@han-ol.bsky.social
Simulation, Bayes, trying to improve tools for science
Reposted
Nature would do well to publish more content like this thoughtful piece from @kevinbaker.bsky.social and fewer Buzzfeed listicles gussied up as career advice "Five productivity hacks for using AI in your scientific workflow"
Context Widows
or, of GPUs, LPUs, and Goal Displacement
artificialbureaucracy.substack.com
December 15, 2025 at 7:13 PM
Nature would do well to publish more content like this thoughtful piece from @kevinbaker.bsky.social and fewer Buzzfeed listicles gussied up as career advice "Five productivity hacks for using AI in your scientific workflow"
Reposted
Reposted
The Editor in Chief of #HOPOS, Matthew J. Brown, sets out his vision for the future of the journal in a new #openaccess editorial. It is "part manifesto, part call for papers, part love letter to one of my favorite fields of study."
www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/epdf/10....
www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/epdf/10....
November 26, 2025 at 8:01 AM
The Editor in Chief of #HOPOS, Matthew J. Brown, sets out his vision for the future of the journal in a new #openaccess editorial. It is "part manifesto, part call for papers, part love letter to one of my favorite fields of study."
www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/epdf/10....
www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/epdf/10....
Super cool! Since ensembling is so universally applicable across all statistical learning methods, this kind of thing is really impactful imo.
I also found that “emsembling > pure regularizing”, but I studied this in amortized Bayesian inference (ABI) Instead of NLP.
I also found that “emsembling > pure regularizing”, but I studied this in amortized Bayesian inference (ABI) Instead of NLP.
Ensembling is good in data bottlenecked regimes! My takeaway: random variation is only going to get more important at scale—even as it decreases in magnitude. The deterministic benefits of scale eventually decline faster than a model’s randomly selected advantages!
Pre-training under infinite compute
Since compute grows much faster than web text available for language model pre-training, we ask how one should approach pre-training under fixed data and no compute constraints. We first show that exi...
arxiv.org
October 5, 2025 at 4:27 PM
Super cool! Since ensembling is so universally applicable across all statistical learning methods, this kind of thing is really impactful imo.
I also found that “emsembling > pure regularizing”, but I studied this in amortized Bayesian inference (ABI) Instead of NLP.
I also found that “emsembling > pure regularizing”, but I studied this in amortized Bayesian inference (ABI) Instead of NLP.
deadsimpletech.com/blog/essay_o...
Great post on statements that are never meant to be believed, yet are still held dear, by @iris-meredith.bsky.social.
"No-nonsense" isn't easy to practice. Maybe getting better at spotting and naming the types of nonsense can redeem us?
Great post on statements that are never meant to be believed, yet are still held dear, by @iris-meredith.bsky.social.
"No-nonsense" isn't easy to practice. Maybe getting better at spotting and naming the types of nonsense can redeem us?
September 30, 2025 at 3:32 PM
deadsimpletech.com/blog/essay_o...
Great post on statements that are never meant to be believed, yet are still held dear, by @iris-meredith.bsky.social.
"No-nonsense" isn't easy to practice. Maybe getting better at spotting and naming the types of nonsense can redeem us?
Great post on statements that are never meant to be believed, yet are still held dear, by @iris-meredith.bsky.social.
"No-nonsense" isn't easy to practice. Maybe getting better at spotting and naming the types of nonsense can redeem us?
Reposted
What a good start to the week: My first paper just got published in Oikos! 🌱
"Metacommunity connectance and emergent patterns drive diversity via spatial eco-evolutionary feedback" with Christian Guill and Toni Klauschies
doi.org/10.1002/oik....
#ecology #phdlife #phdchat
"Metacommunity connectance and emergent patterns drive diversity via spatial eco-evolutionary feedback" with Christian Guill and Toni Klauschies
doi.org/10.1002/oik....
#ecology #phdlife #phdchat
September 29, 2025 at 1:45 PM
What a good start to the week: My first paper just got published in Oikos! 🌱
"Metacommunity connectance and emergent patterns drive diversity via spatial eco-evolutionary feedback" with Christian Guill and Toni Klauschies
doi.org/10.1002/oik....
#ecology #phdlife #phdchat
"Metacommunity connectance and emergent patterns drive diversity via spatial eco-evolutionary feedback" with Christian Guill and Toni Klauschies
doi.org/10.1002/oik....
#ecology #phdlife #phdchat
Reposted
OpenAI's rapid rush into education has been achieved by habituating users through training programs, institutional lock-ins, strategic marketing partnerships, and third party integrations that together are helping it become infrastructural to teaching and learning. It's going to be hard to get out.
