-based sex education may not be enough.

thenation.comMy Rape, the Cornell Case—and Why We Need Better Approaches to Teaching How Consent WorksI tried to process the experience of being raped by disassociating. We have to show our kids a better way
Prof Maz Hardey
@thatprofmaz.substack.com

Please support change 🌍

Marina Jirotka@marenka.bsky.social

www.change.org/p/spain-ban-...

change.orgAnother Beluga Is DeadAnother beluga transferred from Marineland Canada has died. Osiris, a 26-year-old beluga moved to Chicago's Shedd Aquarium in July, died on Monday after her condition suddenly deteriorated. She is now the fourth beluga from Marineland to die following this summer's mass relocation. Last week, Jelly Bean died at Oceanogràfic Valencia just weeks after being transferred to Spain. Four whales. Four…
Prof Maz Hardey
@thatprofmaz.substack.com

Hmmmm... thinking. Are workplaces actually measuring Emotional Intelligence (EI)... or just rewarding people who perform "neurotypical vibes"? Our new paper in the Journal of Applied Behavioural Science breaks down why style keeps trumping substance in modern leadership. Hi there @sagepub.com

View full thread
Prof Maz Hardey
@thatprofmaz.substack.com

Neurodivergence exposes this gap BIG time. In classic thin-slice studies, observers rated autistic speakers worse on video, but when judging the same words on a written transcript, the bias vanished. Evaluating EI by delivery measures performative compliance, not actual emotional intelligence.

Prof Maz Hardey
@thatprofmaz.substack.com

Hmmmm... thinking. Are workplaces actually measuring Emotional Intelligence (EI)... or just rewarding people who perform "neurotypical vibes"? Our new paper in the Journal of Applied Behavioural Science breaks down why style keeps trumping substance in modern leadership. Hi there @sagepub.com

Prof Maz Hardey
@thatprofmaz.substack.com

The trap: Emotional capability (empathy, self-awareness, deep reasoning) can't be seen directly, so orgs rely on observable behaviours. Over time, "familiar expression" becomes indistinguishable from actual capability. If you don't express EI in the standard way, orgs assume you don't have it.

Prof Maz Hardey
@thatprofmaz.substack.com

The invisible pass: Digital platforms love linear metrics, but human brains rarely move in straight lines 🌀🧠 In my new paper with Ceri Pimblett out in EDI, we explore 'enforced passing' in workplace e-learning - and why we desperately need recognition design over rigid compliance.

emerald.comThe invisible pass: asynchronous e-learning and the enforcement of neurotypical identity performance in neurodivergent adultsPurpose. Digital learning environments are increasingly framed as flexible and inclusive, yet the identity work required of neurodivergent learners within these spaces remains largely unexamined. This...
Prof Maz Hardey
@thatprofmaz.substack.com

Hi @erlangenai.bsky.social, we got this…

New Scientist@newscientist.com

Famous and challenging problems in mathematics are falling to AI at a rapid pace. Where does this leave mathematicians, and what will the field look like in coming years?

newscientist.comWhat's next for mathematics now that AI is upending the field? | New ScientistFamous and challenging problems in mathematics are falling to AI at a rapid pace. Where does this leave mathematicians, and what will the field look like in coming years?
Prof Maz Hardey
@thatprofmaz.substack.com

Everything does not sound awesome 🎶

Margot Finn@eicathomefinn.bsky.social

'The number of students taking A-level music is at a record low: under 5,000, a drop of nearly half from 15 years ago....Music GCSE entries have also fallen. It has the widest attainment gap for disadvantaged students of any subject.'

theguardian.comThe Guardian view on music and drama education: reversing elitism starts at school | EditorialEditorial: The number of students taking creative subjects at A-level and GCSE is at a record low. The arts must not become the preserve of the most privileged

Prof Maz Hardey reposted

George Monbiot
@georgemonbiot.bsky.social

People can "just adapt" to a changing climate, a thousand rightwing voices keep telling us. Either they lack imagination or they don't care. Try "adapting" to this. www.theguardian.com/world/2026/a...

theguardian.comNepal flash flood: more than 1,500 missing, mostly tourists, after disaster kills at least 165 at Tibet borderEntire populated areas swept away after glacial collapse causes catastrophic flood in mountainous region popular with trekkers and pilgrims
Prof Maz Hardey
@thatprofmaz.substack.com

True story,

Connor Ewing@cmewing.bsky.social

University leadership: We stand ready to support our faculty as they confront the disruptions & uncertainty caused by AI. Faculty: Great! We'll need smaller class sizes, especially for incoming students and— University leadership: Lol, no. We meant like subscriptions to Claude.

Prof Maz Hardey
@thatprofmaz.substack.com

You can do 🌿🌙🌱🌳🍁🐌🐛🍂🍃🦇 everything

Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland (BSBI)@bsbibotany.bsky.social

We're hiring! We have a new Local Change project, building on previous BSBI monitoring projects, to provide crucial data on the state of our wild plants. Background to the project: bsbi.org/take-part/pr... We're now looking to recruit a Project Coordinator. Find out more: bsbi.org/about/people...

