Tim Ackermann
@timack.bsky.social
Patent & trademark attorney with over 25 years experience in helping protect businesses' trademark & patent rights. (Former @ntxip on you know where)
Pinned
Tim Ackermann
@timack.bsky.social
· Oct 16
Not having gifs means people write things like “hot dog kills guy gif” and “is you taking notes on a criminal conspiracy gif” so basically Bluesky is Darmok and Jelad at Tanagra now.
It's the start of a new culture, built upon the ruins of the old, "Shaka, when the walls fell" style.
Reposted by Tim Ackermann
You can /argue/ that Coca-Cola invented the modern Santa Claus.
But we can pinpoint the origin of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer with total precision.
He was invented by Robert L. May in 1939 for Montgomery Ward as a promotional/coloring book.
Ironically, Robert May grew up secular Jewish.
But we can pinpoint the origin of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer with total precision.
He was invented by Robert L. May in 1939 for Montgomery Ward as a promotional/coloring book.
Ironically, Robert May grew up secular Jewish.
December 24, 2025 at 2:40 PM
You can /argue/ that Coca-Cola invented the modern Santa Claus.
But we can pinpoint the origin of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer with total precision.
He was invented by Robert L. May in 1939 for Montgomery Ward as a promotional/coloring book.
Ironically, Robert May grew up secular Jewish.
But we can pinpoint the origin of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer with total precision.
He was invented by Robert L. May in 1939 for Montgomery Ward as a promotional/coloring book.
Ironically, Robert May grew up secular Jewish.
Reposted by Tim Ackermann
This here, a proud and upstanding member of His Majesty's Royal Navy, is Pollyanna the reindeer.
And for the avoidance of doubt, she's the one on the right of the photograph. 🧵
And for the avoidance of doubt, she's the one on the right of the photograph. 🧵
December 24, 2025 at 3:33 PM
This here, a proud and upstanding member of His Majesty's Royal Navy, is Pollyanna the reindeer.
And for the avoidance of doubt, she's the one on the right of the photograph. 🧵
And for the avoidance of doubt, she's the one on the right of the photograph. 🧵
Reposted by Tim Ackermann
up there with this classic:
![blank @mister_blank
odysseus: we now set out on our odyssey.
sailor: [raising hand] what's an odyssey?
odysseus: a long journey named after the only survivor.
sailor: oh ok wait what.
1:44 PM • 4/13/20 • Twitter for iPhone](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:f46ykt5mi5mjo76c6r2sirmz/bafkreibrijrima62netigsqal2p2c2k34stbeutgymdqfclethl3zmnoky@jpeg)
December 24, 2025 at 1:34 AM
up there with this classic:
Reposted by Tim Ackermann
It's kind of hilarious that this is a downgrade from the retired, much lamented FFG-7 class, which at least had a single arm launcher for Harpoon and Standard Missiles (SM-1 and 2). The OHPs were great ships. www.twz.com/sea/navys-ne...
Navy’s New Frigate Will Not Have A Vertical Launch System For Missiles
FF(X) will initially have the same armament installed as the Littoral Combat Ships, relying on uncrewed platforms and modular payloads for expanded capability.
www.twz.com
December 22, 2025 at 10:39 PM
It's kind of hilarious that this is a downgrade from the retired, much lamented FFG-7 class, which at least had a single arm launcher for Harpoon and Standard Missiles (SM-1 and 2). The OHPs were great ships. www.twz.com/sea/navys-ne...
Reposted by Tim Ackermann
Hey, it's my print debut for National Geographic! This fall, I got to accompany folks from the Fort Worth Zoo on an incredible adorable mission: releasing tiny Texas horned lizards to new lives in the Hill Country.
(You will want to click on this one, trust me. The photos are adorable.)
(You will want to click on this one, trust me. The photos are adorable.)
Is the grumpy-faced Texas horned lizard adorable enough to survive?
As habitat loss and invasive predators decimate the Texas horned lizard population, researchers are banking on statewide fervor to bring them back.
www.nationalgeographic.com
December 23, 2025 at 1:23 AM
Hey, it's my print debut for National Geographic! This fall, I got to accompany folks from the Fort Worth Zoo on an incredible adorable mission: releasing tiny Texas horned lizards to new lives in the Hill Country.
(You will want to click on this one, trust me. The photos are adorable.)
(You will want to click on this one, trust me. The photos are adorable.)
Reposted by Tim Ackermann
"Today, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is issuing a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) directed to requiring foreign applicants and patent owners to be represented by a registered patent practitioner before the Office." content.govdelivery.com/accounts/USP...
December 23, 2025 at 1:35 PM
"Today, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is issuing a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) directed to requiring foreign applicants and patent owners to be represented by a registered patent practitioner before the Office." content.govdelivery.com/accounts/USP...
