Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Melanie Mitchell @melaniemitchell.bsky.social · Nov 14

For Science Magazine, I wrote about "The Metaphors of Artificial Intelligence".

The way you conceptualize AI systems affects how you interact with them, do science on them, and create policy and apply laws to them.

Hope you will check it out!

www.science.org/doi/full/10....

The metaphors of artificial intelligence

A few months after ChatGPT was released, the neural network pioneer Terrence Sejnowski wrote about coming to grips with the shock of what large language models (LLMs) could do: “Something is beginning...

www.science.org

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michael veale @michae.lv · Nov 15

In response to OpenAI’s recent ‘A Student’s Guide to Writing with ChatGPT’, Arthur Perret (maître de conferénces, Jean Moulin Lyon 3) writes a line-by-line rebuttal — A Student’s Guide to Not Writing with ChatGPT www.arthurperret.fr/blog/2024-11...

A Student’s Guide to Not Writing with ChatGPT

Site web d’Arthur Perret, enseignant-chercheur en SIC.

www.arthurperret.fr

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Rachel Coldicutt @rachelcoldicutt.bsky.social · Nov 16

Ah yes! Have been working with others to get the field of "community tech" of the ground in the UK as an alt www.promisingtrouble.net/blog/innovat...

What good is innovation if it doesn’t work for everyone? — Promising Trouble

Towards community-driven technologies and inclusive growth. An open invitation to a thinking party.

www.promisingtrouble.net

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Taylor Lorenz @taylorlorenz.bsky.social · Nov 18

The latest Pew Research report on news content creators paints a damning picture of our skewed information ecosystem.
 I went deep into the 122 page report and broke down the key findings and what they mean www.usermag.co/p/the-majori...

The majority of news influencers are conservative men, study finds

The latest Pew Research report on news content creators paints a damning picture of our skewed information ecosystem

www.usermag.co

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LSE Data Science Institute @lsedatascience.bsky.social · May 15

Last week, DSI and the Department of Media and Communications (@lsemedia.bsky.social) hosted a talk on data science's role in public interest – from access to info to democracy.

Speakers included Chris Wiggins, @abpowell.bsky.social and Erin Young.

Watch here▶️ www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLIV...

The power of data: ethics, politics, and public interest | LSE Event

YouTube video by LSE

www.youtube.com

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Ben Waber @bwaber.bsky.social · May 9

First was an engaging session on the role of data science in understanding and shaping the public interest at the LSE with @abpowell.bsky.social, @chrishwiggins.bsky.social, and Erin Young www.youtube.com/live/tLIV4xg... (2/5)

The power of data: ethics, politics, and public interest | LSE Event

YouTube video by LSE

www.youtube.com

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Alison Powell @abpowell.bsky.social · Apr 1

This is exciting. This is (something like? Some part of?) what I was hoping to see, hoping to create. If you'd like me to come and talk about deceptive stories of technology, or do tech policy tarot, get in touch. We could collab on sensible things too :-)

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LSE Department of Media and Communications @lsemedia.bsky.social · Mar 26

🤖 The power of #data: #ethics #politics & #publicinterest @lsedatascience.bsky.social

📅 Thurs 8 May 2025 6.30-8pm

@abpowell.bsky.social & experts discuss important questions around the role of data science in understanding & shaping the public interest

Find out more: www.lse.ac.uk/Events/2025/...

The power of data: ethics, politics, and public interest

6.30pm Thurs 8 May | Alison Powell, Chris Wiggins, Erin Young | Free public event at LSE

www.lse.ac.uk

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REPAIR - Repair and Renewal of Algorithmic Systems @repairresearch.bsky.social · Feb 5

💬 Minkälaisia rooleja teknologiaan liittyvissä tarinoissa ja narratiiveissa voi havaita? Pitäisikö nykyisille tarinoille ja narratiiveille miettiä vaihtoehtoja?