Prof Maz Hardey
@thatprofmaz.substack.com

This was always the plan

Margot Finn@eicathomefinn.bsky.social

'A Russell Group university will no longer use ubiquitous anti-cheating tools provided by Turnitin because of concerns that the company might use students’ work to train artificial intelligence.' Maybe time for UK universities to develop and commercialise their own tools?

timeshighereducation.comSouthampton dumps Turnitin over use of students’ work to train AIAcademic integrity giant denies accusations as university declines to renew contract in favour of ‘other options’

Prof Maz Hardey reposted

Margot Finn
@eicathomefinn.bsky.social

'A Russell Group university will no longer use ubiquitous anti-cheating tools provided by Turnitin because of concerns that the company might use students’ work to train artificial intelligence.' Maybe time for UK universities to develop and commercialise their own tools?

timeshighereducation.comSouthampton dumps Turnitin over use of students’ work to train AIAcademic integrity giant denies accusations as university declines to renew contract in favour of ‘other options’

Prof Maz Hardey reposted

Margot Finn
@eicathomefinn.bsky.social

45% of this year's 18-year old intake expect to live at home and commute to university, up from 43% last year. Disadvantaged students are 3 times more likely to commute than other undergraduates. Very comprehensive, but doesn't address impact of programme closures and growing cold spots. 1/2

ft.comStudent digs: the end of an era?High costs mean increasing numbers of those going from school into higher education are opting to live with their parents
Prof Maz Hardey
@thatprofmaz.substack.com

Imp read: EDI \ DEI are not the same.

Margot Finn@eicathomefinn.bsky.social

What you're saying when you say "DEI" when universities say "EDI" (as happens here) and vice versa. And why it actually matters. The great majority of UK (esp. British) universities use "EDI" while US universities use "DEI". Is that "just" semantic, or does it matter? A thread. 🧵1/8

ft.comHow Jason Arday’s appointment became a reckoning for CambridgeResignation of Black professor forces university to examine its approach to diversity, equality and inclusion

Prof Maz Hardey reposted

Margot Finn
@eicathomefinn.bsky.social

What you're saying when you say "DEI" when universities say "EDI" (as happens here) and vice versa. And why it actually matters. The great majority of UK (esp. British) universities use "EDI" while US universities use "DEI". Is that "just" semantic, or does it matter? A thread. 🧵1/8

ft.comHow Jason Arday’s appointment became a reckoning for CambridgeResignation of Black professor forces university to examine its approach to diversity, equality and inclusion

Prof Maz Hardey reposted

Margot Finn
@eicathomefinn.bsky.social

'for many organisations and corporations symbolic representation has been a substitute for deeper reform, leaving it vulnerable to just this kind of backlash. It has also meant that the right has enjoyed a near monopoly on criticism of DEI, leaving it to frame it entirely on its own terms.' 1/2

theguardian.comThe takedown of Jason Arday has overjoyed the right, and must be a wake-up call for the left | Jason OkundayeThe Cambridge academic has rightly now resigned. But that won’t end the targeting of senior black figures or the lazy way institutions promote faux equality, says Guardian columnist Jason Okundaye
Prof Maz Hardey
@thatprofmaz.substack.com

3. Creates toxic ‘productivity’ loops that makes it harder / longer to complete projects. 4. Techbros are not the answer.

Margot Finn@eicathomefinn.bsky.social

Nowhere does this explore whether the lower than expected uptake of AI might reflect: 1) the expectations were based on over-hyped, booster-ish expectations; 2) use of AI is recognised by workers/businesses as problematic in some respects (for example, hallucinations increase workloads/errors).

ft.comUK businesses are not deepening their use of AI, suggests ONS dataFree tools are the most widely used by companies with focus on efficiency savings rather than developing new products
Prof Maz Hardey
@thatprofmaz.substack.com

🌍

Hetan Shah@hetanshah.bsky.social

‘The search for life outside our solar system has taken another twist as researchers revealed they have discovered an atmosphere around an Earth-like planet 49 light years away that could have liquid water on its surface.’ www.theguardian.com/science/2026...

theguardian.comEarth-like exoplanet found to have an atmosphereScientists discover the first confirmed atmosphere around rocky planet outside our solar system that is within the habitable zone

Prof Maz Hardey reposted

The Green Party of England & Wales
@greenparty.org.uk

The Green Party is clear on what real change looks like: • Proportional representation • Taxing billionaire wealth • No new oil and gas • Public ownership of water • Rent controls • Ending arms sales to Israel

Prof Maz Hardey reposted

Ben Collins
@bencollins.bsky.social

When these data centers become debt traps in a few years at most, the next Dem president should offer to wipe out those debts if they're sold for a dollar back to cities for community centers, mutual aid hubs, YMCA-style temporary housing services. Try to salvage anything out of this mess.

Prof Maz Hardey
@thatprofmaz.substack.com

Bloody marvellous

Mary M@marym276.bsky.social

A splendidly eccentric 90 year old conservationist is pedalling down the Thames to raise money for a temperate rainforest research station. Please donate if you can and share the story @irishrainforest.bsky.social www.justgiving.com/campaign/wat...

justgiving.comRobin’s Water-Bike ChallengeAt 90, Robin Hanbury-Tenison is water-biking 100 miles on the Thames, Oxford to London. An age-defying marathon a day for 4 days. After a lifetime exploring rainforests, he's raising £100,000 to help ...