September 26, 2025 at 10:19 PM
OpenAI's rapid rush into education has been achieved by habituating users through training programs, institutional lock-ins, strategic marketing partnerships, and third party integrations that together are helping it become infrastructural to teaching and learning. It's going to be hard to get out.
Reposted
Best piece yet on the new asymmetry in political morality
Jonathan Freedland on increasingly assymetric norms on violence and polarisation, now at the very top
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
The US is on the brink of another era of political violence – and Donald Trump ‘couldn’t care less’ | Jonathan Freedland
In their humane responses to the killing of Charlie Kirk, Democrats are observing the old norms. Things are different now: anger and division rule, says Guardian columnist Jonathan Freedland
www.theguardian.com
September 13, 2025 at 8:28 AM
Best piece yet on the new asymmetry in political morality
His death is tragic too, granted. But the one-sided scandalization of political commentary on the murder of this political commentator is a blatent attempt to instill fear. Real censorship. MAGA never cared about free speech.
www.npr.org/2025/09/13/n...
www.npr.org/2025/09/13/n...
People are losing jobs due to social media posts about Charlie Kirk
Some GOP officials want to clamp down on perceived expressions of schadenfreude about Charlie Kirk's death. Conservative activists are publicizing social media posts that are "celebrating" his death.
www.npr.org
September 13, 2025 at 1:32 PM
His death is tragic too, granted. But the one-sided scandalization of political commentary on the murder of this political commentator is a blatent attempt to instill fear. Real censorship. MAGA never cared about free speech.
www.npr.org/2025/09/13/n...
www.npr.org/2025/09/13/n...
Reposted
Almost rare these days - a statement regarding Russia signed by all 27 EU member states, thus including Hungary. This explicitly names Russia as the aggressor regarding Poland, vows further support to Ukraine and declared full solidarity with Poland. I guess not even Orban dared block this.
We condemn in the strongest terms Russia’s intentional violation of the airspace of an EU member state using drones.
This aggressive and reckless act is a serious escalation by Russia.
My statement on behalf of the EU27 ↓
europa.eu/!pn8NBC
This aggressive and reckless act is a serious escalation by Russia.
My statement on behalf of the EU27 ↓
europa.eu/!pn8NBC
Statement by the High Representative on behalf of the EU on the unprovoked violation of the EU’s airspace by Russia
Statement by the High Representative on behalf of the EU on the unprovoked violation of the EU’s airspace by Russia.
europa.eu
September 11, 2025 at 5:49 AM
Almost rare these days - a statement regarding Russia signed by all 27 EU member states, thus including Hungary. This explicitly names Russia as the aggressor regarding Poland, vows further support to Ukraine and declared full solidarity with Poland. I guess not even Orban dared block this.
Reposted
were there people in the roman empire who were like "you know what fuck the aqueducts"
September 7, 2025 at 1:34 AM
were there people in the roman empire who were like "you know what fuck the aqueducts"
On living absurdly, or in vain with respect to the moral value we aim to achieve.
I'm pleased people sometimes still share this, from 2023 - one of my most honest and self-critical pieces of writing. sootyempiric.blogspot.com/2023/03/ai-i...
AI, invertebrates, and the risk of living absurdly
My friend and comrade Jonathan Birch has gifted me with a guest post. I think of it as a kind of belated spiritual sequel to my own musings ...
sootyempiric.blogspot.com
September 3, 2025 at 7:39 AM
On living absurdly, or in vain with respect to the moral value we aim to achieve.
Reposted
"Which Way Western Man?" is a disgusting white supremacist neo-Nazi book. The Department of Homeland Security referencing this book in its job recruitment ads is horrific. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William...
August 12, 2025 at 4:12 PM
"Which Way Western Man?" is a disgusting white supremacist neo-Nazi book. The Department of Homeland Security referencing this book in its job recruitment ads is horrific. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William...
Reposted
"DHS home office continues to display broad knowledge of the whole of the neo-Nazi landscape ... That is not trolling .... That is signaling."
www.unchartedblue.com/the-trump-ad...
@altdhs.altgov.info @unchartedblue.bsky.social
www.unchartedblue.com/the-trump-ad...
@altdhs.altgov.info @unchartedblue.bsky.social
August 12, 2025 at 8:43 PM
"DHS home office continues to display broad knowledge of the whole of the neo-Nazi landscape ... That is not trolling .... That is signaling."
www.unchartedblue.com/the-trump-ad...
@altdhs.altgov.info @unchartedblue.bsky.social
www.unchartedblue.com/the-trump-ad...
@altdhs.altgov.info @unchartedblue.bsky.social
Reposted
El régimen de Obiang cortó internet hace meses en Annobón, una isla remota de Guinea Ecuatorial, en represalia por las protestas pacíficas.
