Ariel
@sycoraxpine.bsky.social
Reader, amateur beekeeper, theatregoer, prof, chicken enthusiast, perpetually novice aerialist, feeder of two cats and one small (human) dragon
📢PROJECT UPDATE📢 You may have seen the news that the University of Exeter, home of the wills project, has placed 500 academics at risk of redundancy. The project leader Prof. Jane Whittle & project co-investigator Dr Laura Sangha are both at risk, alongside almost all of the History department. 1/
The first thing I'd notice if AI went away would be search engines becoming usable again
New: The US is enduring one of its worst wildfire seasons in years, with blazes scorching millions of acres. It’s part of a global pattern of hot, dry conditions that favor fires becoming more common with climate change. Free link. www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
Global Wildfire Surge Hits US, Propelled by Rising Temperatures
Blazes in the Western US and Europe point to a global shift: Climate change is making fire weather more extreme and more widespread.
bloomberg.com
From my experience in former history dept that went from about 25 to 6, people went on to a mix, not all compulsory. Some to other universities, some late career into writing and researching + semi early retirement, some independent scholars. Those staying in unis, a good number now precarious.
13. 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.
Certainly in my field (of the humanities) this has already been the result of the imposition/infiltration of a capitalist, industrialist "productivity" model on academic research: contemplation and free inquiry time as see as waste in this model, to the detriment of curiosity and innovation.
Carl T. Bergstrom@carlbergstrom.com · 2w ago12. Here's the key insight though: as labor-augmenting technologies LLMs make researchers more productive and therefore they *raise the opportunity cost of researcher time*. As a result researchers will have incentives to invest less time in polishing a current project before moving on to a new one.
Everything I hear from friends, colleagues, students, public figures using AI to do research indicates that we are doing less "broad reading" and "deep thinking" than ever before. What AI produces is the ability to do everything in a rushed frenzy of false productivity, relying on it to summarize.
Carl T. Bergstrom@carlbergstrom.com · 2w ago2. When I express concern about how LLMs are changing the way that we do science, people often say "No, it's be great. AI will do all the boring bullshit and tedious drudge work. We'll finally have time to read broadly and think deeply."
Endometriosis takes nine years to diagnose. That’s about to change. NICE has approved two tests: a saliva test reading microRNA markers, and a gut-sensor test returning results in 45 minutes, sparing women the keyhole surgery currently needed. buff.ly/QX3jHk8 #ShareGoodNewsToo
Rapid endometriosis tests to be made available on NHS in England and Wales
Saliva and gut sensor-based tests hailed as ‘gamechanger’ for millions of women who can wait years for diagnosis
buff.ly
If a business is willing to ignore the human dignity, rights, and safety of their workers for profit, there is absolutely no way they are going to care about those same things in their customers. The profit drive endangers everyone.
Ian Carrillo@iansociologo.bsky.social · 4d agoOne thing I document in my book is that companies that engage in slave labor are also going to have all kinds of other health, safety, and labor violations.
Capital One said in a court filing late Friday that it closed accounts belonging to President Donald Trump’s sprawling real estate company in 2021 for legitimate reasons after an internal review by the bank’s anti-money laundering team.
Capital One Cites Money Laundering Review in Trump-Related Suit
Capital One Financial Corp. said in a court filing late Friday that it closed accounts belonging to President Donald Trump’s sprawling real estate company in 2021 for legitimate reasons after an internal review by the bank’s anti-money laundering team.
bloom.bg
Whether we officially categorize it as ‘pandemic’ or ‘hyperendemic’, the reality is that “during COVID” is now.
“The biggest problem is that the conclusion doesn't match the data.” Allen said. “If you look strictly at the data, the conclusion is a small HEPA filter that's turned off doesn't work.” www.cidrap.umn.edu/covid-19/can...
