Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Meghan Wilson Duff @mwduff.bsky.social · 1h

A company I used to use sent a promotional email with a Trump tweet or quotation tangentially referencing their product (not their brand but the general product), so I wrote and said you just lost a customer because that email. Later, folks.

And the rapid apology email ain't cutting it.

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Meghan Wilson Duff @mwduff.bsky.social · 7h

I freaking HATE Grammerly and their shitty commercials.

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Reposted by Meghan Wilson Duff

jamelle @jamellebouie.net · 8h

i desperately want everyone involved in the destruction of USAID to have to, st the very least, answer to the american people for the suffering and misery they have caused apnews.com/article/myan...

Starving children screaming for food as US aid cuts unleash devastation and death across Myanmar

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has repeatedly said “no one has died" because of his government’s decision to gut its foreign aid program.

apnews.com

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Meghan Wilson Duff @mwduff.bsky.social · 11h

Corporations and industries always want rules that suit at the expense of everyone else

The Verge @theverge.com · May 26

Nick Clegg says asking artists for use permission would ‘kill’ the AI industry

Paul McCartne, Elton John and others signed an open letter.

buff.ly

Reposted by Meghan Wilson Duff

Ketan Joshi @ketanjoshi.co · 13h

- Grim that media barons are buying up mainstream media and making them fascism-enabling propaganda engines

- ULTAGRIM that so many of the big-name journalists escaping that fire are voluntarily leaping directly into a completely separate newsletter website trap set by the same fascists

Substack’s “Nazi problem” won’t go away after push notification apology

Substack may be legitimizing neo-Nazis as “thought leaders,” researcher warns.

arstechnica.com

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Reposted by Meghan Wilson Duff

Torsten Kathke @kathke.com · 1d

LLMs out to gaslight authors about their own writing.

Ulrike Franke @rikefranke.bsky.social · 1d

And here we go. I never wrote this article, and yet it is cited here.

www.liberalbriefs.com/geopolitics/...

And of course, it sounds so plausible, I seriously checked whether I had forgotten it, or the footnote was slightly wrong.

#AIisnotresearch

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Meghan Wilson Duff @mwduff.bsky.social · 1d

I have to say I really do love Cordelia Fine's new book because it articulates why corporate DEI ethos is so transparently corrupt even though people act like it is actually in good faith about diversity, equity, & inclusion.

I loathe busy-work & bullshit activities.

Meghan Wilson Duff @mwduff.bsky.social · 1d

I'm always here for fish puns with book/library/reading tie ins 🐟📚

Sophie W @biologizing.bsky.social · 1d

The Newfoundland and Labrador public libraries continue to make the absolute best free pins that you can just have if you go to borrow a book

A pin on a desk, it has a codfish silhouette holding a library card, with the words "having fun isn't hard when you've got a library cod"

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Meghan Wilson Duff @mwduff.bsky.social · 1d

Marine snow ❄️

MBA Library @nmbluk.bsky.social · 1d

From our rare books collection we have this illustration of Vampyroteuthis infernalis, also known as the vampire squid from hell. In an order of its own, we don't really think the vampiric moniker is fair either as they actually feed on detritus and not blood #EYAMonsters

A colour illustration of Vampyroteuthis infernalis. The main body is painted black, with eyes painted to look bioluminescent

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Meghan Wilson Duff @mwduff.bsky.social · 2d

They should have an opt in and not rely on mail to a postal address (as from when I was the provider, lots of people high chaos lives don't keep the same address very long.) [Also, both messages I've already read because the information was conveyed through mail already.]

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Meghan Wilson Duff @mwduff.bsky.social · 2d

Can someone explain to me why our state's medicaid program would rather mail me a letter to tell me to go login to their portal rather than just email me the same gd message?

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Meghan Wilson Duff @mwduff.bsky.social · 3d

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JA Fields | NonCompliantCyborg @noncompliantcyborg.bsky.social · 4d

Happy Ctenophore Day, everyone!

It’s been a long time since we’ve had a #CtenoTakeOver, something that started well before this space went public.

I want to hear about your fave cteno science 🧪 and see your cteno art 🐡🦑🐙

JA Fields | NonCompliantCyborg @noncompliantcyborg.bsky.social · 4d

Happy Ctenophore Day!
🐙🦑🧪

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Reposted by Meghan Wilson Duff

dr. mykle hoban @thefishbotherer.bsky.social · 3d

For my algae heads: happy spooky season!

(📷: my friend Stephanie who isn’t on here)

🦑

The bulbous ends of two pieces of bull kelp (Nerocystis luetkiana) carved into grinning jack o lanterns. They are on a rocky beach and you can see waves in the background.

