Sharon Machlis
@smachlis.bsky.social
Author of Practical R for Mass Communication & Journalism
❤️ #RStats, writing & cities designed for walking/biking
Having fun with #GenAI
(Mostly) retired; former tech journalist
Also #VibrantAging #Running #Photography #Crochet #ASL
❤️ #RStats, writing & cities designed for walking/biking
Having fun with #GenAI
(Mostly) retired; former tech journalist
Also #VibrantAging #Running #Photography #Crochet #ASL
Gemini Pro saying "I'm now completely stumped" in its thinking text is not very encouraging. (I'm asking it to debug an R Shiny app using the ragnar and shinychat #RStats packages)
November 24, 2025 at 9:40 PM
Gemini Pro saying "I'm now completely stumped" in its thinking text is not very encouraging. (I'm asking it to debug an R Shiny app using the ragnar and shinychat #RStats packages)
Reposted by Sharon Machlis
testthat 3.3.0 is here! Major updates for #RStats testing include failure messages for easier debugging, 6 new specific expectations, and the SlowReporter to find your bottlenecks.
Heads Up: R 4.1+ is now required, and old mocking functions are removed.
Read the post: tidyverse.org/blog/2025/11...
Heads Up: R 4.1+ is now required, and old mocking functions are removed.
Read the post: tidyverse.org/blog/2025/11...
November 24, 2025 at 3:34 PM
testthat 3.3.0 is here! Major updates for #RStats testing include failure messages for easier debugging, 6 new specific expectations, and the SlowReporter to find your bottlenecks.
Heads Up: R 4.1+ is now required, and old mocking functions are removed.
Read the post: tidyverse.org/blog/2025/11...
Heads Up: R 4.1+ is now required, and old mocking functions are removed.
Read the post: tidyverse.org/blog/2025/11...
Reposted by Sharon Machlis
Everyone is welcome to join us at our next virtual meetup for a talk on using #GenerativeAI in R with Sharon Machlis
@smachlis.bsky.social — Tech Journalist and Data Professional.
RSVP 🔗 www.meetup.com/rladies-pari....
#RStats #RStatsFr #Rprogramming #RLadies #GenAI @rladies.org @posit.co
@smachlis.bsky.social — Tech Journalist and Data Professional.
RSVP 🔗 www.meetup.com/rladies-pari....
#RStats #RStatsFr #Rprogramming #RLadies #GenAI @rladies.org @posit.co
November 24, 2025 at 11:10 AM
Everyone is welcome to join us at our next virtual meetup for a talk on using #GenerativeAI in R with Sharon Machlis
@smachlis.bsky.social — Tech Journalist and Data Professional.
RSVP 🔗 www.meetup.com/rladies-pari....
#RStats #RStatsFr #Rprogramming #RLadies #GenAI @rladies.org @posit.co
@smachlis.bsky.social — Tech Journalist and Data Professional.
RSVP 🔗 www.meetup.com/rladies-pari....
#RStats #RStatsFr #Rprogramming #RLadies #GenAI @rladies.org @posit.co
You can still follow me (thank you!) without all my football posts by muting the NFL hashtag ⬇️⬇️⬇️
Reminder to people who follow me for data-related posts (and thank you!): You can mute all my American football posts by muting the NFL hashtag.
On the Web go to
Settings > Moderation > Muted Words and Tags
and add NFL to both text and tags
On the Web go to
Settings > Moderation > Muted Words and Tags
and add NFL to both text and tags
November 23, 2025 at 10:38 PM
You can still follow me (thank you!) without all my football posts by muting the NFL hashtag ⬇️⬇️⬇️
Well Kafka and his absurd decision not to kick abfield goal in Q4 will lose the game for the #NYGiants, and proved that he should not be considered for the head coaching job. Trick play TDs notwithstanding. Another winnable game that the coaching staff blew for them.
#Giants #NFL #NYG
#Giants #NFL #NYG
November 23, 2025 at 9:24 PM
This stage of life often needs to balance gratitude for life's blessings with grieving the loss of more loved ones as we age. It's an odd juxtaposition at times. My latest #NextChapter post:
nextchapter.machlis.com/posts/2025-1...
nextchapter.machlis.com/posts/2025-1...