Esto es parte de un patrón global contra el que debemos luchar:
El miedo de los tiranos a Internet www.accessnow.org/sh...
Esto es parte de un patrón global contra el que debemos luchar:
El miedo de los tiranos a Internet www.accessnow.org/sh...
Why Annobón’s internet shutdown should matter to the world - Access Now
The ongoing internet shutdown in Annobón has cut off 5,300 residents from each other, from their loved ones abroad, and from the world, even as the government of Equatorial Guinea continues cracking down on dissent.
www.accessnow.org
August 5, 2025 at 8:33 AM
El régimen de Obiang cortó internet hace meses en Annobón, una isla remota de Guinea Ecuatorial, en represalia por las protestas pacíficas.
Esto es parte de un patrón global contra el que debemos luchar:
El miedo de los tiranos a Internet www.accessnow.org/sh...
Esto es parte de un patrón global contra el que debemos luchar:
El miedo de los tiranos a Internet www.accessnow.org/sh...
Can't wait to play with these new satellite embeddings ( dubbed #AlphaEarth) when I have a little time.
Basically, it combines geographically+temporally sparse satellite data, and more expert-curated info streams like climate reanalysis (ERA5), geolocated Wiki articles, biodiversity data (GBIF)...
Basically, it combines geographically+temporally sparse satellite data, and more expert-curated info streams like climate reanalysis (ERA5), geolocated Wiki articles, biodiversity data (GBIF)...
Satellite Embedding V1 | Earth Engine Data Catalog | Google for Developers
The Google Satellite Embedding dataset is a global, analysis-ready collection of learned geospatial embeddings. Each 10-meter pixel in this dataset is a 64-dimensional representation, or "embeddi...
developers.google.com
August 1, 2025 at 1:33 PM
Can't wait to play with these new satellite embeddings ( dubbed #AlphaEarth) when I have a little time.
Basically, it combines geographically+temporally sparse satellite data, and more expert-curated info streams like climate reanalysis (ERA5), geolocated Wiki articles, biodiversity data (GBIF)...
Basically, it combines geographically+temporally sparse satellite data, and more expert-curated info streams like climate reanalysis (ERA5), geolocated Wiki articles, biodiversity data (GBIF)...
Reposted
How can cells self-organize rapidly into complex patterns during development?
Let’s explore a powerful and underappreciated mechanism: Directed Cell Migration (DCM).
Preprint @biorxivpreprint.bsky.social : doi.org/10.1101/2025...
👇Thread 🧵(1/11)
Let’s explore a powerful and underappreciated mechanism: Directed Cell Migration (DCM).
Preprint @biorxivpreprint.bsky.social : doi.org/10.1101/2025...
👇Thread 🧵(1/11)
July 30, 2025 at 7:00 AM
How can cells self-organize rapidly into complex patterns during development?
Let’s explore a powerful and underappreciated mechanism: Directed Cell Migration (DCM).
Preprint @biorxivpreprint.bsky.social : doi.org/10.1101/2025...
👇Thread 🧵(1/11)
Let’s explore a powerful and underappreciated mechanism: Directed Cell Migration (DCM).
Preprint @biorxivpreprint.bsky.social : doi.org/10.1101/2025...
👇Thread 🧵(1/11)
Reposted
When people find out how little is spent on foreign aid, they're less likely to say that the US spends "too much".
This might seem obvious, but many would argue that pointing to data or facts is never successful in changing peoples' minds.
This might seem obvious, but many would argue that pointing to data or facts is never successful in changing peoples' minds.
July 18, 2025 at 3:41 PM
When people find out how little is spent on foreign aid, they're less likely to say that the US spends "too much".
This might seem obvious, but many would argue that pointing to data or facts is never successful in changing peoples' minds.
This might seem obvious, but many would argue that pointing to data or facts is never successful in changing peoples' minds.
Reposted
This is hilarious: Vapnik wrote a lengthy postscript to 2006 edition of _Estimation of Dependencies from Empirical Data_, where he retcons the history of statistical learning and is super salty about critical reviews of his grant proposals, railing against the critics' "collective socialist logic."
July 18, 2025 at 3:55 PM
This is hilarious: Vapnik wrote a lengthy postscript to 2006 edition of _Estimation of Dependencies from Empirical Data_, where he retcons the history of statistical learning and is super salty about critical reviews of his grant proposals, railing against the critics' "collective socialist logic."
Reposted
8. As review accuracy declines, more authors have incentives to try their luck by submitting subpar manuscripts, further increasing the load on the peer review process.
What gets this feedback cycle started? For starters, when the value of elite publications increases, more authors take a chance.
