@varnam.bsky.social
Reposted
'Simple, proven measures of vaccination, isolation, and ventilation are being neglected, leaving the public vulnerable as flu spreads. Experts call for a layered approach to infection control, combining vaccination, isolation, ventilation, masks, and hygiene.'👇 www.digitaljournal.com/life/flu-sea...
Flu season peak exposes missed COVID-19 lessons
In the UK, flu hospitalisations have surged by more than half in just one week.
www.digitaljournal.com
January 5, 2026 at 7:09 PM
'Simple, proven measures of vaccination, isolation, and ventilation are being neglected, leaving the public vulnerable as flu spreads. Experts call for a layered approach to infection control, combining vaccination, isolation, ventilation, masks, and hygiene.'👇 www.digitaljournal.com/life/flu-sea...
Reposted
Canadian federal Bill C-16 proposes making nonconsensual deep fake nudes a crime.
We can talk all day about how the legal system will not save us but this is a tangible way we can at least create SOME mechanism for justice.
Now's the time to contact your MP and show your support for the Bill.
We can talk all day about how the legal system will not save us but this is a tangible way we can at least create SOME mechanism for justice.
Now's the time to contact your MP and show your support for the Bill.
Many are just waking up to the Grok-nonconsensual images story as these pictures began flooding X over the holidays, but here’s our piece from Jan 2 featuring a victim, Julie Yukari, who was brave enough to speak on the record and on camera:
www.reuters.com/legal/litiga...
www.reuters.com/legal/litiga...
Elon Musk's Grok AI floods X with sexualized photos of women and minors
When contacted by Reuters for comment by email, xAI replied with the message "Legacy Media Lies."
www.reuters.com
January 5, 2026 at 7:17 PM
Canadian federal Bill C-16 proposes making nonconsensual deep fake nudes a crime.
We can talk all day about how the legal system will not save us but this is a tangible way we can at least create SOME mechanism for justice.
Now's the time to contact your MP and show your support for the Bill.
We can talk all day about how the legal system will not save us but this is a tangible way we can at least create SOME mechanism for justice.
Now's the time to contact your MP and show your support for the Bill.
Reposted
In general, "debates" with cranks more about false balance and legitimizing & platforming bunk. My rule: Avoid!
But see interesting piece by @gorskon.bsky.social sciencebasedmedicine.org/revisiting-t...
Tho he still believes "usually a bad idea for scientists to agree to these sorts of debates..."
But see interesting piece by @gorskon.bsky.social sciencebasedmedicine.org/revisiting-t...
Tho he still believes "usually a bad idea for scientists to agree to these sorts of debates..."
Revisiting the question of debating science deniers
Wealthy tech bro turned antivax crank Steve Kirsch attacked Paul Offit for refusing to debate antivaxxers, while Dr. Mike was "surrounded" by MAHA stans. These recent events led me to revisit the ques
sciencebasedmedicine.org
January 5, 2026 at 3:06 PM
In general, "debates" with cranks more about false balance and legitimizing & platforming bunk. My rule: Avoid!
But see interesting piece by @gorskon.bsky.social sciencebasedmedicine.org/revisiting-t...
Tho he still believes "usually a bad idea for scientists to agree to these sorts of debates..."
But see interesting piece by @gorskon.bsky.social sciencebasedmedicine.org/revisiting-t...
Tho he still believes "usually a bad idea for scientists to agree to these sorts of debates..."
