Sean Matthews
@seanmatthews1.bsky.social
Irish-British computational mathematician/programmer.
Mostly in Mainz, Germany; sometimes in Westmeath, Ireland.
'A man may surely be allowed to take a glass of wine by his own fireside.'
Mostly in Mainz, Germany; sometimes in Westmeath, Ireland.
'A man may surely be allowed to take a glass of wine by his own fireside.'
Reposted by Sean Matthews
Steve insists his ‘Thinking Stone’ helps him solve complex business problems. I have yet to see the results.
December 23, 2025 at 8:01 PM
Steve insists his ‘Thinking Stone’ helps him solve complex business problems. I have yet to see the results.
Reposted by Sean Matthews
December 23, 2025 at 8:55 AM
Reposted by Sean Matthews
giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...
Almost a third of US investment-grade corporate bond issuance, which is close to record levels, is to finance AI buildout.
If (when?) the AI bubble bursts or deflates, not only will real investment contract sharply. Bond defaults will increase. And the value
1)2
Almost a third of US investment-grade corporate bond issuance, which is close to record levels, is to finance AI buildout.
If (when?) the AI bubble bursts or deflates, not only will real investment contract sharply. Bond defaults will increase. And the value
1)2
AI debt boom pushes US corporate bond sales close to record
Investment-grade borrowers have issued $1.7tn of bonds this year, closing in on 2020’s Covid debt rush
giftarticle.ft.com
December 23, 2025 at 10:25 AM
giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...
Almost a third of US investment-grade corporate bond issuance, which is close to record levels, is to finance AI buildout.
If (when?) the AI bubble bursts or deflates, not only will real investment contract sharply. Bond defaults will increase. And the value
1)2
Almost a third of US investment-grade corporate bond issuance, which is close to record levels, is to finance AI buildout.
If (when?) the AI bubble bursts or deflates, not only will real investment contract sharply. Bond defaults will increase. And the value
1)2
Reposted by Sean Matthews
New result: you can build a universal computer using a single billiard ball on a carefully crafted table!
More precisely: you can create a computer that can run any program, using just a single point moving frictionlessly in a region of the plane and bouncing off the walls elastically.
(1/n)
More precisely: you can create a computer that can run any program, using just a single point moving frictionlessly in a region of the plane and bouncing off the walls elastically.
(1/n)
December 23, 2025 at 10:21 AM
New result: you can build a universal computer using a single billiard ball on a carefully crafted table!
More precisely: you can create a computer that can run any program, using just a single point moving frictionlessly in a region of the plane and bouncing off the walls elastically.
(1/n)
More precisely: you can create a computer that can run any program, using just a single point moving frictionlessly in a region of the plane and bouncing off the walls elastically.
(1/n)
Reposted by Sean Matthews
Adam Smith on Donald Trump:
"that absurd self-love, by which he seems to imagine, that other people may be sacrificed at any time, to his conveniency or his humour."
"that absurd self-love, by which he seems to imagine, that other people may be sacrificed at any time, to his conveniency or his humour."
Adam Smith, Theory of Moral Sentiments, II.iii.1
knarf.english.upenn.edu
December 23, 2025 at 8:33 AM
Adam Smith on Donald Trump:
"that absurd self-love, by which he seems to imagine, that other people may be sacrificed at any time, to his conveniency or his humour."
"that absurd self-love, by which he seems to imagine, that other people may be sacrificed at any time, to his conveniency or his humour."
perfectly illustrates why Waymos _are not_ ‘autonomous‘ vehicles and are not on a oath to becoming so
www.sfgate.com/bayarea/arti...
www.sfgate.com/bayarea/arti...
Waymo halts service in SF as cars stall at intersections
A spokesperson confirmed Waymo has suspended service.
www.sfgate.com
December 22, 2025 at 3:45 PM
perfectly illustrates why Waymos _are not_ ‘autonomous‘ vehicles and are not on a oath to becoming so
www.sfgate.com/bayarea/arti...
www.sfgate.com/bayarea/arti...
Reposted by Sean Matthews
A anthropologist colleague ran their new paper through an AI summarizer. The point of the paper was, ‘contrary to expectation, this is what we found when we studied x.’ The summary was that they found the same thing as previous research because that’s *statistically likely based on the literature*.
December 22, 2025 at 2:07 AM
A anthropologist colleague ran their new paper through an AI summarizer. The point of the paper was, ‘contrary to expectation, this is what we found when we studied x.’ The summary was that they found the same thing as previous research because that’s *statistically likely based on the literature*.
