352 posts in 2022

In 2022 I made 352 posts in Utopian Realism, including this one. This is somewhat fewer than the last few years.

Summing up the work year 2022

In 2022, I logged 2.763 work hours. This is 53 hours a week (all year, including in holiday weeks). At 163,6% of a standard Norwegian work year, this is considerably longer than the average employee´s work week. And yet it was my second shortest work year in terms of work hours over the last 10 years, due to health issues (which resulted in about a month´s sick leave altogether in the autumn). However, in 2013, my first year as a father, I had a somewhat shorter work year (2.650 work hours). In 2020, as an effect of the covid pandemic and a month´s sick leave related to surgery, my work year amounted to some 2.790 work hours. My longest work year ever was 3.231 work hours (2011).

2022 stands out with a few records of different sorts: Highest share ever for academic work (vs. literary and other work), lowest share ever for "other work".

Google Scholar: 865 citations; 250 more registered in 2022; updated Google scholar history

According to Google Scholar (cf. my profile) my research has to date attracted 865 citations (+15 since November 23rd). My h-index remains 18 and my i10-index 33. 128 of the citations are from 2022 (+13 since November 23rd).

My best years to date are: 

2021 (184)

2022 (128)

2016 (93)

2020 (85)

2018 (81)

124 texts are listed as associated with my profile. This compares to 100 texts listed as of December 26th 2021. At that point, 2021 was registered with 110 citations, and I had 615 citations overall. Since then, 250 more citations of my work has been registered, including 74 more in 2021.

Updated Google Scholar history (cf. my February 2021 post):

My first Google Scholar citation occurred in 2002.

By April 2013 I had 38 citations, and a verified Google Scholar profile.

I passed 100 citations in the winter of 2016.

I passed 200 citations in the summer of 2017.

I passed 300 citations in the summer of 2018.

I passed 400 citations in the autumn of 2019.

I passed 500 citations in Spring 2021.

I passed 600 citations in the autumn of 2021.

I passed 700 citations in the winter of 2022.

I passed 800 citations in the autumn of 2022.

#27,5; ca. 12.000 words written this Autumn

Today I have had writing day no. 27,5 this Autumn, devoted to work with research assistant Jan Karlstrøm and minor revision of my Steffens chapter - and the final writing day of the term. Altogether I have written some 11.826 words this Autumn, which is less than usual.

2 meetings; 7 this week; 197 + 3 this Autumn

Today I have attended 2 scheduled appointments. This week I have had 7 meetings, and one day of sick leave. Altogether this Autumn I have attended 197 meetings and 3 conferences.

2 meetings

Today I have had 2 scheduled meetings.

3 appointments Monday 19th

Yesterday, on Monday December 19th, I had 3 scheduled meetings/appointments. This included the annual department Christmas lunch at hotel Victoria, with some 40 colleagues attending.

Abstract for "After Nagel" conference: “Phenomenological triangulation in the study of animals as subjects of phenomenology – perspectives from cognitive semiotics and biosemiotics”

I have submitted the abstract below as an invited speaker at the conference «After Nagel: Science and the phenomenology of animals subjects”, which is to be held at Radhoud university, the Netherlands, March 6-7th 2023:

Phenomenological triangulation in the study of animals as subjects of phenomenology – perspectives from cognitive semiotics and biosemiotics

In earlier work I have argued that a genuine ´Uexküllian phenomenology´ can be derived from the Umwelt theory of Jakob von Uexküll, and that such a phenomenology is capable of accounting for the subjective experience of both human and animal subjects of the phenomenal world at large. With its foundation in contemporary biosemiotics, such a modern, empirically informed phenomenology is particularly relevant for the study of human-animal relations and interaction in societal and ecological settings.

Cognitive semiotician Jordan Zlatev has proposed some interesting methodological principles for what he conceives of as the transdisciplinary science of cognitive semiotics. This includes a “conceptual-empirical loop” with a research process involving a combination of theoretical and empirical work, and “phenomenological triangulation” involving combined use of 1st person perspective, 2nd person perspective and 3rd person perspective studies of one and the same topic of study. I will discuss to what extent something similar could be applied within the context of biosemiotics, with the aim of integrating biosemiotics and phenomenology further.

To be invited speaker at the conference: «After Nagel: Science and the phenomenology of animals subjects”, at Radhoud university, March 2023

I have been invited to be a speaker at the conference: «After Nagel: Science and the phenomenology of animals subjects”, which will be held at Radhoud university, the Netherlands, March 6-7th 2023.

10 appointments this week; 190 + 3 so far this Autumn

With 10 scheduled appointments this week including 3 ph.d. defense-related appointments - and 3 days of sick leave Monday to Wednesday - I have so far this Autumn attended 190 scheduled meetings/appointments and 3 conferences.

2 meetings Friday; opponent at Juan Mendoza-Collazos´ ph.d. defense at Lund university, Sweden, this weekend

On Friday I had 2 meetings at UIS. 

This weekend I have been faculty opponent at the ph.d. defense of Juan Mendoza-Collazos´, who defended the thesis "Agency and Artefacts: A cognitive semiotic exploration of design" at Lund university, in Lund, Sweden, December 17th. My presentation and opposition in dialogue with the candidate went on for about two and a half hours. Some 35 people attended, most of which physically.

Related to the ph.d. defense, I also attended an informal dinner Friday evening, and a celebration party Saturday evening.

To be plenary speaker at the 13th Conference of the IAVS-AISV: Visual Semiotics & Agency, Bogotá, September 2023

I will be a plenary speaker at AISV-IAVS 2023 - 13th Conference of the IAVS-AISV: Visual Semiotics & Agency, to be held at Universidad de Bogotá Jorge Tadeo Lozano, in Bogotá, Colombia, September 28-30, 2023.

Call for papers is available here. Abstracts are due February 15th.

5 appointments

Today - after three consecutive days of sick leave - I have attended half of the "fagdag" for Cognitive Lab at UIS, where I was part of opening the day, and three more scheduled appointments. I will furthermore attend the faculty leadership group´s dinner on town this evening, where my stepping down as Head of department will be marked.

A meeting; 12 meetings this week; 180 + 3 so far this Autumn

Today I have attended one scheduled meeting. This week´s total is 12 meetings, despite 1 day sick leave (yesterday). So far this Autumn I have attended 180 meetings and 3 conferences.

#26,5

Today I have had half a writing day with work done with my research assistant on our GDP review article.

Jablonka and Ginsburg comment now published in Biosemiotics issue

My comment to Jablonka and Ginsburg´s Target article has now been published as part of an issue of Biosemiotics, issue 3 of volume 15. Updated reference: 

Tønnessen, Morten 2022. The evolutionary origin(s) of the Umwelt. Commentary. Biosemiotics 15(3): 451–455. Published online November 3rd 2022. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12304-022-09506-7 

Environmental crisis article addressed in Sign Systems Studies´ "Semiotics 2021: The year in review" article

I am honored to see my article on "how to solve the environmental crisis", "Anticipating the societal transformation required to solve the environmental crisis in the 21st century" (Open access), being addressed in Sign Systems Studies´ review of the year 2021 in semiotics, written by Frank Nuessel and Ott Puumeister:

"Anticipating the future The future is neither fully pre-determined nor absolutely empty. The future does not exist, but it does insist: we have to behave in a certain manner to fulfil our dreams, we have to envision future states as already existing to make sense of the past and present. Future is an imperative: life has to find a way to continue transforming while maintaining its integrity. Anticipating the future is an interplay between predictability and unpredictability. The special issue of SSS on “Anticipation and change”,5 guest edited by Lauri Linask, Inesa Sahakyan and Aleksei Semenenko, situates itself in the midst of this interplay and asks how we produce predictability in the context of unpredictability, and how the production of predictability hinders the unpredictability at the core of actualization of the future. These questions are especially relevant in the face of the environmental crisis, which requires fundamental transformations in cultural, political, social, economic, etc. spheres – that is, in most spheres of life that have become our “human nature”.

