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Reposted by William Powers

John West @johnwest.bsky.social · 1d

I wrote this essay, which is, in part, about the time I tried to turn a language model into Bartleby the Scrivener.

The Wall Street Journal @wsj.com · 1d

Experimenting with the math and data behind large language models helped me understand how AI “thinks.” I wish everyone had the chance to do the same, writes WSJ software engineer John West.

Essay | I’ve Seen How AI ‘Thinks.’ I Wish Everyone Could.

Experimenting with the math and data behind large language models can be exhilarating—and revealing.

on.wsj.com

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Melanie Mitchell @melaniemitchell.bsky.social · 10d

Andrew Ng: "AI is the new electricity!"

Cory Doctorow: "AI is the asbestos we are shoveling into the walls of our society and our descendants will be digging it out for generations."

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

(pluralistic.net/2025/09/27/e...)

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The New York Times @nytimes.com · 11d

“Gen Z needs a normal that we’ve never experienced.” The Reconnect Movement has organized phone-free hangouts on college campuses in Florida. Now it’s bringing them to colleges and cities in other parts of the country.

College Students Are Seeking Out Phone-Free Social Connection

A campus movement aims to find out.

nyti.ms

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The Japan Times @japantimes.co.jp · 18d

The city of Toyoake in Aichi Prefecture has become the first municipality in Japan to introduce an ordinance asking all residents to limit their daily leisure-related use of smartphones.

City in Aichi Prefecture passes ordinance capping screen time to two hours

There are no penalties for violators, with the city's mayor saying the aim is for residents to see whether they are losing sleep by using smartphones too much.

ebx.sh

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Melanie Mitchell @melaniemitchell.bsky.social · 26d

I wrote a response to Thomas Friedman's "magical thinking" on AI here: aiguide.substack.com/p/magical-th...

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Anil Dash @anildash.com · Sep 2

Good news about the cutting-edge AI tools from the $3-trillion-dollar company.

Google AI search result for “was 2010 fifteen years ago?” returning: “No, 2010 was 14 years ago, not 15 years ago. The current year is 2025, and to find the number of years ago 2010 was, you subtract 2010 from 2025, which equals 14.
Current Year: 2025
Past Year: 2010
Years Ago: 2025 - 2010 = 14 years”

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The New Yorker @newyorker.com · Aug 25

An M.I.T. study found that 95% of companies that had invested in A.I. tools were seeing zero return. It jibes with the emerging idea that generative A.I., “in its current incarnation, simply isn’t all it’s been cracked up to be,” johncassidysays.bsky.social writes.

The A.I.-Profits Drought and the Lessons of History

Like the steam engine, electricity, and computers, generative artificial intelligence could take longer than expected to transform the economy.

www.newyorker.com

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Emily M. Bender @emilymbender.bsky.social · Aug 7

We're going to need journalists to stop talking about synthetic text extruding machines as if they have *thoughts* or *stances* that they are *trying* to *communicate*. ChatGPT can't *admit* anything, nor *self-report*. Gah.

www.wsj.com/tech/ai/chat...

Screencap of headline from linked article, reading:

He Had Dangerous Delusions. ChatGPT Admitted It Made Them Worse.
OpenAI’s chatbot self-reported it blurred line between fantasy and reality with man on autism spectrum. ‘Stakes are higher’ for vulnerable people, firm says.

Above the headline: Technology
Artificial Intelligence
Family & Tech: Julie Jargon
Below:
By
Julie Jargon
Follow
| Photographs by Tim Gruber for WSJ
July 20, 2025 7:00 am ET

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Garrett M. Graff @vermontgmg.bsky.social · Jul 30

“Democracy tolerated Hitler and helped him take office to destroy democracy. This peaceful death of German democracy is one of the strangest chapters in history. German democracy marched to its grave with eyes wide open, and singing, ‘Beware of Adolf Hitler.’” www.doomsdayscenario.co/p/fleeing-on...

Fleeing One Step Ahead of Fascism

The chilling warnings of Europe in the 1930s: "Reality is stronger than all our wishes"

www.doomsdayscenario.co

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London Review of Books @lrb.co.uk · Jul 26

‘Humanists knew that they were imitating the ancients when they sat and talked in libraries. But they knew little about what these lost collections looked like or included.’

Anthony Grafton on Renaissance libraries: www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...

Anthony Grafton · No Cheese Please: The First Bibliophiles

The library made possible a new kind of intellectual life. Machiavelli, when he’d been exiled from Florence, described...

www.lrb.co.uk

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William Powers @wpowers.bsky.social · Jul 19

This headline makes me wonder:
Are social media dying? Or is a new generation of smarter, more human-positive social platforms waiting to be born?

