FK Malinowski
@fkmalina.bsky.social
A physicist, trying to make lab work easier. Some quotes, comments and bite-sized book recommendations.
Book recommendation: It's a rare 10/10 must-read! On the one hand it clearly exposes extreme risk related to climate change. (It's worse than you think.) On the other keeps a casual attitude, degree of positivity, and gives concrete recommendations motivating you to act.
My new book #WhatHappenedToLiberalDemocracy is out on August 11. Here is a brief message about my motivation for writing this book and its central thesis. Pre-order links are available here: shapingwork.mit.edu/what-happene.... I hope you will join me in the discussion.
Under a Binface government, anyone who doesn’t accept human-made climate change as fact will be sent back to school, from Year 1 right the way to A Levels, to see if anything goes in the second time round. #VoteBinface
Cream cheese: 700 ml whole milk 150 ml plain yogurt 2 teaspoons lemon juice Teaspoon salt Warm to 80-90°C and keep at that temperature for 2-4 hours, until large curds form Strain through cloth, give it about an hour Enjoy
Book recommendation: Fun list book on a very serious matter. And it teaches you that, unfortunately, a plane trip (work or vacation) more than once a year is incompatible with livable world climate.
Behold the abomination! The unholy spawn of Satan! Haggis pizza!
"We present an automated quantum dot spin qubit tune-up procedure."
Book recommendation: One may raise many valid objections about the book's assumptions leading to high mean earth warming for "optimal" economic outcome. But from other perspective - since those are assumptions on which modern economy runs, the book predicts where we are heading.
Book recommendation: It feels unimaginable, but even in the best case scenario we look at a climate-driven displacement of hundreds of millions of people over coming decades. That's best case. Panic is rarely useful. But a healthy dose of fear when your house is on fire is fully justified.
Book recommendation: When you wrongfully get denied a loan, service or dignity because of personal decision, you can rightly try to hold the decider accountable. But when it's the same happens because of a placeholder policy... The "Rage Against the Machine" name suddenly feels much more relatable.
Deadline Sunday! Our $2,500 Ctrl-Z Award recognizes scientists who discover substantial errors in their published work and take meaningful steps to correct the scientific record. More details and nomination form here:
The Ctrl-Z Award: Recognizing the courage to correct or retract published work
The Ctrl-Z Award recognizes and celebrates scientists who discover substantial errors in their published work and take meaningful steps to correct the scientific record — even if doing so risks pro…
retractionwatch.com
Book recommendation: Commodity with no value meets market with no regulation. What's the worst that could happen?
Yes... Google AI now presents answers based on research published in... _Journal of Astrological Big Data Ecology_! 🤣 Can't wait for references to JABDE to appear in Elsevier publications. (jabde.com)
Journal of Astrological Big Data Ecology@jabde.bsky.social · 3mo agoUPDATE! I’m in the model
Book recommendation: Another reminder that nothing - product, program, safety system, or (my addition) organizational structure can work well without profound input from those who use it (or operate under it).
It's quite exciting to start learning that phenomena like red tape and corruption can be modeled. Sure, the models start simple, and shouldn't be simplistically applied. But once the mathematics captures some aspects of reality, the research can become more concrete and testable.
Co-director @simonhrjohnson.bsky.social & others submitted an Amicus Brief to the Supreme Court. The brief argues that US companies should be liable if their technology is used to surveil workers or suppress wages in ways that violate human rights. www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/24...
SF writers: if you've ever been curious as to how one might terraform Mars, I'm happy to report that They Did The Math.
A research roadmap for assessing the feasibility of warming Mars
This roadmap outlines research pathways to determine whether Mars could be warmed with non-biological methods. It does not presuppose that warming Mars is desirable; its purpose is to identify what wo...
arxiv.org
Book recommendation: _I recommend the book by this author with no qualifications whatsoever._
The IgNobel Prizes, usually bestowed at a ceremony in Cambridge, Mass, are moving to Europe this year due to security concerns for honorees and journalists coming to the US from abroad. I bet I know who's going to win the IgNobel Peace Prize this year. arstechnica.com/science/2026...
Ig Nobels ceremony moves to Europe over security concerns
Marc Abraham: “During the past year, it has become unsafe for our guests to visit the country."
arstechnica.com
A phenomenal conversation about valuing an individual, and interplay of public, private and personal.
Project Syndicate@projectsyndicate.bsky.social · 5mo agoIn a new #InsiderInterview, @dacemoglumit.bsky.social and Michael J. Sandel examine the dark side of meritocracy, the limits of markets, the meaning of freedom, and tech companies’ tightening grip on the public sphere. Click the link to read and watch: bit.ly/4lePFi0 @berggruen.org
Book recommendation: The career of 2021 Nobel Peace Prize winning Filipino-American journalist Maria Ressa, told by herself, describing the fight for facts in the social-media driven internet manipulated by wannabe dictators.
Book recommendation: (Candidate for my most insightful read of 2026) Let's consider that I know something. That you know, I know. I know, that you know, that I know, that you know... No matter how long the chain, adding "ad infinitum" is makes the difference between a dictatorship and a revolution.
Book recommendation: Another reminder that we are less rational than Economics 101 assumes, directly from one of the fathers of behavioral economics.
Book recommendation: "You scratch my back, I scratch yours"... that makes sense as an evolutionary start to cooperation. But what about the time after you scratched me, and before I scratched you? History of complex borrowing schemes is much older than subprime mortgage crisis.
With all the noise around AI, I hope this Report provides policymakers, researchers, and the public with the reliable evidence they need to make more informed choices. We also have an “Extended Summary for Policymakers”: internationalaisafetyreport.org/publication/... (18/19)
2026 Report: Extended Summary for Policymakers
The Extended Summary for Policymakers of the 2026 International AI Safety Report. The second International AI Safety Report, published in February 2026, is the next iteration of the comprehensive revi...
internationalaisafetyreport.org
From surveillance by Google and Meta to OpenAI's use of copyrighted material, US tech giants have a long history of competitive practices that are patently injurious to consumers and workers, points out Sandeep Vaheesan. bit.ly/3OjK8u1
Europe Should Reject US-Style Competitiveness
Sandeep Vaheesan challenges the belief that allowing pernicious business tactics is vital to the EU's economic success.
bit.ly
Here's a power metal summary of scipost.org/10.21468/Sci.... It is fairly comprehensive and accurate. The text is generated by codex, the graphic by chatGPT, and the music by ACE-step. The research is of me and my coauthors :) I am honestly impressed by ACE-step.