Morten Tønnessen (2021) attempts to envision how ecosemiotics could help model the societal transformation necessary to address the environmental crisis.6 He juxtaposes the positions of ecomodernists and Deep Ecologists, preferring the latter to the former, since they do not rely on continuous growth based on technological solutions and take non-human beings seriously. He advocates for a normative orientation in ecosemiotics, which “constitutes a form of transformative semiotics in so far as human ecology is approached critically in a political, ethical and/or another normative context” (Tønnessen 2021: 55). In other words, semiotics can no longer satisfy itself with being descriptive, but needs to intervene in the sociopolitical field."

3 meetings

Today I chose to have home office, and have attended 3 scheduled meetings.

4 scheduled appointments

Today I have attended 4 scheduled appointments, including - digitally - the trial lecture and ph.d. defense of Samita Wilson.

4 meetings

Today I have attended 4 meetings.

#27

Today I have had a writing day, the 27th this Autumn, with some 1.100 words added to my article "Wasted GDP in the USA".

To be opponent at Juan Mendoza-Collazos´ ph.d. defence

I will be the opponent at Juan Mendoza-Collazos´ ph.d. defence of the thesis "Agency and Artefacts: A cognitive semiotic exploration of design", which is to take place at Lund university, in Lund, Sweden, on December 17th 2022. More info and link to the ph.d. thesis here.

#26

Today I have had half a writing day devoted to work with my research assistant.

2 meetings; 9 this week; 168 + 3 this Autumn

Today I have attended 2 meetings. Altogether this week I have attended 9 meetings - and had one day of sick leave. So far this Autumn I have attended 168 scheduled meetings and 3 conferences.

3 meetings

Today I have attended 3 scheduled meetings, including 2 Universities Norway (UHR) meetings.

To be keynote speaker at Tartu conference on Umwelt analysis

I will be a keynote speaker at the conference “Contemporary Umwelt Analysis: Applications for Culture and Ecological Relations”, which will be held in Tartu, Estonia, 18th-19th of April, 2023, at the University of Tartu, Estonia, along with Kalevi Kull (University of Tartu) and Carsten Herrmann-Pillath (University of Erfurt, Germany). 

Abstracts are due January 31st 2023. For more info, see the conference webpage.

#25,5

Today I have had writing day no. 25,5 this Autumn, with some 300 words added to my article "Wasted GDP in the USA" - and otherwise sick leave.

Ph.d. supervision session

Today I have taken part in a ph.d. supervision session - the first for a while.

Peer review

I have recently done a peer review for Biosemiotics.

3 meetings

Today I have attended 3 scheduled meetings. This included an "allmøte" (general meeting) at University of Stavanger on the economic prospects in the time ahead, and this Autumn´s last department leadership group meeting.

2 meetings

Today I have attended 2 scheduled meetings. This included my weekly meeting with the office manager.

#24,5

Today I have had a writing day devoted to my article "Wasted GDP in the USA", with some 750 words added. Number of writing days this Autumn is up to 24,5.

9 meetings this week; 159 + 3 so far this Autumn

Today I have had sick leave. Earlier this week I attended 9 scheduled meetings. So far this Autumn I have attended 159 meetings and 3 conferences.

3 meetings

Today I have had 3 scheduled meetings, including one that was scheduled today.

#23,5

Today I have had half a writing day, with some 200 words added to our GDP review article. Number of writing days so far this Autumn is up to 23,5.

Google Scholar: 850 citations; 115 in 2022; h-index 18; i10-index 33

According to Google Scholar (cf. my profile), my research has to date attracted 850 citations (+21 since November 1st). This includes 115 citations in 2022 (+18 since November 1st). My h-index is now 18 (+1 since November 1st) and my i10-index 33 (+2 since November 1st), meaning that 18 of my articles/texts have been cited at least 18 times each, and that 33 of my articles/texts have been cited at least 10 times each.

My most cited article, "Umwelt transitions: Uexküll and environmental change", has been cited 12 times in 2022 (more than in any other year) and 66 times altogether.

2 meetings

Today I have attended 2 scheduled meetings.

2 meetings

Today I have attended 2 scheduled meetings. This included the third and last staff meeting at Department of social studies this Autumn - and the last under my leadership. Some 30 people attended.

2 meetings

Today I have attended 2 scheduled meetings. This included half the leadership forum at UIS held today.

#23

Today I have had a writing day mainly devoted to revising my article "Wasted GDP in the USA", with some 300 words added. Number of writing days this Autumn is up to 23.

Due to sick leave lately, for one thing, planned number of writing days this Autumn has been gradually downscaled from 36 days originally to 28,5 days currently.

Bloomsbury Semiotics approaching publication; listed by Google Books

The 4 volume Bloomsbury Semiotics is now said to be published on December 1st (a slight further delay) according to the book set hompage at Bloomsbury. Volume 2, Semiotics in the Natural and Technical Sciences (ed. Stéphanie Walsh Matthews), which includes my chapter "Semiotics in ethology and zoology", is already listed by Google Books, though no book text (content) has been included yet.

A meeting; 7 + 1 this week; 150 + 3 so far this Autumn

Today I have attended one meeting at UIS. Altogether this week I have attended 7 meetings and a one-day conference - and had 1 day sick leave. So far this Spring I have attended 150 meetings and 3 conferences.

Council for animal ethics meeting attended

Yesterday I attended the second meeting this fall of Norway´s Council for animal ethics, at Thon hotel Opera in Oslo. 

Dyreetikkonferansen 2022 held; panel chaired; recordings available online

Wednesday this week I attended Dyreetikkonferansen 2022 in Oslo (at Litteraturhuset), which had the theme "Noen dyr er likere enn andre. Hvorfor behandler vi dyr forskjellig?". I have been in the organizing committee. I also chaired the panel discussion, which lasted for 2 hours. Some 100 people attended physically while at least 70 attended online. 

The event was streamed. The recordings are available at YouTube.

#22

Today I have had half a writing day, mostly devoted to meeting with my research assistant and discussing further work with our GDP review article. Number of writing days this Autumn is up to 22.

5 meetings

Today I have attended 5 scheduled meetings, including an extraordinary meeting in the leadership group of Department of social studies on study places for next year.

A meeting; 2 this week; 143 + 2 so far this Autumn

Last week I had no meetings due to sick leave. Sick leave continued until Wednesday this week, and then again today. This week I have had 2 meetings, including one today. Altogether this Autumn I have attended 143 scheduled meetings and 2 conferences so far (with about 3 weeks of sick leave including single days).

A meeting

I am back at work after a 2 week sick leave. One scheduled meeting today.

Commentary "The evolutionary origin(s) of the Umwelt" published online

A few days ago my commentary article "The evolutionary origin(s) of the Umwelt" was published online in Biosemiotics. This is a commentary to Eva Jablonka & Simona Ginsburg´s Target article "Learning and the evolution of conscious agents".

Reference:

Tønnessen, Morten 2022. The evolutionary origin(s) of the Umwelt. Commentary. Biosemiotics. Published online November 3rd 2022. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12304-022-09506-7 

Received: The Routledge Handbook of Semiosis and the Brain

I have received my print copy of The Routledge Handbook of Semiosis and the Brain, whereI contribute with a chapter - reference:

Tønnessen, Morten 2022. Beyond the human animal: Towards a cross-species neurosemiotics. In Adolfo García & Agustin Ibanez (eds.), The Routledge Handbook of Semiosis and the Brain (Routledge Handbooks in Linguistics), pp. 82–96. Routledge.

It is published November 14th but has copyright year 2023.

#20,5; #21,5

The last 2 days - during sick leave - I have had two writing days (2 x 5 hours), with some 1.000 words added altogether to my article "Wasted GDP in the USA". Number of writing days this Autumn is up to 21,5.

