Mikell Taylor
@mikell.bsky.social
Boston-based robotics nerd whose strong opinions do not reflect those of her employer. Come for the robots, stay for the gay pirates, Star Wars, and general cringe. It’s pronounced “Michael”.
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
CNN confirms what MSNBC reported live a few hours ago: DOJ is surveilling Dem lawmakers when they go to the DOJ to search unredacted Epstein files.
CNN: "Another photograph - these are notes AG Bondi brought to the hearing today. This shows a list of Rep. Jayapal's search history. Lawmakers are allowed to go to a DOJ facility to search unredacted files. We learned from this photo that the searches are apparently being tracked & read by the DOJ"
February 11, 2026 at 9:36 PM
CNN confirms what MSNBC reported live a few hours ago: DOJ is surveilling Dem lawmakers when they go to the DOJ to search unredacted Epstein files.
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
Likely-historic photo by NBC News of all the Epstein victims asked to raise their hands if they've not yet been asked to meet with the DOJ as Bondi testifies in foreground
February 11, 2026 at 5:15 PM
Likely-historic photo by NBC News of all the Epstein victims asked to raise their hands if they've not yet been asked to meet with the DOJ as Bondi testifies in foreground
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
Pokémon GO team removes PokéStop that appeared on Epstein Island
gonintendo.com
February 11, 2026 at 6:56 PM
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
Infosec used to be serious
February 11, 2026 at 1:19 PM
Infosec used to be serious
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
Like 75% of the US Olympic curlers are from Minnesota. A lot of them curl out of two clubs in Saint Paul, one club is in Frogtown, a neighborhood that has been very heavily targeted by ICE. These curlers are good neighbors.
US Olympic Curling Team member speaks out against ICE:
"I'm proud to represent Team USA. But we'd be remiss if we didn't mention what's going on in Minnesota and what a tough time it's been. What's happening is wrong. There's no shades of gray."
"I'm proud to represent Team USA. But we'd be remiss if we didn't mention what's going on in Minnesota and what a tough time it's been. What's happening is wrong. There's no shades of gray."
February 10, 2026 at 10:03 PM
Like 75% of the US Olympic curlers are from Minnesota. A lot of them curl out of two clubs in Saint Paul, one club is in Frogtown, a neighborhood that has been very heavily targeted by ICE. These curlers are good neighbors.
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
the failure of AI hype has not been in terms of impact per se, it's been in terms of where the impact landed... in retrospect it seems very obvious that coding was among the most vulnerable professions, but that's absolutely not how the mainstream hype narratives were rolled out
February 11, 2026 at 6:20 PM
the failure of AI hype has not been in terms of impact per se, it's been in terms of where the impact landed... in retrospect it seems very obvious that coding was among the most vulnerable professions, but that's absolutely not how the mainstream hype narratives were rolled out
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
a lot of "AI hype" discourse makes more sense when you realize that a lot of initial LLM/GenAI hype envisioned replacing artists and PhDs, and its actual impacts have been much greater on coders and other tech workers
creatives/experts see "AI" as underperforming hype, techies see it overperforming
creatives/experts see "AI" as underperforming hype, techies see it overperforming
February 11, 2026 at 6:15 PM
a lot of "AI hype" discourse makes more sense when you realize that a lot of initial LLM/GenAI hype envisioned replacing artists and PhDs, and its actual impacts have been much greater on coders and other tech workers
creatives/experts see "AI" as underperforming hype, techies see it overperforming
creatives/experts see "AI" as underperforming hype, techies see it overperforming
Having spent hours this week cleaning up a bunch of Copilot contributions to an 88 page document - can confirm.
writing is funny because LLMs are trained on lofty rhetorical prose & the devices they lean on are becoming hack now in everyday writing. every graf is framed by antithesis ("Not X, but Y!!!"). like overusing big words, structure is outperforming how coherent writing is so it all sounds like shit.
Microsoft released a study showing the 40 jobs most at risk by AI:
February 11, 2026 at 6:42 PM
Having spent hours this week cleaning up a bunch of Copilot contributions to an 88 page document - can confirm.
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
A fact that sounds like bullshit but is actually true:
There is more square footage of parking *per car* in the US than there is square footage of housing *per person.*
There is more square footage of parking *per car* in the US than there is square footage of housing *per person.*
February 11, 2026 at 6:06 PM
A fact that sounds like bullshit but is actually true:
There is more square footage of parking *per car* in the US than there is square footage of housing *per person.*
There is more square footage of parking *per car* in the US than there is square footage of housing *per person.*
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
the people who spread the “female brains are bad at math and spatial reasoning” lies should be tried at the Hague
Another fun wrinkle from that period (that might still exist): I was good at math and loved it and then my geometry teacher told me that I'd probably struggle because female brains were bad at spatial thinking. I kept loving math & being good at it but assumed that would end so I ended it first.
