Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Arun Mannodi Kanakkithodi @mannodiarun.bsky.social · Aug 17

I’m in Mexico for work and pleasure.

Arun Mannodi Kanakkithodi @mannodiarun.bsky.social · Aug 5

Jesus Christ. If you're not constantly speaking out against this, you are part of the problem.

www.purdueexponent.org/campus/gener...

ICE releases Purdue student after five days detained

Yeonsoo Go, a rising sophomore at Purdue University, was released Monday after getting detained by ICE for five days. This news comes after many friends and family rallied together in support of her r...

www.purdueexponent.org

2

Arun Mannodi Kanakkithodi @mannodiarun.bsky.social · Jul 28

Spent a few days in Santa Fe, NM, at the LANL-Purdue AI/ML workshop. Always love being in New Mexico as I can throw in a few quick hikes.

1

Arun Mannodi Kanakkithodi @mannodiarun.bsky.social · Jul 23

RIP. One of my all time favs.

Arun Mannodi Kanakkithodi @mannodiarun.bsky.social · Jul 16

Apropos of nothing, my dog Nebula.

1 2

Arun Mannodi Kanakkithodi @mannodiarun.bsky.social · Jul 16

This is an absolutely lovely read.

Jude "BE NOT AFRAID #4 Out Now" Doyle @judedoyle.bsky.social · Jul 16

At the newsletter: I tried to avoid having any feelings about this year by getting a dog. He's a good dog. It's a bad year: jude-doyle.ghost.io/living-with-...

Living With the Black Dog

On a dog that is afraid of everything, and a year when everything is scary.

jude-doyle.ghost.io

1 1 4

Arun Mannodi Kanakkithodi @mannodiarun.bsky.social · Jul 9

Attending the NIST AIMS workshop in Rockville, MD. I gave a talk on my group’s DFT-ML work.

www.nist.gov/news-events/... Artificial Intelligence for Materials Science (AIMS) Workshop | NIST

3

Arun Mannodi Kanakkithodi @mannodiarun.bsky.social · Jul 9

I long for the good old days of a few years ago when this insane sentence would not have existed

performative male @milesklee.bsky.social · Jul 8

xAI has disabled Grok, deleted a slew of its antisemitic and neo-Nazi posts, posted a statement, and are evidently rolling back the prompt that made it identify as "MechaHitler," but this new low for Elon Musk's chatbot will live in internet infamy:

Elon Musk's Grok Chatbot Goes Full Nazi, Calls Itself 'MechaHitler'

Elon Musk's Grok chatbot has unleashed a slew of antisemitic commentary and praised Hitler after apparent change allowed to be 'politically incorrect'

www.rollingstone.com

1

Arun Mannodi Kanakkithodi @mannodiarun.bsky.social · Jul 4

www.democracynow.org/2025/7/4/wha...

“What to the Slave Is the 4th of July?”: James Earl Jones Reads Frederick Douglass’s Historic Speech

We begin our July Fourth special broadcast with the words of Frederick Douglass. Born into slavery around 1818, Douglass became a key leader of the abolitionist movement. On July 5, 1852, in Rochester...

www.democracynow.org

Reposted by Arun Mannodi Kanakkithodi

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez @aoc.bsky.social · Jul 3

I don’t think anyone is prepared for what they just did w/ ICE.

This is not a simple budget increase. It is an explosion - making ICE bigger than the FBI, US Bureau of Prisons, DEA,& others combined.

It is setting up to make what’s happening now look like child’s play. And people are disappearing.

4.5K 38K 98K

Reposted by Arun Mannodi Kanakkithodi

Timothy Burke @bubbaprog.xyz · Jun 25

"GOOD FUCKING RIDDANCE"

160 4K 17K

Arun Mannodi Kanakkithodi @mannodiarun.bsky.social · Jun 25

Sometimes, very occasionally, things are good!

Reposted by Arun Mannodi Kanakkithodi

Phil Lewis @phillewis.bsky.social · Jun 25

NEW YORK (AP) — Andrew Cuomo concedes New York City Democratic mayoral primary to Zohran Mamdani.