Google Scholar: 829 citations; i10-index 31; h-index 17

According to Google Scholar (cf. my profile), my research has to date attracted 829 citations (+29 since October 2nd). This includes 97 citations in 2022 (+9 since October 2nd), which makes 2022 my second best year to date. My i10-index is now 31 (+1 since October 2nd), meaning that 31 of my texts have been cited 10 times or more. My h-index is now 17 (+1 since October 2nd), meaning that 17 of my texts have been cited at least 17 times each.

My two most cited articles in 2022 are:

"The ethics of laying hen genetics" (2020) 12 - total: 30 (#7 all time)

"Umwelt transitions: Uexküll and environmental change" (2003) 11 - total: 65 (#1 all time)

A meeting; 9 this week; 141 + 2 so far this Autumn

Today I have had one meeting (and then sick leave).

Altogether this week I had 9 scheduled meetings. So far this Autumn I have attended 141 scheduled meetings and 2 conferences.

A meeting (or three)

Today I have attended one scheduled meeting (and 2-3 imprompto meetings of sorts).

Appointed to the editorial board for the festival "Wonderful World - Den nordiske festivalen for filosofi og vitenskap"

I have been appointed as a member of the editorial board (redaksjonsråd) for the festival "Wonderful World - Den nordiske festivalen for filosofi og vitenskap" (Wonderful World - the Nordic festival for philosophy and science), which will be held for the first time June 1-4th 2023 in Stavanger, Norway.

4 meetings

Today I have attended four meetings. This included planning for and reporting on some HMS issues.

2 meetings

Today I have attended two meetings. This included the weekly faculty leadership group meeting, and the Autumn´s second department leadership group meeting.

A meeting

Today I have had one meeting.

#19,5

Today I have had half a writing day, #19,5 this Autumn, with some 400 words added to my article "The study of past Umwelten", an invited article for a special issue of the Italian journal Discipline Filosofiche on Jakob von Uexküll.

The Norwegian Animal Ethics conference 2022 to take place in Oslo November 16th; links

Dyreetikkonferansen 2022, The annual Norwegian Animal Ethics conference, will take place November 16th in Oslo, with the theme "Noen dyr er likere enn andre. Hvorfor behandler vi dyr forskjellig?" (Some animals are more equal than others. Why do we treat animals differently?). I will be chairing the panel discussion, and take part in the organizing committee.

More info: 

Conference homepage

Facebook event page

#19

Today I have had writing day #19 this Autumn, with some 200 words added to our GDP review article. This time I got to go through the whole text.

A meeting; 7 this week; 132 + 2 so far this Autumn

I have had one meeting today, and 7 in total this week - in a week where I officially ended up having sick leave for 2 days. Altogether this Autumn I have so far attended 132 meetings and 2 conferences.

3 meetings

Today I have attended three scheduled work meetings.

2 meetings

Today I have attended 2 scheduled meetings.

A meeting

Today I have attended one meeting - the Autumn´s second staff meeting at Department of social studies, which was well attended.

#18

Today I have had a writing day, the 18th this Autumn, with some 700 words added to my article "Wasted GDP in the USA". All tables are now done.

#17

Today, at this Autumn´s writing day #17, I have added some 400 words to my article "Wasted GDP in the USA", and proof-read my Commentary article "The evolutionary origin(s) of the Umwelt".

Discussion of possible fourth level of management/leadership in board of UIS following my resignation

Yesterday, on October 13th, the board of University of Stavanger discussed the possibility of introducing a fourth level of management/leadership at the university, triggered by my resignation last week. As of today this is not possible, but the board will son discuss possible new arrangements.

Recordings are available here.

A meeting; 13 meetings this week; 125 + 2 so far this Autumn

Today I have had a meeting. Altogether I have had 13 meetings this week (on 3 work days; I have also had 2 days vacation). So far this Autumn I have attended 125 meetings and 2 conferences.

Quitting as head of department at UIS

Last Wednesday, October 5th, I delivered a resignation letter in relation to my current position as head of department at Department of social studies at University of Stavanger. My last day in the position will be January 5th, 2023. I am quitting due to too much work-related stress and being over-committed.

6 meetings

Today I have attended 6 scheduled meetings. This included the weekly faculty leadership group meeting.

6 scheduled appointments including ph.d. defense and related events

Today I have attended 5 scheduled appointments, and will attend one more this evening, namely a dissertation dinner. So far today I have among other things attended the trial lecture and ph.d. defense of Ida Holth Mathisen.

#16

Today I have had half a writing day consisting of having my regular meeting with my research assistant, and doing some editing.

3 meetings; 14 this week; 112 + 2 so far this Autumn

Today I have had 3 scheduled appointments. This included the annual safety round (vernerunde) at Department of social studies. Altogether this week I have had 14 meetings / scheduled appointments (and one day´s sick leave). So far this Autumn I have had 112 meetings and 2 conferences.

#15,5

This evening, on the Autumn´s writing day #15,5, I have had half a writing day, with some 200 words added to my article "Wasted GDP in the USA".

Updated reference for Open Semiotics chapter; updated publication date for 3 more publications

There is new information about the placement and publication of my chapter for Open Semiotics, which will be published in 4 volumes with 141 chapters:

— Tønnessen, Morten, forthcoming, 2022. Umwelt theory for practitioners: Semiotic guidelines for application in a more-than-human descriptive phenomenology. In Open Semiotics (4 volumes, ed. Amir Biglari), volume 4: Life and its extensions. Paris: L’Harmattan. Planned for publication in December 2022.

There are also new publication dates for some other forthcoming publications, according to online info from the publishers:

—  Tønnessen, Morten, forthcoming, 2022. Semiotics in ethology and zoology. Book chapter, in Bloomsbury Semiotics (4 volumes, ed. Jamin Pelkey), volume 2, Semiotics in the Natural and Technical Sciences (ed. Stéphanie Walsh Matthews), pp. 75–91. Bloomsbury Academic. Planned publication date November 3rd 2022. 

—  Tønnessen, Morten, forthcoming, 2022. Beyond the human animal: Towards a cross-species neurosemiotics. In Adolfo García & Agustin Ibanez (eds.), The Routledge Handbook of Semiosis and the Brain (Routledge Handbooks in Linguistics), pp. 82–96. Routledge. Planned publication date November 14th 2022. 

—  Tønnessen, Morten, forthcoming, 2023. Existential universals: Biosemiosis and existential semiosis. To be reprinted in Eero Tarasti, Sayantan Dasgupta and Paul Forsell (eds), Transcending Signs – Essays in Existential Semiotics (Semiotics, Communication and Cognition 35). Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter. Planned publication date March 6, 2023.

Jablonka and Ginsburg commentary accepted for publication

My Commentary article "The evolutionary origin(s) of the Umwelt" has been accepted for publication in Biosemiotics.

4 meetings

Today I have had 4 meetings / scheduled appointments. This included a 4 hour meeting in Universities Norway, specifically the working committee in UHR-Helse og sosial.

4 meetings, including Fagforum

Today I have attended 4 scheduled meetings/appointments. This included the semester´s first Fagforum at the department - this time with a presentation by Heli Kaatrakoski, «Learning in and for work in prisons in Norway and Finland: staff's and students' perspectives».

3 scheduled meetings

Today I have had three scheduled meetings. This included my weekly meeting with the office manager.

#15

Today I have had this Autumn´s writing day #15, with some 500 words added to my article "Wasted GDP in the USA", and Table 6 composed. I also revised writing plans for the coming months.

Google Scholar: 800 citations; i10-index 30

According to Google Scholar (cf. my profile), my research has by now attracted 800 citations (+21 since August 18th). This includes 88 citations registered in 2022 to date (+19 since August 18th). My h-index is 16 (unchanged) and my i10-index 30 (+1 since August 18th). 2022 is now my third best year, after 2021 (182 citations) and 2016 (91 citations).

My three most cited texts to date have been cited 60, 50 and 40 times respectively.

