Noema Magazine
@noemamag.com
Longform journalism exploring fresh ideas. Pitch us: [email protected]
“Efforts to combat misinformation have largely left us defensive, reacting to strategies & narratives used by those who spread it.”
— @zevesanderson.com & Scott Babwah Brennen
— @zevesanderson.com & Scott Babwah Brennen
We Failed The Misinformation Fight. Now What? | NOEMA
Defending democracy in the digital age will require moving beyond the focus of fighting online misinformation.
www.noemamag.com
January 24, 2026 at 5:30 PM
“Efforts to combat misinformation have largely left us defensive, reacting to strategies & narratives used by those who spread it.”
— @zevesanderson.com & Scott Babwah Brennen
— @zevesanderson.com & Scott Babwah Brennen
“In the most powerful speech in Davos this week, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney laid out a forward-looking vision for those who must operate in the breach.”
—Nathan Gardels
#carney #davos #worldorder
—Nathan Gardels
#carney #davos #worldorder
The Middle Powers Step Up | NOEMA
Can the “countries in between” forge a counterweight to the dominant spheres of influence?
www.noemamag.com
January 23, 2026 at 6:13 PM
“In the most powerful speech in Davos this week, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney laid out a forward-looking vision for those who must operate in the breach.”
—Nathan Gardels
#carney #davos #worldorder
—Nathan Gardels
#carney #davos #worldorder
Reposted by Noema Magazine
“…sustaining the shared information commons”
Compelling essay by Hamilton Mann for @noemamag.com
www.noemamag.com/the-ai-power...
Compelling essay by Hamilton Mann for @noemamag.com
www.noemamag.com/the-ai-power...
The AI-Powered Web Is Eating Itself | NOEMA
Without a framework of “Artificial Integrity,” AI search platforms risk collapsing the information commons that made the web possible.
www.noemamag.com
January 23, 2026 at 11:30 AM
“…sustaining the shared information commons”
Compelling essay by Hamilton Mann for @noemamag.com
www.noemamag.com/the-ai-power...
Compelling essay by Hamilton Mann for @noemamag.com
www.noemamag.com/the-ai-power...
“Until recently, an implicit social contract governed the web: Creators produced content, search engines distributed it, & in return, user traffic flowed back to the creators’ websites that sustained the system.”
But not anymore, @hamiltonmann.bsky.social writes: www.noemamag.com/the-ai-power...
But not anymore, @hamiltonmann.bsky.social writes: www.noemamag.com/the-ai-power...
January 22, 2026 at 6:03 PM
“Until recently, an implicit social contract governed the web: Creators produced content, search engines distributed it, & in return, user traffic flowed back to the creators’ websites that sustained the system.”
But not anymore, @hamiltonmann.bsky.social writes: www.noemamag.com/the-ai-power...
But not anymore, @hamiltonmann.bsky.social writes: www.noemamag.com/the-ai-power...
Reposted by Noema Magazine
NEW: The OII's DPhil student Ben Bariach writes for Noema Magazine on world models, epistemology and society, previewing his ongoing research on the philosophy and governance of frontier AI at Oxford.
www.noemamag.com/when-ai-huma...
www.noemamag.com/when-ai-huma...
When AI & Human Worlds Collide | NOEMA
Can we imagine a future where synthetic AI worlds shape ours?
www.noemamag.com
January 22, 2026 at 11:52 AM
NEW: The OII's DPhil student Ben Bariach writes for Noema Magazine on world models, epistemology and society, previewing his ongoing research on the philosophy and governance of frontier AI at Oxford.
www.noemamag.com/when-ai-huma...
www.noemamag.com/when-ai-huma...
A future filled with many AI personas — from the bad boy to the brown-noser — isn’t a mistake; it’s the best way to work with the technology, Phil Nolan argues.
Embracing A World Of Many AI Personalities | NOEMA
A future filled with many AI personas — from the bad boy to the brown-noser — isn’t a mistake; it’s the best way to work with the technology.
www.noemamag.com
January 21, 2026 at 3:03 PM
A future filled with many AI personas — from the bad boy to the brown-noser — isn’t a mistake; it’s the best way to work with the technology, Phil Nolan argues.
“World-model-powered AI could one day mediate how people perceive, move through & make decisions within their everyday environments.”