What gets this feedback cycle started? For starters, when the value of elite publications increases, more authors take a chance.
July 16, 2025 at 3:24 AM
8. As review accuracy declines, more authors have incentives to try their luck by submitting subpar manuscripts, further increasing the load on the peer review process.
What gets this feedback cycle started? For starters, when the value of elite publications increases, more authors take a chance.
What gets this feedback cycle started? For starters, when the value of elite publications increases, more authors take a chance.
Reposted
"Für mich ist Kulturkampf, wenn politische Fragen gezielt und absichtsvoll in Anerkennungsfragen verwandelt werden."
"Solange es noch um anderes geht als nur Anerkennungsfragen, kann man dagegen Pakete schnüren, das eine zugestehen,um das andere zu bekommen."
"Anerkennung gibt es nicht graduell."
"Solange es noch um anderes geht als nur Anerkennungsfragen, kann man dagegen Pakete schnüren, das eine zugestehen,um das andere zu bekommen."
"Anerkennung gibt es nicht graduell."
"Es ist ein ziemlich unerhörter Vorgang, auch wenn der Anlass an sich eher klein ist. Oder vielleicht gerade deshalb. Der Führung der CDU, selbst einer Sehnsuchtsfigur der Parteikonservativen wie Merz, scheint da etwas entglitten zu sein. Die Frage ist, ob auf Dauer."
Der Kulturkampf frisst den Kanzler
Jetzt verweigern ihm schon die eigenen Leute die Gefolgschaft
beimwort.substack.com
July 14, 2025 at 6:25 AM
"Für mich ist Kulturkampf, wenn politische Fragen gezielt und absichtsvoll in Anerkennungsfragen verwandelt werden."
"Solange es noch um anderes geht als nur Anerkennungsfragen, kann man dagegen Pakete schnüren, das eine zugestehen,um das andere zu bekommen."
"Anerkennung gibt es nicht graduell."
"Solange es noch um anderes geht als nur Anerkennungsfragen, kann man dagegen Pakete schnüren, das eine zugestehen,um das andere zu bekommen."
"Anerkennung gibt es nicht graduell."
Reposted
Whenever I see a study about how something impacts developers' attributes, I keep finding it helpful to wait for Dr. Hicks to comment before internalizing the breathless headlines.
I'm finally reading this paper but my first thought is anybody on earth good at predicting how long a task will take them....?
Setting aside the small person sample, randomizing the tasks within developer is....super odd? Wouldn't we start to expect a lot of order effects?
Setting aside the small person sample, randomizing the tasks within developer is....super odd? Wouldn't we start to expect a lot of order effects?
We ran a randomized controlled trial to see how much AI coding tools speed up experienced open-source developers.
The results surprised us: Developers thought they were 20% faster with AI tools, but they were actually 19% slower when they had access to AI than when they didn't.
The results surprised us: Developers thought they were 20% faster with AI tools, but they were actually 19% slower when they had access to AI than when they didn't.
July 11, 2025 at 10:43 PM
Whenever I see a study about how something impacts developers' attributes, I keep finding it helpful to wait for Dr. Hicks to comment before internalizing the breathless headlines.
Reposted
3. But last Friday, NSF banned all research on mis- and disinformation, falsely equating it with censorship.
This has been an active and important area of research as our society adapts to radical transformations in information technology including social media and large language models.
This has been an active and important area of research as our society adapts to radical transformations in information technology including social media and large language models.
April 21, 2025 at 11:05 PM
3. But last Friday, NSF banned all research on mis- and disinformation, falsely equating it with censorship.
This has been an active and important area of research as our society adapts to radical transformations in information technology including social media and large language models.
This has been an active and important area of research as our society adapts to radical transformations in information technology including social media and large language models.
Dimensions of Dialoge (Jan Švankmajer)
youtu.be/L-gGpWpra-g?...
youtu.be/L-gGpWpra-g?...
Dimensions of Dialogue (Jan Svankmajer)
YouTube video by PP2
youtu.be
April 21, 2025 at 10:06 AM
Dimensions of Dialoge (Jan Švankmajer)
youtu.be/L-gGpWpra-g?...
youtu.be/L-gGpWpra-g?...
Reposted
In case you haven't been paying attention for the past two decades and some, Erik Prince is a threat to liberal democracy and human rights on a global scale.
Military contractors pitch unprecedented prison plan for detained immigrants
Erik Prince wants to cut a deal to transport detainees from the US to El Salvador.
www.politico.com
April 12, 2025 at 4:40 AM
In case you haven't been paying attention for the past two decades and some, Erik Prince is a threat to liberal democracy and human rights on a global scale.