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Meghan Wilson Duff @mwduff.bsky.social · 3d

Again, my favorite book promotion group.

Nadia Ali @nadiaawriter.bsky.social · 3d

Look what's coming in 2026!
@TheBookofNadias #NadiasWhoWrite #NadiasWhoIllustrate
@nadiasalomon.bsky.social @ariadelsole.bsky.social @nadialhohn.bsky.social @nadiaawriter.bsky.social
IG @shanshan0619, IG @nadiabmad

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Meghan Wilson Duff @mwduff.bsky.social · 3d

Meanwhile, in corporate headquarters... "yes, this works out nicely. Anything to keep people in app."

From a societal standpoint, this sucks for all of us.

Dr. Damien P. Williams Wants A Better Sociotechnical Paradigm @wolvendamien.bsky.social · 3d

Preliminary results show that the current framework of "AI" makes ppl less likely to help or seek help from other humans, or to seek to soothe conflict, and that people actively prefer that framework to any others, literally serving to make them more dependent on it.

Sycophantic AI Decreases Prosocial Intentions and Promotes Dependence

Both the general public and academic communities have raised concerns about sycophancy, the phenomenon of artificial intelligence (AI) excessively agreeing with or flattering users. Yet, beyond isolat...

arxiv.org

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Reposted by Meghan Wilson Duff

Nnedi Okorafor, PhD @nnedi.bsky.social · 3d

This Anthropic settlement case…fellow authors, are any of you feeling rage? I have 12 books listed and money (I don’t CARE how many thousands, even millions) is NOT adequate compensation. What was stolen & used without my permission is priceless! Where is the option to scrub my work from AI?!

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Reposted by Meghan Wilson Duff

Hypervisible @hypervisible.blacksky.app · 3d

I think often about the Amazon engineer who wrote in an open letter to the company that Ring was “incompatible” with a free society.

Analysis | Amazon’s Ring plans to scan everyone’s face at the door

For the first time, the company is putting facial recognition into its home security doorbells and video cameras.

www.washingtonpost.com

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Meghan Wilson Duff @mwduff.bsky.social · 3d

I think I would like to give this years grads a copy of Holding it Together by Calarco and Patriarchy, Inc by Fine as a gift.

Also, throw in a good book on perimenopause and one on personal finance.

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Meghan Wilson Duff @mwduff.bsky.social · 3d

They exist by not understanding/caring. The story they tell themselves absolves them of responsibility for exploiting their workers.

What kills me is it so bad for the people being cared for. Treat workers well, clients benefit from that, but that's not their goal. 💰💰💰

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Meghan Wilson Duff @mwduff.bsky.social · 3d

"Paying you shit is the only way to prove that you are compassionate enough for the job... and you'll be rewarded by warm and fuzzy feelings" of never feeling adequate enough to meet your charges' needs and treated like you're replaceable and unskilled.... sorry, staff shortage.

/irate sarcasm/

Meghan Wilson Duff @mwduff.bsky.social · 3d

Fine is spending a lot of time contrasting tech and finance bullshit along side longterm care and other low paid (at the direct end) professions.

As I am interested in helping graduates be prepared for their career, being prepared to constantly have fight exploitation as a worker is part of it. 👎

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Meghan Wilson Duff @mwduff.bsky.social · 3d

CEOs thinking that if they RAISED salaries for long term care workers they would attract people that weren't as compassionate and caring (tattling on themselves). Therefore your shitty paycheck is continually justified

Patriarchy Inc. Audiobook on Libro.fm

Work remains much as it always has: men occupy the vast majority of leadership roles and are overrepresented in positions from engineer to plumber. We see many jobs as "male" or "female," with women d...

libro.fm

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Reposted by Meghan Wilson Duff

Thinking Person's Guide to Autism @thinkingautism.com · 5d

So many autistic people use (or don't use but could benefit from) AAC apps, whether symbol, text, or typing-to-speech. And now @assistiveware.bsky.social is having an app sale, in which all their AAC apps will be 50% off, from October 8-15.

www.assistiveware.com/aac-app-sale

#AACawarenessMonth

AAC Awareness Month Sale 2025 - AssistiveWare

Everyone has something to say. Working closely with the AAC community, we build apps and share best practice to help you communicate with the world.

www.assistiveware.com

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Meghan Wilson Duff @mwduff.bsky.social · 5d

I would so pissed at my therapist if they asked that. No.

Reposted by Meghan Wilson Duff

SoCal Leslie @socalleslie.bsky.social · 5d

Good morning. Black oystercatcher on the rocks. 🪶

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