Reposted
British and Australian chemists have discovered a powerful new antibiotic called pre-methylenomycin C lactone, hiding in a well-known soil bacterium. This molecule kills drug-resistant bacteria without triggering resistance. buff.ly/YlXaONo
#ShareGoodNewsToo
#ShareGoodNewsToo
Scientists find hidden antibiotic 100x stronger against deadly superbugs
A team of scientists discovered a hidden antibiotic 100 times stronger than existing drugs against deadly superbugs like MRSA. The molecule had been overlooked for decades in a familiar bacterium. It…
buff.ly
November 16, 2025 at 2:50 PM
British and Australian chemists have discovered a powerful new antibiotic called pre-methylenomycin C lactone, hiding in a well-known soil bacterium. This molecule kills drug-resistant bacteria without triggering resistance. buff.ly/YlXaONo
#ShareGoodNewsToo
#ShareGoodNewsToo
Reposted
“If a woman dares to show herself in public in any way, then she can and will be sexually harassed with the aid of genAI-driven tools that can easily turn her face into highly realistic pornography” is an absolute red-alarm human rights disaster
The end goal of Grok sexual harassment is to make women afraid to be visible. It’s a punishment for daring to exist in a way the perpetrators can’t control. There’s no one solution to this, because the problem isn’t just technological. It’s cultural. It’s misogyny. This is just one expression of it.
January 5, 2026 at 3:02 AM
“If a woman dares to show herself in public in any way, then she can and will be sexually harassed with the aid of genAI-driven tools that can easily turn her face into highly realistic pornography” is an absolute red-alarm human rights disaster
Reposted
I meet a lot of pregnant women at work.
A grand total of 0 (ZERO!) have been advised to get a COVID vaccine in pregnancy.
I would say the majority have bought into the misinformation that the vaccine is dangerous in pregnancy, which is the opposite of the truth.
A grand total of 0 (ZERO!) have been advised to get a COVID vaccine in pregnancy.
I would say the majority have bought into the misinformation that the vaccine is dangerous in pregnancy, which is the opposite of the truth.
Extremely important study, with very concerning implications for the future.
The COVID generation: the neurodevelopmental consequences of in-utero COVID-19 exposure.
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
The COVID generation: the neurodevelopmental consequences of in-utero COVID-19 exposure.
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
The COVID generation: the neurodevelopmental consequences of in-utero COVID-19 exposure
In historical viral epidemics, such as the H1N1 influenza and Zika viruses, prenatal exposures were correlated with risk for neuropsychiatric conditio…
www.sciencedirect.com
January 4, 2026 at 11:37 PM
I meet a lot of pregnant women at work.
A grand total of 0 (ZERO!) have been advised to get a COVID vaccine in pregnancy.
I would say the majority have bought into the misinformation that the vaccine is dangerous in pregnancy, which is the opposite of the truth.
A grand total of 0 (ZERO!) have been advised to get a COVID vaccine in pregnancy.
I would say the majority have bought into the misinformation that the vaccine is dangerous in pregnancy, which is the opposite of the truth.
Reposted
amazing how the entire machine can pivot within 24 hours. no need to slowly upsell the argument; just issue new marching orders
January 5, 2026 at 6:50 AM
amazing how the entire machine can pivot within 24 hours. no need to slowly upsell the argument; just issue new marching orders
Reposted
My niece in Stonehaven, near Aberdeen, has made a snow dalek that's featured in the Aberdeen Press and Journal. #proudaunt
January 5, 2026 at 7:50 AM
My niece in Stonehaven, near Aberdeen, has made a snow dalek that's featured in the Aberdeen Press and Journal. #proudaunt
Reposted
That dusk, in the dark drawing room, Old Fox lit the beeswax candles on the spruce tree for the last time & the ghosts of the past & of those yet to come stepped forward, held in their spun-gold for a brief weighted moment, for the end of Yuletide is leaden with time, with the fugacity of all things
January 5, 2026 at 1:31 PM
That dusk, in the dark drawing room, Old Fox lit the beeswax candles on the spruce tree for the last time & the ghosts of the past & of those yet to come stepped forward, held in their spun-gold for a brief weighted moment, for the end of Yuletide is leaden with time, with the fugacity of all things
Reposted
The same editorial board described Seattle’s mayor raising taxes to pay for childcare as a totalitarian power grab
The Washington Post editorial board comes out in favor of the Venezuela attack/operation to capture Maduro
January 3, 2026 at 5:51 PM
The same editorial board described Seattle’s mayor raising taxes to pay for childcare as a totalitarian power grab
Reposted
“What insanity is it to hurry dark death along with wars?
