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cskyle.bsky.social
Misc Aisle
@cskyle.bsky.social
76 followers 170 following 26 posts
“History is, strictly speaking, the study of questions.” - W. H. Auden
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cskyle.bsky.social
Misc Aisle @cskyle.bsky.social · Nov 11
“We have created a Star Wars civilization, with Stone Age emotions, medieval institutions, and godlike technology.” - A. O. Wilson
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biblioracle.bsky.social
Something I'm thinking about saying at my NCTE talk later this week: We should focus on teaching writing, not automation-assisted document production.
November 17, 2025 at 8:56 PM
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bcdreyer.social
If you like yelling about misuse of the passive voice, THIS IS IT.
October 4, 2025 at 6:58 PM
cskyle.bsky.social
Proud to work at The School for Ethics and Global Leadership; thank you @alivitali.bsky.social
www.msnbc.com/morning-joe/...
Civil political debate in D.C.? You can find it at a high school blocks from the White House
'Way Too Early' host Ali Vitali reports on how the Washington D.C.-based School for Ethics and Global Leadership is training the next generation in healthy political debates.
www.msnbc.com
May 16, 2025 at 2:23 PM
Reposted by Misc Aisle
davidho.bsky.social
I think a lot about what Carl Sagan said in one of his final interviews.
"WE'VE ARRANGED A society based on science and technology, in which nobody understands anything about science technology. And this combustible mixture of ignorance and power, sooner or later, is going to blow up in our faces. Who is running the science and technology in a democracy if the people don't know anything about it?" "Science is more than a body of knowledge, it's a way of thinking. A way of skeptically interrogating the universe with a fine understanding of human fallibility. If we are not able to ask skeptical questions, to interrogate those who tell us that something is true, to be skeptical of those in authority, then we're up for grabs for the next charlatan, political or religious, who comes ambling along."
May 4, 2025 at 6:21 AM
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jksteinberger.bsky.social
As promised, here are the slides I shared with students to convince them to NOT use chatGPT and other artificial stupidity.

TL;DR? AI is evil, unsustainable and stupid, and I'd much rather they use their own brains, make their own mistakes, and actually learn something. 🪄
NO CHATGPT Or other artificial stupidity: motivation First, clarity on distinguishing AIs: Non-generative: grammar aid, translation, dictionary, text-to-audio (e.g. Natural Reader): no problem As long as you use the appropriate tools (least intensive in data and server energy use). Why? Because you provide the content. Your brain is doing the most important work Generative: ChatGPT & Co. You only supply the prompt, the AI supplies the content. Why is this delegation of work problematic? 3 domains: ethical, environmental, intellectual engagement. (Caveat: generative is probably ok for computer programming, where it can be useful and save time. Not relevant to this class.) 1) AI and ethics Mass theft of all and everything «learning» on books, articles, blogs, social media, images, music, cultural production, without permission of authors/creators, and leading to their mass joblessness. Profits are not reditributed to originators. Permanent destruction of the mental health of underpaid precarious tech workers in the Global South (Kenya, Philippines …): «correction» to avoid production of violent and pedophile contents etc, tech workers are obliged to watch and correct super violent contents for days on end, leading to extreme psychological suffering and trauma, from which recovery is doubtful. No or little compensation (certainly not at the level of the suffering inflicted). In short, an industry built on theft of real human creation and sacrifice of real human health, profiting a few megafortunes. 2) AI and (un)sustainability Massive consumption of electricity, water, server capacity for generative AI. Outcome: keep fossil fuel companies in business, using up new renewable capacity, without any satisfaction of basic human needs. Massive misappropriation of the finance necessary for climate and ecological action (renewable generation, efficiency and retrofit for buildings, public transit, infrastructures for cycling etc) towards AI industry. Overall: undermine climate action, reinforce fossil industry, waste resources necessary for human development. 3) AI and intellectual engagement First, what learning is (or should be) about: The goal should not (only) be the reproduction of «correct» knowledge, But mainly personal engagement and experience of thinking about topics of interest. Personal engagement = using one’s own brain. The most important activity for learning and intellectual engagement is the experience of making one’s own mistakes, by trial and error, corrections based on new ideas, starting over again. Learning to recognise nuances, knowledge gaps, better explanations This kind of learning is possible only through using your own brain, not AI. Also, Ais are not «intelligent». At all. They simply reproduce pre-existing patterns. They «bullshit», invent false references, false facts, false data, simply because those sound plausible. VERY DANGEROUS. If you learn how to NOT use AI, and how to research facts and data on your own, this will serve you and your communities for the rest of your life.
February 23, 2025 at 1:45 PM
cskyle.bsky.social
Mulligan and Eddie
November 17, 2024 at 5:49 PM
cskyle.bsky.social
Two great dogs
November 12, 2024 at 1:38 AM
cskyle.bsky.social
“We have created a Star Wars civilization, with Stone Age emotions, medieval institutions, and godlike technology.” - A. O. Wilson
November 11, 2024 at 11:54 AM