Brad Weed
@bradweed.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy
Geography writer at interplace.io. Sustainable transportation + land use advocate. Pragmatic Interactionist.
Former thirty-year Microsoft Interaction Design […]
[bridged from https://mastodon.social/@bradweed on the fediverse by https://fed.brid.gy/ ]
Former thirty-year Microsoft Interaction Design […]
[bridged from https://mastodon.social/@bradweed on the fediverse by https://fed.brid.gy/ ]
AI models are often viewed as internal plans, but they function more like situated actions. Prompts are not just inputs; they are improvisations with a partner in a world that refuses to hold still. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial […]
Original post on mastodon.social
mastodon.social
January 21, 2026 at 12:15 PM
AI models are often viewed as internal plans, but they function more like situated actions. Prompts are not just inputs; they are improvisations with a partner in a world that refuses to hold still. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial […]
Navigation is a collective achievement, not a private mental map. Orientation happens through an ecology of cognition that includes charts, instruments, and social organization. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial […]
Original post on mastodon.social
mastodon.social
January 20, 2026 at 5:14 PM
Navigation is a collective achievement, not a private mental map. Orientation happens through an ecology of cognition that includes charts, instruments, and social organization. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial […]
Human intelligence is "exbodied"—outsourced into engineered matter like tools, writing, and institutions. Much of what we call intelligence is distributed across the artifacts and practices we use every day. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial […]
Original post on mastodon.social
mastodon.social
January 20, 2026 at 12:16 PM
Human intelligence is "exbodied"—outsourced into engineered matter like tools, writing, and institutions. Much of what we call intelligence is distributed across the artifacts and practices we use every day. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial […]
Organisms don't just read the world; they also write it through "niche construction". By building shelters and cutting paths, living things create external organs of coordination that channel future action. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial […]
Original post on mastodon.social
mastodon.social
January 19, 2026 at 5:15 PM
Organisms don't just read the world; they also write it through "niche construction". By building shelters and cutting paths, living things create external organs of coordination that channel future action. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial […]
The "Cartesian Theater" is a comforting fiction that suggests an internal witness sits apart from the world. Real cognition emerges from distributed, parallel processes rather than a central "inner screen". @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial […]
Original post on mastodon.social
mastodon.social
January 19, 2026 at 12:13 PM
The "Cartesian Theater" is a comforting fiction that suggests an internal witness sits apart from the world. Real cognition emerges from distributed, parallel processes rather than a central "inner screen". @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial […]
Long before the first brain evolved, living systems navigated gradients of heat, salt, and light to survive. These primordial feedback loops coupled organisms directly to their environment without neural intermediaries.@geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial […]
Original post on mastodon.social
mastodon.social
January 18, 2026 at 5:14 PM
Long before the first brain evolved, living systems navigated gradients of heat, salt, and light to survive. These primordial feedback loops coupled organisms directly to their environment without neural intermediaries.@geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial […]
Intelligence is not a "super-brain" perched in the cloud. It is a coordinated achievement of biophysical, social, and infrastructural loops that occur across time. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial https://open.substack.com/pub/interplace/p/the-mind-cant-act-alone-and-ai-cant
The Mind Can't Act Alone and AI Can't Either
From foggy trails to feedback, why cognition stays bound to the world
interplace.io
January 18, 2026 at 12:13 PM
Intelligence is not a "super-brain" perched in the cloud. It is a coordinated achievement of biophysical, social, and infrastructural loops that occur across time. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial https://open.substack.com/pub/interplace/p/the-mind-cant-act-alone-and-ai-cant
If the U.S. really wants high-speed rail, it needs more than trainsets. It needs new rules for land, value, and movement. Spain offers clues. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
Trains, Planes, and Paved-Over Promises
Why Spain gets smooth speed and America stays stuck
interplace.io
December 20, 2025 at 5:14 PM
If the U.S. really wants high-speed rail, it needs more than trainsets. It needs new rules for land, value, and movement. Spain offers clues. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
Fast trains, slow change: Spain shows that better infrastructure alone will not save us from car dependence. But it can reshape the odds. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
Trains, Planes, and Paved-Over Promises
Why Spain gets smooth speed and America stays stuck
interplace.io
December 20, 2025 at 12:08 PM
Fast trains, slow change: Spain shows that better infrastructure alone will not save us from car dependence. But it can reshape the odds. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
Chicago’s vanished interurbans and Spain’s HSR belong to the same family tree. One led to highways, the other to rail revival. Here’s why that matters. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
Trains, Planes, and Paved-Over Promises
Why Spain gets smooth speed and America stays stuck
interplace.io
December 19, 2025 at 5:14 PM
Chicago’s vanished interurbans and Spain’s HSR belong to the same family tree. One led to highways, the other to rail revival. Here’s why that matters. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
“Why can’t we have nice things?” is the wrong question. This essay asks what kind of growth HSR actually locks in—and who benefits. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
Trains, Planes, and Paved-Over Promises
Why Spain gets smooth speed and America stays stuck
interplace.io
December 18, 2025 at 5:14 PM
“Why can’t we have nice things?” is the wrong question. This essay asks what kind of growth HSR actually locks in—and who benefits. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
From interurbans to interstates, America rebuilt its geography around cars. Spain doubled down on trains. The results are not as simple as they look. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
Trains, Planes, and Paved-Over Promises
Why Spain gets smooth speed and America stays stuck
interplace.io
December 18, 2025 at 12:08 PM
From interurbans to interstates, America rebuilt its geography around cars. Spain doubled down on trains. The results are not as simple as they look. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
High-speed rail does not kill the car; it reorganizes growth. Spain shows both the promise and the paradox. The U.S. should pay attention. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
