Sharon Machlis
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smachlis.bsky.social
Sharon Machlis
@smachlis.bsky.social
2.6K followers 310 following 1.4K posts
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
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smachlis.bsky.social
Sharon Machlis @smachlis.bsky.social · Nov 11
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?...
Use Your Data Skills for Good (Sharon Machlis) | posit::conf(2025)
YouTube video by Posit PBC
youtu.be
smachlis.bsky.social
Daily number of Bluesky posts with the #RStats hashtag (case insensitive) Sept. 1 - Feb 13, 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
Bar chart of daily #RStats posts. Amounts range from around 25 in September 2024 to peaking over 100 some days. Latest totals were 44 yesterday and 55 the day before.
February 14, 2026 at 2:07 PM
Reposted by Sharon Machlis
arissintl.bsky.social
The ARISS Europe team shared the story of Elena Selmi. She went on from being a contact participant to a space physicist!

The application window is now open for your group in Europe, Africa and the Middle East. Apply now for an early 2027 contact.

www.ariss-eu.org/index.php/sc...
Photo of Elena Selmi smiling confidently outdoors on a pathway lined with trees and a modern building in the background. She wears a long dark coat over a grey cropped top and black pants, with a lanyard and badge around her neck. Right side features bold text overlay in yellow and blue: 'From STEM student to ESA team member!' detailing her 2015 birthday wish from astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti during an ISS STEM contact in Milan, Italy, and her 2025 update: graduated from Oxford with a degree in astrophysics and particle physics, now working at ESA. Bottom includes congratulations from ARISS.
February 7, 2026 at 2:55 PM
smachlis.bsky.social
I've worked with Claude to create a natural-language interface to Census data. It generates #RStats tidycensus code to answer a user's query.
If of interest, here's the R package with the usual disclaimers (AI can make mistakes! Check the code! Use at your own risk!)
github.com/smach/census... #ddj
GitHub - smach/censuschat
Contribute to smach/censuschat development by creating an account on GitHub.
github.com
February 13, 2026 at 4:44 PM
smachlis.bsky.social
I get a lot out of online spaces like this, but I also spend too much time online. Maybe this would actually help me use social media the way I want to: Catch up, post a bit, and move on to the rest of my real-world life. I don’t need ‘connections’ with bots. I do in my real life.
emollick.bsky.social Ethan Mollick @emollick.bsky.social · 2d
We don’t have any barriers to bots flooding every online space. They can use browsers and make payments. In fact, it is arguably a better deal to pay for a bot to access a social media site, since it can post and carry out your agenda when you sleep.

Online spaces are about to get (even more) grim.
February 13, 2026 at 1:30 PM
Reposted by Sharon Machlis
jennycohn.bsky.social
Rs wld still let you vote if you get/have a passport (which is expensive) OR if you get/have a certified birth certificate that matches your current approved form of ID (but these 2 documents *don’t* match for 69 million married women, & Rs *don’t* include marriage certs as approved documentation.)
jennycohn.bsky.social Jenny Cohn @jennycohn.bsky.social · 2d
Most Real IDs do *not* prove citizenship. (EDLs, which are available in only 5 states are an exception) The GOP’s “SAVE” Act thus misleads when it says voters can prove citizenship w/ “a form of ID issued consistent with the reqmts of…REAL ID…that indicates the applicant is a citizen of the US…” 1/
February 12, 2026 at 2:12 AM
smachlis.bsky.social
But we don't have enough money for Americans to have affordable healthcare.
reichlinmelnick.bsky.social Aaron Reichlin-Melnick @reichlinmelnick.bsky.social · 5d
ICE has now spent over half a BILLION dollars just on purchasing warehouses around the country to convert into detention camps.

If these mega-camps are utilized to the full capacity ICE intends, they'll be the largest prisons in the country, with little real oversight. www.ajc.com/politics/202...
ICE to begin detaining immigrants inside Social Circle warehouse in April
Homeland Security plans to build warehouse detention facilities in other cities being met with opposition.
www.ajc.com
February 9, 2026 at 11:18 PM
smachlis.bsky.social
Patriots played in a division with the 3-14 Jets and 7-10 Dolphins. Seahawks played in a division with the 12-5 Raiders and 12-5 Niners.
#NFL #SuperBowl
February 9, 2026 at 2:18 AM
smachlis.bsky.social
The OpenAI Codex Super Bowl ad was surprisingly good