Gratitude, and Loss – My Next Chapter: A Retirement Journey
There can be much to be thankful for at this stage of life – especially if your health is decent. But aging also brings loss. How to honor both?
nextchapter.machlis.com
November 23, 2025 at 2:03 PM
This stage of life often needs to balance gratitude for life's blessings with grieving the loss of more loved ones as we age. It's an odd juxtaposition at times. My latest #NextChapter post:
nextchapter.machlis.com/posts/2025-1...
nextchapter.machlis.com/posts/2025-1...
Daily number of Bluesky posts with the #RStats hashtag (case insensitive) Sept. 1 - Nov 21, excluding the CRAN Package Updates bot.
Coded with the {bskyr} and {ggplot2} R packages.
[Posted via R script and weekly cron job. Tx for your patience if something went awry] #RStatsStats
Coded with the {bskyr} and {ggplot2} R packages.
[Posted via R script and weekly cron job. Tx for your patience if something went awry] #RStatsStats
November 22, 2025 at 2:06 PM
Daily number of Bluesky posts with the #RStats hashtag (case insensitive) Sept. 1 - Nov 21, excluding the CRAN Package Updates bot.
Coded with the {bskyr} and {ggplot2} R packages.
[Posted via R script and weekly cron job. Tx for your patience if something went awry] #RStatsStats
Coded with the {bskyr} and {ggplot2} R packages.
[Posted via R script and weekly cron job. Tx for your patience if something went awry] #RStatsStats
I tried the Olmo 3 32B thinking LLM at playground.allenai.org It coded an #RStats ggplot2 bar graph with bars ordered by desc value (Kimi K2 made an error) and a working demo R Shiny app.
I gave it some ragnar docs and it created a store on the 1st try! Retrieval took work, but still impressive.
I gave it some ragnar docs and it created a store on the 1st try! Retrieval took work, but still impressive.
November 21, 2025 at 4:07 PM
I tried the Olmo 3 32B thinking LLM at playground.allenai.org It coded an #RStats ggplot2 bar graph with bars ordered by desc value (Kimi K2 made an error) and a working demo R Shiny app.
I gave it some ragnar docs and it created a store on the 1st try! Retrieval took work, but still impressive.
I gave it some ragnar docs and it created a store on the 1st try! Retrieval took work, but still impressive.
Reposted by Sharon Machlis
#rstats Please welcome Jarl, a new R linter.
Jarl is a CLI tool with extensions in VS Code, Positron, and Zed. It can check thousands of lines of R code in milliseconds.
Jarl provides several output formats, a Github Actions workflow, and more.
Blog post: www.etiennebacher.com/posts/2025-1...
Jarl is a CLI tool with extensions in VS Code, Positron, and Zed. It can check thousands of lines of R code in milliseconds.
Jarl provides several output formats, a Github Actions workflow, and more.
Blog post: www.etiennebacher.com/posts/2025-1...
November 20, 2025 at 4:50 PM
#rstats Please welcome Jarl, a new R linter.
Jarl is a CLI tool with extensions in VS Code, Positron, and Zed. It can check thousands of lines of R code in milliseconds.
Jarl provides several output formats, a Github Actions workflow, and more.
Blog post: www.etiennebacher.com/posts/2025-1...
Jarl is a CLI tool with extensions in VS Code, Positron, and Zed. It can check thousands of lines of R code in milliseconds.
Jarl provides several output formats, a Github Actions workflow, and more.
Blog post: www.etiennebacher.com/posts/2025-1...
"We are at a very dangerous moment right now. The President is engaged in the wholesale incitement, endorsement, and rationalization of political violence in this country." - CT Sen. Chris Murphy
The President of the United States just called for Democratic members of Congress to be executed. "HANG THEM", he posted.
If you're a person of influence in this country and you haven't picked a side, maybe now would be the time to pick a fucking side.
If you're a person of influence in this country and you haven't picked a side, maybe now would be the time to pick a fucking side.
November 20, 2025 at 8:21 PM
"We are at a very dangerous moment right now. The President is engaged in the wholesale incitement, endorsement, and rationalization of political violence in this country." - CT Sen. Chris Murphy
Reposted by Sharon Machlis
Just a crazy, terrible moment to be reading a statement like this from six members of Congress:
“Every American must unite and condemn the President’s calls for our murder and political violence."