Can air purifiers prevent flu and COVID-19 in nursing homes? Only if they’re used properly
cidrap.umn.edu
It really really really bugs me how many people simply do not understand what it means when the government tries to convict you even IF THEY FAIL TO DO IT. Do you know how many thousands of dollars in legal fees it costs? You will most likely lose your job. You might lose your home.
It's been two and a half months since the Ebola outbreak in the DRC was declared and it is now the biggest the country has ever experienced and the second largest the world has ever seen. Dozens of cases continue to be reported each day across three separate provinces. 🧪 insp.cd/sitrep-n077-...
Glad someone senior from the sector is pushing back. Labour MPs need to understand the serious real anger from graduates and the people who produce them. And the dangerous financial situation they have allowed to fester, or indeed worsened, in one of Britain’s leading sectors.
Labour has harmed universities as much as Trump, London School of Economics head says
LSE vice-chancellor Larry Kramer points to domestic student fees freeze, international student limits and rise in employers’ national insurance
ft.com
UN: Uganda is experiencing a growing climate of fear as increasing restrictions on fundamental freedoms leave opposition supporters, journalists, human rights defenders and civil society groups at heightened risk of abuse, according to the UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR).
Don't forget that Audible is owned by Amazon and you should use @libro.fm instead, which allows you to support an indie bookstore in the process
Buy audiobooks & support local bookstores
Libro.fm makes it possible for you to buy audiobooks directly through local bookstores.
libro.fm
It’s important to understand “age verification” and “kick the kids off social media” laws as a gift to Big Tech. These policies allow surveillance capitalism to chug along full steam ahead and let Silicon Valley giants off the hook. Instead of regulating their biz model, we just put up age gates
Google didn't just add AI to Google Earth—it briefly turned one of the world's most trusted sources of evidence into a generator of plausible fakes. shirin anlen & Sam Gregory from WITNESS on a foreseeable fiasco, and why tech firms must consult civil society experts before launch, not after.
Google Earth AI Fiasco Underscores Why Tech Firms Must Listen to Outside Experts
It's just one more parable in a long line of product releases by AI firms with potentially dangerous consequences, write shirin anlen and Sam Gregory.
techpolicy.press
I work at a public library. People who want to use AI seem to have no trouble doing so. People who don't want to use AI have a harder time. I crowdsourced and then finalized this document "How to disable or avoid intrusive AI" and then gave it a short URL: notoai.org Please pass along if it's useful
You can read entire articles by commentators about how Dems should handle immigration that literally don't mention ICE at all. It's as if the last 18 months never happened. It's utterly baffling.
G Elliott Morris@gelliottmorris.com · 5d agoTo be making the argument in 2026 that immigration is a Republican leaning issue so Democrats shouldn’t campaign on it, and especially Trump’s overreach on deportations, is to be completely ignorant of the data and events of the last 18 months
This means that many reporters today can't get exclusive access to police info, even if they write sympathetic stories. At the same time, Black Lives Matter reshaped attitudes towards police, and Black journalists publicly critiqued the objective news norms that led to police-friendly coverage.
In the past, police reporters largely worked inside police departments—cops and journalists were coworkers, and close relationships shaped the coverage that critics today call "copaganda." But in recent years, cops kicked the reporters out, and banned rank and file officers from talking to press.
Someone sat opposite me in a museum cafe today. After a pause she pointed to my mask and said, “Sorry - is something wrong with you?” The tone wasn’t aggressive, so I looked up from my book and said, “no, I just don’t like getting sick.” “Oh. Do you find that actually makes a difference?” “Yes.”
Telltale DNA: First direct evidence found that the Spanish brought smallpox to the Inca The findings provide definitive proof that the disease was present during early colonization. Read more: https://bit.ly/4fFgJVe 📷: Draceane / Wikipedia
Women's pro bike racing at an all-time high. Women's professional basketball at an all-time high. Pay equity for women in pro tennis, surfing and 26.2 racing. An assault on the 4-minute mile for women is looming. There are so many good things happening in women's sports and more that can be done.