#14

Today I have had half a writing day, with some 200 words added to my article "Wasted GDP in the USA". September totaled 7,5 writing days and some 4.000 words written. Number of writing days so far this Autumn is up to 14.

A meeting; 13 this week; 98 + 2 so far this Autumn

Today I have attended one scheduled meeting. This week I have altogether attended 13 scheduled meetings (yesterday I was on sick leave). So far this autumn I have attended 98 scheduled meetings and 2 conferences.

#13,5

Today I have had a writing day devoted to my article "Wasted GDP in the USA", with some 600 words written.

5 meetings including 1 employee appraisal (total to date 72)

Today I have attended 4 meetings including an employee appraisal (total to date: 72, of which 9 in the Autumn). This also included chairing a seminar on "Research impact in an international perspective", which was attended by close to 20 people.

Neurosemiotics chapter now in Google Books

The book The Routledge Handbook of Semiosis and the Brain, with my chapter "Beyond the human animal: Towards a cross-species neurosemiotics", has now appeared in Google Books. 

3 meetings

Today I have attended 3 scheduled meetings. This included the weekly faculty leadership group meeting, and the Autumn´s first department leadership group meeting.

4 meetings

Today I have had 4 scheduled meetings. This included my weekly meeting with the office manager.

#12,5

Today I have had a writing day, this Autumn´s writing day #12,5, devoted to my article "Wasted GDP in the USA", with some 400 words written, a table updated and one more started on.

#11,5

Today I have had an article writing day, with some 100 words added altogether to our GDP review article and my article "Wasted growth in the USA". Number of writing days so far this Autumn is up to 11,5.

5 meetings; 85 + 2 so far this Autumn

Today I have attended 5 scheduled appointments. This included a board meeting for the Nordic association for semiotic studies, and 4 UIS meetings.

The week total is 14 meetings/scheduled appointments. So far this autumn: 85 meetings and 2 conferences.

2 meetings

Today I have had 2 scheduled meetings.

2 meetings

Today I have attended 2 scheduled appointments. This included a ph.d. supervision session.

A meeting

Today we have had this Autumn's first department council meeting, and the second such meeting this year. Among other things, we discussed internationalisation and our master in psychology (in development).

4 scheduled appointments

Today I have attended 4 scheduled appointments. This included a ph.d. supervision session over lunch.

#10,5

Today I ended up having only half a writing day, #10,5 this Autumn, devoted to my article "Wasted GDP in the USA", with some 200 words added and more HDI data updated.

A meeting; 10 this week; 71 + 2 so far this Autumn

Today I have attended one meeting.

Altogether I have attended 10 scheduled meetings/appointments this week. So far this Autumn I have attended 71 scheduled meetings/appointments and 2 conferences.

2 meetings

Yesterday, on Thursday, I attended 2 scheduled appointments/meetings. This included a seminar on economy routines and responsibility at UIS and the final meeting of the work group planning for allocation of study places.

#10

Today, on the 10th writing day this Autumn, I have had a writing day devoted to updating my article "Wasted GDP in the USA" and making a requested amendment to my recently finished Commentary article "The evolutionary origin(s) of the Umwelt", with some 200 words written altogether.

#9

Over the two last days, Wednesday and Thursday, I have had half an article day, devoted to finishing my Commentary article "The evolutionary origin(s) of the Umwelt" - a commentary on Eva Jablonka and Simona Ginsburg´s Target article in Biosemiotics, "Learning and the Evolution of Conscious Agents", with some 900 words written. Number of writing days this Autumn is up to 9.

Chronicle on latest HDI data in Stavanger Aftenblad

Today my chronicle "Menneskelig utvikling i revers etter pandemien" (Human development in reverse after the pandemic) was published in print in the Norwegian regional daily Stavanger Aftenblad. It was also quoted on p. 2 in the newspaper.

3 meetings

Today I have attended 3 scheduled meetings/appointments. This included a training seminar on economy management.

A meeting

Today I have chaired the Autumn´s first staff meeting at Department of social studies, which was attended by some 40 people.

3 meetings

Today I have attended 3 scheduled meetings. This included my weekly meeting with the office manager.

#8,5

Today I have had half an article day, devoted mostly to writing a commentary to a Target article by Eva Jablonka and Simona Ginsburg, "Learning and the evolution of conscious agents". The work title of my commentary is "The evolutionary origin(s) of the Umwelt". I also added a couple of references to my book manuscript Captured. Altogether I wrote some 800 words.

Number of writing days this Autumn is 8,5 so far.

Friluftsliv in child protection services article now published in issue

Our article on friluftsliv at residential care units has now been published as part of an issue - issue 3 in volume 43 of Child & Youth Services. 

Reference:

Haaland,  Joakim Jiri  & Morten Tønnessen (2022). Recreation in the outdoors – exploring the friluftsliv experience of adolescents at residential care. Child & Youth Services, 43:3: 206–236. Published online March 7th 2022. DOI: 10.1080/0145935X.2022.2044771

2 scheduled appointments; 61 + 2 so far this Autumn

Today I have attended 2 scheduled appointments, including a regular meeting and a web pre-defense event. 

Altogether this week I have attended 11 scheduled appointments/meetings. So far this Autumn I have attended 61 meetings/scheduled appointments and 2 conferences.

#8

Today I have had a writing day, the 8th this Autumn, devoted to our GDP review article and my wasted growth articles, with some 100 words written altogether.

Chronicle in VG now also published online

My chronicle "Ut og skyte ulv" (Out shooting wolves), which was published in print more than a week ago, appeared online yesterday in the Norwegian national daily VG.

A meeting

Today I have attended, and hosted, a full-day meeting with Bufetat Region Vest, at the University of Stavanger campus.

Interviewed for Khrono news story on child welfare

I am (briefly) interviewed in the Khrono news story “Droppar samarbeid med Forandringsfabrikken” which was published today (journalist: Hilde Kristin Strand), along with several others.

2 meetings

Today I have attended 2 scheduled meetings. This included the third meeting this year in Norway´s Council for animal ethics.

2 meetings

Today I have attended 2 scheduled meetings, including the faculty´s weekly leadership group meeting.

4 meetings

Today I have attended 4 meetings. This included 2 welcome meetings with new employees.

#7

Yesterday, on my way back from Thessaloniki towards Stavanger, I had half a writing day, with readings done related to a commentary I will likely write for Biosemiotics on a Target article by Eva Jablonka and Simona Ginsburg, "Learning av the evolution of conscious agents". Number of writing days so far this Autumn is up to 7.

6 meetings and a conference this week, 50 + 2 so far this Autumn

This week I have attended 6 scheduled meetings/appointments, and a conference. The total so far this Autumn is 50 meetings and 2 conferences.

Two papers presented at 15th World Congress of Semiotics in Thessaloniki, Greece

Today, at the "15th World Congress of Semiotics - Semiotics in the lifeworld", held in Thessaloniki, Greece (August 30th to September 3rd), I presented two papers, "Umwelt theory for practitioners - semiotic guidelines for a more-than-human descriptive phenomenology", in the session "Biosemiotics, Umwelt, and the lifeworld", with some 25 people attending, and "Semiotics of ethology and zoology", in the session "Semiotics in the diciplines", with some 50 people attending.

The Greenhouse now a research center

"The Greenhouse: An environmental humanities initiative at University of Stavanger", which has until now formally been a program area for research, has from September 1st onwards been granted the status as a research center, titled "The Greenhouse Center for Environmental Humanities". I have been one of the members of The Greenhouse from the start in 2017.

General Assembly of IASS in Thessaloniki attended

Yesterday evening, I attended most of the General Assembly of the International Society for Semiotic Studies (IASS). I remain a representative for Norway, and for the Nordic Association for Semiotic Studies (NASS), in the Executive Committee of IASS.