Tätä pohdittiin 29.1. Scholarly Talkissa
@abpowell.bsky.social sekä diskussanttien Yana Boevan & Santeri Räisäsen kanssa. Lue lisää 👇

“Systems are broken – and so are their stories” – REPAIR Scholarly Talk with Associate Professor Alison Powell on 29.1. — Repair

On Wednesday January 29th, we had the pleasure of hosting our first REPAIR Scholarly Talk of the year, featuring Associate Professor Alison Powell from the London School of Economics and Political Sci...

www.repair-research.fi

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Alison Powell @abpowell.bsky.social · Feb 4

Where can we find other stories for tech policy? My "Repairing Systems and Stories" at U Helsinki gets beyond critique by playing around with narrative structure - involving live Tarot readings for policy projects. Enjoy! www.helsinki.fi/fi/unitube/v...

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Alison Powell @abpowell.bsky.social · Jan 15

glad you liked it!

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Alison Powell @abpowell.bsky.social · Jan 8

And if you're still reading - I think this article really shows how joyful creativity can counter the debilitating deluge of AI-schlock in academia and elsewhere. Come for the AI policy; stay for the Shakespeare jokes.

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Alison Powell @abpowell.bsky.social · Jan 7

I've got the most fun, hilarious, enlightening article with Fenwick McKelvey in this special issue. It's all about the **drama*** of AI policy-making publicera.kb.se/jdsr/article...

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Alison Powell @abpowell.bsky.social · Dec 18

Are you working on automation of care? The private/public spaces of genomic databases? Epistemic justice? Submit to 4S open panel hosted by @philippseuferling.bsky.social and me - focusing on deceptive narratives and health and care systems. www.xcdsystem.com/4sonline/mem... we are Open Panel 47.

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Mirca Madianou @madianou.bsky.social · Dec 4

TOMORROW! London friends, come to this LSE talk / book launch for #Technocolonialism: when technology for good is harmful, chaired by @abpowell.bsky.social @lsemedia.bsky.social For those further afield you can join remotely, details below ⬇️ Book details here: www.politybooks.com/bookdetail?b...

Technocolonialism: when technology for good is harmful

6.30pm Thurs 5 Dec | Mirca Madianou | Free public event at LSE

www.lse.ac.uk

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Alison Powell @abpowell.bsky.social · Nov 25

I've written a few pieces about the idea of the 'more-than-human, looking at 'otherness' 'risk' and 'danger', and how more-than-human ecologies don't only repair the artificial fracture between society and nature, they also allow for deep reflection on humanity itself. ugp.rug.nl/potcj/articl...

View of Re-wilding the Night: Understanding How Darkness Is Valued Through the Nighttime Light Ecology of Bonn Botanical Gardens

ugp.rug.nl

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Alison Powell @abpowell.bsky.social · Nov 23

I need to make a confession. I don't know how to "do" social media any more. I'm a different person than I used to be. The previous person was into Networking. This person is mostly interested in Doing The Work. I like the memes though, thanks.

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Alison Powell @abpowell.bsky.social · Nov 18

This line really got me: "even though women academic experts posted as frequently as male experts on Twitter and followed and engaged with similar numbers of people, they, amassed, on average, only half as many followers as their male colleagues. Male experts also got nearly double as many likes"

Taylor Lorenz @taylorlorenz.bsky.social · Nov 18

The latest Pew Research report on news content creators paints a damning picture of our skewed information ecosystem.
 I went deep into the 122 page report and broke down the key findings and what they mean www.usermag.co/p/the-majori...

The majority of news influencers are conservative men, study finds

The latest Pew Research report on news content creators paints a damning picture of our skewed information ecosystem

www.usermag.co

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Alison Powell @abpowell.bsky.social · Nov 16

I'm so happy to see this. I've been thinking recently about "digital innovation harm reduction" - that is, rebalancing how innovation is thought about, who benefits from it and how it is done. Rachel's done so much of the heavy lifting to start and connect work in this area - hope to join in

Rachel Coldicutt @rachelcoldicutt.bsky.social · Nov 16

Ah yes! Have been working with others to get the field of "community tech" of the ground in the UK as an alt www.promisingtrouble.net/blog/innovat...

What good is innovation if it doesn’t work for everyone? — Promising Trouble

Towards community-driven technologies and inclusive growth. An open invitation to a thinking party.

www.promisingtrouble.net

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Alison Powell @abpowell.bsky.social · Nov 15

Wonderful! Already shared to my students.

michael veale @michae.lv · Nov 15

In response to OpenAI’s recent ‘A Student’s Guide to Writing with ChatGPT’, Arthur Perret (maître de conferénces, Jean Moulin Lyon 3) writes a line-by-line rebuttal — A Student’s Guide to Not Writing with ChatGPT www.arthurperret.fr/blog/2024-11...