youtu.be/aCN9iCXNJqQ
OpenAI Super Bowl 2026 | Codex | You Can Just Build Things
YouTube video by OpenAI
youtu.be
February 9, 2026 at 12:32 AM
smachlis.bsky.social
Conference app chatbot built in R that:
- Answers schedule questions
- Includes both chatbot and searchable table
- One-click button filters table to see only sessions AI bot mentions
Code: github.com/smach/NICAR2...
App: smach-nicar2026-chatbot.share.connect.posit.cloud
#RStats #RShiny #NICAR26
Screenshot of a NICAR 2026 Session Explorer interface showing filtered results for data visualization sessions on Friday morning. On the left panel, a user question reads: "Are there any dataviz sessions Friday morning?" The AI response lists four sessions: Customizing ggplot for yourself or your organization Fri 10:15 am, Room 209 Speaker: Kaitlyn Radde, Pew Research Center Learn how to create customized ggplot graphics packages for publication-ready visualizations. Connect with skeptical and disengaged audiences … with data! Fri 11:30 am, White River G Speakers: Eva Constantaras, Lighthouse Reports; Aaron Mendelson, The Trace; Max Siegelbaum, Documented Discover innovative ways to present and explain data to engage skeptical audiences. QGIS 2: Analyzing geographic data Fri 10:15 am, Room 204 Learn to explore, manipulate, and analyze geographic datasets to gain new insights. QGIS 1: Spatial analysis for beginners Fri 9 am, Room 204 Learn to make your own maps using QGIS, including importing and displaying geographic data. A note at the bottom says: "Please verify with the official schedule." The right panel is a session directory table with the same four sessions, showing titles, times, speakers, rooms, skill levels, and recording status. [Alt text by ChatGPT]
February 8, 2026 at 4:23 PM
smachlis.bsky.social
Neighborhood trail this afternoon
Snow-covered trail with trees on either side. Person with green jacket in the distance on the trail.
February 8, 2026 at 1:04 AM
Reposted by Sharon Machlis
lorak.bsky.social
“The global publishing platform Substack is generating revenue from newsletters that promote virulent Nazi ideology, white supremacy and antisemitism, a Guardian investigation has found…” www.theguardian.com/media/2026/f...
Revealed: How Substack makes money from hosting Nazi newsletters
Exclusive: Site takes a cut of subscriptions to content that promotes far-right ideology, white supremacy and antisemitism
www.theguardian.com
February 7, 2026 at 5:09 PM
smachlis.bsky.social
This is such a useful (and short!) piece by developer Mitchell Hashimoto on "my journey of how I found value in AI tooling and what I'm trying next with it." Adopting ANY tool is work and not easy at the start, he notes. #GenAI is no exception.
h/t @simonwillison.net

mitchellh.com/writing/my-a...
My AI Adoption Journey
mitchellh.com
February 7, 2026 at 4:57 PM
smachlis.bsky.social
Daily number of Bluesky posts with the #RStats hashtag (case insensitive) Sept. 1 - Feb 6, 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
Bar chart of daily #RStats posts. Amounts range from around 25 in September 2024 to peaking over 100 some days. Latest totals were 36 yesterday and 44 the day before.
February 7, 2026 at 2:06 PM
Reposted by Sharon Machlis
runasand.bsky.social
If you've been laid off by the Washington Post this week and have any questions re: digital security, please email me on [email protected]. I'll help you pro-bono for the rest of the month.
February 6, 2026 at 4:00 PM
smachlis.bsky.social
Interesting dataviz!
kylewalker.bsky.social Kyle Walker @kylewalker.bsky.social · 10d
Half of the United States' population lives in these 144 counties.