Those who weren’t resigned to the Math Idiot Garbage Bin as kids may not grasp how much “if you’re bad at math, you’ll die in a ditch and all will be better off for it” sentiment was floating around in the 90s and 2000s, but it sure felt real to me.
(my parents are great! It didn’t come from them!)
(my parents are great! It didn’t come from them!)
February 11, 2026 at 2:41 PM
the people who spread the “female brains are bad at math and spatial reasoning” lies should be tried at the Hague
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
Seems the Pentagon is testing anti-drone high-energy lasers near Fort Bliss in El Paso, and didn't feel this was dangerous enough to close airspace over.
The FAA administrator disagreed.
Last week, these lasers successfully protected the American people from a sinister children's party balloon.
The FAA administrator disagreed.
Last week, these lasers successfully protected the American people from a sinister children's party balloon.
Airspace closure followed spat over drone-related tests and party balloon shoot-down, sources say
Pentagon officials had undertaken planning to use military technology near Fort Bliss, in El Paso, to practice downing drones.
www.cbsnews.com
February 11, 2026 at 5:36 PM
Seems the Pentagon is testing anti-drone high-energy lasers near Fort Bliss in El Paso, and didn't feel this was dangerous enough to close airspace over.
The FAA administrator disagreed.
Last week, these lasers successfully protected the American people from a sinister children's party balloon.
The FAA administrator disagreed.
Last week, these lasers successfully protected the American people from a sinister children's party balloon.
Having a very grumpy old person feeling about the fact that a 128 GB phone is no longer sufficient to maintain two messaging apps without manually deleting media constantly
February 11, 2026 at 11:39 AM
Having a very grumpy old person feeling about the fact that a 128 GB phone is no longer sufficient to maintain two messaging apps without manually deleting media constantly
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
When a sitting representative refers to the Super Bowl halftime show as “pornography,” people should use that to reflect on how they and other representatives are simultaneously working to ban, censor, and restrict “pornography” and what that actually means
February 10, 2026 at 6:52 PM
When a sitting representative refers to the Super Bowl halftime show as “pornography,” people should use that to reflect on how they and other representatives are simultaneously working to ban, censor, and restrict “pornography” and what that actually means
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
Essay: "The thing about democracy is that it depends on our ability to embrace the multitudes we contain, not to trim them," writes Evy Peña.
Bad Bunny's gift of multiplicity
"Regardless of one’s feelings about Bad Bunny, we know the backlash isn’t really about the Super Bowl halftime show," writes Evy Peña. "The real political battleground is the idea of belonging — who g...
www.wbur.org
February 11, 2026 at 10:52 AM
Essay: "The thing about democracy is that it depends on our ability to embrace the multitudes we contain, not to trim them," writes Evy Peña.
My New England-pilled child took the trash out and came back inside telling me it felt “like a spring day, it’s so warm out”
It’s 28 deg F
It’s 28 deg F
February 11, 2026 at 2:54 AM
My New England-pilled child took the trash out and came back inside telling me it felt “like a spring day, it’s so warm out”
It’s 28 deg F
It’s 28 deg F
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
I would also guess that the increasing awareness of autism in women and girls is also a key factor to this. More people are aware of how autism presents in women and girls compared to when I was misdiagnosed as neurotypical as a child. It used to be so stigmatised and that was just for boys.
Increasing autism rates over the last 25 years may just be kids with mild forms getting diagnosed. Rates of moderate to severe impairment due to autism have actually fallen slightly.
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
![The autistic community is a large, growing, and heterogeneous population, and there is a need for improved methods to describe their diverse needs. Measures of adaptive functioning collected through public health surveillance may provide valuable information on functioning and support needs at a population level. We aimed to use adaptive behavior and cognitive scores abstracted from health and educational records to describe trends over time in the population prevalence of autism by adaptive level and co-occurrence of intellectual disability (ID). Using data from the Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network, years 2000 to 2016, we estimated the prevalence of autism per 1000 8-year-old children by four levels of adaptive challenges (moderate to profound, mild, borderline, or none) and by co-occurrence of ID. The prevalence of autism with mild, borderline, or no significant adaptive challenges increased between 2000 and 2016, from 5.1 per 1000 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 4.6–5.5) to 17.6 (95% CI: 17.1–18.1) while the prevalence of autism with moderate to profound challenges decreased slightly, from 1.5 (95% CI: 1.2–1.7) to 1.2 (95% CI: 1.1–1.4). The prevalence increase was greater for autism without co-occurring ID than for autism with co-occurring ID. The increase in autism prevalence between 2000 and 2016 was confined to autism with milder phenotypes. This trend could indicate improved identification of milder forms of autism over time. It is possible that increased access to therapies that improve intellectual and adaptive functioning of children diagnosed with autism also contributed to the trends.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:j76trmiofvaxxpvx2vnb2vwf/bafkreibeoudvh2b4ifuiqq7pmnzwg6y6n3caschubukvo6kzqcfn2kdf5i@jpeg)
February 11, 2026 at 12:44 AM
I would also guess that the increasing awareness of autism in women and girls is also a key factor to this. More people are aware of how autism presents in women and girls compared to when I was misdiagnosed as neurotypical as a child. It used to be so stigmatised and that was just for boys.