Mentioned in keynote at world congress in Thessaloniki

Yesterday Kobus Marais kindly referred to our book Semiotic Agency: Science beyond mechanism in his keynote talk at the 15th world congress of semiotics (Thessaloniki, August 30th–September 3rd) “The Thermodynamics of Semiosis”, specifically making use of a figure on bodily agency over different levels of biological organization.

ResearchGate stats: "Research Interest Score" of 400.0, 18,340 Reads

ResearchGate stats: I currently have a "Research Interest Score" of 400.0, 18,340 Reads, 414 Citations (h-index of 12), 28 Recommendations and 719 Mentions by their metrics. Cf. my profile page there.

In comparison I recorded ca. 7.000 reads by early 2020 and ca. 11.000 reads by early 2021.

#6,5

Yesterday, while traveling to Thessaloniki, Greece, I had half an article writing day by reading while flying, related to my article "Wasted GDP in the USA".

3 scheduled appointments (and a conference)

Today I have attended 3 scheduled appointments. This included a budget meeting, and a chat with a journalist. 

Meanwhile, I have arrived in Thessaloniki, Greece, and have today also attended the first day of the 15th world congress of semiotics: Semiotics in the lifeworld (August 30-September 3).

Chronicle in VG

Yesterday, August 29th, my chronicle "Ut og skyte ulv" was printed in the Norwegian national daily VG.

2 scheduled appointments

Today I have given a welcome speech at the opening of our master degree in social studies, with some 30 people attending, and had a meeting.

#6

Today I have had this Autumn´s 6th writing day, with some 400 words added altogether to three manuscripts. This included drafting an abstract and title for an invited book chapter, "A biosemiotic perspective on the human condition and the environmental crisis", starting on an article on Cuban and Norwegian human development, and revising my article "Wasted GDP in the USA". In August I have written (only) about 1.500 words.

6th most publishing researcher at Faculty of social sciences in 2021

According to the forthcoming research report of the faculty, I was the 6th most-publishing researcher at Faculty of social sciences in 2021, with 6,6 publication points. The scientific publications that counted in this regard were one co-authored book (Semiotic agency: Science beyond mechanism) and two journal articles. I was the third most-publishing scholar from Department of social studies.

18 meetings this week; 44 so far this Autumn

One more meeting today. Altogether I have had 18 scheduled meetings this week. 

I had 4 meetings the first week of August (plus a conference) and 2 meetings the second week (plus crossing the Atlantic and having 1 day off). With 20 meetings last week, the Autumn´s total after 4 weeks stands at 44 meetings (and a conference).

#5

Today I have had the 5th writing day this Autumn, with some 100 words written altogether on our GDP review article and my article "Wasted growth in the USA".

6 meetings including 3 employee appraisals

Today I have attended 6 scheduled meetings, including 3 employee appraisals (total to date: 71, of which 8 in August).

3 meetings

Today I have attended 3 scheduled meetings. This included a meeting on the new conference Wonderful world.

4 meetings

Today I have attended 4 scheduled meetings. This included the first faculty leadership group meeting this Autumn, and the fifth meeting in a work group investigating transfer of study places. 

4 appointments including 2 employee appraisals

Today I have attended 4 scheduled appointments/meeting, including 2 employee appraisals (total to date: 68, of which 5 in August). One of the appointments involved taking part in the opening of our new master degree in child welfare work (master i barnevernsarbeid).

#4

Today, on the Autumn´s 4th writing day, I have had an article writing day with some 500 words added to the "wasted growth" article I am currently revising as "Wasted GDP in the USA", and table of contents revised and composed.

#3; 20 meetings this week

Today I have had the third writing day this Autumn, with some 300 words added altogether to our GDP article and the wasted growth article I am currently revising. I also had the first meeting with my research assistant this semester.

Altogether I had 20 meetings/scheduled appointments this week.

Google Scholar: 779 citations, h-index 16, i10-index 29

According to Google Scholar (cf. my profile) my research has to date attracted 779 citations (+17 since June 28th). I now have an h-index of 16 (+1 since June 29th) and an i10-index of 29 (+1 since June 29th). 69 citations so far in 2022 (+15).

After 7 citations to date in 2022 and 59 in total, "Umwelt transitions: Uexküll and environmental change" is my most cited article as of now. With 9 citations so far in 2022 and 27 to date, "The ethics of laying hen genetics" is my 7th most cited article to date.

6 meetings including 1 employee appraisal

Today I have attended 6 meetings including one employee appraisal (total to date: 66, of which 3 in August).

So far this week I have had 19 scheduled appointments.

2 job interviews and 1 more meeting

Today I have chaired 2 job interviews and attended a meeting - with my 3 kids with me at the office since school was closed.

6 appointments including 3 welcome speeches and 1 employee appraisal

Today I have had 6 scheduled appointments. This included giving welcome speeches for the new students in bachelor in psychology, bachelor in social work and bachelor in child welfare, and an employee appraisal (total to date: 65, of which 2 in August).

4 meetings including 1 employee appraisal

Today I have attended 4 meetings. This included an intro meeting with the study program managers (studieprogramledere), and an employee appraisal (total to date: 64).

#2

Today I have had a writing day devoted to proof-reading of my forthcoming neurosemiotics chapter and Bloomsbury semiotics chapter (Semiotics in ethology and zoology). Number of writing days so far this Autumn is up to 2.

#1

Today I have had half an article writing day, with some response given on and about 100 words added to our review article on GDP, and some proof-reading done on my neurosemiotics chapter. Number of writing days this Autumn is up to 1.

#0,5

Today I have had the first half writing day this Autumn semester, with some planning done, and proof-reading of the reprint of my text "Existential semiosis" (cf. previous post), among other things.

Book reprint of "Existential universals" to be published in October; link to book

The book Transcending Signs – Essays in Existential Semiotics, which will include a reprint of my article "Existential universals: Biosemiosis and existential semiosis", is now advertised online by the publisher, with planned publication date October 22nd.

Updated reference:

Tønnessen, Morten, forthcoming, 2022. Existential universals: Biosemiosis and existential semiosis. To be reprinted in Eero Tarasti, Sayantan Dasgupta and Paul Forsell (eds), Transcending Signs – Essays in Existential Semiotics (Semiotics, Communication and Cognition 35). Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter. Planned publication date October 22nd 2022.

2 meetings in/from New York

Today, working from New York City, I have attended a digital UIS meeting, and a physical meeting at the UNDP´s Human Development Report Office.

Paper presented; 2 sessions chaired at ISQOLS 2022

Today I have given my presentation "The true value of „doing well“ economically" in session 4.1, "Promoting Well-Being: Public Policy and Development", at the 2022 ISQOLS conference. Around 20 people attended physically or online.

I also chaired the session, which included 2 in-person and 3 virtual presentations. After this I was impromptu asked to chair the next session as well, session 5.1, "Social Relations and Well-Being", including another 2 in-person and 3 virtual presentations. Altogether this means I chaired 10 presentations.

A meeting

Today I have attended a digital meeting with colleagues at University of Stavanger, from my hotel room in Burlington, Vermont.

Pre-conference workshop on psychology of wellbeing attended in Burlington, Vermont

Today I have attended a pre-conference workshop ahead of the ISQOLS 2022 conference here in Burlington, Vermont at University of Vermont, "A Crash Course in the Psychology of Well-Being and Quality of Life" by Joseph Sirgy.

I arrived yesterday.

3 meetings

Today, on my first day back at the office after summer vacation, I have attended 3 meetings. This included a first meeting this Autumn with our office manager, and a meeting with the main safety representative at UIS (hovedverneombud).

20th NASS newsletter

The 20th Newsletter of the Nordic Association for Semiotic studies has been issued and is available along with other newsletters here. Inesa Sahakyan and Lauri Linaks are newsletter editors. The NASS newsletter has been issued since 2012.

ISQOLS 2022 paper presentation rescheduled for August 5th

My paper presentation "The true value of „doing well“ economically", which was initially scheduled for oral presentation at ISQOLS 2022 (the annual conference of the International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies, to be held in Burlington, Vermont, USA, August 3-6th) on Saturday August 6th, has now been rescheduled to Friday August 5th in Session 4.1, "Promoting Well-Being: Public Policy and Development", which takes place 9-00-10:30 AM.