“This is a time for moral clarity.... We will continue to lead and will not be intimidated."
“Every American must unite and condemn the President’s calls for our murder and political violence."
“This is a time for moral clarity.... We will continue to lead and will not be intimidated."
November 20, 2025 at 7:46 PM
Just a crazy, terrible moment to be reading a statement like this from six members of Congress:
“Every American must unite and condemn the President’s calls for our murder and political violence."
“This is a time for moral clarity.... We will continue to lead and will not be intimidated."
“Every American must unite and condemn the President’s calls for our murder and political violence."
“This is a time for moral clarity.... We will continue to lead and will not be intimidated."
This is a great time for US folks to cull our email. SO many places are emailing for Black Friday and 'Giving Tuesday'. I'm (finally) being ruthless about unsubscribing from lists. And adding '30 days' filters to others I'll want to read but not keep, so they're auto deleted after 30 days.
November 20, 2025 at 3:21 PM
This is a great time for US folks to cull our email. SO many places are emailing for Black Friday and 'Giving Tuesday'. I'm (finally) being ruthless about unsubscribing from lists. And adding '30 days' filters to others I'll want to read but not keep, so they're auto deleted after 30 days.
After days of family, friends & feasts, wouldn't it be fun to attend an @rladies.org meetup about AI and R? 😀
Join me at 10am ET / 4pm CET Sunday of US Thanksgiving weekend at an @rladiesparis.bsky.social virtual meetup! (Sadly I will not be in Paris….) #RStats #GenAI
www.meetup.com/rladies-pari...
Join me at 10am ET / 4pm CET Sunday of US Thanksgiving weekend at an @rladiesparis.bsky.social virtual meetup! (Sadly I will not be in Paris….) #RStats #GenAI
www.meetup.com/rladies-pari...
Using Generative AI in R: Capabilities & Opportunities, Sun, Nov 30, 2025, 4:00 PM | Meetup
We are excited to announce our next virtual meetup!
Join us on November 30 from 4:00 pm to 5:00 pm CET (GMT+1) for a talk on using Generative AI in R with Sharon Machlis —
www.meetup.com
November 20, 2025 at 12:39 AM
After days of family, friends & feasts, wouldn't it be fun to attend an @rladies.org meetup about AI and R? 😀
Join me at 10am ET / 4pm CET Sunday of US Thanksgiving weekend at an @rladiesparis.bsky.social virtual meetup! (Sadly I will not be in Paris….) #RStats #GenAI
www.meetup.com/rladies-pari...
Join me at 10am ET / 4pm CET Sunday of US Thanksgiving weekend at an @rladiesparis.bsky.social virtual meetup! (Sadly I will not be in Paris….) #RStats #GenAI
www.meetup.com/rladies-pari...
It would be helpful if American schools taught kids that Hitler admired US racism and patterned many of his antisemitic laws on our anti-Black laws. Instead, we're teaching the Holocaust less altogether.
Hitler also admired American antisemites like Henry Ford. Bigots attract each other. . . .
Hitler also admired American antisemites like Henry Ford. Bigots attract each other. . . .
Racism is fascism practiced on Black people first.
Hitler based the Nuremberg laws on US Jim Crow. He invaded Russia because he wanted his own California.
The US shifting from a racist country to a fascist country basically means "Start treating everyone like you've always treated Black people."
Hitler based the Nuremberg laws on US Jim Crow. He invaded Russia because he wanted his own California.
The US shifting from a racist country to a fascist country basically means "Start treating everyone like you've always treated Black people."
November 17, 2025 at 1:50 AM
It would be helpful if American schools taught kids that Hitler admired US racism and patterned many of his antisemitic laws on our anti-Black laws. Instead, we're teaching the Holocaust less altogether.
Hitler also admired American antisemites like Henry Ford. Bigots attract each other. . . .
Hitler also admired American antisemites like Henry Ford. Bigots attract each other. . . .
