Kara Patterson 🇨🇦
@karakpatterson.bsky.social
Associate professor, senior scientist, physiotherapist. A dance obsessive and music enthusiast searching for ways to integrate them into my research. (She/her)
Reposted by Kara Patterson 🇨🇦
SocArXiv announces moratorium on AI-topic papers
In light of record submission rates and a large volume of AI-generated slop, SocArXiv recently implemented a policy requiring ORCIDs linked in the OSF profile of submitting authors, and narrowing our focus to social science subjects. Today we are taking two more steps:
/1
/1
November 27, 2025 at 3:04 PM
SocArXiv announces moratorium on AI-topic papers
Reposted by Kara Patterson 🇨🇦
Some are suggesting you deliberately write inaccurate or confusing alt text, because they say this confuses AI scrapers that are analyzing images.
The purpose of alt text is to help people who cannot see the image. Deliberately misrepresenting the image is a gross misuse of alt text. Don't do it.
The purpose of alt text is to help people who cannot see the image. Deliberately misrepresenting the image is a gross misuse of alt text. Don't do it.
November 26, 2025 at 10:22 PM
Some are suggesting you deliberately write inaccurate or confusing alt text, because they say this confuses AI scrapers that are analyzing images.
The purpose of alt text is to help people who cannot see the image. Deliberately misrepresenting the image is a gross misuse of alt text. Don't do it.
The purpose of alt text is to help people who cannot see the image. Deliberately misrepresenting the image is a gross misuse of alt text. Don't do it.
You’ve been kidnapped. The characters from the last TV show you watched are trying to rescue you. Who’s coming to save you?
Outcome … uncertain
Outcome … uncertain
November 26, 2025 at 6:54 PM
You’ve been kidnapped. The characters from the last TV show you watched are trying to rescue you. Who’s coming to save you?
Outcome … uncertain
Outcome … uncertain
Reposted by Kara Patterson 🇨🇦
one of the coolest things about ChatGPT is how you can actually just never use it. you can fill your whole entire life with simply not once using it. it's incredible.
November 25, 2025 at 4:15 PM
one of the coolest things about ChatGPT is how you can actually just never use it. you can fill your whole entire life with simply not once using it. it's incredible.
Reposted by Kara Patterson 🇨🇦
(A) stop feeling pressure to be perfect;
(B) normalize asking questions, because that is normalizing learning;
(C) do not ask AI if your turkey is done; ask a meat thermometer
(B) normalize asking questions, because that is normalizing learning;
(C) do not ask AI if your turkey is done; ask a meat thermometer
This is so soulless, I can't stand it. We have BRAINS. We can USE THEM.
November 25, 2025 at 5:56 PM
(A) stop feeling pressure to be perfect;
(B) normalize asking questions, because that is normalizing learning;
(C) do not ask AI if your turkey is done; ask a meat thermometer
(B) normalize asking questions, because that is normalizing learning;
(C) do not ask AI if your turkey is done; ask a meat thermometer
Reposted by Kara Patterson 🇨🇦
Fund the scientists who are already here. Fund basic science.
Fund the scientists who are already here. Fund basic science.
Fund the scientists who are already here. Fund basic science.
Fund the scientists who are already here. Fund basic science.
www.theglobeandmail.com/business/art...
Fund the scientists who are already here. Fund basic science.
Fund the scientists who are already here. Fund basic science.
Fund the scientists who are already here. Fund basic science.
www.theglobeandmail.com/business/art...
Is this the moment Canada gets serious about science and the economy?
The federal budget includes $1.7-billion to attract international researchers and support Canadian R&D and IP protections
www.theglobeandmail.com
November 23, 2025 at 8:45 PM
Fund the scientists who are already here. Fund basic science.
Fund the scientists who are already here. Fund basic science.
Fund the scientists who are already here. Fund basic science.
Fund the scientists who are already here. Fund basic science.
www.theglobeandmail.com/business/art...
Fund the scientists who are already here. Fund basic science.
