Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Thomas Germain @thomasgermain.bsky.social · Aug 25

My biggest regret in life is choosing a career where you never get to use walkie talkies

Thomas Germain @thomasgermain.bsky.social · Aug 24

YouTube is testing AI on your videos without consent. Today it’s filters. Tomorrow, who decides what’s real www.bbc.com/future/artic...

YouTube secretly used AI to edit people's videos. The results could bend reality

YouTube made AI enhancements to videos without telling users or asking permission. As AI quietly mediates our world, what happens to our shared connections with real life?

www.bbc.com

4 12

Reposted by Thomas Germain

Pumpkin spice labubu @ashstoneman.bsky.social · Jun 27

Had a great time at lectures on tap at @caveatnyc.bsky.social watching @thomasgermain.bsky.social open our eyes to the deeper side of YouTube

1 3

Thomas Germain @thomasgermain.bsky.social · Jun 23

👎

2

Thomas Germain @thomasgermain.bsky.social · Jun 23

I need everyone to understand that the introduction was not “hey listen to this band that I enjoy.” I was more like sharing a mystery

2

Thomas Germain @thomasgermain.bsky.social · Jun 16

Google has a new button. It might destroy the web as you know it. Experts say the new “AI Mode” is an asteroid aimed at the heart of the internet, one that could decimate millions of websites. It seems this chapter of online history is over. Here’s what comes next: www.bbc.com/future/artic...

Is Google about to destroy the web?

Google says adding more AI to its search engine will rejuvenate the internet. Others predict an apocalypse for websites. One thing is clear: this era of online history is closing.

www.bbc.com

13 67 150

Reposted by Thomas Germain

Gisele Navarro @ichbingisele.bsky.social · Jun 16

Google wrote the rules, they created the game and they rewarded the players.

Now they're turning around and saying, 'That's my infrastructure, the web just happens to live in it.’

🔗 www.bbc.com/future/artic... by @thomasgermain.bsky.social

Is Google about to destroy the web?

Google says adding more AI to its search engine will rejuvenate the internet. Others predict an apocalypse for websites. One thing is clear: this era of online history is closing.

www.bbc.co.uk

1 4 3

Thomas Germain @thomasgermain.bsky.social · May 19

Right now, there are trains in California that can’t start until someone inserts a floppy disk.

50 years into Microsoft’s reign, Windows XP and MS-DOS still run elevators, hospitals, ATMs and more. I went inside the ghost world of obsolete PCs
www.bbc.com/future/artic...

Still booting after all these years: The people stuck using ancient Windows computers

As technology marches on, some people get trapped using decades-old software and devices. Here's a look inside the strange, stubborn world of obsolete Windows machines.

www.bbc.com

1 9

Reposted by Thomas Germain

Ryan McGrady @antisomniac.bsky.social · Apr 24

For years, YouTube didn't disclose how many videos it hosted. That fundamental-but-missing figure about one of the most important parts of our digital communication infrastructure is what launched our big @idpiumass.bsky.social YouTube project. But now there's an official number(ish)! [1/7]

1 8 10

Reposted by Thomas Germain

Joe Katz @joekatz45.bsky.social · Apr 23

"Republicans are advancing what could become the largest expansion of immigration enforcement funding in U.S. history—between $175 and $345 billion... and so far none of the key players will answer the simplest question: What, exactly, are taxpayers being asked to fund?" via @migrantinsider.com

Washington’s Deportation Jackpot

The biggest immigration story no one is talking about is the funding.

migrantinsider.com

20 110 240

Reposted by Thomas Germain

Megan Savage @meganloverdesavage.bsky.social · Apr 13

If you call the Oregon Tele-Pome hotline today, I’ll read you a poem. 503-928-7008.

This heart-poem from my core was originally published by @fonografeditions.bsky.social

Thanks to @mojgani.bsky.social and @oregonhumanities.org for putting together the incredible hotline & for featuring me.

Flyer for the Oregon Poetry Telephone Line — new poems daily through April

Regeneration

The face of Dog Mountain, that turn from dead plane,
slices of translucent sun about my feet.
Rustle in the depth hoar. The pull in the pack
and the snap of wind in my face.
One summer in Montana I tried to capture
the last of the glacier ice, so small
your head in my lens obscured it. The germ of a lesion had
formed inside me, but we did not know it.
All sublimation begets unclassifiable forms:
cups, scrolls, columns, ribs that bind our hearts
And the ringing. Above the treeline, rock. The hoarfrost
shows its grain. More crystal lattice than fragments of stars.
Regeneration appears first angular, then faceted. Light
bleeds through our skin, makes us three-dimensional.

1 19 81

Thomas Germain @thomasgermain.bsky.social · Apr 13

NEW from the BBC: Why it might be time to ditch your phone case
www.bbc.com/future/artic...