200 2.2K 12K

Arun Mannodi Kanakkithodi @mannodiarun.bsky.social · Jun 23

Curated collection of computational materials science papers featuring one of my recent review articles: iopscience.iop.org/journal/2515...

Computational Materials Science - Journal of Physics: Materials - IOPscienceSearch

iopscience.iop.org

Arun Mannodi Kanakkithodi @mannodiarun.bsky.social · Jun 20

Indiana Pacers absolutely running riot here. If only they had held on to their lead in game 4!

1

Arun Mannodi Kanakkithodi @mannodiarun.bsky.social · Jun 19

Lol. Who could have seen this coming?

time.com/7295195/ai-c...

ChatGPT's Impact On Our Brains According to an MIT Study

The study, from MIT Lab scholars, measured the brain activity of subjects writing SAT essays with and without ChatGPT.

time.com

Arun Mannodi Kanakkithodi @mannodiarun.bsky.social · Jun 18

Breaking bonds, breaking ground: Advancing the accuracy of computational chemistry with deep learning www.microsoft.com/en-us/resear...

Using deep learning to increase the accuracy of computational chemistry and density functional theory

Microsoft researchers achieved a breakthrough in the accuracy of DFT, a method for predicting the properties of molecules and materials, by using deep learning. This work can lead to better batteries,...

www.microsoft.com

3

Arun Mannodi Kanakkithodi @mannodiarun.bsky.social · Jun 16

www.purdueexponent.org/city_state/g... Big turnout at Lafayette ‘No Kings’ protest, stays peaceful | City & State | purdueexponent.org

Big turnout at Lafayette ‘No Kings’ protest, stays peaceful

Several thousand people showed up at Tapawingo Park as part of the nationwide “No Kings” protests. The event went on Saturday morning without a hitch as the crowd protested actions by President Donald...

www.purdueexponent.org

Arun Mannodi Kanakkithodi @mannodiarun.bsky.social · Jun 16

Feel bad about visiting two weeks ago and adding to this chaos…

www.cnn.com/2025/06/16/s... Louvre shuts its doors, overwhelmed and understaffed – a warning sign for global overtourism | CNN

Overwhelmed and understaffed, the Louvre shuts its doors – a warning sign for global overtourism | CNN

The Louvre, the world’s most-visited museum and a global symbol of art, beauty and endurance, remained shuttered Monday — not by war, not by terror, but by its own exhausted staff, who say the institu...

www.cnn.com

Reposted by Arun Mannodi Kanakkithodi

jamelle @jamellebouie.net · Jun 15

the story today is of a profoundly low energy military parade being met with millions of americans in nationwide protests denouncing the dictatorial pretensions of the president

210 4.9K 27K

Reposted by Arun Mannodi Kanakkithodi

John Cusack @johncusack.bsky.social · Jun 14

Chicago

160 4.6K 24K

Arun Mannodi Kanakkithodi @mannodiarun.bsky.social · Jun 14

www.basedinlafayette.com/p/scenes-fro...

Scenes from ‘No Kings,’ the Greater Lafayette version

Hundreds march Saturday, joining nationwide protests of Donald Trump, Congress

www.basedinlafayette.com

Arun Mannodi Kanakkithodi @mannodiarun.bsky.social · Jun 14

Beautiful scenes from Lafayette, Indiana- absolutely massive protest against the fascist republicans, against ICE, against transphobia, against attacks on science, against funding war and genocide. No kings, no tyrants.

1 4 15

Arun Mannodi Kanakkithodi @mannodiarun.bsky.social · Jun 12

Pouring one out in his memory tonight.

Arun Mannodi Kanakkithodi @mannodiarun.bsky.social · Jun 12

RIP to one of the greats.

www.theguardian.com/music/2025/j... Brian Wilson, visionary creative spirit for the Beach Boys, dies aged 82 | Brian Wilson | The Guardian

Brian Wilson, visionary creative spirit for the Beach Boys, dies aged 82

Musician, who suffered from mental health problems, wrote and produced the 1966 album Pet Sounds – seen by many as the greatest album of all time

www.theguardian.com

1 1