Fund the scientists who are already here. Fund basic science.
Fund the scientists who are already here. Fund basic science.
www.theglobeandmail.com/business/art...
Reposted by Kara Patterson 🇨🇦
Reposted by Kara Patterson 🇨🇦
Will PRIVATIZING Canadian MEDICARE WORK?
Researchers compared 25 wealthy countries.
The more each relies on FOR-PROFIT COMPANIES to deliver healthcare
...the WORSE LIFE EXPECTANCY gets.
www.policyalternatives.ca/news-researc...
Researchers compared 25 wealthy countries.
The more each relies on FOR-PROFIT COMPANIES to deliver healthcare
...the WORSE LIFE EXPECTANCY gets.
www.policyalternatives.ca/news-researc...
November 22, 2025 at 8:56 PM
Will PRIVATIZING Canadian MEDICARE WORK?
Researchers compared 25 wealthy countries.
The more each relies on FOR-PROFIT COMPANIES to deliver healthcare
...the WORSE LIFE EXPECTANCY gets.
www.policyalternatives.ca/news-researc...
Researchers compared 25 wealthy countries.
The more each relies on FOR-PROFIT COMPANIES to deliver healthcare
...the WORSE LIFE EXPECTANCY gets.
www.policyalternatives.ca/news-researc...
Reposted by Kara Patterson 🇨🇦
"This bag will fix me: A memoir"
November 22, 2025 at 7:03 PM
"This bag will fix me: A memoir"
Reposted by Kara Patterson 🇨🇦
Journalist challenge: Use “Machine Learning” when you mean machine learning and “LLM” when you mean LLM. Ditch “AI” as a catch-all term, it’s not useful for readers and it helps companies trying to confuse the public by obscuring the roles played by different technologies. 🧪
November 22, 2025 at 4:50 PM
Journalist challenge: Use “Machine Learning” when you mean machine learning and “LLM” when you mean LLM. Ditch “AI” as a catch-all term, it’s not useful for readers and it helps companies trying to confuse the public by obscuring the roles played by different technologies. 🧪
Reposted by Kara Patterson 🇨🇦
Archaeologist here. For 99.5% of human history (ca 300-400,000 years), we were peaceful (no war). There was conflict and smaller scale violence, but countless studies on the 119 known modern hunter gatherer groups show cooperation, negotiation, and peace instead of conflict. Please read books.
Revenge/physical combat was how people settled things for literally millions of years, it's normal human behavior, we're wolves not sheep, the government project trying to social engineer us and domesticate us into sheep has been unsuccessful
November 17, 2025 at 10:46 PM
Archaeologist here. For 99.5% of human history (ca 300-400,000 years), we were peaceful (no war). There was conflict and smaller scale violence, but countless studies on the 119 known modern hunter gatherer groups show cooperation, negotiation, and peace instead of conflict. Please read books.
Reposted by Kara Patterson 🇨🇦
More private health care linked to higher mortality: Quebec study https://www.ctvnews.ca/montreal/article/experts-concerned-that-privatization-of-health-care-could-increase-mortality-rates/
𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝘄𝘀 ⇢ CanadaHealthwatch.ca 🍁
𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝘄𝘀 ⇢ CanadaHealthwatch.ca 🍁
November 21, 2025 at 6:10 PM
More private health care linked to higher mortality: Quebec study https://www.ctvnews.ca/montreal/article/experts-concerned-that-privatization-of-health-care-could-increase-mortality-rates/
𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝘄𝘀 ⇢ CanadaHealthwatch.ca 🍁
𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝘄𝘀 ⇢ CanadaHealthwatch.ca 🍁
Reposted by Kara Patterson 🇨🇦
Normalize admitting you don’t know what some shit means!
completely outside of politics, this is so charming
November 21, 2025 at 4:33 PM
Normalize admitting you don’t know what some shit means!