Reposted by Sean Matthews
This. In the past several years, many have branded their work "AI" for the financial benefits, despite the intense toxicity of the people and tacit assumptions at the center. As communities become conversant in critique and refusal, fragility is on full display as researchers cry out "not all AI". 🧵
That's not possible anywhere because of the bubble. The AI topic is toxic because so many of the key players are toxic.
December 22, 2025 at 3:39 AM
This. In the past several years, many have branded their work "AI" for the financial benefits, despite the intense toxicity of the people and tacit assumptions at the center. As communities become conversant in critique and refusal, fragility is on full display as researchers cry out "not all AI". 🧵
Reposted by Sean Matthews
Responsible researchers have the privilege to unhitch themselves from the "AI" brand at any time. Are you studying wildfire smoke or deforestation using satellite imagery? That used to be "remote sensing" and you can call it that again. Signal processing, image segmentation, structure-from-motion.
December 22, 2025 at 3:39 AM
Responsible researchers have the privilege to unhitch themselves from the "AI" brand at any time. Are you studying wildfire smoke or deforestation using satellite imagery? That used to be "remote sensing" and you can call it that again. Signal processing, image segmentation, structure-from-motion.
Reposted by Sean Matthews
😳 A newly-minted attorney used GROK to assist in drafting and research for briefs and memoranda filed in state and federal court “without verifying the accuracy of the output”
1/
cases.justia.com/federal/dist...
1/
cases.justia.com/federal/dist...
December 21, 2025 at 10:10 PM
😳 A newly-minted attorney used GROK to assist in drafting and research for briefs and memoranda filed in state and federal court “without verifying the accuracy of the output”
1/
cases.justia.com/federal/dist...
1/
cases.justia.com/federal/dist...
Reposted by Sean Matthews
FWIW, the jury is still out on Gen AI being good at text summaries. Because it shortens & emphasizes text based on distribution, not meaning, it’s less of a summary (ie, salient points highlighted) than a compression (ie, the most frequently asserted terms in the distribution). Not the same thing!
December 21, 2025 at 8:47 PM
FWIW, the jury is still out on Gen AI being good at text summaries. Because it shortens & emphasizes text based on distribution, not meaning, it’s less of a summary (ie, salient points highlighted) than a compression (ie, the most frequently asserted terms in the distribution). Not the same thing!
Reposted by Sean Matthews
*The architecture of living systems*
Ambitious treatment of the physics of living systems
Some quibbles but impressive!
iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1...
#complexsystems
Ambitious treatment of the physics of living systems
Some quibbles but impressive!
iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1...
#complexsystems
December 20, 2025 at 6:08 PM
*The architecture of living systems*
Ambitious treatment of the physics of living systems
Some quibbles but impressive!
iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1...
#complexsystems
Ambitious treatment of the physics of living systems
Some quibbles but impressive!
iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1...
#complexsystems
Reposted by Sean Matthews
Actually texted a number on the wall of the gents and arranged to go out for a drink. Bit awkward at first, but Clive was a nice guy, in the end. Don't think I'll go gay for him, tho.
December 20, 2025 at 11:20 AM
Actually texted a number on the wall of the gents and arranged to go out for a drink. Bit awkward at first, but Clive was a nice guy, in the end. Don't think I'll go gay for him, tho.
Reposted by Sean Matthews
It's fascinating how quickly every effort to "disrupt" the university sector collapses. Maybe the university – one of the oldest spontaneous orders anywhere, an institution much older than the corporation and the nation-state – has something going for it that outsiders don't appreciate?
I guess some knowledge IS forbidden! www.chron.com/culture/arti...
Texas' 'anti-Harvard' university is losing its founders
Who will teach the "Forbidden Courses" now?
www.chron.com
December 19, 2025 at 1:24 PM
It's fascinating how quickly every effort to "disrupt" the university sector collapses. Maybe the university – one of the oldest spontaneous orders anywhere, an institution much older than the corporation and the nation-state – has something going for it that outsiders don't appreciate?
Reposted by Sean Matthews
Haven't the foggiest about the quality of this research, or whether the headline has skewed its findings, but I want to believe.
"A new study has found that eating 50g or more of high-fat cheese a day correlates with a lower risk of developing dementia. That means all cheeses with more than 20 percent fat content, including brie, gouda, cheddar, parmesan, gruyere, and mozzarella." www.sciencealert.com/cheese-linke...