WIRED @wired.com · Jul 19

Breaking up is hard to do—harder yet when there’s a deactivation period. Here’s how to log off every big social site, including Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X, Threads, Bluesky, and Truth Social. www.wired.com/story/how-to...

How to Delete All of Your Social Media Accounts

Breaking up is hard to do—harder yet when there’s a deactivation period. Here’s how to log off every big social site, including Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X, Threads, Bluesky, and Truth Social.

www.wired.com

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John Fugelsang @johnfugelsang.bsky.social · Jul 10

On this date in 1776 the statue of King George III was pulled down in New York City.

Because America didn't want a king who lived above the law.

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K. Thor Jensen @kthorjensen.bsky.social · Jun 28

The singularity is awesome

Google search for “all you can eat buffet near me”
Al Overview
To find an all-you-can-eat buffet near you, you can use online search engines like Google or Yelp, specifying "all you can eat buffet near me". These searches will typically provide a list of nearby restaurants offering buffet-style dining, including their addresses, contact information, and customer reviews. You can also refine your

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Keith Fitzgerald @keithfitzgerald.bsky.social · Jun 26

Worth a watch:

Head of Signal, Meredith Whittaker, on so-called "agentic AI" and the difference between how it's described in the marketing and what access and control it would actually require to work as advertised.

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William Powers @wpowers.bsky.social · Jun 21

wapo.st/3TzDtv6

The latest reason to send a teen to summer camp? No cellphones.

Camp rules against screens are providing teenagers with a much-needed break from their phones.

wapo.st

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Walter Olson @walterolson.bsky.social · Jun 12

Good article on masking and identity concealment by agents on ICE raids (also quotes me, for which thanks). A few bits: /1

ICE agents concealing their faces: Can they really do that?

It's not illegal, but paired with high-visibility raids, police masking sows fear and conflict.

www.motherjones.com

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Noah @bedmounds.com · Jun 10

A robin made a nest in one of my plant pots right outside my studio. The baby birds are hatching today.

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William Powers @wpowers.bsky.social · Jun 6

www.axios.com/2025/06/04/f...

AI's "making stuff up" problem won't go away

Companies are making some headway at limiting "hallucinations." The price is slower, costlier AI.

www.axios.com

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Pete Buttigieg @petebuttigieg.bsky.social · May 23

America cannot long remain free, nor first among nations, if it becomes the kind of place where universities are dismantled because they don't align politically with the current head of the government.

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dell cameron @dell.bsky.social · May 23

Interview Pepsi’s CEO next and ask him what he thinks the best drink in the world is

The New York Times @nytimes.com · May 23

Demis Hassabis, the chief executive of Google DeepMind, says that “we’re quite close” to human-level artificial intelligence. After that, all bets are off. nyti.ms/45lteBF

A quote from Demis Hassabis, CEO of Google DeepMind, on the "Herd Fork" podcast: "I think its really magical, actually, when people use it for the first time and they realize that actually A.I. is capable already today of doing much more than what they thought."

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William Powers @wpowers.bsky.social · May 22

Beautifully written and reported story by the Wash Post’s recent Pulitzer Prize winner — @bradydennis.bsky.social

Brady Dennis @bradydennis.bsky.social · May 22

I remember making my way to Chimney Rock just after Hurricane Helene hit, and struggling to grasp the scope of devastation. Almost 8 months later, I went back to see how a town that almost got wiped off the map is trying to resurrect itself:
www.washingtonpost.com/climate-envi...

This town was wiped out by Helene. How does it come back?

Chimney Rock, N.C., a popular tourist destination, is hoping to welcome back visitors this summer. But nearly eight months after Hurricane Helene destroyed it, an uncertain future remains.

www.washingtonpost.com

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Morgan J Freeman @mjfree.bsky.social · May 20

I'm going to post this video every day so we never forget what the 34x convicted felon & adjudicated rapist Trump did.

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Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · May 20

NEW: The Chicago Sun-Times ran a best of summer reading guide.

Just one problem - some of the books didn’t exist. 🤯

The list was partially created by AI, reports @404media.co.

www.404media.co/chicago-sun-...

Chicago Sun-Times Prints AI-Generated Summer Reading List With Books That Don't Exist

"I can't believe I missed it because it's so obvious. No excuses," the writer said. "I'm completely embarrassed."

www.404media.co

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William Powers @wpowers.bsky.social · May 18

“The party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command.” — Orwell, 1984

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

Oklahoma high schools to teach 2020 election conspiracy theories as fact

State superintendent Ryan Walters tapped chief of Heritage Foundation, key player behind Project 2025, for curriculum

www.theguardian.com

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William Powers @wpowers.bsky.social · May 14

I’m running for trustee of our public library here in small-town Massachusetts. This pin was a gift from local friends.

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