—Ben Bariach
#ai #worldmodels #aiagents
—Ben Bariach
#ai #worldmodels #aiagents
When AI & Human Worlds Collide | NOEMA
Can we imagine a future where synthetic AI worlds shape ours?
www.noemamag.com
January 20, 2026 at 7:43 PM
“World-model-powered AI could one day mediate how people perceive, move through & make decisions within their everyday environments.”
—Ben Bariach
#ai #worldmodels #aiagents
—Ben Bariach
#ai #worldmodels #aiagents
Reposted by Noema Magazine
Love @noemamag.com for always having provocative reads; this one on the color of Earth and its political implications is a fascinating piece from @frederic-hanusch.bsky.social.
The Politics Of Planetary Color | NOEMA
Color once taught us to see and value our planet. It now records how we are altering it.
www.noemamag.com
January 19, 2026 at 1:42 AM
Love @noemamag.com for always having provocative reads; this one on the color of Earth and its political implications is a fascinating piece from @frederic-hanusch.bsky.social.
“People in Isan, Thailand’s northeastern province, consume bugs the way Americans eat potato chips.”
—Rebecca Root
—Rebecca Root
Would You Eat This Bug To Save The World? | NOEMA
Insects could play a key role in the future of the human diet with their high nutritional value and low environmental footprint, especially compared to meat.
www.noemamag.com
January 19, 2026 at 5:01 PM
“People in Isan, Thailand’s northeastern province, consume bugs the way Americans eat potato chips.”
—Rebecca Root
—Rebecca Root
“As AI-generated posts continue to overwhelm Facebook, Instagram & TikTok, it’s unclear to what degree actual human communication will persist on these platforms, & what those remnants will look like.”
— @mikesmariani.bsky.social
www.noemamag.com/how-we-becam...
— @mikesmariani.bsky.social
www.noemamag.com/how-we-becam...
How We Became Captives Of Social Media | NOEMA
Today’s social media has shifted from social networking platforms to AI-enhanced conveyor belts of vapid entertainment. Is there any escape?
www.noemamag.com
January 18, 2026 at 5:30 PM
“As AI-generated posts continue to overwhelm Facebook, Instagram & TikTok, it’s unclear to what degree actual human communication will persist on these platforms, & what those remnants will look like.”
— @mikesmariani.bsky.social
www.noemamag.com/how-we-becam...
— @mikesmariani.bsky.social
www.noemamag.com/how-we-becam...
“Caring about diversity in the current era lays the groundwork for the continued survival of our own species in the long term, no matter what the future holds.”
— @rdword.bsky.social
— @rdword.bsky.social
The Future Of Space Is More Than Human | NOEMA
The time has come to expand our visions of life beyond Earth.
www.noemamag.com
January 17, 2026 at 5:30 PM
“Caring about diversity in the current era lays the groundwork for the continued survival of our own species in the long term, no matter what the future holds.”
— @rdword.bsky.social
— @rdword.bsky.social
“When looking to the future of the labor market in an AI economy, we can’t talk about ‘job loss vs. gains’ in any general sense. The key issue is not the quantity of jobs, but the value of labor.”
—Nathan Gardels
#ai #futureofwork #economy #aijobs
—Nathan Gardels
#ai #futureofwork #economy #aijobs
How The ‘AI Job Shock’ Will Differ From The ‘China Trade Shock’ | NOEMA
What matters in the AI economy is the applicable value of labor.
www.noemamag.com
January 16, 2026 at 6:53 PM
“When looking to the future of the labor market in an AI economy, we can’t talk about ‘job loss vs. gains’ in any general sense. The key issue is not the quantity of jobs, but the value of labor.”
—Nathan Gardels
#ai #futureofwork #economy #aijobs
—Nathan Gardels
#ai #futureofwork #economy #aijobs
Reposted by Noema Magazine
This week's Top 5 #longreads:
• ICE fighter, @spiegel.de
• Tectonic researcher, @highcountrynews.org
• Prairie preserver, @noemamag.com
• Regal grandmother, Southlands (@boyceupholt.bsky.social)
• Wild timekeeper, @emergencemagazine.bsky.social
longreads.com/2026/01/16/t...
• ICE fighter, @spiegel.de
• Tectonic researcher, @highcountrynews.org
• Prairie preserver, @noemamag.com
• Regal grandmother, Southlands (@boyceupholt.bsky.social)
• Wild timekeeper, @emergencemagazine.bsky.social
longreads.com/2026/01/16/t...