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
Don't give anything an Emmy until it's as good as this.
February 11, 2026 at 12:43 AM
Don't give anything an Emmy until it's as good as this.
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
NEW - Today I filed an amicus brief opposing the Trump Admin's attempt to halt a wind energy project that would provide power to more than 300,000 homes.
I'll keep fighting against Trump's attempts to prevent MA from creating green jobs and reaching our climate goals.
I'll keep fighting against Trump's attempts to prevent MA from creating green jobs and reaching our climate goals.
February 10, 2026 at 9:37 PM
NEW - Today I filed an amicus brief opposing the Trump Admin's attempt to halt a wind energy project that would provide power to more than 300,000 homes.
I'll keep fighting against Trump's attempts to prevent MA from creating green jobs and reaching our climate goals.
I'll keep fighting against Trump's attempts to prevent MA from creating green jobs and reaching our climate goals.
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
the rollout of the mRNA vaccines was one of the greatest public health triumphs in history and the end result has been the all-around triumph of the antivax movement and I will never get over it
I genuinely cannot believe the degree to which we are pissing away this generational breakthrough, even given the fuckmuppets who are involved www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...
FDA declines to review Moderna's mRNA flu shot
Under Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the Food and Drug Administration has taken an aggressive stance against mRNA technology.
www.nbcnews.com
February 11, 2026 at 1:22 AM
the rollout of the mRNA vaccines was one of the greatest public health triumphs in history and the end result has been the all-around triumph of the antivax movement and I will never get over it
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
Tell your friends. Even if the only florist you can find nearby is in the Kroger produce section. There is a person putting those arrangements together and they WILL work with you and you WILL get better results with a pro who’s given a free hand
Some of the best advice I ever received was Holly telling us to ask the local florist to go wild and do their thing rather than get a pre-packaged arrangement.
Everybody post your floral Ws as they come in tomorrow, as a treat
February 14, 2025 at 1:30 PM
Tell your friends. Even if the only florist you can find nearby is in the Kroger produce section. There is a person putting those arrangements together and they WILL work with you and you WILL get better results with a pro who’s given a free hand
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
"Moderna said last year that its mRNA flu shot was 26.6% more effective than the standard flu shot, based on a Phase 3 clinical trial."
I AM SEETHING.
I AM SEETHING.
I genuinely cannot believe the degree to which we are pissing away this generational breakthrough, even given the fuckmuppets who are involved www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...
FDA declines to review Moderna's mRNA flu shot
Under Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the Food and Drug Administration has taken an aggressive stance against mRNA technology.
www.nbcnews.com
February 11, 2026 at 12:12 AM
"Moderna said last year that its mRNA flu shot was 26.6% more effective than the standard flu shot, based on a Phase 3 clinical trial."
I AM SEETHING.
I AM SEETHING.
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
Everyone here has had to decide what they will and won’t do. Will you take someone in your house? Will you bring them groceries? Will you patrol streets with a whistle? Will you do some other kind of work, of which there are many. And how many of these types.
Friends from Minneapolis reporting to me that things are at the point where folks are being hidden in other people's houses and we are in the "again" part of "never again" which the "never" was supposed to preclude
February 11, 2026 at 12:05 AM
Everyone here has had to decide what they will and won’t do. Will you take someone in your house? Will you bring them groceries? Will you patrol streets with a whistle? Will you do some other kind of work, of which there are many. And how many of these types.
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
This piece is so wonderful, but this part made me cry a little bit not gonna lie
February 10, 2026 at 11:26 PM
This piece is so wonderful, but this part made me cry a little bit not gonna lie
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
MODERNA SAYS FDA REFUSED TO REVIEW ITS mRNA FLU VACCINE APPLICATION, CITING AN INADEQUATE AND NOT WELL-CONTROLLED TRIAL.
February 10, 2026 at 11:06 PM
MODERNA SAYS FDA REFUSED TO REVIEW ITS mRNA FLU VACCINE APPLICATION, CITING AN INADEQUATE AND NOT WELL-CONTROLLED TRIAL.