Cheese Linked to Lower Dementia Risk in 25-Year Study
One of the finest foods available to humanity may carry an unexpected benefit.
www.sciencealert.com
December 19, 2025 at 2:15 PM
Haven't the foggiest about the quality of this research, or whether the headline has skewed its findings, but I want to believe.
Reposted by Sean Matthews
I am a 100% atheist but I enjoy going to mass regularly. I don't believe what the priest says about an interventionist God, but I enjoy the calmness and hymns, and very occasionally the priest passes in some wisdom. I find it energising + therapeutic.
December 19, 2025 at 11:20 AM
I am a 100% atheist but I enjoy going to mass regularly. I don't believe what the priest says about an interventionist God, but I enjoy the calmness and hymns, and very occasionally the priest passes in some wisdom. I find it energising + therapeutic.
Reposted by Sean Matthews
![Comic. [Two people one one side of a pile of seven apples, next to person with long hair next to five apples.] PERSON: Okay, with my seven apples added to your five, we have… let’s se… twelve apples! PERSON 2 [with hands raised]: Incredible! Perfect agreement with the theory! [caption] Experimental Mathematicians](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:cz73r7iyiqn26upot4jtjdhk/bafkreifgv5skm72kzcxgexs4hbpex45met5vxhb6kf2aqshmktmo37nl5a@jpeg)
Reposted by Sean Matthews
Reposted by Sean Matthews
The older I get, the more my politics mature from childish, naïve beliefs like "the world is complicated and leaders have to make hard decisions" to more serious, adult principles like "hurting people is bad and helping people is good."
December 15, 2025 at 4:51 PM
The older I get, the more my politics mature from childish, naïve beliefs like "the world is complicated and leaders have to make hard decisions" to more serious, adult principles like "hurting people is bad and helping people is good."
Reposted by Sean Matthews
The Co-Op going above and beyond with their customer service offerings.
December 16, 2025 at 8:53 AM
The Co-Op going above and beyond with their customer service offerings.
Reposted by Sean Matthews
An academic disliked an Oxford Very Short Introduction (145 pages) in his field so much that he wrote a 200 page book review attacking it. www.pierre-legrand.com/ewExternalFi...
December 11, 2025 at 8:56 PM
An academic disliked an Oxford Very Short Introduction (145 pages) in his field so much that he wrote a 200 page book review attacking it. www.pierre-legrand.com/ewExternalFi...
Reposted by Sean Matthews
'Skull of St. Thomas Aquinas being transported to Fossanova Abbey.'
Photograph by Daniel Ibanez
Photograph by Daniel Ibanez
December 10, 2025 at 8:31 AM
'Skull of St. Thomas Aquinas being transported to Fossanova Abbey.'
Photograph by Daniel Ibanez
Photograph by Daniel Ibanez
Oh dear. Seems the judge in the Sandie Peggie tribunal may have made up and modified quotations, among others from the supreme court, in his published decision. The sort of thing that would happen if you were to use an LLM. If true, will be interesting to see if there are any consequences.
December 10, 2025 at 11:56 AM
Oh dear. Seems the judge in the Sandie Peggie tribunal may have made up and modified quotations, among others from the supreme court, in his published decision. The sort of thing that would happen if you were to use an LLM. If true, will be interesting to see if there are any consequences.
Reposted by Sean Matthews
Chic hits #1 today in 1978 with “Le Freak”, a song originally titled “F**k Off!” — and written after the band was turned away by the bouncers at Studio 54.
“We go back to my apartment really pissed off,” said Nile Rodgers, “and Bernard starts singing, ‘Ahhh, f**k off!’ .. and that became the hook.”
“We go back to my apartment really pissed off,” said Nile Rodgers, “and Bernard starts singing, ‘Ahhh, f**k off!’ .. and that became the hook.”
December 10, 2025 at 12:01 AM
Chic hits #1 today in 1978 with “Le Freak”, a song originally titled “F**k Off!” — and written after the band was turned away by the bouncers at Studio 54.
“We go back to my apartment really pissed off,” said Nile Rodgers, “and Bernard starts singing, ‘Ahhh, f**k off!’ .. and that became the hook.”
“We go back to my apartment really pissed off,” said Nile Rodgers, “and Bernard starts singing, ‘Ahhh, f**k off!’ .. and that became the hook.”