Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Reposted by Alex Usher

Dominique Baker @bakerdphd.bsky.social · 9h

Fleabag season 3 writes itself

Lindsay Beyerstein @beyerstein.bsky.social · 11h

Of all the clerics they could have popped, those ICE idiots had to hit Hot Priest.

Presbyterian minister David Black on CNN, who was shot with pepper balls while praying outside an ICE facility.

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James Vizzard @jwvizzard.bsky.social · 1h

The left taking back frog symbols from the groypers.

The Oregonian @oregonian.com · 8h

Things are happening at Portland's ICE facility tonight.

Read more of our protest coverage here: www.oregonlive.com/crime/2025/1...

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Alex Usher @alexusherhesa.bsky.social · 40m

And final take, real change in public expenditure on higher education 2018-2023. As you can see the lens you choose to look at change over time really does matter. Note that the fall in Argentina is all *before* Milei took office. That's how bad inflation was.

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Alexandre Afonso @alexandreafonso.bsky.social · 1h

Big coup for Uni. Zurich and Switzerland, one of the few European countries that can compete with US academic salaries.

Department of Economics @Universität Zürich 🇨🇭 @econ.uzh.ch · 2h

We are thrilled to welcome Esther Duflo and Abhijit Banerjee as the new Lemann Foundation Professors to our department, beginning in the summer of 2026.

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FujiiPonta @fujiiponta.bsky.social · 2h

Japan's ruling coalition broke up on Friday (10 October), with junior partner Komeito (公明党) rebelling against the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP)’s new hardline leader Sanae Takaichi in a move that casts doubt over her premiership bid.

FujiiPonta @fujiiponta.bsky.social · 3h

Japan's ruling coalition splits, throwing Takaichi's Prime Minister bid into doubt (Reuters)
www.channelnewsasia.com/east-asia/ja...

Japan's ruling coalition splits, throwing Takaichi's PM bid into doubt

Komeito leader Tetsuo Saito told party members that the partnership had broken down over an "inadequate" explanation by the Liberal Democratic Party of its handling of a political funding scandal.

www.channelnewsasia.com

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Alex Usher @alexusherhesa.bsky.social · 14h

Same data, Real change in public expenditures on higher education, only charting the difference over a shorter period of time, 2013 to 2023. UK is still godawful. Korea looks amazing. The idea that India has expanded enrolment by 50% (+16M students) on a mere 8% growth in funding is...wild.

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Alex Usher @alexusherhesa.bsky.social · 14h

Real change in public expenditures on higher education, 2008 to 2023, selected countries that actually publish the damn data. UK is worst here, but note this does not include RAB (projected future loan forgiveness, basically). If RAB is included...UK would still be last.

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Alex Usher @alexusherhesa.bsky.social · 14h

100%.

Alex Usher @alexusherhesa.bsky.social · 14h

I'm not sure what I find the sillier - the proposed name, or the fact that info science and data science were in different units to begin with.

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Alex Usher @alexusherhesa.bsky.social · 14h

On the podcast today, Johns Hopkins' Joshua Travis Brown, talking about his really excellent new book "Capitalizing on College

Capitalizing on College: Mission, Money, and Survival in Higher Ed with Joshua Travis Brown | HESA

The economics of higher education are tricky. It’s a labour-intensive industry, and generally speaking the cost of producing labour-intensive goods … Continued

higheredstrategy.com

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Luke Kawa @ljkawa.bsky.social · 16h

The three-month correlation between the daily change in Morgan Stanley’s “US AI tech beneficiaries” basket and $PSP (global listed private equity ETF) is at its weakest level since the AI boom started

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Bryan Edward Stone (שָׁלוֹם) @bestonetx.bsky.social · 18h

Democrats: We follow the science.

Republicans: The science follows us.

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 19h

RFK Jr on Tylenol and autism: "It is not proof. We're doing the studies to make the proof."