It is already imminent, coming secretly with a quiet foot.”
Quis furor est atram bellis accersere mortem?
Inminet et tacito clam venit illa pede. #Tibullus
It is already imminent, coming secretly with a quiet foot.”
Quis furor est atram bellis accersere mortem?
Inminet et tacito clam venit illa pede. #Tibullus
January 3, 2026 at 3:50 PM
“What insanity is it to hurry dark death along with wars?
It is already imminent, coming secretly with a quiet foot.”
Quis furor est atram bellis accersere mortem?
Inminet et tacito clam venit illa pede. #Tibullus
It is already imminent, coming secretly with a quiet foot.”
Quis furor est atram bellis accersere mortem?
Inminet et tacito clam venit illa pede. #Tibullus
Reposted
Since when is kidnapping foreign leaders to control their oil sector just part of foreign policy? The imperial hubris is overwhelming.
US will be ‘strongly involved’ in Venezuela oil industry, Trump says after Caracas attacked and Maduro captured – live
Donald Trump says Nicolás Maduro and wife will be taken to New York after being captured during US attack on Venezuela
www.theguardian.com
January 3, 2026 at 3:19 PM
Since when is kidnapping foreign leaders to control their oil sector just part of foreign policy? The imperial hubris is overwhelming.
Reposted
‘Sask economy is booming’, they say. So why is the SKP running a huge deficit, massive accumulated debt, record homelessness, hallway medicine, and closed ERs??
Stop giving away our natural resources! 🛑
Stop giving away our natural resources! 🛑
January 3, 2026 at 4:33 PM
‘Sask economy is booming’, they say. So why is the SKP running a huge deficit, massive accumulated debt, record homelessness, hallway medicine, and closed ERs??
Stop giving away our natural resources! 🛑
Stop giving away our natural resources! 🛑
Reposted
As Saskatchewan (& 6 other provinces) introduce (or already have) forced addiction treatment, federal data shows 🇨🇦 already “force[s] psychiatric hospitalizations…at higher rates…than any other country with comparable standards of living & health systems”. 1/ 🎁
Why does Canada have such high rates of forced psychiatric hospitalizations?
We should push our governments to better report on who’s being involuntarily committed and why, and if they’re more often helped or seriously harmed
www.theglobeandmail.com
January 3, 2026 at 3:44 PM
As Saskatchewan (& 6 other provinces) introduce (or already have) forced addiction treatment, federal data shows 🇨🇦 already “force[s] psychiatric hospitalizations…at higher rates…than any other country with comparable standards of living & health systems”. 1/ 🎁
Reposted
"Maduro is a brutal authoritarian dictator," I wisely intone, as the corrupt demented paedophile US President violating Constitutional Law while operating a gestapo and concentration camps illegally arrests a foreign leader on charges which read like they were written on a paper placemat in crayon.
January 3, 2026 at 1:24 PM
"Maduro is a brutal authoritarian dictator," I wisely intone, as the corrupt demented paedophile US President violating Constitutional Law while operating a gestapo and concentration camps illegally arrests a foreign leader on charges which read like they were written on a paper placemat in crayon.
I enjoyed The Unlikely Pursuit of Mary Bennet this year so another Austen title by same author is the most appealing to me. But I added several more titles to my fun reading list.
hi #romancelandia friends,
let's chat about books & bring some joy to this timeline. here are some of my most anticipated new publications of 2026.
#BookSky 🧵
let's chat about books & bring some joy to this timeline. here are some of my most anticipated new publications of 2026.
#BookSky 🧵
a penguin sitting on top of a pile of books
Alt: an adorable cartoon penguin sitting on top of a pile of books
media.tenor.com
January 3, 2026 at 5:34 PM
I enjoyed The Unlikely Pursuit of Mary Bennet this year so another Austen title by same author is the most appealing to me. But I added several more titles to my fun reading list.