See also the final conference program.

ISQOLS 2022 presentation scheduled for August 6th

I have just received the conference program of ISQOLS 2022 (the annual conference of the International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies), to be held in Burlington, Vermont, USA, August 3-6th. My paper "The true value of „doing well“ economically" has been scheduled for oral presentation in session 8.5, "Quality of Life and Environment", which will take place Saturday August 6th at 13.15-14.45.

Neurosemiotics chapter announced online by Routledge

The Routledge Handbook of Semiosis and the Brain is now advertised online by Routledge.

My chapter will appear as chapter 5.

Reference for my chapter:

Tønnessen, Morten, forthcoming. Beyond the human animal: Towards a cross-species neurosemiotics. In Adolfo García & Agustin Ibanez (eds.), The Routledge Handbook of Semiosis and the Brain (Routledge Handbooks in Linguistics). Routledge. Planned publication date November 2022.

Letter to the editor published in Stavanger Aftenblad March 6th

On March 6th I had a letter to the editor titled "Tid for selvkritikk i Stavanger kommune og Aftenbladet" published in the regional daily Stavanger Aftenblad.

Softcover edition of "Semiotic agency: Science beyond mechanism" now apparently for sale

Some book sellers have now started advertising a softcover version of our book Semiotic Agency: Science beyond Mechanism for sale. This includes Bokus.com, where the softcover edition is sold for 684 kr, and AdLibris, where it is sold for 516 NOK. ISBN is said to be 978-3-030-89485-6.

Updated reference:

Sharov, Alexei & Morten Tønnessen (2021). Semiotic Agency: Science beyond Mechanism (Biosemiotics 25). Springer Nature. DOI 10.1007/978-3-030-89484-9, ISBN 978-3-030-89483-2 (Hardcover), 978-3-030-89484-9 (Ebook), 978-3-030-89485-6 (Softcover / MyCopy).

Two oral presentations scheduled for the 15th World congress of semiotics

I have been scheduled to give two online talks at the 15th World congress of semiotics, with the theme "Semiotics in the lifeworld" (Thessaloniki, Greece, August 30 - September 3), both to be given on Friday September 2nd:

— 09.00-11.30 session “Biosemiotics, Umwelt, and the Lifeworld” with my presentation “Umwelt theory for practitioners: Semiotic guidelines for application in a more-than-human descriptive phenomenology” (room 1) 

— 15:00–17:30 session “Semiotics in the Disciplines: Progress and Priorities” with my presentation “Semiotics in ethology and zoology” (room 5)

I never received any formal answer concerning my 2 other submitted abstracts. 

To be keynote speaker at comparative welfare conference in Havana 2023

The conference “Comparative Welfare: Cuban and Nordic Welfare - People`s experience of the welfare system” will be held at University of Havana, Havana, Cuba, November 27th - December 1st 2023. I have been invited as one of the keynote speakers. The conference is organized in relation to our joint project "Cuban and Nordic welfare" (CubaNor, University of Havana and University of Stavanger).

Declined to be "Review Editor" for Frontiers in Ethology

I have declined an invitation to become a Review Editor for Frontiers in Ethology. I do not trust Frontiers´ editorial model. I also don´t like the suggestion that doing 1-2 peer reviews per year makes you an "Editor".

Contribution to Kalevi Kull Festschrift published online

A Festschrift to Kalevi Kull at the occasion of his 70th birthday this summer was released in digital form today, and announced at the 22nd Gathering in biosemiotics. It is available for download online, and will soon appear in print.

Reference to my contribution:

Tønnessen, Morten 2022. Translating mind to text (and back). In Donald Favareau and Ekaterina Velmezova (eds.), Tunne loodust! Knowing Nature in the Languages of Biosemiotics (Epistemologica et historiographica linguistica Lausannensia № 4), pp. 333–337. Université de Lausanne Press.

I have attended the first four days of the 22nd Gathering in biosemiotics and am now returning back home tomorrow morning.

Google Scholar: 762 citations

According to my Google Scholar profile,  my research has by now attracted 762 citations (+15 since June 5th). This includes 54 citations in 2022 (+2 since June 5th). My i10-index remains 28 and my h-index 15. 2021 stands with 180 citations.

2nd day of 22nd Gathering in Biosemiotics; presentation by Sharov & Tønnessen on semiotic agency; 2 meetings

Today I have attended the second day of the 22nd Gathering in biosemiotics, which included a presentation by Alexei Sharov and me, held and prepared by Alexei and drawing on our book Semiotic agency: Science beyond mechanism, entitled "Toward a theory of semiotic agency". Maybe 50 people attended. The presentation was also live-streamed and is available via YouTube (see recordings from second day of the conference).

I have also attended half the editorial board meeting of Biosemiotics, at the conference venue, and attended a digital meeting with colleagues at University of Stavanger.

“Zoosemiotics beyond Sebeok” presented at 22nd Gathering in Biosemiotics in the Czech Republic

Today I have presented my paper “Zoosemiotics beyond Sebeok” in the first session of the 22nd International Gathering in Biosemiotics, which is held at Palacký University in Olomouc, the Czech Republic, June 27th - July 1st. Perhaps 60 people attended the talk. In addition, a dozen people or so followed the conference livestream on YouTube.

By now todays´ livestream has been seen by some 200 people.

Scheduled for oral presentations 27th and 28th of June at 22nd Gathering in biosemiotics in Olomouc

I have been scheduled to present my paper "Zoosemiotics beyond Sebeok" at the 22nd gathering in Biosemiotics (Olomouc, Czech Republic June 27-July 1st) on Monday June 27th at 10.40-11.00, at Palacky university.

Conference program and further info is available here. See also abstract book and the conference YouTube channel.

I am also co-author of Alexei Sharov´s presentation "Towards a theory of semiotic agency" (see pp. 111-112 in the abstract book), based on our book Semiotic agency: Science beyond mechanism, which will be held Tuesday June 28th at 11.00-11.20.

#45,5

Today I have had the last planned writing day this Spring, with altogether 45,5 writing days held. I did work on our GDP review article, with some 50 words written.

2 meetings

Today I have attended 2 scheduled meetings. This included my last regular meeting with my research assistant before the summer holidays.

This was my last day at the office / on campus before the summer holidays. Next week I will be attending the 22nd Gathering in biosemiotics in Olomouc, the Czech Republic.

5 meetings including 4 employee appraisals - total to date 63

Today I have attended the first faculty leadership group meeting in a long time - the last before the summer - and 4 employee appraisals (total this week 11, total to date 63).

4 meetings including employee appraisals and visit from Norwegian parliament

Today I have attended 3 employee appraisals (total to date: 59) and chaired a visit to the department by three members of parliament accompanied by four advisors - altogether the meeting, which addressed child welfare, was attended by some 21 people.

4 employee appraisals

Today I have had 4 more employee appraisals (total to date: 56).

2 meetings

Today I have attended 2 scheduled meetings.

#44,5

Today I have had half an article writing day, with some 100 words added to my wasted growth article in revision and to my CCS book manuscript altogether, and readings done. Number of writing days this Spring is up to 44,5.

#44

Today I have had what ended up being only half a writing day, with some 200 words added to our GDP review article. Total number of writing days this Spring is up to 44.

A meeting

Today I have attended one meeting.

3 appointments including department summer closure event

Today I have attended 3 scheduled appointments. This included a job interview and the Department of social studies´ summer closure event, which included lunch buffeet and cake and was attended by some 30 people.

6 appointments including 4 employee appraisals

Today I have attended 6 scheduled appointments, including 4 employee appraisals (total to date: 52) and the master degree closing ceremony of Faculty of social sciences, in Tjodhallen.