Is it finally safe to ditch your phone case? I put it to the test

With smartphones tougher than ever, a new wave of phone minimalists say cases are for cowards. I joined the case-free cult, called the experts and braced for the sound of broken glass.

www.bbc.com

4

Thomas Germain @thomasgermain.bsky.social · Mar 28

20 years later, Facebook figured out that what people really want is…. to talk to their friends about.fb.com/news/2025/03...

Bringing the Magic of Friends Back to Facebook | Meta

We’re introducing a new Facebook Friends tab that makes it easier to connect with your friends.

about.fb.com

4

Thomas Germain @thomasgermain.bsky.social · Mar 12

If you can explain why King Charles' playlist is only on Apple Music please get in touch with me immediately www.nytimes.com/2025/03/10/a...

Jam Like a King: Charles Releases a Playlist

King Charles III showcased 17 artists, mostly from Commonwealth countries, in a personal playlist. Beyoncé, Bob Marley and Diana Ross made the cut.

www.nytimes.com

3

Thomas Germain @thomasgermain.bsky.social · Mar 9

Can you link me an example? Not sure if I’ve seen this

1 1

Thomas Germain @thomasgermain.bsky.social · Mar 9

Beautiful right

1

Thomas Germain @thomasgermain.bsky.social · Mar 8

👀👀👀👀👀

1

Thomas Germain @thomasgermain.bsky.social · Mar 8

There’s a secret YouTube no one gets to see - a vast, uncurated documentary of human life. We found a way to explore it.

The average video has just 41 views. That means most of the platform is invisible, until now www.bbc.com/future/artic...

The hidden world beneath the shadows of YouTube's algorithm

There's a secret side of YouTube, just beyond the guiding hand of the algorithm – and it’s nothing like what you know.

www.bbc.com

2 23 54

Thomas Germain @thomasgermain.bsky.social · Mar 8

There’s a secret YouTube you never get to see - a vast, uncurated documentary of human life. We found a way to explore it.

The average video has just 41 views. That means most of the platform is invisible, until now www.bbc.com/future/artic...

The hidden world beneath the shadows of YouTube's algorithm

There's a secret side of YouTube, just beyond the guiding hand of the algorithm – and it’s nothing like what you know.

www.bbc.com

2

Reposted by Thomas Germain

the deeliciousplum 🌺📚 @deeliciousplum.com · Mar 8

Thoroughly enjoyed this article. It is a struggle to explore in spite of YT's algorithms. With that in mind, I do love stumbling upon heartfelt, playful, creative, and unexpected content. Thank you for writing a insightful article on a very addictive resource. 😊

1 1

Reposted by Thomas Germain

Carlos Diaz Ruiz @carlosdiazruiz.com · Feb 25

It is not just fake news, Ad revenue funds the worst content on the Internet, including child sexual abuse.

@thomasgermain.bsky.social (BBC)

Platforms keep telling us, for over a decade, that this is just a mistake and that -trust me, bro- it will be fixed soon.

www.bbc.com/future/artic...

How big tech's ad systems helped fund child abuse online

Some of the biggest tech companies in the world served ads on a website featuring images of child abuse, helping to fund its operations.

www.bbc.com

1 6 19

Reposted by Thomas Germain

Ryan McGrady @antisomniac.bsky.social · Feb 13

YouTube is almost 20 years old and more popular than ever, but there's still a ton we don't know about it. The BBC's @thomasgermain.bsky.social has a story about our work at @idpiumass.bsky.social to uncover some of those YouTube fundamentals. www.bbc.com/future/artic...

How a computer that 'drunk dials' videos is exposing YouTube's secrets

YouTube is about to turn 20. An unusual research method is unveiling statistics about the platform that Google doesn't want you to know.

www.bbc.com

2 8

Thomas Germain @thomasgermain.bsky.social · Feb 13

New for the BBC: Friday is YouTube's 20th birthday, but the most basic facts about the platform are still closely guarded secrets.

For example: How much YouTube do we all watch?
Answer: 8 MILLION YEARS per month

Check out the mind blowing details Google wont tell you ⬇️ www.bbc.com/future/artic...

How a computer that 'drunk dials' videos is exposing YouTube's secrets

YouTube is about to turn 20. An unusual research method is unveiling statistics about the platform that Google doesn't want you to know.

www.bbc.com

1 7

Reposted by Thomas Germain

Tech Transparency Project @ttp-updates.bsky.social · Feb 10

ICYMI: Google, Amazon, and Microsoft allowed their ad networks to place advertisements on a shady image-sharing website that hosted child sexual abuse material. Ad safety experts say the website's mechanics should have raised big red flags. Read more from @thomasgermain.bsky.social, here:

How big tech's ad systems helped fund child abuse online

Some of the biggest tech companies in the world served ads on a website featuring images of child abuse, helping to fund its operations.

www.bbc.com

2 4