My election data-and-reporting retirement project turned out to be surprisingly intense -- and rewarding! I missed having a team like I did when I was working, but I definitely didn't miss the higher stress. My latest #NextChapter post:
nextchapter.machlis.com/posts/2025-1...
#Retirement
nextchapter.machlis.com/posts/2025-1...
#Retirement
Work-Adjacent Projects (Cont.) – My Next Chapter: A Retirement Journey
Hobby projects aren’t like a full-time job, but they can still be a bit intense.
nextchapter.machlis.com
November 16, 2025 at 1:44 PM
My election data-and-reporting retirement project turned out to be surprisingly intense -- and rewarding! I missed having a team like I did when I was working, but I definitely didn't miss the higher stress. My latest #NextChapter post:
nextchapter.machlis.com/posts/2025-1...
#Retirement
nextchapter.machlis.com/posts/2025-1...
#Retirement
Daily number of Bluesky posts with the #RStats hashtag (case insensitive) Sept. 1 - Nov 14, excluding the CRAN Package Updates bot.
Coded with the {bskyr} and {ggplot2} R packages.
[Posted via R script and weekly cron job. Tx for your patience if something went awry] #RStatsStats
Coded with the {bskyr} and {ggplot2} R packages.
[Posted via R script and weekly cron job. Tx for your patience if something went awry] #RStatsStats
November 15, 2025 at 2:06 PM
Daily number of Bluesky posts with the #RStats hashtag (case insensitive) Sept. 1 - Nov 14, excluding the CRAN Package Updates bot.
Coded with the {bskyr} and {ggplot2} R packages.
[Posted via R script and weekly cron job. Tx for your patience if something went awry] #RStatsStats
Coded with the {bskyr} and {ggplot2} R packages.
[Posted via R script and weekly cron job. Tx for your patience if something went awry] #RStatsStats
This is a really impressive interactive network #dataviz of the Epstein documents #ddj ⬇️⬇️⬇️
Author @thatsjustlikeyouropinionman.com says in comments he plans to OSS the repo.
Author @thatsjustlikeyouropinionman.com says in comments he plans to OSS the repo.
Are you an intrepid researcher who wants to explore the Epstein emails, but don't have time to sort thru the unstructured ravings of a deranged lunatic?
Fear not patriots! My colleague @thatsjustlikeyouropinionman.com has used the power of AI for great justice.
epstein-doc-explorer-1.onrender.com
Fear not patriots! My colleague @thatsjustlikeyouropinionman.com has used the power of AI for great justice.
epstein-doc-explorer-1.onrender.com
November 15, 2025 at 1:10 PM
This is a really impressive interactive network #dataviz of the Epstein documents #ddj ⬇️⬇️⬇️
Author @thatsjustlikeyouropinionman.com says in comments he plans to OSS the repo.
Author @thatsjustlikeyouropinionman.com says in comments he plans to OSS the repo.
This 'workaround' is a best practice for AI in data science, and hardly new. Use the LLM for what it does best: Understand a natural language request, and then generate 'deterministic' computer code to return an answer.
The problem is trying to use them for things they weren't designed for.
The problem is trying to use them for things they weren't designed for.
The essential failure of LLMs in the smart home - where natural language processing should shine - is the best evidence that LLMs as a technology simply may not be able to do the things they’re promised
www.theverge.com/report/78717...
www.theverge.com/report/78717...
November 13, 2025 at 10:05 PM
This 'workaround' is a best practice for AI in data science, and hardly new. Use the LLM for what it does best: Understand a natural language request, and then generate 'deterministic' computer code to return an answer.
The problem is trying to use them for things they weren't designed for.
The problem is trying to use them for things they weren't designed for.
Want to easily use different LLMs for different tasks while solving a problem with #GenAI? The {mini007} #RStats 📦 by Dr. Mohamed El Fodil Ihaddaden is a CrewAI-like agent orchestration framework for R, built on top of ellmer.
Just saw it at R+AI and looks very cool.
github.com/feddelegrand...
Just saw it at R+AI and looks very cool.
github.com/feddelegrand...
