Exploring New Faculty Books: AI, 1990s Russia, and Song Interpretation

Published Date : 12/06/2025 

Discover the latest books from University of Washington faculty, covering topics from artificial intelligence to 1990s Russia and song interpretation. 

Recent faculty books from the University of Washington include those from linguistics, Slavic languages and literature, and French. UW News spoke with the authors of four publications to learn more about their work.

Scrutinizing and Confronting AI Hype

Emily M. Bender, a UW professor of linguistics, co-authored “The AI Con: How to Fight Big Tech’s Hype and Create the Future We Want” with Alex Hanna, the director of research at the Distributed AI Research Institute. The book delves into the drawbacks of technologies sold under the banner of artificial intelligence. Bender and Hanna offer a resounding no to pressing questions: Is AI going to take over the world? Have big tech scientists created an artificial lifeform that can think on its own?

This kind of thinking is a symptom of AI hype, they write, which twists words and helps the rich get richer by justifying data theft and motivating surveillance capitalism. In “The AI Con,” Bender and Hanna explain how to spot AI hype, deconstruct it, and expose the power grabs it aims to hide. The book grew out of a podcast co-hosted by Bender and Hanna called “Mystery AI Hype Theater 3000.”

“The podcast uses ridicule as praxis to cope with and deflate the hype around AI,” Bender said. “Our goal with both the podcast and book is to both take on the current hype cycle and empower our audience to deploy the same strategies with the hype they are encountering. The book is an interdisciplinary project, blending Alex’s expertise in sociology with mine in linguistics, to look at why certain language technologies in particular pose risks and how the use of these technologies can do damage in various contexts.”

For more information, contact Bender at ebender@uw.edu.

Two Recent Books Explore Translation and 1990s Russia

José Alaniz, a professor of Slavic languages and literature, published two novels in March: “Moscow 93” and “Tales of Bart: A Novel in Three Acts.” “Tales of Bart” follows the exploits of “evil” translator Fruitvale Bart as the setting shifts from Republic-era Texas to 19th-century Czarist Russia to far-future Atalanta to 1990s Los Angeles.

Each of the vignettes was purportedly translated by Bart himself. But, the book asks, what is translation: subservience to a pre-existing text or a creative act? Both? Neither? “Tales of Bart” explores these questions as well as the nature of art, the legacies of colonialist violence, the alienation of postmodern life, and the horrors of the self.

“I was intrigued with the position of the translator, the tremendous power they have to shape communication between cultures,” Alaniz said. “And the ways translation is therefore about power, which one can use for good or evil ends.”

The second book, “Moscow 93,” takes place in 1990s Russia, where 20-something Chicano journalist José Alonzo is looking to make a name for himself. But things are never what they seem in this new post-Soviet country striving for freedom and democracy—and falling short. At the opening of a New York-style night club on Red Square, partygoers will have a life-or-death national crisis erupt in their faces.

“Moscow 93” is an auto-fictional account of Alaniz’s experiences before, during, and after the 1993 October events, when a violent revolt against President Boris Yeltsin erupted in the capital. By the time it ended, army tanks shelled the parliament building. The book blends horror and farce, presenting Russia in the first decade after communism through the lens of a sordid expat scene.

“The mini-civil war that erupted in Moscow in fall of 1993, which I experienced as a journalist, seemed to be a good lens through which to view the whole of early post-Soviet Russia,” Alaniz said. “I decided to write an auto-fictional account of that era, which plays fast and loose with some of the facts but nonetheless delivers an incisive portrait of what it was like to live and work there then as an ex-pat.”

For more information, contact Alaniz at jos23@uw.edu.

Following the Journey of ‘Ne me quitte pas’

Maya Angela Smith, a UW professor of French, published “Ne me quitte pas: A Song by Jacques Brel and Interpreted by Nina Simone and Others” in February. The book follows the long and varied journey of the classic song, “Ne me quitte pas.” Brel, a Belgian singer-songwriter, debuted the song in 1959 as a haunting plea for his lover to return. In the mid-1990s, Nina Simone’s 1965 cover so captivated a teenage Smith that it inspired her future profession. In her book, Smith shows how the song travels across languages, geographies, genres, and generations while accumulating shifting artistic and cultural significance.

Smith said the book emerged from “Reclaiming Venus,” a memoir she wrote about Alvenia Bridges, a woman who worked behind the scenes in the music industry.

“When this project was accepted, I realized I needed to hone my musical analysis skills,” Smith said. “I decided to take songwriting courses through Berklee College of Music online so I could do the close reading of the song justice. Because of UW’s RRF and Simpson Center’s Society of Scholars, I had the resources and feedback necessary to write what has turned out to be my favorite book project so far.”

For more information, contact Smith at mayaas@uw.edu. 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQS): 

Q: What is the main focus of Emily M. Bender's book 'The AI Con'?

A: The main focus of 'The AI Con' is to deconstruct AI hype and expose the power grabs it aims to hide, while empowering readers to recognize and counteract AI hype in their own lives.

Q: What are the themes explored in José Alaniz's book 'Tales of Bart'?

A: The themes explored in 'Tales of Bart' include the nature of translation, the role of translators in shaping communication between cultures, the nature of art, the legacies of colonialist violence, and the alienation of postmodern life.

Q: What is the setting and context of 'Moscow 93' by José Alaniz?

A: The setting of 'Moscow 93' is 1990s Russia, where a 20-something Chicano journalist is trying to make a name for himself. The context is the early post-Soviet era, marked by a violent revolt against President Boris Yeltsin in 1993.

Q: How did Maya Angela Smith's personal experience influence her book 'Ne me quitte pas'?

A: Maya Angela Smith's personal experience with Nina Simone's cover of 'Ne me quitte pas' as a teenager inspired her to delve into the song's journey across languages, geographies, and genres, leading to her book.

Q: What resources did Maya Angela Smith use to write her book 'Ne me quitte pas'?

A: Maya Angela Smith used resources from the University of Washington's RRF and the Simpson Center's Society of Scholars, as well as songwriting courses from Berklee College of Music online, to write her book. 

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