2 meetings

Today I have attended and chaired 1 employee appraisal (total to date: 48) and the Spring´s fourth and last department leadership group meeting.

5 appointments including 3 employee appraisals

Today I have had 5 scheduled appointments, including 3 employee appraisals (total to date: 47) and a job interview.

#43,5

Today, on writing day no. 43,5 this Spring, I have finished my Henrik Steffens chapter, with some 1.100 words written (making this the second most productive writing day this Spring in terms of words written).

Recordings of Semiotic agency presentation for Complexity discussion group now available online

Recordings of a presentation of the book Semiotic agency: Science beyond mechanism for the Complexity discussion group organized by Department of Linguistics and Language Practice at University of the Free State (South Africa) is now available online for viewing. The recordings include a presentation by Alexei Sharov (first author), me (second author), and discussion. The first presentation starts after about 12 minutes.

5 more scheduled appointments

Today I have had 3 employee appraisals (total to date: 44), a meeting, and chaired a job interview.

#42,5

Today I had half a writing day, no. 42,5 this Spring, with some 100 words written on our GDP review article.

5 scheduled appointments

Today I have had a ph.d. supervision session and 4 employee appraisals (total to date: 41).

Talk on biosemiotic perspective on human lifeworld given for Norwegian school of sport sciences

Today I have given an invited online talk for the philosophy group at Norwegian school of sport sciences (Norges idrettshøyskole), titled "Biosemiotikkens perspektiv på menneskets livsverden" (A biosemiotic perspective on the human lifeworld).

#42

Today I have had writing day no. 42 this Spring, focused on finishing splitting my initial manuscript for my first wasted growth article in three parts. And so I did. In the process, today some 400 words have been added to the texts, net.

#41

Today I have had the 41st writing day this Spring, with my UNDP letter edited and submitted to The World Bank Research Observer, and some 600 words altogether added to this text, the wasted growth article I am revising currently, and my Steffens chapter.

Google Scholar: 747 citations

According to my Google Scholar profile, my research has to date attracted 747 citations (+13 since May 1st). This includes 52 citations in 2022 (+11 since May 1st). My i10-index remains 28 (meaning that 28 of my publications have attracted 10 citations or more) and my h-index 15 (meaning that 15 publications of mine have been cited at least 15 times each).

Of my 10 most cited publications, the most recent is "The ethics of laying hen genetics" (first author M. Fernyhough), which was published in 2020 and has been cited 26 times, including 8 times so far in 2022. My 2009 article "Umwelt transitions: Uexküll and environmental change", the most central article in my ph.d. work, has been cited 57 times, including 5 times so far in 2022. My 2003 article "Umwelt ethics" has been cited 49 times, including 2 times so far in 2022 - and each year since 2008.

Fourth day of staff trip

Today, on the fourth day of the department´s staff trip, we had internal program before lunch, and then flew home to Stavanger.

Third day of staff trip to Oslo; OsloMet visited

Today, at the third day of Department of social studies´ staff trip to Oslo, we have visited Centre for the study of professions at OsloMet. Later this evening we will have our third and final dinner - at Masala Politics.

Second day of staff trip to Oslo; visit to VID, parliament

Today we have had our second day of our staff trip to Oslo (for University of Stavanger´s Department of social studies). While we had an internal programme yesterday, today we visited the university college VID, or more specifically their Faculty of social studies. We also visited the Norwegian parliament.

5 meetings including 3 employee appraisals

Today I have had 3 employee appraisals (total to date: 37) and attended 2 more scheduled meetings.

#40; May summary

Today I have had half an article writing day, with some 200 words added to my Steffens chapter, and some planning made for my wasted growth article revision. Number of writing days this Spring is up to 40. In May I had 8,5 writing days and wrote some 3.783 words.

Spør filosofen 2021

Today I have finished the financial report for my one-man company "Spør filosofen". The only income in 2021 was from music royalties. Most related expenses were also music-related. The year ended with a loss.

Talk on biosemiotics and phenomenology given for "Complexity discussion group" research seminar online

Today I have presented the book Semiotic agency: Science beyond mechanism along with Alexei Sharov in the international web research seminar "Complexity discussion group", chaired by Kobus Marais. Specifically, my part was about biosemiotics and phenomenology. The seminar was attended by some 18 people.

A UIS meeting, NASS board meeting

Today I have attended a scheduled UIS meeting, and chaired the second board meeting of The Nordic Association for Semiotic Studies (NASS) this Spring.

Altogether I have had 20 scheduled appointments this week, which may, for better or worse, be a personal record for a 4-day week, I think.

#39,5

Today I have had half a writing day devoted to my wasted GDP article, with reading done and some 100 words added to the manuscript. Number of writing days this Spring is up to 39,5.

#39

Today I have had half a writing day, spent meeting with my research assistant. Total number of writing days this Spring is up to 39.

7 meetings including 3 employee appraisals (17 meetings so far this week)

Today I have attended no less than 7 scheduled meetings, including 3 employee appraisals (total to date: 34). Mon-Wed I have attended 17 meetings (which is too many).

6 meetings

Today I have attended 6 scheduled meetings. This included a Fagforum, where Hulda Mjøll Gunnarsdottir presented, and an election meeting where a Safety Representative (verneombud) for the department was elected.

4 meetings including 3 employee appraisals

Today I have attended the weekly meeting with the office manager, and had 3 employee appraisals (total to date: 31) .... and done at least 50 emails.

#38,5

Today I have had writing day no. 38,5 this Spring, with my chapter "Semiotics in ethology and zoology" proof-read and some 1000 words added to my Steffens chapter.

Visit by Minister of Children and Families Kjersti Toppe to UIS attended

Today I have attended a visit by the Minister of Children and Families, Kjersti Toppe, to the University of Stavanger, hosted and chaired by rector Klaus Mohn and involving presentations from three of my close colleagues.

#37,5

Today I have had article writing day no. 37,5 this Spring, with work done on my UNDP letter and wasted growth articles, and some 200 words added net.

Letter "The HDI´s maximum limit for income is unfounded" rejected, submitted again

My Letter "The HDI´s maximum limit for income is unfounded" was rejected by Science, I have now submitted it to Nature.

The Routledge Handbook of Semiosis and the Brain, with my neurosemiotics chapter, to be published October 15th

The book The Routledge Handbook of Semiosis and the Brain, which will include my chapter "Beyond the human animal: Towards a cross-species neurosemiotics", is now said (on Amazon) to have October 15th as its planned publication date.

Reference:

— Tønnessen, Morten, forthcoming, 2022. Beyond the human animal: Towards a cross-species neurosemiotics. In: Adolfo García & Agustin Ibanez (eds.), The Routledge Handbook of Semiosis and the Brain (Routledge Handbooks in Linguistics). Routledge. 

On Routledge´s presentation of the book my chapter is listed as chapter 5. See also author bio on the same page.

Chronicle about "Universitetsbarnevern" in Stavanger Aftenblad

I am a co-author of the chronicle "Universitetsbarnevern – et nytt samarbeid til barnets beste" (university child welfare - a new collaboration for the best of the child) which was published in the Norwegian regional daily Stavanger Aftenblad yesterday (in print and online), along with Hulda Mjøll Gunnarsdottir, Jone Skjelbred and Knut Redalen. The chronicle refers to a collaboration between the University of Stavanger´s Department of social studies, which I am heading, and the child welfare services in the municipality of Stavanger.

4-5 scheduled meetings

Today I have attended 2 job interviews (3 were scheduled, with 1 no-show), an employee appraisal (total to date: 28) and a work planning meeting.

All appointments cancelled due to work-/stress-related sleep deprivation

Today I have cancelled/rebooked all 5 appointments I had, as a result of work-/stress-related sleep deprivation. Second time this happens this Spring.

2 job interviews and 3 employee appraisals

Today I have chaired two job interviews and three employee appraisals (total to date: 27).

