Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

rednikki @rednikki.toot.boston.ap.brid.gy · 13h

@crystalvisits Cory Doctorow says that if we are going to get our privacy back we need to start at the state level; maybe it’s time to start pushing MA leg for a state ban.

Reposted by rednikki

Prof. Sam Lawler @sundogplanets.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 16h

Just got my official letter for the fellowship to New Zealand! And I have a possible lead on a local farm sitter, but nothing is set yet.

So I'm just going to put this out onto the Fediverse again, in case someone who knows how take care of goats in Real Canadian Winter (down to -40C temps) […]

Original post on mastodon.social

mastodon.social

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rednikki @rednikki.toot.boston.ap.brid.gy · 19h

This Oatmeal comic on AI art is one of the better things I’ve seen in the topic.
https://theoatmeal.com/comics/ai_art

A cartoonist's review of AI art - The Oatmeal

This is a comic about AI art.

theoatmeal.com

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rednikki @rednikki.toot.boston.ap.brid.gy · 2d

Reading about Henry Ford (an industrialist that bought news media and directed it to support his antisemitic ideas), the New Thought movement of the late 1800s and early 1900s (which promoted healing with the mind, among other things), and the economic precarious that went on for years for the […]

Original post on toot.boston

toot.boston

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Erin Kissane @kissane.myatproto.social · 3d

It feels like the internet‘s cooked us into presenting every position in the strongest moral terms and responding to every disagreement as an all-out attack that must be annihilated before it destroys everything and it seems not great

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rednikki @rednikki.toot.boston.ap.brid.gy · 2d

@knizer Brave person!

Reposted by rednikki

Be Jay, Do Crimes @templinjay.bsky.social · 4d

Extension Master Gardener here. This spooky dude is 100% right! Pull the leaves out of your squash beds to avoid squash bugs next summer, but when it comes to tree leaves on the lawn? #LeaveTheLeaves

Kieran (But Spookier) @toadally.bsky.social · 4d

Hey, we all like fireflies, right? Of course we do! So please: LEAVE YOUR LEAVES! Firefly larvae need the protection that fallen leaves provide to complete their life cycle. Even just allowing part of your yard to be covered with leaves can help the arthropods/invertebrates/microfauna living there.

a firefly is glowing brightly in the dark

ALT: a firefly is glowing brightly in the dark

media.tenor.com

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Reposted by rednikki

alamkara @alamkara.bsky.social · 4d

translators have been on the receiving end of "technology as wage suppression" for a while now - I quit working for an agency because they'd pay me nothing for 100% matches and next to nothing for "high" matches. which I still went through, obviously, bc translation isn't done in segments

Brian Merchant @bcmerchant.bsky.social · 5d

Hagen is the author of a great short book, Why We Fear AI, which argues, among other things, that AI should not be viewed as a productivity tool, but a *wage depression* tool.

www.commonnotions.org/why-we-fear-ai

Why We Fear AI — Common Notions Press

Fears about AI tell us more about capitalism today than the technology of the future.

www.commonnotions.org

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Reposted by rednikki

Tom Gauld @tomgauld.bsky.social · 5d

A cartoon from my new book, 'Physics for Cats'. Out next week: www.tomgauld.com

A scientist stands in front of an enormous contraption
"I created this device to test my theory that our entire reality is a simulation, but the readings I'm
getting suggest something much worse"

"What?" Asks a second scientist.
"We're living in a cartoon!" Says the first.
"Does it at least have a good punchline?" says the second.
The fiorst scientist carefully looks over the data, then eventually replies "Nope"

From 'Physics for Cats' by Tom Gauld - order it at www.tomgauld.com

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rednikki @rednikki.toot.boston.ap.brid.gy · 5d

Cambervillains of a certain tenure will remember when Starbucks went in across the street from the Diesel. There was a rumor that they went in with the intent of putting Diesel out of business and being the only coffee option in Davis. I don’t know if it’s true, but if it is this is pure poetic […]

Original post on toot.boston

toot.boston

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rednikki @rednikki.toot.boston.ap.brid.gy · 6d

@templinjay.bsky.social Jay.

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Reposted by rednikki

StoneBear :potion_genderqueer: @stonebear2.hachyderm.io.ap.brid.gy · 6d

That's gonna leave a MARK. #fuckai

Merriam-Webster @merriam-webster.com · 6d

We are thrilled to announce that our NEW Large Language Model will be released on 11.18.25.

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rednikki @rednikki.toot.boston.ap.brid.gy · 6d

The Residence on Netflix is great, and I’m so disappointed it won’t get a second season. It definitely had a bit of a Knives Out vibe, so if you like that sort of thing, watch it.

Also very sad that Andre Braugher never got to complete his role in it. Giancarlo Esposito was fantastic;,it’s just […]

Original post on toot.boston

toot.boston

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rednikki @rednikki.toot.boston.ap.brid.gy · 7d

I’ve seen a lot of discourse about how people from the global North are “expats” when living outside of their home country, but people from other countries are “immigrants.”