Explore: walkerke-county-popu...
February 5, 2026 at 2:46 AM
Reposted by Sharon Machlis
markstout.bsky.social
Whatever this is, it’s Not Good. This is a drastic step and obviously not meant to alert CIA Director Ratcliffe, rather to alert us. Given Wyden’s interest in privacy and surveillance and what’s going on around the country, I’d wager a bit of money that the CIA has been doing domestic things.
dell.bsky.social dell cameron @dell.bsky.social · 9d
I don’t like this
Letter from Senator Ron Wyden: Dear CIA Director Ratcliffe, I write to alert you to a classified letter I sent you earlier today in which I express deep concerns about CIA activities. Thank you for your attention to this important matter. Sincerely, Ron Wyden U.S. Senator
February 4, 2026 at 11:50 PM
smachlis.bsky.social
If you have an Android phone, this is SUCH a great tip from JR Raphael at @computerworld. Makes reading articles on your phone so much more pleasant!
www.computerworld.com/article/4120...
The best Android feature you (probably) aren't using
An incredible upgrade awaits — and it'll take you all of 30 seconds to get going.
www.computerworld.com
February 4, 2026 at 8:47 PM
smachlis.bsky.social
GitHub Actions have been down for more than 2 hours 😲 [although cron jobs on my tiny Digital Ocean Linux server continue uninterrupted 😅] www.githubstatus.com #GitHub
Update – "We continue to investigate failures impacting GitHub Actions hosted-runner jobs. We're waiting on our upstream provider to apply the identified mitigations, and we're preparing to resume job processing as safely as possible." Feb 02, 2026 – 22:10 UTC Update – "Copilot is experiencing degraded performance. We are continuing to investigate." Feb 02, 2026 – 21:27 UTC Update – "We continue to investigate failures impacting GitHub Actions hosted-runner jobs. We have identified the root cause and are working with our upstream provider to mitigate. This is also impacting GitHub features that rely on GitHub Actions (for example, Copilot Coding Agent and Dependabot)." Feb 02, 2026 – 21:13 UTC Update – "The team continues to investigate issues causing GitHub Actions jobs on hosted runners to remain queued for extended periods, with a percentage of jobs failing. We will continue to provide updates as we make progress toward mitigation." Feb 02, 2026 – 20:27 UTC Update – "Pages is experiencing degraded performance. We are continuing to investigate." Feb 02, 2026 – 19:48 UTC Update – "The team continues to investigate issues causing GitHub Actions jobs on hosted runners to remain queued for extended periods, with a percentage of jobs failing. We will continue to provide updates as we make progress toward mitigation." Feb 02, 2026 – 19:44 UTC Update – "Actions is experiencing degraded availability. We are continuing to investigate." Feb 02, 2026 – 19:43 UTC Update – "GitHub Actions hosted runners are experiencing high wait times across all labels. Self-hosted runners are not impacted." Feb 02, 2026 – 19:07 UTC Investigating – "We are investigating reports of degraded performance for Actions." Feb 02, 2026 – 19:03 UTC
February 2, 2026 at 10:42 PM
smachlis.bsky.social
Daily number of Bluesky posts with the #RStats hashtag (case insensitive) Sept. 1 - Jan 30, 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
Bar chart of daily #RStats posts. Amounts range from around 25 in September 2024 to peaking over 100 some days. Latest totals were 47 yesterday and 38 the day before.
January 31, 2026 at 2:06 PM
Reposted by Sharon Machlis
douglasmack.bsky.social
Finally wrote about it.

"I’m calling it the Cookie Theory of Collective Action: Everyone has a role, anyone can start small, and joy is an essential part of the broader fight for your community."

snackstack.net/2026/01/30/t...
The Cookie Theory of Collective Action
Build community, bring snacks, and other tips from an occupied city
snackstack.net
January 30, 2026 at 9:54 PM
smachlis.bsky.social
Not sure if info in here has changed, but I've gone over this presentation by @themockup.blog MULTIPLE times over the years to get comfortable with arrow and parquet files in #RStats
January 29, 2026 at 5:17 PM
smachlis.bsky.social
Hey crafters! Needle & Skein in MN is promoting "Melt the ICE" hat knit and crochet patterns. "ALL proceeds from the sale of this pattern will be given to immigrant aid organizations within the Twin Cities community."
Ravelry: www.ravelry.com/patterns/sou...
PayHip: payhip.com/shopneedlean...
Ravelry: Needle & Skein Ravelry Store - patterns
www.ravelry.com
January 28, 2026 at 6:39 PM
Reposted by Sharon Machlis
t-kalinowski.bsky.social
ragnar 0.3.0 is now on CRAN! 🚀 An R toolkit for RAG from your docs: faster ingestion, better retrieval, Azure OpenAI + Snowflake embeddings, and MCP serving. tidyverse.org/blog/2026/01...

#rstats #rag #ai
ragnar 0.3.0
The new release of ragnar adds faster ingestion, new embedding providers, improved retrieval, and new integrations for using ragnar stores from tools.
tidyverse.org
January 27, 2026 at 5:30 PM
smachlis.bsky.social
The penalty for overseeing an operation that executed two American civilians and trampled on countless other people's legal rights cannot be "you have to retire early." There need to be consequences.
mcopelov.bsky.social Mark Copelovitch @mcopelov.bsky.social · 18d
But I do have one question.

When you get to your little place in El Centro, I imagine you are going to take off that handsome-looking Border Patrol uniform of yours.

A reminder that the awful & illegal things keep happening & have since 1865, because there are never any actual legal consequences.
January 27, 2026 at 12:11 AM
Reposted by Sharon Machlis
timobrien.bsky.social
Alex Pretti:
January 24, 2026 at 9:26 PM