A Student’s Guide to Not Writing with ChatGPT

Site web d’Arthur Perret, enseignant-chercheur en SIC.

www.arthurperret.fr

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Alison Powell @abpowell.bsky.social · Nov 15

I have mixed feelings about a focus on AI metaphors. If one knows that an LLM is an elaborate autocorrect, one might read 'intelligent machine' as a metaphor to critique. But much of public press is shaped towards the idea that the robots are smart, and there's nothing we can do about it.

Melanie Mitchell @melaniemitchell.bsky.social · Nov 14

For Science Magazine, I wrote about "The Metaphors of Artificial Intelligence".

The way you conceptualize AI systems affects how you interact with them, do science on them, and create policy and apply laws to them.

Hope you will check it out!

www.science.org/doi/full/10....

The metaphors of artificial intelligence

A few months after ChatGPT was released, the neural network pioneer Terrence Sejnowski wrote about coming to grips with the shock of what large language models (LLMs) could do: “Something is beginning...

www.science.org

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ashley fairbanks @ziibiing.com · Nov 14

Māori MPs briefly suspended the Aotearoa parliament’s attempts to reinterpret their founding treaty in the most bad ass use of the Haka I’ve ever seen.

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Alison Powell @abpowell.bsky.social · Nov 14

News from Aotearoa, where the treaty governing the country has *two versions* - only one that Māori signatories agreed to. Soon to be published is a PhD by my student Henry Lyons investigating the epistemic, ontological and land-based issues that have resulted, in the here and now

ashley fairbanks @ziibiing.com · Nov 14

Māori MPs briefly suspended the Aotearoa parliament’s attempts to reinterpret their founding treaty in the most bad ass use of the Haka I’ve ever seen.

Alison Powell @abpowell.bsky.social · Nov 14

I have a periodically pinched nerve in the neck which makes a migraine-like effect.... stress triggered obviously. But no stress here! Totally relaxing time! Nothing awry at all! (etc)

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Alison Powell @abpowell.bsky.social · Nov 14

I've discovered I might have nerve headaches for four years. That'll bring the twitch

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Linda Yueh @lindayueh.bsky.social · Nov 14

“One of the many fascinating facts in the report is that businesses based in the town centre earn 20% more profit when there’s a bank and post office on the high street. It’s clear that public realm improvements can provide multi-dimensional benefits.”
www.livingstreets.org.uk/press-media/...

Pedestrians spend more, new report reveals

Living Streets launches its updated Pedestrian Pound report, showing the correlation between walkable places and thriving business.

www.livingstreets.org.uk

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Melissa Terras @melissaterras.bsky.social · Nov 14

Thinking about how to avoid US owned compute...? "How Lidl accidentally took on the big guns of cloud computing: A unit of Europe’s largest retailer is offering IT services to companies wary of big providers such as Amazon and Google" www.irishtimes.com/business/202...

How Lidl accidentally took on the big guns of cloud computing

A unit of Europe’s largest retailer is offering IT services to companies wary of big providers such as Amazon and Google

www.irishtimes.com

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Alison Powell @abpowell.bsky.social · Nov 13

Hello to everyone. These days most of my energies are going to teaching that the current arrangements of power/discourse/technology are not inevitable - but I did write this short thing recently on how AI is expensive blogs.lse.ac.uk/medialse/202...

AI is Expensive

LSE’s Alison Powell explains the real costs of AI, and how these might be mitigated. AI is everywhere; AI is here. The story around AI implies that it is here because it’s making things effic…

blogs.lse.ac.uk

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Petra Molnar @petramolnar.com · Nov 11

New - and ever more crucial report - on carceral AI, a growing class of algorithmic and data-driven practices designed to police, incarcerate, surveil, and control people.

Recommendations, report, and beautiful artwork too!
www.carceral-ai.com Spearheaded by @dashapruss.bsky.social

begin | Carceral AI

www.carceral-ai.com

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