Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Reposted by Brendan Halpin

Laura Martínez 🥑 @miblogestublog.bsky.social · 1d

Things that may mean you’re either very rich or very poor:

- To own a horse
- To have a family member in prison
- To have many children
- To own an old car
- That not just anyone can enter your neighborhood
- Ripped/Torn clothes
- Intermittent fasting

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Dermot Casey @dermotcasey.bsky.social · 22h

We need to stop the small number of people objecting to infrastructure AND
We need not to annoy the small number of people objecting to saving the planet is an interesting set of beliefs to hold at the same time

Joe Noonan @joenoonan.bsky.social · 1d

“I don’t think we can mitigate for climate change.”

- Mícheál Martin, Taoiseach.

www.independent.ie/business/tec...

Taoiseach says some climate projects will not be fulfilled because they risk polarising society

Taoiseach Micheál Martin has rowed back on climate change commitments, saying Ireland may not be able fulfil all current initiatives due to the polarising effect it could have on society.

www.independent.ie

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Don Moynihan @donmoyn.bsky.social · 1d

Immigrant Nobel Prize winners exiting the United States

Florian Scheuer @florianscheuer.bsky.social · 1d

I am delighted to share that Nobel laureates Esther Duflo and Abhijit Banerjee will join our Department of Economics @econ.uzh.ch at the University of Zurich on July 1, 2026, as Lemann Foundation Professors of Economics.

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Brendan Halpin @bthalpin.bsky.social · 19h

Matignon as Hotel California

POLITICO Europe @politico.eu · 19h

🚨 BREAKING: French President Emmanuel Macron today reappointed Sébastien Lecornu as prime minister — less than a week after Lecornu’s stunning resignation as PM plunged France into a political crisis.

Full story:

Macron picks Lecornu as French PM again

The 39-year-old head of government abruptly resigned Monday, thrusting the country into crisis.

www.politico.eu

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Brendan Halpin @bthalpin.bsky.social · 19h

www.lemonde.fr/en/economy/a...

Nobel-winning economists Duflo and Banerjee will leave US for Switzerland

The University of Zurich said that Nobel laureates Esther Duflo and Abhijit Banerjee, known for their work in development economics, will move from the US to Switzerland, amid Donald Trump's attacks o...

www.lemonde.fr

Brendan Halpin @bthalpin.bsky.social · 19h

Yeah but look at the technological innovation. I mean, this kinda was earth-breaking (no pun intended) ... in London in the 1860s when they started digging the Underground.

Ars Technica @arstechnica.com · 20h

The company’s alleged violations include starting to dig without approval, releasing untreated water onto city streets, and spilling muck from its trucks.

Boring Company cited for almost 800 environmental violations in Las Vegas

Violations include digging without permits and dumping wastewater into storm drains.

arstechnica.com

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Shane O'Mara @shanewriter.bsky.social · 2d

Brilliant letter - well worth reading and acting upon. I suggest cc'ing it to your local party TDs.

Brendan Halpin @bthalpin.bsky.social · 2d

Open letter to Irish minister who's pushing ChatControl from @mariafarrell.bsky.social
crookedtimber.org/2025/10/07/c...

Chat control in Europe, an open letter to the Irish Minister who wants to scan all our messages — Crooked Timber

crookedtimber.org

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The Volatile Mermaid @ohnoshetwitnt.bsky.social · 1d

Breaking: Trump awarded Nobel Pissed Prize

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April Glick Pulito @aprilglick.bsky.social · 1d

Nobel committee subtweeting Trump

Reuters @reuters.com · 1d

'When authoritarians seize power, it is crucial to recognize courageous defenders of freedom who rise and resist,' the Norwegian Nobel Committee said as it announced Maria Corina Machado as the winner of the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize

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The Irish Times @irishtimes.com · 1d

Three Sisters at Dublin Theatre Festival: Saoirse-Monica Jackson gives a sharp turn in a fresh take on Chekhov