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week - Longreads
In this edition: ICE fighter, tectonic researcher, prairie preserver, regal grandmother, wild timekeeper.
longreads.com
January 16, 2026 at 4:51 PM
This week's Top 5 #longreads:
• ICE fighter, @spiegel.de
• Tectonic researcher, @highcountrynews.org
• Prairie preserver, @noemamag.com
• Regal grandmother, Southlands (@boyceupholt.bsky.social)
• Wild timekeeper, @emergencemagazine.bsky.social
longreads.com/2026/01/16/t...
• ICE fighter, @spiegel.de
• Tectonic researcher, @highcountrynews.org
• Prairie preserver, @noemamag.com
• Regal grandmother, Southlands (@boyceupholt.bsky.social)
• Wild timekeeper, @emergencemagazine.bsky.social
longreads.com/2026/01/16/t...
Reposted by Noema Magazine
"Only in the last 200 years did farmers transform these acres into neat cornfields." —Christian Elliott for
@noemamag.com
www.noemamag.com/where-the-pr...
@noemamag.com
www.noemamag.com/where-the-pr...
Where The Prairie Still Remains | NOEMA
Are pioneer cemeteries key to the Iowa prairie’s revival, or its final resting place?
www.noemamag.com
January 15, 2026 at 8:16 PM
"Only in the last 200 years did farmers transform these acres into neat cornfields." —Christian Elliott for
@noemamag.com
www.noemamag.com/where-the-pr...
@noemamag.com
www.noemamag.com/where-the-pr...
“Most often, color slips into planetary politics quietly, as the mood of a map, the warning of a dashboard, the tint of a season, the hue of a banner.”
— @frederic-hanusch.bsky.social
— @frederic-hanusch.bsky.social
The Politics Of Planetary Color | NOEMA
Color once taught us to see and value our planet. It now records how we are altering it.
www.noemamag.com
January 15, 2026 at 6:30 PM
“Most often, color slips into planetary politics quietly, as the mood of a map, the warning of a dashboard, the tint of a season, the hue of a banner.”
— @frederic-hanusch.bsky.social
— @frederic-hanusch.bsky.social
Reposted by Noema Magazine
Must-read article on the folly of conflating computational intelligence with human consciousness, and why the way our brains actually work makes this mistake so seductive.
“If we conflate the richness of biological brains & human experience with the information-processing machinations of deepfake-boosted chatbots, or whatever the latest AI wizardry is, we do our minds, brains & bodies a grave injustice.”
— @anilseth.bsky.social, winner of @berggruen.org Essay Prize
— @anilseth.bsky.social, winner of @berggruen.org Essay Prize
The Mythology Of Conscious AI | NOEMA
Why consciousness is more likely a property of life than of computation and why creating conscious, or even conscious-seeming AI, is a bad idea.
www.noemamag.com
January 14, 2026 at 9:41 PM
Must-read article on the folly of conflating computational intelligence with human consciousness, and why the way our brains actually work makes this mistake so seductive.
Reposted by Noema Magazine
Whew. Listen.
“If we conflate the richness of biological brains & human experience with the information-processing machinations of deepfake-boosted chatbots, or whatever the latest AI wizardry is, we do our minds, brains & bodies a grave injustice.”
— @anilseth.bsky.social, winner of @berggruen.org Essay Prize
— @anilseth.bsky.social, winner of @berggruen.org Essay Prize
The Mythology Of Conscious AI | NOEMA
Why consciousness is more likely a property of life than of computation and why creating conscious, or even conscious-seeming AI, is a bad idea.
www.noemamag.com
January 14, 2026 at 7:09 PM
Whew. Listen.
Reposted by Noema Magazine
can't wait to read this
“If we conflate the richness of biological brains & human experience with the information-processing machinations of deepfake-boosted chatbots, or whatever the latest AI wizardry is, we do our minds, brains & bodies a grave injustice.”
— @anilseth.bsky.social, winner of @berggruen.org Essay Prize
— @anilseth.bsky.social, winner of @berggruen.org Essay Prize
The Mythology Of Conscious AI | NOEMA
Why consciousness is more likely a property of life than of computation and why creating conscious, or even conscious-seeming AI, is a bad idea.
www.noemamag.com
January 14, 2026 at 7:02 PM
can't wait to read this
Reposted by Noema Magazine
4/ The Mythology of Conscious AI is published now in @noemamag.com (many thanks to Tami Abdollah @latams.bsky.social for her patient & peerless editing) www.noemamag.com/the-mytholog...