Reposted by Tim Ackermann
started / going
December 18, 2025 at 12:13 AM
started / going
Reposted by Tim Ackermann
a muppet twist on iconic art: thread
December 21, 2025 at 6:48 PM
a muppet twist on iconic art: thread
Reposted by Tim Ackermann
why not put count von count into various vampire scenes: thread
December 20, 2025 at 4:17 PM
why not put count von count into various vampire scenes: thread
Reposted by Tim Ackermann
AI (fake) people posting (fake) spam TikTok endorsements of (real) products.
NEW: A hacker gained control of 1,100 mobile phones powering covert, AI-generated ads on TikTok. Then, he shared details of the operation with 404 Media.
A look inside how startup Doublespeed, which is backed by Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), is creating AI spam pages on TikTok to promote products.
A look inside how startup Doublespeed, which is backed by Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), is creating AI spam pages on TikTok to promote products.
Hack Reveals the a16z-Backed Phone Farm Flooding TikTok With AI Influencers
A hacker gained control of a 1,100 mobile phone farm powering covert, AI-generated ads on TikTok.
www.404media.co
December 18, 2025 at 2:35 PM
AI (fake) people posting (fake) spam TikTok endorsements of (real) products.
Reposted by Tim Ackermann
Anthropic handed the WSJ an AI-operated vending machine—the machine could chat with customers, and made purchasing & price-setting decisions—as what Anthropic calls a stress test, and they’re spinning this as an insightful success that customers could convince the machine to drop prices to $0
AI ran our office vending machine for several weeks. It lost hundreds of dollars, gave away a PlayStation, bought a live fish—and taught us a lot about AI agents, writes Joanna Stern.
We Let AI Run Our Office Vending Machine. It Lost Hundreds of Dollars.
An AI agent ran a snack operation in the WSJ newsroom. It gave away a free PlayStation, ordered a live fish—and taught us lessons about the future of AI.
on.wsj.com
December 18, 2025 at 4:33 PM
Anthropic handed the WSJ an AI-operated vending machine—the machine could chat with customers, and made purchasing & price-setting decisions—as what Anthropic calls a stress test, and they’re spinning this as an insightful success that customers could convince the machine to drop prices to $0
Reposted by Tim Ackermann
Gift link, probably the funniest thing the Wall Street Journal has done this year.
We Let AI Run Our Office Vending Machine. It Lost Hundreds of Dollars.
An AI agent ran a snack operation in the WSJ newsroom. It gave away a free PlayStation, ordered a live fish—and taught us lessons about the future of AI.
www.wsj.com
December 18, 2025 at 3:48 PM
Gift link, probably the funniest thing the Wall Street Journal has done this year.
AI (fake) people posting (fake) spam TikTok endorsements of (real) products.
NEW: A hacker gained control of 1,100 mobile phones powering covert, AI-generated ads on TikTok. Then, he shared details of the operation with 404 Media.
A look inside how startup Doublespeed, which is backed by Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), is creating AI spam pages on TikTok to promote products.
A look inside how startup Doublespeed, which is backed by Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), is creating AI spam pages on TikTok to promote products.
Hack Reveals the a16z-Backed Phone Farm Flooding TikTok With AI Influencers
A hacker gained control of a 1,100 mobile phone farm powering covert, AI-generated ads on TikTok.
www.404media.co
December 18, 2025 at 2:35 PM
AI (fake) people posting (fake) spam TikTok endorsements of (real) products.
Rome x concrete!
Self-healing Roman concrete: reaction rims around volcanic aggregates show that calcium ions originating from the dissolution of lime clasts diffuse and remineralize, producing amorphous phases and various polymorphs of calcium carbonate ⚒️🧪🏺
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
An unfinished Pompeian construction site reveals ancient Roman building technology - Nature Communications
Here the authors combine microstructural and chemical analysis of building materials collected from an active construction site in Pompeii prior to the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 ...
www.nature.com
December 17, 2025 at 2:38 PM
Rome x concrete!
Reposted by Tim Ackermann
December 4, 2025 at 4:05 PM
Reposted by Tim Ackermann
A thread of how to say “nobody asked you” from around the world, starting with this one…
A Lithuanian way of telling someone to mind their own business is ne tavo kiaulės, ne tavo pupos. It means “not your pigs, not your beans.”
A Lithuanian way of telling someone to mind their own business is ne tavo kiaulės, ne tavo pupos. It means “not your pigs, not your beans.”
December 17, 2025 at 1:11 PM
A thread of how to say “nobody asked you” from around the world, starting with this one…
A Lithuanian way of telling someone to mind their own business is ne tavo kiaulės, ne tavo pupos. It means “not your pigs, not your beans.”
A Lithuanian way of telling someone to mind their own business is ne tavo kiaulės, ne tavo pupos. It means “not your pigs, not your beans.”