Dublin Theatre Festival 2025 review: Ciara Elizabeth Smyth’s honed adaptation shifts towards surreal comedy

www.irishtimes.com

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Brendan Halpin @bthalpin.bsky.social · 1d

These are the serious people, the grown-ups in the room, pragmatically and responsibly managing a trade-off between doing the right thing and doing what their supporters want

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Brendan Halpin @bthalpin.bsky.social · 1d

ROGD is like those accounts of road accidents where the victim (other vehicle, pedestrian or cyclist) "appeared out of nowhere"

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Izzy Kamikaze @izzykamikaze.bsky.social · 1d

Nevertheless, Genspect continues to bandy about Littman's junk science concept of ROGD as if it were a valid diagnosis. Unlike the AGP myth, which targets trans women, the ROGD pseudo-diagnosis is largely used against young trans men & nonbinary youth who are depicted as easily influenced...

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Brendan Halpin @bthalpin.bsky.social · 1d

LLMs tell the time with the same mechanism as a stopped clock.

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POLITICO Europe @politico.eu · 2d

Less than 24 hours after the European Parliament voted to ban plant-based foods across the EU from using names like “burger,” “sausage” or “steak” — the institution’s canteen in Strasbourg served up a “vegan burger” as its healthy lunch option.

EU Parliament votes to ban veggie burgers — then serves them for lunch

The ink was barely dry on the European Parliament’s prohibition across the bloc when its own chefs dished up “vegan burgers,” leaving lawmakers choking on the irony.

www.politico.eu

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Tony - Pod Guy - Groves @tonygroves.bsky.social · 2d

Hundreds of people are reporting that leaves are falling off trees in every single area that Catherine Connolly has visited recently. Coincidence? Maybe. But can we take that risk with the presidency?

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Brendan Halpin @bthalpin.bsky.social · 2d

I keep saying his entourage should invent a No-Bell prize and stage a ceremony to award it to him; he won't know the difference and it would keep him quiet for 3 or 4 days.

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David Roberts @volts.wtf · 2d

It really can't be said enough: the goal of the "anti-woke" movement was always to destroy social norms against bigotry. And it worked. And there's a whole lot of purportedly "left" thinkers & commentators who helped it -- indeed, it couldn't have been done without them.

They should feel bad.

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Brendan Halpin @bthalpin.bsky.social · 2d

Open letter to Irish minister who's pushing ChatControl from @mariafarrell.bsky.social
crookedtimber.org/2025/10/07/c...

Chat control in Europe, an open letter to the Irish Minister who wants to scan all our messages — Crooked Timber

crookedtimber.org

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Stephanie McKenzie @stephaniemac.bsky.social · 2d

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The Author, Séamas O'Reilly @seamas.bsky.social · 2d

I write full time largely because of one thread about getting high with the Irish president. As cringe as it is to admit, my entire life has been massively enhanced by Twitter and ketamine over precisely the same time that those two things have proven less beneficial for Elon Musk.

Conrad Hackett @conradhackett.bsky.social · 3d

Has anything great happened in your life because of social media?

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Joanne Harris @joannechocolat.bsky.social · 3d

The reason the Right are so invested in the myth that the arts have no value isn’t because the arts don’t generate wealth (they do); it’s that studying the arts teaches people to imagine better ways of judging the value of an idea than by counting how much money it makes…

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Saoirse McHugh @saoirsemc.bsky.social · 2d

😭 help . I planted a beefsteak tomato thinking it was going to grow bits of cattle flesh but it was just tomato. I'm so confused, the EU parliament needs to help me. I've been tricked and mislead

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Josef O'Shea @josefoshea.bsky.social · 2d

EU 'veggie burger' rule change will impact the following foods:

• Buffalo Wings
• Toad In The Hole
• Fish Fingers
• Deviled Eggs
• Caeser Salad (unless it contains at least 33% ancient Roman dictator)

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