Excited to take part in this upcoming workshop at Ghent University:
Polymathy and Problem-Solving in the History of Islamic Knowledge
2–4 June 2026
If you'd like to participate, register here:
erc-know.ugent.be/en/problem-a...
Chainmail with rings stamped with the names of Mohammed and the first five imams of Shi'a Islam, Iran, ca. 1500
www.metmuseum.org/art/collecti...
Before playing Kamancheh, he says: 'Hello, I'm Mohammad-Reza Afarideh, the director of the ed. institute that has now been destroyed. I wanted the last sound coming from my institute not to be of missiles and war; (I want the) final sound to be of the instrument that I played in it. Thank you'.
After 17 (!!) years I'll finally finish my doctorate as a "PhD by Prior Publications." I must assess my 151 articles, books, websites, and software packages for their contributions to and impacts on my field.
As one way to make this manageable, I'll share one thing from the dossier every few days.
One request for help in assembling my PhD by Prior Publications dossier: if you taught, were influenced by, or otherwise used something I'm sharing (especially if there's public evidence of it!), please reply to the relevant post with that fact and some context 🙏