Trains, Planes, and Paved-Over Promises
Why Spain gets smooth speed and America stays stuck
interplace.io
December 17, 2025 at 5:14 PM
High-speed rail does not kill the car; it reorganizes growth. Spain shows both the promise and the paradox. The U.S. should pay attention. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
Madrid–Barcelona in 2.5 hours; Chicago–St. Louis in nearly 5. Same distance, different choices. How did we get here, and can we change course? @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
Trains, Planes, and Paved-Over Promises
Why Spain gets smooth speed and America stays stuck
interplace.io
December 17, 2025 at 12:09 PM
Madrid–Barcelona in 2.5 hours; Chicago–St. Louis in nearly 5. Same distance, different choices. How did we get here, and can we change course? @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
The U.S. once had “nice things”: dense rail, walkable suburbs, fast interurbans. Spain’s HSR shows what we gained and what we lost. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
Trains, Planes, and Paved-Over Promises
Why Spain gets smooth speed and America stays stuck
interplace.io
December 16, 2025 at 5:15 PM
The U.S. once had “nice things”: dense rail, walkable suburbs, fast interurbans. Spain’s HSR shows what we gained and what we lost. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
Spain’s high-speed trains feel like the future. But they also sit on top of rising car use and familiar sprawl. What does that mean for U.S. rail dreams? @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
Trains, Planes, and Paved-Over Promises
Why Spain gets smooth speed and America stays stuck
interplace.io
December 16, 2025 at 12:08 PM
Spain’s high-speed trains feel like the future. But they also sit on top of rising car use and familiar sprawl. What does that mean for U.S. rail dreams? @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
https://interplace.io/p/trains-planes-and-paved-over-promises
Next time you're following your phone through unfamiliar streets, notice: which city are you seeing — the one that exists, or the one the algorithm wants you to see? And which one are you helping to create? @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial […]
Original post on mastodon.social
mastodon.social
November 27, 2025 at 5:15 PM
Next time you're following your phone through unfamiliar streets, notice: which city are you seeing — the one that exists, or the one the algorithm wants you to see? And which one are you helping to create? @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial […]
30 years ago UCSB, we were democratizing cartography with GIS. The critical questions — about what maps might do *to* us and our cities — were less discussed. Now we're living those questions. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial […]
Original post on mastodon.social
mastodon.social
November 27, 2025 at 12:08 PM
30 years ago UCSB, we were democratizing cartography with GIS. The critical questions — about what maps might do *to* us and our cities — were less discussed. Now we're living those questions. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial […]
Watched locals navigate their Lisbon while tourists followed algorithmic recommendations to the next Instagrammable spot. Same streets, different maps. Platform algorithms don't just show the city. They actively produce it. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial […]
Original post on mastodon.social
mastodon.social
November 26, 2025 at 5:14 PM
Watched locals navigate their Lisbon while tourists followed algorithmic recommendations to the next Instagrammable spot. Same streets, different maps. Platform algorithms don't just show the city. They actively produce it. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial […]
There's something dizzying about studying a system from within its grasp. Like trying to map a maze while still lost inside it. On critically existing inside the platforms we use and critique. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial […]
Original post on mastodon.social
mastodon.social
November 26, 2025 at 12:08 PM
There's something dizzying about studying a system from within its grasp. Like trying to map a maze while still lost inside it. On critically existing inside the platforms we use and critique. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial […]
Who decides what gets mapped? Whose reality does the map represent? What work does the map do in the world? These questions question my geography undergrad...especially as I follow blue dots through ancient streets. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial […]
Original post on mastodon.social
mastodon.social
November 25, 2025 at 5:14 PM
Who decides what gets mapped? Whose reality does the map represent? What work does the map do in the world? These questions question my geography undergrad...especially as I follow blue dots through ancient streets. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial […]
Got lost in Lisbon following Apple Maps while attending a digital geography conference. The irony? We were there to critique the very platforms reshaping the city beneath our feet. On complicity, maps, and the worlds we create. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial […]
Original post on mastodon.social
mastodon.social
November 25, 2025 at 12:09 PM
Got lost in Lisbon following Apple Maps while attending a digital geography conference. The irony? We were there to critique the very platforms reshaping the city beneath our feet. On complicity, maps, and the worlds we create. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial […]
Systems reproduce through relationships that shape identities. New piece on how capitalism locks in—and how alternatives from land trusts to buffalo restoration interrupt the spirals. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial https://interplace.io/p/spirals-of-enclosure
Spirals of Enclosure
How Capitalism Locked In
interplace.io
October 9, 2025 at 4:14 PM
Systems reproduce through relationships that shape identities. New piece on how capitalism locks in—and how alternatives from land trusts to buffalo restoration interrupt the spirals. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial https://interplace.io/p/spirals-of-enclosure
How does theft become structure? How does violence become normal? New essay traces feedback loops from enclosure to contemporary debt extraction. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial https://interplace.io/p/spirals-of-enclosure
Spirals of Enclosure
How Capitalism Locked In
interplace.io
October 9, 2025 at 11:09 AM
How does theft become structure? How does violence become normal? New essay traces feedback loops from enclosure to contemporary debt extraction. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial https://interplace.io/p/spirals-of-enclosure
Path dependencies aren't neutral—they're maintained by those who benefit. New essay on how geographic hierarchies persist through active enforcement, not inertia. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial https://interplace.io/p/spirals-of-enclosure
Spirals of Enclosure
How Capitalism Locked In
interplace.io
October 8, 2025 at 4:16 PM
Path dependencies aren't neutral—they're maintained by those who benefit. New essay on how geographic hierarchies persist through active enforcement, not inertia. @geography @DialoguesHG @Geopolitics @geospatial https://interplace.io/p/spirals-of-enclosure