The Mythology Of Conscious AI | NOEMA
Why consciousness is more likely a property of life than of computation and why creating conscious, or even conscious-seeming AI, is a bad idea.
www.noemamag.com
January 14, 2026 at 5:47 PM
4/ The Mythology of Conscious AI is published now in @noemamag.com (many thanks to Tami Abdollah @latams.bsky.social for her patient & peerless editing) www.noemamag.com/the-mytholog...
“If we conflate the richness of biological brains & human experience with the information-processing machinations of deepfake-boosted chatbots, or whatever the latest AI wizardry is, we do our minds, brains & bodies a grave injustice.”
— @anilseth.bsky.social, winner of @berggruen.org Essay Prize
— @anilseth.bsky.social, winner of @berggruen.org Essay Prize
The Mythology Of Conscious AI | NOEMA
Why consciousness is more likely a property of life than of computation and why creating conscious, or even conscious-seeming AI, is a bad idea.
www.noemamag.com
January 14, 2026 at 5:45 PM
“If we conflate the richness of biological brains & human experience with the information-processing machinations of deepfake-boosted chatbots, or whatever the latest AI wizardry is, we do our minds, brains & bodies a grave injustice.”
— @anilseth.bsky.social, winner of @berggruen.org Essay Prize
— @anilseth.bsky.social, winner of @berggruen.org Essay Prize
Reposted by Noema Magazine
Thanks @walthickey.bsky.social for the feature. Subscribe to @numlock.com! And find my piece on prairie cemeteries at @noemamag.com.
January 12, 2026 at 3:32 AM
Thanks @walthickey.bsky.social for the feature. Subscribe to @numlock.com! And find my piece on prairie cemeteries at @noemamag.com.
“It’s said that we live in a crisis of democracy, but it would be better stated that we live in a crisis of politics. Throughout the world, & especially in the West, an anti-political mood has taken hold.”
—Anton Cebalo
#politics #democracy #populism
—Anton Cebalo
#politics #democracy #populism
A New Anti-Political Fervor | NOEMA
Distrust in the state and politics has become the new normal.
www.noemamag.com
January 8, 2026 at 5:49 PM
“It’s said that we live in a crisis of democracy, but it would be better stated that we live in a crisis of politics. Throughout the world, & especially in the West, an anti-political mood has taken hold.”
—Anton Cebalo
#politics #democracy #populism
—Anton Cebalo
#politics #democracy #populism
Reposted by Noema Magazine
'The Moral Authority of Animals' One of @noemamag.com's Top 10 Reads Of 2025
read here: www.noemamag.com/noemas-top-1...
read here: www.noemamag.com/noemas-top-1...
January 8, 2026 at 4:58 PM
'The Moral Authority of Animals' One of @noemamag.com's Top 10 Reads Of 2025
read here: www.noemamag.com/noemas-top-1...
read here: www.noemamag.com/noemas-top-1...
Reposted by Noema Magazine
For @noemamag.com, I wrote a 5,000-word feature about a 13-acre pioneer cemetery in a rural part of eastern Iowa. Why? Because I'm not sure there's a place quite like it anywhere on Earth... #longreads 1/7
Where The Prairie Still Remains | NOEMA
Are pioneer cemeteries key to the Iowa prairie’s revival, or its final resting place?
www.noemamag.com
January 7, 2026 at 10:26 PM
For @noemamag.com, I wrote a 5,000-word feature about a 13-acre pioneer cemetery in a rural part of eastern Iowa. Why? Because I'm not sure there's a place quite like it anywhere on Earth... #longreads 1/7
“At a time when we’re increasingly siloed by class, race, politics & algorithms, [third places] perform a sacred service. They invite us to embrace something essential to our collective well-being: social friction.”
—Lisa Bubert
—Lisa Bubert
The Healing Power Of Social Friction | NOEMA
Could the key to bridging societal divides be found inside your local karaoke bar?
www.noemamag.com
January 7, 2026 at 3:31 PM
“At a time when we’re increasingly siloed by class, race, politics & algorithms, [third places] perform a sacred service. They invite us to embrace something essential to our collective well-being: social friction.”
—Lisa Bubert
—Lisa Bubert