Reposted by Kara Patterson 🇨🇦
This is a remarkably consistent story across so many once-helpful digital tools: text-to-speech, speech-to-text, spellcheck, grammar check etc
All have become infected with this aggressive inventiveness that either (a) adds hours of work or (b) puts you at massive risk of using fabricated content
All have become infected with this aggressive inventiveness that either (a) adds hours of work or (b) puts you at massive risk of using fabricated content
Amazing discussion right now in a small corner of doctor FB about the apparent enshittification of AI scribes. Especially the free versions.
This revolutionary time saver now requires extra time to fact check the note.
Don't lose your note writing skills, friends! Tech will not save us. #medsky
This revolutionary time saver now requires extra time to fact check the note.
Don't lose your note writing skills, friends! Tech will not save us. #medsky
November 21, 2025 at 12:20 PM
This is a remarkably consistent story across so many once-helpful digital tools: text-to-speech, speech-to-text, spellcheck, grammar check etc
All have become infected with this aggressive inventiveness that either (a) adds hours of work or (b) puts you at massive risk of using fabricated content
All have become infected with this aggressive inventiveness that either (a) adds hours of work or (b) puts you at massive risk of using fabricated content
Reposted by Kara Patterson 🇨🇦
Generative AI causes so many demonstrable harms, from counseling kids into suicide, stealing creative work and destroying the market for it, perverting education, and this predictable horror. Any other product like this would be regulated into the smallest possible box by a responsible society.
This is one of the worst, most horrifying exposures we have ever seen. It is hard to overstate how bad the things that people are using tools like for are, and it's insane to pretend like these tools are anything other than nonconsensual porn machines
www.404media.co/ai-porn-secr...
www.404media.co/ai-porn-secr...
Massive Leak Shows Erotic Chatbot Users Turned Women’s Yearbook Pictures Into AI Porn
Chatbot roleplay and image generator platform SecretDesires.ai left cloud storage containers of nearly two million of images and videos exposed, including photos and full names of women from social me...
www.404media.co
November 19, 2025 at 5:21 PM
Generative AI causes so many demonstrable harms, from counseling kids into suicide, stealing creative work and destroying the market for it, perverting education, and this predictable horror. Any other product like this would be regulated into the smallest possible box by a responsible society.
Reposted by Kara Patterson 🇨🇦
The lab class I teach is a course-based ugrad research experience, and I was stoked that the data we analyzed today showed that my initial hunch/hypothesis was completely wrong (in fact, the opposite). Great learning opportunity to show them it's about the data, never the ego.
November 19, 2025 at 1:51 AM
The lab class I teach is a course-based ugrad research experience, and I was stoked that the data we analyzed today showed that my initial hunch/hypothesis was completely wrong (in fact, the opposite). Great learning opportunity to show them it's about the data, never the ego.
Reposted by Kara Patterson 🇨🇦
POV: you are a young woman celebrating a recent academic success
November 17, 2025 at 7:20 PM
POV: you are a young woman celebrating a recent academic success
“While the cultural sector’s economic impact is important, the social impact of arts, culture, and heritage is invaluable — especially now.”
… yup
… yup
“At $73 billion in direct impact on the national GDP, Canada’s cultural industries contribute more than oil and gas extraction at $71 billion.” www.timescolonist.com/opinion/comm...
Comment: Investing in Canada's cultural sector is crucial to 'elbows up'
At $73 billion in direct impact to the national GDP, Canada’s cultural industries contribute more than oil and gas extraction at $71 billion.
www.timescolonist.com
November 18, 2025 at 4:51 AM
“While the cultural sector’s economic impact is important, the social impact of arts, culture, and heritage is invaluable — especially now.”
… yup
… yup
Reposted by Kara Patterson 🇨🇦
SNAP is a lifeline for workers in low-wage jobs.
Meanwhile, CEOs are paid 280x as much as the typical worker.
Don’t be angry at workers for using food stamps.
Be angry at the corporations paying them so little that they need them.
Meanwhile, CEOs are paid 280x as much as the typical worker.