Reposted by Tim Ackermann
D514,464 - issued in 2006 for a design for a "safety cone for warning of slippery conditions." #DesignPatents
December 16, 2025 at 5:43 PM
D514,464 - issued in 2006 for a design for a "safety cone for warning of slippery conditions." #DesignPatents
Reposted by Tim Ackermann
Hands-on reviews of the new Commodore 64 Ultimate are starting to come in, and I'm suddenly feeling VERY good about my preorder. It consolidates every great homebrew hardware improvement for the C64 into one machine. Even the packaging is well done, a faithful update to the original.
Commodore 64 Ultimate Review: 21st Century Computing from a 1982 perspective
I hope I look this good in 30 years time.
www.tomshardware.com
December 16, 2025 at 6:45 PM
Hands-on reviews of the new Commodore 64 Ultimate are starting to come in, and I'm suddenly feeling VERY good about my preorder. It consolidates every great homebrew hardware improvement for the C64 into one machine. Even the packaging is well done, a faithful update to the original.
Reposted by Tim Ackermann
Yiiiiiikes.
"Plaintiff's status report 33 indicates that Defendant was served by email and/or electronic publication ....but the Court has not yet granted leave to serve Defendant electronically." D Squared Plant Traps LLC v. bladedy, No. 1:25-cv-12439 (N.D. Ill. Dec. 12, 2025), ECF 35
December 16, 2025 at 1:38 PM
Yiiiiiikes.
Reposted by Tim Ackermann
Today in design patents:
D1106218 issued for a data accessing device.
I once spent a whole summer litigating what these things are called. This (to no one's shock) was not on the list.
#DesignPatents
D1106218 issued for a data accessing device.
I once spent a whole summer litigating what these things are called. This (to no one's shock) was not on the list.
#DesignPatents
December 16, 2025 at 2:21 PM
Today in design patents:
D1106218 issued for a data accessing device.
I once spent a whole summer litigating what these things are called. This (to no one's shock) was not on the list.
#DesignPatents
D1106218 issued for a data accessing device.
I once spent a whole summer litigating what these things are called. This (to no one's shock) was not on the list.
#DesignPatents
Reposted by Tim Ackermann
Today in design patents:
D1106304 issued for an intelligent service robot.
The cartoonish head makes this so much worse.
#DesignPatents
D1106304 issued for an intelligent service robot.
The cartoonish head makes this so much worse.
#DesignPatents
December 16, 2025 at 2:16 PM
Today in design patents:
D1106304 issued for an intelligent service robot.
The cartoonish head makes this so much worse.
#DesignPatents
D1106304 issued for an intelligent service robot.
The cartoonish head makes this so much worse.
#DesignPatents
Reposted by Tim Ackermann
Me, I got stuck at A is for AK, like Arkansas? Picture of an aardvark, oh, but... maybe I'm H is for... woops, guess we skipped to L? And there is no J?
What is wrong with this whole thing?
What is wrong with this whole thing?
Tag yourself. I’m O is penguin.
Also good for it for figuring out v is vulture on the second try.
Also good for it for figuring out v is vulture on the second try.
December 15, 2025 at 8:06 AM
Me, I got stuck at A is for AK, like Arkansas? Picture of an aardvark, oh, but... maybe I'm H is for... woops, guess we skipped to L? And there is no J?
What is wrong with this whole thing?
What is wrong with this whole thing?
Reposted by Tim Ackermann
this field biologist does a great job highlighting the insidiousness of AI editing
these one-click AI edit buttons are incredibly appealing to many photographers, amateurs and professionals alike, and are framed as innocuous
this is worth sharing and educating people about
these one-click AI edit buttons are incredibly appealing to many photographers, amateurs and professionals alike, and are framed as innocuous
this is worth sharing and educating people about
December 15, 2025 at 2:21 AM
this field biologist does a great job highlighting the insidiousness of AI editing
these one-click AI edit buttons are incredibly appealing to many photographers, amateurs and professionals alike, and are framed as innocuous
this is worth sharing and educating people about
these one-click AI edit buttons are incredibly appealing to many photographers, amateurs and professionals alike, and are framed as innocuous
this is worth sharing and educating people about
Reposted by Tim Ackermann
The point is make a will
File it
Appoint a power of attorney for your medical affairs
Delineate your wishes.
I don’t care if you’re thirty and in excellent health
Don’t dump your death on your friends
We now have to work with the hospital to decide on the body
Work with the nursing home
File it
Appoint a power of attorney for your medical affairs
Delineate your wishes.
I don’t care if you’re thirty and in excellent health
Don’t dump your death on your friends
We now have to work with the hospital to decide on the body
Work with the nursing home
December 15, 2025 at 11:54 AM
The point is make a will
File it
Appoint a power of attorney for your medical affairs
Delineate your wishes.
I don’t care if you’re thirty and in excellent health
Don’t dump your death on your friends
We now have to work with the hospital to decide on the body
Work with the nursing home
File it
Appoint a power of attorney for your medical affairs
Delineate your wishes.
I don’t care if you’re thirty and in excellent health
Don’t dump your death on your friends
We now have to work with the hospital to decide on the body
Work with the nursing home