In the lovely city of Örebro today, with @janetahlberg.bsky.social. The city center is dominated by the looming bulk of the castle, medieval with later additions.
Per Ahlberg
@perahlberg.bsky.social
Palaeontologist at Uppsala University. Early vertebrate enthusiast. Moderately effective gardener. He/him. Views my own. Enemy of AI slop. The photo is me, not some random bloke. Background image from Ymer Island, north-East Greenland.🇸🇪🇺🇦🇨🇦🇬🇱🇪🇺🇬🇧
The Swedish Football Association has declared that it has no confidence in Infantino. 👍
Out in the forest again for more bilberries, and this time we chanced upon a stand of peach-leaved bellflower (stor blåklocka in Swedish), Campanula persicifolia. It was the favourite flower of my grandfather, Rudolf Forssell (born 1889), and always flowers around his birthday.
Artificial grass. Fake ‘antique patina’ and hand-tool marks on machine-made modern junk. Failure to distinguish between ‘principle’ and ‘principal’. Sorry, couldn’t stop at one.
Sanjay Srivastava@sanjaysrivastava.com · 6d agoWhat is an extremely nerdy/obscure/specific thing you hate with a white-hot wrath?
Having seen Nolan's Odyssey today, in its IMAX glory, I'm minded to share my thoughts about it. My qualifications for joining the furious hubbub are an interested-amateur knowledge of Greek mythology and Bronze Age archaeology, and...err...that's it. But lack of expertise hasn't stopped anyone else,
Off to the local forest today with @janetahlberg.bsky.social to pick bilberries (Vaccinium myrtillus).
Dahlias on the kitchen table. From left to right, Bishop of York, Mexican Star, Bishop of Oxford. Cut and arranged by @janetahlberg.bsky.social
A bit of a tough day for various reasons, but at least there are water lilies! James Brydon.
1. We—@eduede.bsky.social, @mjcrockett.bsky.social, Kevin Gross, and I—have a new preprint on the arXiv today, based on ideas that emerged during an @sfiscience.bsky.social workshop in November 2024: The unintended consequences of large language models as a labor-augmenting technology in science.
The unintended consequences of large language models as a labor-augmenting technology in science
As a labor-augmenting technology, large language models (LLMs) have the potential to accelerate scientific activity across the research pipeline. But even if LLMs perform on par with human experts at ...
arxiv.org
"Hence our dismal conclusion: rather than finding that LLMs free us to do a better job of what we were doing before they came along, they shift scientific incentives (and the playing field of academic competition) in ways that compel us to do more and more, faster and faster, less and less well."
Carl T. Bergstrom@carlbergstrom.com · 2w ago1. We—@eduede.bsky.social, @mjcrockett.bsky.social, Kevin Gross, and I—have a new preprint on the arXiv today, based on ideas that emerged during an @sfiscience.bsky.social workshop in November 2024: The unintended consequences of large language models as a labor-augmenting technology in science.
The strangest thing happened today. We went to the uninhabited island of Lunga, west of Mull, to look at the puffins nesting there. I was just taking photos when I felt a thump as something landed quite heavily in my head. It was a puffin! It stayed for about a minute before flying off.
@irishrainforest.bsky.social, here’s one for you! We are on Mull, staying in Tobermory, and the local rainforest is gorgeous. Small hazel and birch, occasional large oak and sycamore, and carpets of ferns and mosses everywhere.
Now the other water lily is out! This is Arc-en-ciel, named for its supposed rainbow colour though it mostly looks white to me. Lovely anyway.
Per Ahlberg@perahlberg.bsky.social · last mo.
I just signed a @theactionnetwork.bsky.social petition: An Open Letter In Support of Scientific American. Sign here: actionnetwork.org/petitions/an...
An Open Letter In Support of Scientific American
We are looking for your support by signing the letter below. It calls on Springer Nature to ensure that as part of the sale, LabX Media will rehire laid off union workers, restore staff salaries to pr...
actionnetwork.org
Some roses, because it’s rose season. Rosa gallica var. Officinalis, the Apothecary’s Rose, also the Red Rose of Lancaster. Perhaps the oldest rose in cultivation. The camera struggles to capture its extraordinarily intense colour.
High summer is here, hot and humid, as we get a lick (but thankfully no more than that) of the infernal heat wave that’s tormenting continental Europe. The pond looks like a documentary from the Pantanal. And the first water lily has opened! The lovely James Brydon. Golden lily in background.
Only it doesn't. It doesn't upend anything, because NOBODY in the early tetrapods research community believed that all early tetrapods had a tadpole-like larval stage or that this was a key enabler of the transition to land. I have been at the heart of this community for 40 years and I KNOW.😡
Husaby Church, near Kinekulle. The place where king Olof Skötkonung converted to Christianity and was baptized in 1008. The tower is late 11th century, possibly the oldest stone building in Sweden (excluding Skåne, which was Danish then). And yes, it really looks like this! No filter.
On the road back home, stopped off in the town Lidköping for lunch in its lovely 17th century Old Town Hall. But what’s this? A plaque on the wall points to a nightmarish revenant from 20th century British horror fiction.
Off on a cruise into the Gothenburg archipelago on the S:t Erik, built in 1881. Long since converted from steam to diesel, alas, but you can’t have everything.
As a slight tweak on the theme, here are three perfect covers, all from the golden years of the late 60s: 1. Joe Cocker - “With a little help from my friends” 2. Janis Joplin - “Summertime” 3. Jimi Hendrix - “All along the watchtower”
Soumya Rangarajan, MD, MPP@soumya-goblue.bsky.social · 2mo ago#3PerfectSongs 1. Nina Simone - “Feeling Good” 2. Portishead - “Roads” (especially the 1997 Roseland NYC version) 3. Chris Cornell- “Billie Jean”
Today we made an excursion to Store Mosse National Park, just a stone’s throw from Hädinge. The largest area of bog in southern Sweden. Absolutely vast, what you see in the photos is just a small part.
Here’s where we spent Midsummer: Hädinge (near Värnamo in Småland) in the evening sunshine. Big family gathering, a whirlwind of children and dogs. A good time was had by all.
Timeline cleanser. Stjärnorp Ravine - somewhat surprisingly, owned by a branch of the Douglas family since the 17th century - offers flowing water, birdsong, and swathes of ostrich-feather fern.
Now all the tall bearded irises of the main bed are in full bloom. Here’s a roll call: Proud Tradition (which you have seen before):
The first roses are out! First out the gate, as usual, is this white Centifolia. Uncertain origin, probably Dutch 16th century. Delicate flowers, but the plant is a 2 metre tall cascade of living barbed wire that tried to snag me every time I pass.
Some lovely new garden photos by @janetahlberg.bsky.social. First up, peony Coral Sunset which has just opened in the front garden.