I wonder if someone from the Boston Globe reads our discussions, because they refer to […]

[Original post on toot.boston]

Mahaniyom

I wouldn’t be surprised if this Thai restaurant in Brookline gets a little Michelin love, but just in case: Dang, Mahaniyom is good. Run by a team of expats (they’re also behind the excellent nearby bar Merai), it serves dishes that make the tastebuds sing — savory, sweet, salty, spicy, herbal, and lush. Don’t miss the rambutan salad, crab curry, beef massaman, or fried whole fish, along with excellent cocktails.

236 Washington St., Brookline, 617-487-5986, www.mahaniyomboston.com

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rednikki @rednikki.toot.boston.ap.brid.gy · 7d

@SnoopJ @moira I honestly don’t know. We make it at home.

Reposted by rednikki

Be Jay, Do Crimes @templinjay.bsky.social · 7d

One of the most important threads I’ve seen today.

Ariella Elm @ariellaelm.bsky.social · 7d

Let’s talk shutdown.

I don’t care what your personal views on the Dems or leadership are, we have a very small window to control this narrative, and it will be impossible if anyone is doing anything but blaming Republicans.

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rednikki @rednikki.toot.boston.ap.brid.gy · 7d

@SnoopJ @moira We buy vital wheat gluten in bulk to make seitan with. I can’t wait to hear your results!

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Reposted by rednikki

Tom Gauld @tomgauld.bsky.social · 8d

My latest cartoon for @newscientist.com

p.s. my new book of science cartoons 'Physics for Cats' is out now. Visit www.tomgauld.com for details

A group of scientists huddle excitedly around a monitor. One says:
"The program has detected a signal sent from another galaxy, but we need to upgrade to a paid version before we can reply."

The screen reads "Choose a plan To unlock replies: 1. Student 2. Basic 3. Pro 4. Expert "

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Reposted by rednikki

David Roberts @volts.wtf · 7d

This is amazing: @ladwp.com, the Los Angeles utility, has launched a program that will install solar+battery systems on qualifying low-to-moderate-income households, *for free*.

Yes: free.

If you know someone eligible, tell them to apply!

Self-Generation Incentive Program

The Self-Generation Incentive Program (SGIP) helps qualified LADWP residential customers install solar and battery storage systems by providing financial incentives. This program supports clean energy...

www.ladwp.com

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rednikki @rednikki.toot.boston.ap.brid.gy · 8d

@mathowie He was not born in the US and therefore cannot become president.

Reposted by rednikki

Prof. Sam Lawler @sundogplanets.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 8d

I bet you need some cute goats (I definitely do)

A brown goat and a smaller black goat, both with extremely long, droopy white ears, laying next to each other on the grass, snuggling.

Close up of the face of a white goat looking right at the camera. She's got very long, horizontal ears, and she's chewing so her lower jaw is off to one side. She's standing on green grass.

Closer view of the same white goat, with only the too-close nose in focus as she sniffs the camera.

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Reposted by rednikki

cremevax👩🏻‍💻🏳️‍🌈🇨🇦🇺🇦 @cremevax.infosec.exchange.ap.brid.gy · 9d

Bruce Schneier has a good high-level look at threat-modeling under an authoritarian government. Alas, it’s not amenable to a simple recipe approach, but involves carefully thinking through the tradeoffs […]

[Original post on infosec.exchange]

Screenshot of text that says:

Being Innocent Won’t Protect You

This is vital to understand. Surveillance systems and sorting algorithms make mistakes. This is apparent in the fact that we are routinely served advertisements for products that don’t interest us at all. Those mistakes are relatively harmless—who cares about a poorly targeted ad?—but a similar mistake at an immigration hearing can get someone deported.

An authoritarian government doesn’t care. Mistakes are a feature and not a bug of authoritarian surveillance. If ICE targets only people it can go after legally, then everyone knows whether or not they need to fear ICE. If ICE occasionally makes mistakes by arresting Americans and deporting innocents, then everyone has to fear it. This is by design.

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rednikki @rednikki.toot.boston.ap.brid.gy · 9d

JFC. A guy who is legally in the country, with no crimes, has been abducted by ICE. His family is trying to get money to get him out. Please help.
https://www.gofundme.com/f/kh7fy-magdaleno

Donate to Fighting an Unlawful ICE Kidnapping in Somerville”, organized by Family And friends

On September 20th at 11:15am, Magdaleno Pineda Avelar(Walter ) … Family And friends needs your support for Fighting an Unlawful ICE Kidnapping in Somerville”

www.gofundme.com

rednikki @rednikki.toot.boston.ap.brid.gy · 9d

@templinjay.bsky.social Friendly little guy!

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