Don’t be angry at workers for using food stamps.
Be angry at the corporations paying them so little that they need them.
November 17, 2025 at 8:01 PM
SNAP is a lifeline for workers in low-wage jobs.
Meanwhile, CEOs are paid 280x as much as the typical worker.
Don’t be angry at workers for using food stamps.
Be angry at the corporations paying them so little that they need them.
Meanwhile, CEOs are paid 280x as much as the typical worker.
Don’t be angry at workers for using food stamps.
Be angry at the corporations paying them so little that they need them.
Reposted by Kara Patterson 🇨🇦
More robots.
China hosted world games.. for robots. Enjoy.
China hosted world games.. for robots. Enjoy.
November 16, 2025 at 4:58 AM
More robots.
China hosted world games.. for robots. Enjoy.
China hosted world games.. for robots. Enjoy.
Reposted by Kara Patterson 🇨🇦
I once listed on my annual activities report the time I spent on things like
strategizing with a fellow junior prof about how to avoid her harasser at a conference while still getting to network,
etc
just to make a point
strategizing with a fellow junior prof about how to avoid her harasser at a conference while still getting to network,
etc
just to make a point
Imagine the things we could do with our time if we didn’t have to do this bsky.app/profile/chan...
I did my job. And then I did a job that never should have been my responsibility afterwards, sending emails and having meetings about how this was allowed to happen in the first place. Other women scholars had to spend their time explaining to Aspen leadership why this was not ok.
November 16, 2025 at 7:54 PM
I once listed on my annual activities report the time I spent on things like
strategizing with a fellow junior prof about how to avoid her harasser at a conference while still getting to network,
etc
just to make a point
strategizing with a fellow junior prof about how to avoid her harasser at a conference while still getting to network,
etc
just to make a point
Reposted by Kara Patterson 🇨🇦
Reposted by Kara Patterson 🇨🇦
Fortunately, I already figured out the plots of the next several Toy Story films
November 12, 2025 at 1:27 AM
Fortunately, I already figured out the plots of the next several Toy Story films
Bookmarking this for future reference when I inevitably need a laugh (literal tears down my cheeks as I read some of these)🤣
I am calling upon the people of Ireland to immediately begin construction of a thread on this site about how you or someone you know was roasted for a fashion choice. We need it.
All roasts must have come from Irish people *only*. Please respect this important rule, it makes a difference.
Tanks
All roasts must have come from Irish people *only*. Please respect this important rule, it makes a difference.
Tanks
November 12, 2025 at 1:00 PM
Bookmarking this for future reference when I inevitably need a laugh (literal tears down my cheeks as I read some of these)🤣
Reposted by Kara Patterson 🇨🇦
Yep.
Scholars Must Recognize the Role of Affect and Emotion in Disinformation www.techpolicy.press/scholars-mus...
"The tactics of digital emotional manipulation are many and varied, but many of the most prominent exploit frustration and rage."
We can't let rage win.
Scholars Must Recognize the Role of Affect and Emotion in Disinformation www.techpolicy.press/scholars-mus...
"The tactics of digital emotional manipulation are many and varied, but many of the most prominent exploit frustration and rage."
We can't let rage win.
Scholars Must Recognize the Role of Affect and Emotion in Disinformation | TechPolicy.Press
The tactics of digital emotional manipulation are many and varied, but many of the most prominent exploit frustration and rage, writes Calum Matheson.
www.techpolicy.press
November 12, 2025 at 12:39 PM
Yep.
Scholars Must Recognize the Role of Affect and Emotion in Disinformation www.techpolicy.press/scholars-mus...
"The tactics of digital emotional manipulation are many and varied, but many of the most prominent exploit frustration and rage."
We can't let rage win.
Scholars Must Recognize the Role of Affect and Emotion in Disinformation www.techpolicy.press/scholars-mus...
"The tactics of digital emotional manipulation are many and varied, but many of the most prominent exploit frustration and rage."
We can't let rage win.