Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Reposted by Ariel

Don Moynihan @donmoyn.bsky.social · 2h

Writing something about ICE and sweet Jesus it is so incredibly dark what they are doing to these cities. We have all seen the videos, but when you wade into the details of their actions, it is extraordinarily bleak.

34 180 840

Ariel @sycoraxpine.bsky.social · 2h

It’s a complicated place, thinking and feeling about a lot of these celebrities.

1

Reposted by Ariel

ProPublica @propublica.org · 3h

WATCH: ProPublica obtained records from the Department of Agriculture that detail the 94 million pounds of food, down to the number of eggs, that never reached food banks because of the Trump administration’s cuts to The Emergency Food Assistance Program.

➡️ Read more: https://propub.li/4odsKnn

46 730 1.1K

Ariel @sycoraxpine.bsky.social · 2h

And unfortunately (like Rashad with Cosby) she very publicly supported him and disbelieved Dylan.

www.bbc.com/news/enterta...

Diane Keaton defends Woody Allen over abuse allegations

The actress says she "continues to believe" the director after claims against him resurfaced.

www.bbc.com

1

Reposted by Ariel

Jason Spyromilio Ιάσων Σπυρομίλιος @apolitosb.bsky.social · 2d

On May 21, exactly two weeks after Taher’s little boy died, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio sat before Congress and declared: “No one has died” because of his government’s decision to gut its foreign aid program. Rubio also insisted: “No children are dying on my watch.”

2 2

Reposted by Ariel

Sandeep Bakshi @sandeepbak.bsky.social · 2h

I had one audition as Krishna Bhanji & they said, 'Beautiful audition but we don't quite know how to place you in our forthcoming season.' I changed my name, crossed the road, and they said when can you start?

- Ben Kingsley on his change of Indian name to a white name.
Nefarious whiteness at work.

6 9

Ariel @sycoraxpine.bsky.social · 2h

Yes, I am too.

1

Reposted by Ariel

Goblin Gower, PhD (the Ph is for Phantasm) @medievaliste.bsky.social · 2h

“Academic freedom” is not supposed to mean “big donors direct research and teaching” but that’s exactly what systematic defunding of universities along with the college-is-a-corporation model has enabled.

Blake Emerson @blakeprof.bsky.social · 6h

One of the under-observed parts of the last several years is the switch where wealthy donors claims directive authority over university policy. So they think Trump’s efforts of undermine academic freedom promote their own control. It’s a symptom of oligarchy, and how oligarchy gives way to Tyranny.

Joey Fishkin @fishkin.bsky.social · 6d

The Times' coverage of Rowan's role has been remarkable. It is sad to me that after forcing his alma mater, Penn, to oust a really good president for incredibly poor reasons, Rowan's megalomanical next thought was "maybe the federal government should do this everywhere" and they're actually trying.

14 36

Reposted by Ariel

Sara Partridge, Ph.D. @sarapartridge.bsky.social · 5h

There are reports that the *entire* office of special education at the US Dept of Education has been cut. These hardworking folks ensure kids with disabilities get equal access to a quality education.

America’s children deserve better than this.

170 1.7K 3.3K

Reposted by Ariel

Chris Ingraham @cingraham.bsky.social · 7h

"Depends on who you ask" framing is one of the most grating tics in modern political journalism. Objective reality exists and your job is to describe it.

David Corn @davidcorn.bsky.social · 8h

A classic case of irresponsible both-sidesism from the NYT. The story is that Trump and MAGA propagandists are lying about Portland to incite a conflict, not that there are different views of the matter.

13 120 530

Reposted by Ariel

Mike Batho @recliningpair.bsky.social · Dec 2

A few years ago during Covid, when like a lot of the country, I was going batshit, I started a mini Grand Designs, on Twitter, using tiny 18mm figures.

And if people enjoyed it there, maybe they'll enjoy it here.

Meet Tom & Sue.

3 14 33

Reposted by Ariel

Hypervisible @hypervisible.blacksky.app · Aug 18

What the actual fucking fuck. www.theverge.com/news/760508/...

One of the most notable tools is the AI grader agent, which Grammarly says can provide feedback based on uploaded course details and “publicly available” information about the instructor. The bot can give tailored writing recommendations and estimate what grade the paper will receive in its current state, helping students make improvements prior to submission.

22 130 470

Reposted by Ariel

Jed Brown @jedbrown.org · Aug 18

It is not "attribution and sourcing" to generate post-hoc citations that have not been read and did not inform the student's writing. Those should be regarded as fraudulent: artifacts testifying to human actions and thought that did not occur.
www.theverge.com/news/760508/...

For help with attribution and sourcing, Grammarly is releasing a citation finder agent that automatically generates correctly formatted citations backing up claims in a piece of writing, and an expert review agent that provides personalized, topic-specific feedback.

Screenshot from Grammarly's demo of inserting a post-hoc citation.
https://www.grammarly.com/ai-agents/citation-finder

5 36 130

Reposted by Ariel

The New York Times @nytimes.com · 4h

More than three dozen federal judges have told The New York Times that the Supreme Court’s flurry of brief, opaque emergency orders in cases related to the Trump administration have left them confused about how to proceed in those matters and are hurting the judiciary’s image with the public.