Reposted
behold my 2025 romance superlatives 🥳🎉
worth noting that some of the best books I've read last year were written by trans & nonbinary folks, so much talent, I am in awe 🙏✨️
thank you @bandherbooks.bsky.social for creating this cute & fun template. #romancelandia #BookSky
worth noting that some of the best books I've read last year were written by trans & nonbinary folks, so much talent, I am in awe 🙏✨️
thank you @bandherbooks.bsky.social for creating this cute & fun template. #romancelandia #BookSky
January 1, 2026 at 4:36 PM
behold my 2025 romance superlatives 🥳🎉
worth noting that some of the best books I've read last year were written by trans & nonbinary folks, so much talent, I am in awe 🙏✨️
thank you @bandherbooks.bsky.social for creating this cute & fun template. #romancelandia #BookSky
worth noting that some of the best books I've read last year were written by trans & nonbinary folks, so much talent, I am in awe 🙏✨️
thank you @bandherbooks.bsky.social for creating this cute & fun template. #romancelandia #BookSky
Reposted
Can't help but feel like this is one of the reasons why the Constitution says If a dude in office does an insurrection, don't let that motherfucker hold office again
Bc clearly they cannot be trusted with power & control over the levers of government, & they do not care about democratic constraints
Bc clearly they cannot be trusted with power & control over the levers of government, & they do not care about democratic constraints
January 3, 2026 at 2:31 PM
Can't help but feel like this is one of the reasons why the Constitution says If a dude in office does an insurrection, don't let that motherfucker hold office again
Bc clearly they cannot be trusted with power & control over the levers of government, & they do not care about democratic constraints
Bc clearly they cannot be trusted with power & control over the levers of government, & they do not care about democratic constraints
Reposted
2 types of error are possible:
- false positive: pay fraudulent claim, cost $ lost from taxpayers
- false negative: deny legit claim, $ lost from private providers & risk of exit
Reducing a type often raises other
But better & worse ways to implement & difference in who can bear costs/risks
- false positive: pay fraudulent claim, cost $ lost from taxpayers
- false negative: deny legit claim, $ lost from private providers & risk of exit
Reducing a type often raises other
But better & worse ways to implement & difference in who can bear costs/risks
You've probably been following the story about fraud in MN. I wrote about the people who provide services who are being driven into bankruptcy, thanks to the Walz' administration decision to hire Optum AI to screen all payments. It's a disaster.
Perry: Trusted providers are being unfairly swept up in Minnesota’s fraud crackdown
As the state's new anti-fraud screening system went into effect, the Holland Center expected to receive $212,000 in payments. It instead received $22,000, David M. Perry writes. If nothing changes soo...
www.startribune.com
January 2, 2026 at 5:34 PM
2 types of error are possible:
- false positive: pay fraudulent claim, cost $ lost from taxpayers
- false negative: deny legit claim, $ lost from private providers & risk of exit
Reducing a type often raises other
But better & worse ways to implement & difference in who can bear costs/risks
- false positive: pay fraudulent claim, cost $ lost from taxpayers
- false negative: deny legit claim, $ lost from private providers & risk of exit
Reducing a type often raises other
But better & worse ways to implement & difference in who can bear costs/risks
Reposted
88% of Canadians surveyed in 2021 wanted a wealth tax.
“The wealthy would continue to get wealthier... just at a slower pace and in the meantime raise tens of billions of dollars a year to fund things we desperately need," @davidmaccdn.bsky.social #inequality www.nationalobserver.com/2025/01/02/n...
“The wealthy would continue to get wealthier... just at a slower pace and in the meantime raise tens of billions of dollars a year to fund things we desperately need," @davidmaccdn.bsky.social #inequality www.nationalobserver.com/2025/01/02/n...
CEO pay hit a record high in 2024
Canada's top 100 CEOs set new record for average earnings in 2024 while Canadians fell further behind inflation.
www.nationalobserver.com
January 2, 2026 at 5:25 PM
88% of Canadians surveyed in 2021 wanted a wealth tax.
