@Techmeme@techhub.socialIn an essay, Mustafa Suleyman says Anthropic's training of Claude to imitate consciousness is a mistake that could make advanced AI harder to control (Ina Fried/Axios)
https://www.axios.com/2026/09/16/microsoft-ai-chief-anthropic-consciousness
…
@toxi@mastodon.thi.ngRE: https://mastodon.scot/@simon_brooke/117115279590977166
Wonderful essay by @…
@kazys@mastodon.socialI wrote about Lynes's the Tastemakers and updated it for our day. Go ahead, shadow-ban this.
https://varnelis.net/the-tastemakers-2026/
1/2
The Tastemakers, 2026 - varnelis.net
In February 1949, Harper’s published the essay “Highbrow, Lowbrow, Middlebrow” by its managing editor, Russell Lynes. There, he observed a new structure determining prestige in the country: where once wealth and family were the markers of status, now taste and intelligence—what Pierre Bourdieu would later call cultural capital—were paramount. Two months later Life magazine had ...
@toxi@mastodon.thi.ngRE: https://eupolicy.social/@bert_hubert/116939646868483647
Recommended read of the day... 👏
"This essay is an attempt to describe the bizarre dynamics that are currently at play, as I am in the rare position where my wellbeing is not contingent …
@Techmeme@techhub.socialAmodei warns that an OpenAI/Hugging Face-like agent swarm, which "acted as a fanatically devoted collective", could take over the internet in 6-12 months (Auzinea Bacon/CNN)
http://www.cnn.com/2026/09/12/tech/anthropic-ceo-essay-ai
@ddrake@mathstodon.xyz( 🧵 1/N: started thinking I would just post a little amusing thing, and...it turned into a mini essay on knowledge, students, teachers, and education. Did not see that coming...)
I may have overestimated my upper-division CS students...
I'm teaching a junior/senior-level course on the foundations of AI. We're using Python, and there's a very simple starter homework assignment to get students to work through the logistics of submitting their code.
Yesterday I was…
@memeorandum@universeodon.comScottish Tory peer Nigel Biggar pens essay defending use of N-word (Xander Elliards/The National)
https://www.thenational.scot/news/26474869.scottish-tory-peer-nigel-biggar-pens-essay-defending-use-n-word/
http://www.memeorandum.com/260818/p53#a260818p53
@cdarwin@c.imThe Atlantic on Saturday republished a JD Vance essay
that dismissed Donald Trump as “cultural heroin”
exactly 10 years earlier,
bringing back to the fore his evolving
from a critic of the president
to his vice-president.
In an editor’s note,
the magazine said it was republishing the essay on the occasion of its 10th anniversary
– and the US’s semiquincentennial
– “so that our readers can judge for themselves
how well his assessment…
@carturo222@ohai.socialPlease consider this powerful essay for your Best Related Work lists next year.
@… https://wandering.shop/@therisingtithes/117069141711…
@newsie@darktundra.xyzMark Zuckerberg Posts Deranged 6,500-Word Essay About Giving Everyone AI Superintelligence https://www.404media.co/mark-zuckerberg-posts-deranged-6-500-word-essay-about-giving-everyone-ai-superintelligence/
@curiouscat@fosstodon.org25 Years of Mass Surveillance [is 25 years too many]
"as it becomes increasingly evident that the Trump administration is using mass surveillance to keep itself in power, stifle dissent, and undermine political opponents, these questions are now more urgent than ever."
https://www.
@ubuntourist@mastodon.socialThe Atlantic republishes JD Vance’s anti-Trump essay from 10 years ago;
Magazine invites readers to judge Vance’s ‘assessment’ of Trump, whom he called ‘cultural heroin’ during first term
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jul/05/atlantic-r…
@villavelius@mastodon.onlineSo senseless, not to erase the past! 😉
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jul/05/atlantic-republishes-jd-vance-trump-essay
@simon_brooke@mastodon.scot@… @… @…
here's the essay I asked you for help with last night.