Federal Judges, Warning of ‘Judicial Crisis,’ Fault Supreme Court’s Emergency Orders

Dozens of sitting judges shared with The Times their concerns about risks to the courts’ legitimacy as the Supreme Court releases opaque orders about Trump administration policies.

nyti.ms

18 75 220

Reposted by Ariel

Angie Rasmussen @angierasmussen.bsky.social · 18h

I don’t know who needs to hear this but the CDC is being eviscerated right now. America is not going to have any kind of outbreak response capacity after tonight. Americans’ health data is no longer secure. Say goodbye to federal public health in any capacity. It’s a disaster. We won’t recover.

490 5.8K 13K

Reposted by Ariel

John Warner @biblioracle.bsky.social · 1d

I strongly urge everyone to not just read this warning from @marcwatkins.bsky.social, but heed it, and be vocal and forceful pushing back against using AI to grade student writing. This must be anathema if we're going to have a world where learning means something. substack.com/inbox/post/1...

The Dangers of using AI to Grade

Nobody Learns, Nobody Gains

substack.com

7 120 270

Reposted by Ariel

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 2d

C-SPAN caller to Mike Johnson: "Hearing you say that 'everyone is smiling' in cities where troops have been rolled into feels dystopian and insane watching the response to it."

1.2K 4.2K 17K

Ariel @sycoraxpine.bsky.social · 10h

I often use this example- a world where AI writes essays that AI grades and no human ever touches the work and massive money is exchanged for grades and degrees - in talks with students, and we are all mutually horrified by the dystopia that is already here.

Karen Graubart @kbgraubart.bsky.social · 10h

Moving quickly to a world where students use AI to complete work, profs use AI to grade it, no one learns anything and we will live in a world of mediocrity and incompetence where only the billionaires benefit.

John Warner @biblioracle.bsky.social · 1d

I strongly urge everyone to not just read this warning from @marcwatkins.bsky.social, but heed it, and be vocal and forceful pushing back against using AI to grade student writing. This must be anathema if we're going to have a world where learning means something. substack.com/inbox/post/1...

2

Reposted by Ariel

Bill Kristol @billkristolbulwark.bsky.social · 17h

The shameless GOP lying about the No Kings gatherings scheduled for next Saturday reveals how deeply hostile much of the Republican Party is to “the right of the people peaceably to assemble.” I look forward to our local No Kings event, and urge my fellow Americans to attend in their communities.

140 1.1K 4.5K

Reposted by Ariel

NightMar on Hicks Street, Part 4: The Rabbit’s Revenge @histoftech.bsky.social · 1d

The Virginia Senate just told UVA it’s not getting state funding if it accepts the compact since UVA exists to serve Virginia, its residents, & their interests—not be a tool of the federal govt. Scoop from our student newspaper, who’ve been doing vital reporting www.cavalierdaily.com/article/2025...

39 1K 3.6K

Reposted by Ariel

Matt Green @mattgreencomedy.com · 12h

There’s a comment piece in The Times about sickness benefits mysteriously going up and no mention of Covid, long Covid, the effects of lockdown etc. Boosters help people stay healthy, but now they are only available to the very old or people who can afford them.

Jason Hazeley @jasonhazeley.bsky.social · 13h

It’s dispiriting that this is what getting a COVID vaccination now looks like to this chronic asthmatic.

16 84 210

Reposted by Ariel

NightMar on Hicks Street, Part 4: The Rabbit’s Revenge @histoftech.bsky.social · 1d

“Concerns over an AI bubble bursting have grown lately, with analysts recently finding that it’s 17 times the size of the dotcom-era bubble and four times bigger than the 2008 financial crisis.”

Hang onto your butts. This “correction” is gonna hurt.
futurism.com/artificial-i...

Bank of England Warns of Impending AI Disaster

The Bank of England has sounded the alarm, warning of an intensifying risk of a "sudden correction" due to an AI spending frenzy.

futurism.com

28 380 870

Reposted by Ariel

ProPublica @propublica.org · 18h

Blue Cross had refused to pay thousands of claims for the center’s patients, but on several occasions executives at the insurance company had signed special one-time deals with the center to pay for their wives’ cancer treatment.

(Published April)

“Slow Pay, Low Pay or No Pay”: Trial Reveals How Insurers Try to Wield Power Over Doctors

Blue Cross authorized mastectomies and breast reconstructions for women with cancer but refused to pay the full doctors’ bills. A jury called it fraud and awarded the practice $421 million.

www.propublica.org

12 370 740

Reposted by Ariel

ProPublica @propublica.org · 1d

NEW: Cutting federal funding. Weakening civil rights protections. Injecting God into the classroom.

Here are some of the ways Trump’s Department of Education could upend public schools.

How Trump’s Department of Education Is Upending Public Schools

The Trump administration has made a rapid succession of hires and decisions at the Department of Education that could spur profound changes in how schools operate and children learn. Here’s what to know.

www.propublica.org

9 120 270

Reposted by Ariel

Justin Baragona @justinbaragona.bsky.social · 1d

Just saying it out loud right now.

28 73 400