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Times Higher Education (THE) @timeshighered.bsky.social · 20h

The number of student visa applications for UK courses over a 12-month period has risen for the first time in almost two years, official figures show. Patrick Jack reports #academicsky #edusky #visas https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/uk-student-visa-applications-10-cent-last-year

UK student visa applications up 10 per cent on last year

UK bounces back in crucial month for enrolments, with policy uncertainty elsewhere helping fuel first rise in 12-month figures for nearly two years

www.timeshighereducation.com

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Alex Usher @alexusherhesa.bsky.social · 20h

It's easy if you have a deeply captive local market are ranked low enough that no one will miss you.

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Alex Usher @alexusherhesa.bsky.social · 20h

Interesting.

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Alex Usher @alexusherhesa.bsky.social · 20h

No worse than before, anyway.

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Ron Filipkowski @ronfilipkowski.bsky.social · 20h

The most common response I hear from Dems is, ‘what happened to her?’ What happened is she wanted to run for Senate, wanted Trump’s endorsement first, and Trump told her not to run because she couldn’t win. Since then, different Marge. bsky.app/profile/atru...

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 21h

Greene on the Epstein files: "I can't conclusively say that's why the House isn't in session, but the House should be in session...there is a new Democrat that's been elected that deserves to be sworn in...if it's to avoid the discharge petition, why drag this out? It's going to have 218 signatures"

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This skeet will self destruct @pardoguerra.bsky.social · 20h

There should be a Nobel for shitposting

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Alex Usher @alexusherhesa.bsky.social · 1d

Apparently that's no barrier...

Alex Usher @alexusherhesa.bsky.social · 1d

Krasznahorkai at 10/1 is ridiculous, he is totally unreadable.

The Guardian @theguardian.com · 1d

Nobel prize in literature 2025 is announced – live

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Alex Usher @alexusherhesa.bsky.social · 1d

Krasznahorkai at 10/1 is ridiculous, he is totally unreadable.

The Guardian @theguardian.com · 1d

Nobel prize in literature 2025 is announced – live

Follow along as the next winner of the world’s most prestigious literature prize is announced in Stockholm As the 2025 Nobel prize in literature approaches, betting markets are pointing to a tight race. Chinese avant garde writer Can Xue and Hungarian novelist László Krasznahorkai are currently joint favourites, both with 10/1 odds. Can Xue, age 72, remains a perennial contender – she was also heavily tipped last year – and her experimental, boundary-pushing style has kept her in the spotlight. Krasznahorkai, aged 71, is likewise gaining traction, with his dystopian, melancholic novels enjoying recent translation awards. Continue reading...

www.theguardian.com

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Alex Usher @alexusherhesa.bsky.social · 1d

That's my default answer usually, but why take down a document at all once it's on the open data portal?

Alex Usher @alexusherhesa.bsky.social · 1d

Absolutely not making this up, I have a copy from April where I can filter for things like "visa student". Just downloaded it again, and I can't.

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Alex Usher @alexusherhesa.bsky.social · 1d

Pretend the Ontario government released some open data on college enrolment.

And then at some later date decided to pull the .xls file and release a new one, only with the workbook now password protected so as to prevent data-filtering.

Possible innocent mistake or active data-fuckery?

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Alex Usher @alexusherhesa.bsky.social · 1d

Kyle F. Connor!

Jets to include multiple bonuses, full no-move clause in Kyle Connor deal

In the past, the Winnipeg Jets have avoided giving signing bonuses after Year 1 of a contract and wouldn't give full no-move clauses, but that philosophy is set to change with Kyle Connor's extension.

www.sportsnet.ca

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Alex Usher @alexusherhesa.bsky.social · 1d

This (long: buckle up) story is both delightful and totally bananas

The Pushkin job: unmasking the thieves behind an international rare books heist

The long read: Between 2022 and 2023, as many as 170 rare and valuable editions of Russian classics were stolen from libraries across Europe. Were the thieves merely low-level opportunists, or were bi...

www.theguardian.com

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