GitHub - feddelegrand7/mini007: Lightweight Framework for Building Multi-Agents LLM Sequential Orchestration Processes
Lightweight Framework for Building Multi-Agents LLM Sequential Orchestration Processes - feddelegrand7/mini007
github.com
November 12, 2025 at 6:57 PM
Want to easily use different LLMs for different tasks while solving a problem with #GenAI? The {mini007} #RStats 📦 by Dr. Mohamed El Fodil Ihaddaden is a CrewAI-like agent orchestration framework for R, built on top of ellmer.
Just saw it at R+AI and looks very cool.
github.com/feddelegrand...
Just saw it at R+AI and looks very cool.
github.com/feddelegrand...
Reposted by Sharon Machlis
pkgdown 2.2.0 now out — tidyverse.org/blog/2025/11.... Main feature is new build_llm_docs() which makes your websites easier to understand by LLMs. (Which you can easily turn off if desired) #rstats
pkgdown 2.2.0
The latest version of pkgdown automatically builds markdown files that make it easy for LLMs to use your website.
tidyverse.org
November 6, 2025 at 1:45 PM
pkgdown 2.2.0 now out — tidyverse.org/blog/2025/11.... Main feature is new build_llm_docs() which makes your websites easier to understand by LLMs. (Which you can easily turn off if desired) #rstats
You know what my $250 in free Claude Code on the Web credits is teaching me? git! Every time Claude Web does something, it's a new branch in a GitHub repo. And for security, it can't write changes to my main code. I've done more git branch pulls and merges the last 2 days than the prior 2 years 🤣
November 11, 2025 at 7:33 PM
You know what my $250 in free Claude Code on the Web credits is teaching me? git! Every time Claude Web does something, it's a new branch in a GitHub repo. And for security, it can't write changes to my main code. I've done more git branch pulls and merges the last 2 days than the prior 2 years 🤣
Interested in using your data skills for public service locally? My 5-minute #PositConf2025 lightning talk aims to give you some ideas for inspiration! Now on YouTube:
youtu.be/fSAoCcZD--Y?...
youtu.be/fSAoCcZD--Y?...
Use Your Data Skills for Good (Sharon Machlis) | posit::conf(2025)
YouTube video by Posit PBC
youtu.be
November 11, 2025 at 5:19 PM
Interested in using your data skills for public service locally? My 5-minute #PositConf2025 lightning talk aims to give you some ideas for inspiration! Now on YouTube:
youtu.be/fSAoCcZD--Y?...
youtu.be/fSAoCcZD--Y?...
Generative AI helped discover new magnetic compounds that may lower use of rare earth elements, University of New Hampshire researchers say. #GenAI also helped create a database of magnetic materials to aid in finding replacements.
techxplore.com/news/2025-11...
techxplore.com/news/2025-11...
Magnetic materials discovered by AI could reduce rare earth dependence
Researchers at the University of New Hampshire have harnessed artificial intelligence to accelerate the discovery of new functional magnetic materials, creating a searchable database of 67,573 magneti...
techxplore.com
November 11, 2025 at 12:59 PM
Generative AI helped discover new magnetic compounds that may lower use of rare earth elements, University of New Hampshire researchers say. #GenAI also helped create a database of magnetic materials to aid in finding replacements.
techxplore.com/news/2025-11...
techxplore.com/news/2025-11...
BREAKING: Brian Daboll has been fired.
open.substack.com/pub/fanzoner...
open.substack.com/pub/fanzoner...
Giants Fire Brian Daboll: Sources
Giants axe Head Coach after Four Seasons
open.substack.com
November 10, 2025 at 5:56 PM
“The most valuable skill in the AI era isn't technical, it's creative direction: the ability to guide technology with imagination, taste, and intent.” - David Wadhwani, Adobe President of Digital Media, in The Rundown AI newsletter
www.therundown.ai/p/...
#GenAI
www.therundown.ai/p/...
#GenAI
Adobe’s big AI leap for creators
Adobe doubles down on generative and agentic AI at MAX 2025
www.therundown.ai
November 10, 2025 at 1:24 PM
“The most valuable skill in the AI era isn't technical, it's creative direction: the ability to guide technology with imagination, taste, and intent.” - David Wadhwani, Adobe President of Digital Media, in The Rundown AI newsletter
www.therundown.ai/p/...
#GenAI
www.therundown.ai/p/...
#GenAI