“The wealthy would continue to get wealthier... just at a slower pace and in the meantime raise tens of billions of dollars a year to fund things we desperately need," @davidmaccdn.bsky.social #inequality www.nationalobserver.com/2025/01/02/n...
“The wealthy would continue to get wealthier... just at a slower pace and in the meantime raise tens of billions of dollars a year to fund things we desperately need," @davidmaccdn.bsky.social #inequality www.nationalobserver.com/2025/01/02/n...
Reposted
"I don’t know why my fellowship was terminated. I suspect that it has something to do with studying a species that doesn’t fit the binary of what we expect to see in nature, with completely different males and females."
@carlzimmer.com profiles my wonderful coauthor @jjinsing.bsky.social Gift link.
@carlzimmer.com profiles my wonderful coauthor @jjinsing.bsky.social Gift link.
He Studied Why Some Female Birds Look Like Males
www.nytimes.com
January 2, 2026 at 6:10 PM
"I don’t know why my fellowship was terminated. I suspect that it has something to do with studying a species that doesn’t fit the binary of what we expect to see in nature, with completely different males and females."
@carlzimmer.com profiles my wonderful coauthor @jjinsing.bsky.social Gift link.
@carlzimmer.com profiles my wonderful coauthor @jjinsing.bsky.social Gift link.
Reposted
Imagine how much better our economy would be if we had clean air and adjustments. Hundreds of thousands of people would be able to access things they haven’t been able to do in over six years. That would benefit the whole country.
January 2, 2026 at 1:16 AM
Imagine how much better our economy would be if we had clean air and adjustments. Hundreds of thousands of people would be able to access things they haven’t been able to do in over six years. That would benefit the whole country.
Reposted
Reagan, 1981: “In the present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem.”
Clinton, 1996: “I say again, the era of big government is over. But we cannot go back to the era of fending for yourself.”
Mamdani, 2026:
Clinton, 1996: “I say again, the era of big government is over. But we cannot go back to the era of fending for yourself.”
Mamdani, 2026:
January 2, 2026 at 1:19 AM
Reagan, 1981: “In the present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem.”
Clinton, 1996: “I say again, the era of big government is over. But we cannot go back to the era of fending for yourself.”
Mamdani, 2026:
Clinton, 1996: “I say again, the era of big government is over. But we cannot go back to the era of fending for yourself.”
Mamdani, 2026:
Reposted
Oh no.
I see we're doing "Can AI apologize" tonight.
No.
Here is a brief list of things AI cannot conceive of:
Right and wrong
Actions and reactions
Interaction between entities
Entities
Physical existence
Connections between words and right and wrong and entities and physical existence
I see we're doing "Can AI apologize" tonight.
No.
Here is a brief list of things AI cannot conceive of:
Right and wrong
Actions and reactions
Interaction between entities
Entities
Physical existence
Connections between words and right and wrong and entities and physical existence
January 2, 2026 at 2:27 AM
Oh no.
I see we're doing "Can AI apologize" tonight.
No.
Here is a brief list of things AI cannot conceive of:
Right and wrong
Actions and reactions
Interaction between entities
Entities
Physical existence
Connections between words and right and wrong and entities and physical existence
I see we're doing "Can AI apologize" tonight.
No.
Here is a brief list of things AI cannot conceive of:
Right and wrong
Actions and reactions
Interaction between entities
Entities
Physical existence
Connections between words and right and wrong and entities and physical existence
Reposted
COVID-19 Is Six Today. What We've Learned. To start, we need cleaner air, which requires a change in medical culture, by @crof.bsky.social thetyee.ca/Analysis/202... via @thetyee.ca
COVID-19 Is Six Today. What We’ve Learned | The Tyee
We need cleaner air, which requires changes in medical culture.
thetyee.ca
January 2, 2026 at 4:31 AM
COVID-19 Is Six Today. What We've Learned. To start, we need cleaner air, which requires a change in medical culture, by @crof.bsky.social thetyee.ca/Analysis/202... via @thetyee.ca