#36,5

Today I have had an article writing day mostly devoted to my Steffens chapter, with some 800 words written altogether, including a little bit on my book manuscript Captured. Number of writing days this Spring is up to 36,5.

#35,5

Today I have had an article writing day (#35,5 this Spring) with some work done on our GDP article, and on my UNDP letter, which I finished and submitted as a letter to Science, titled "The HDI´s maximum limit for income is unfounded". Overall I deleted about as many words as I wrote.

2 meetings and work day turned upside-down

Today I have attended two scheduled meetings and turned my work day upside-down, with writing time in the evening rather than in the morning (I usually have writing day at daytime on Fridays).

Council of animal ethics meeting attended at Ås

On Wednesday, May 11th, I attended the second meeting this Spring of Norway´s Council for animal ethics, at Norwegian Veterinary institute, Ås.

5 employee appraisals and one more meeting

Today I have had 5 employee appraisals (total to date: 24, total this week 5), and one more scheduled meeting.

Two last days: Lederforum + 2 meetings

Today I have attended the second day of the UIS lederforum at Grand hotel in Egersund, and one more meeting at the Ullandhaug campus. Yesterday I attended a brief version of my weekly meeting with the office manager, and the first day of the Lederforum in Egersund.

#34,5

Today I have had an article writing day with some 900 words added to my Steffens chapter. I have also worked on dividing my first wasted growth article into three articles.

#33,5

Today I have had writing day no. 33,5 this Spring, with work done on our GDP article and my first wasted growth article which is now to be divided into three texts, and some 100 words written.

3 meetings including 1 employee appraisal

Today I have attended the second day of the annual unit meeting of UHR-Helse og sosial, and 2 more meetings including an employee appraisal (total to date: 19, total this week 5).

Elected as member of UHR-Helse og sosial working committee 2022-26

Today, at the second day of the annual unit meeting of UHR-Helse og sosial, I have been elected as a member of the working committee of UHR-Helse og sosial for the period 2022-2026.

4 meetings including 3 employee appraisals and UHR meeting

Today I have had 3 employee appraisals (total to date: 18) and attended the first day of the UHR-HS annual 2-day unit meeting (the latter digitally).

5 meetings including employee appraisal and 2 job interviews

Today I have attended 5 scheduled meetings. This included 1 employee appraisal (total to date 15) and 2 job interviews.

4 meetings

Today I have stayed at home, working from home office, and attended 4 scheduled meetings digitally. This included the second meeting in a work group that considers allocation of study places at the university.

#32,5

Today I have had an article writing day, with some 500 words written altogether, devoted to my Steffens chapter and the literature overview article on GDP I am co-writing with Jan Karlstrøm. Number of writing days this Spring is up to 32,5.

Google Scholar: 734 citations; 115 items; i10-index28

According to my Google Scholar profile my research has to date attracted 734 citations (+26 since March 26th). This includes 41 citations in 2022 (+25) and 178 in 2021 (+3). My i10-index is 28 (+1) while my h-index remains 15. 

115 items (texts) are now listed on my profile.

#31,5; chapter "Nosology and semiotics" revised and resubmitted

Today I have had an article writing day devoted to planning for the time ahead and finishing revising my book chapter "Nosology and semiotics". I added some 50 words to the text in the process of completing reference reformatting. This was writing day no. 31,5 this Spring. 

I had 7,5 writing days in April, and wrote some 3.200 words.

Not received printed book from publisher Springer Nature

Almost 3 months after the publication of our book Semiotic agency - science beyond mechanism, and several inquiries, I still haven't received my printed copy of the book from the publisher, Springer Nature. I am now trying to order it via my employer. Needless to say, I think this is poor author service from Springer´s side.

Employee appraisais 11-14

Today I have had 4 employee appraisals (total this week 6, total to date 14).

5 appointments

Today I have had 2 employee appraisals (total to date: 10), and 2 more scheduled meetings, including Spring´s third and last staff meeting, plus dropping by MFAMILY celebration.

2+1 meetings

Today I have attended 2 scheduled and 1 impromptu meetings. This included the third steering group meeting of Cognitive lab, which I am chairing.

#30,5

Today I have had an article writing day, no. 30,5 this Spring, devoted to literature search for my revision of the first wasted growth article, and final editing of my revised chapter "Nosology and semiotics", with some 200 words written net.

"The true value of "doing well" economically" paper accepted for presentation at ISQOLS 2022

I have been notified by the conference organizers that my paper "The true value of "doing well" economically" has been accepted for oral presentation at ISQOLS 2022, this year´s conference of the International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies, which is to be held in Burlington, Vermont - USA, August 3-6, 2022. 

#29,5; major revision of wasted growth article

Today I have had an article writing today devoted to our GDP article and revision plans for my first wasted growth article - after having received a "major revisions" decision from Humanities and Social Sciences Communications. 

7 meetings including 2 employee appraisals

Today I have attended 7 scheduled meetings, including 2 employee appraisals (total to date: 8, of which 6 this week). Other meetings included a collaborative seminar related to our new master in child welfare work, held at Ydalir hotel.

4 employee appraisals, a job interview and one more meeting

Today I had 4 employee appraisals (total to date: 6) and chaired a job interview, plus had one more scheduled meeting.

2 meetings

Today I have attended 2 scheduled meetings. This included the first faculty leadership group meeting after Easter.

#28,5

Today I have had half an article writing day, mostly devoted to finish readings in relation to the revision of my forthcoming chapter "Nosology and semiotics". Number of writing days this Spring is up to 28,5.

Paper "Zoosemiotics beyond Sebeok" accepted for presentation at 22nd gathering of biosemiotics

I have been notified by the conference organizers that my abstract "Zoosemiotics beyond Sebeok" has been accepted for oral presentation at the 22nd gathering in biosemiotics, which will be held in Olomouc, the Czech Republic, June 27th to July 1st.

2 job interviews and a scientific committee meeting

Today I have chaired 2 job interviews and attended a meeting of the scientific committee (abstract evaluation committee) for the 22nd gathering in biosemiotics. I have taken part in evaluating about 30 abstracts.

2 job interviews

Today I have chaired 2 job interviews. 

Cited extensively in Moser 2022

My research is referred to on 10 different pages in Keith Mosers new book Contemporary French Environmental Thought in the Post-COVID-19 Era. 

The first mention, on p. 5, goes like this:

Due to the omnipresence of human semiosis that interferes with the ability of other organisms to communicate effectively, “countless beings do not, any longer, master the semiotic niche conditions which according to Hoffmeyer are vital to the success of an organism” (Tønnessen, 2009, p. 54).

#28

Today, on this Spring´s 28th writing day, I have added some 200 words to my chapter "Nosology and semiotics" and done quite a bit of reading.

#27

Today, on this Spring´s 27th writing day, I have had some 700 words written on our GDP article and my second wasted growth article altogether.

A meeting and a ph.d. defense, with celebration etc.

Today I have attended a scheduled meeting and the well-attended ph.d. defense of Arve Lerum, followed by a celebratory event at the department and dissertation dinner on Ullandhaug organic farm.

2 employee appraisals and 3 more meetings

Today I have attended 5 meetings, including the 2 first employee appraisals this Spring (out of about 70). Other meetings included the steering group meeting for Network for welfare research.

A meeting; home office

Today I have had home office, with a child on sick leave, and attended 1 scheduled meeting.

4 meetings

Today I have attended 4 scheduled meetings, including working committee meeting in UHR-Helse og sosial.

#26

Today I have had this Spring´s 26th article writing day, with some 1.100 words written. This is the most productive day this Spring so far in terms of words written.

#25

Today I have had the 25th article writing day this Spring, devoted to my second wasted growth article and our literature overview article on GDP in the context of welfare and environment, with some 600 words written and a meeting with my research assistant held.

5 meetings

Today I have attended 5 scheduled meetings.

2 meetings and a seminar

Today I have attended 2 scheduled meetings. Currently I am attending a Network for welfare research seminar featuring Tarjei Leer-Salvesen.