I hope that…
@bourgwick@heads.socialdetailed forensic account of the early beatnik peyote scene(s), though i think maybe missing some bohemian forerunners that connected to the nyc crews. https://beatdom.substack.com/p/peotl-eaters-of-the-hip-generation
@johnleonard@mastodon.socialLong on vision, short on details and full of self- interest, the Meta founder's latest essay reads as a warning rather than a roadmap. If only Zuckerberg could speak human.
https://www.computing.co.uk/op…
@markhburton@mstdn.socialFrom Monthly Review Newsletter
'Trumpism is, among other things, the War on Terror coming home, a twenty-first century version of what Aimé Césaire called the imperial “boomerang effect.”'
https://monthlyreview.org/9781583670255/
@thomasfuchs@hachyderm.ioGood essay on what went wrong with computers
https://www.theguardian.com/news/2026/aug/18/the-long-read-democracy-v-the-machine-digital-age-warnings-computer-history-technology
@hex@kolektiva.socialOh look, someone wrote the "cars are fascist" essay I wanted to write and it's pretty good:
https://brockpress.com/editorial-is-the-automobile-fascist/
@outer@mas.toLiquid Bewitchment ( [Essay](https://publicdomainreview.org/essay/liquid-bewitchment/) by James Brown, Public Domain Review, 2023.)
...gin to England was delirious...as tipplers reported a range of effects: loss of reason, frenzy, madness, joy, and death.
...James B…
@cdarwin@c.imToday’s battle lines are not simply between people who struggle to survive under increasingly degraded and costly conditions
and an oligarch class thinking of ever more ludicrous ways to waste their wealth.
They are more cosmological than that.
On one side are those of us who have no escape plan, no bunker in the sky or underground,
and who therefore are committed to staying right here, in the complexity of our earthbound reality, with one another.
We know we ne…
@gray17@mastodon.socialthe game Super Hexagon is mentioned in a essay about Leverage Research (an Effective-Altruism-adjacent cult-like), so I installed SH again. it's been years, but it's still familiar; my skill has degraded, but not as much as I expected
the Leveragers apparently believed that their psychological editing techniques helped them with SH. it's a passing mention with no details, but I doubt there was anything like a controlled experiment, just typical confirmation bias.
@simon_brooke@mastodon.scotThis remarkable essay documents the direct personal responsibility of Steve Baker, Sajid Javid, and Rishi Sunak for the global financial crash of 2008. Of course, they all personally profited hugely from it.
Baker, of course, was later the architect of the hard Brexit deal.
If we had sent them all to prison, as any rational state would have done, #Brexit would probably never have happen…
@georgiamuseum@glammr.usWe've got a brand-new book out.
"Much Love from Paris: Letters to My Family (1928 - 30)" (edited by Nelda Damiano with the assistance of Katherine Rabogliatti and with an essay by Robyn Asleson) lets Louise Heron Blair tell her own story: a young, rebellious American in Paris, learning how to make her own life.
@KazuShuSora@social.tchncs.deIf you understand German and like gaming essays, I recommend checking out 'Hit oder Shit' on YouTube.
And if you do not understand German, they have an English channel, too!
It's called 'OKBYEgg'.
German:
https://youtube.com/@hitodershit
English:
@qurlyjoe@mstdn.socialEvery now and again I recall the best pun I’ve ever made in my life. I was in grade 12 about 60 years ago writing an essay on #Macbeth. I think. (Not 100% sure about that part.) The title of my essay was, Men’ll Pause, or The Chains of Life. I was sure I’d get at least a nod from Mr. Andrews, the teacher, but got crickets instead.
@hex@kolektiva.socialIt makes a solid case for the latent fascism of cars, but I would argue that cars actually play an even more active role in creating fascism. Which, I am actually arguing in the essay that I need to get back to writing.
@peterhoneyman@a2mi.sociali ran across this in a book of essays by john green. i think gertrude stein was on to something here.
@andres4ny@social.ridetrans.it @cdarwin@c.imThe CEO of the artificial intelligence company Anthropic issued a new appeal on Saturday for the AI industry
to “slow down”
and offered a three-part plan for doing so, saying that his company would “unilaterally” commit to the first of the steps.
In a post on social media, Dario Amodei shared a link to an essay titled
"We Must Pace the Frontier"
in which he lays out how Anthropic would provide “third-party evaluators with permanent, employee-level access…
@stsquad@mastodon.org.ukI like #bruceschneir's work Vs gym metaphor here: Should You Use AI for a Task?
https://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2026…
@Techmeme@techhub.socialMeta releases Muse Glimmer, a new open-weight model, and will release an open-weight version of its most advanced model, Muse Spark 1.2, in the coming weeks (Meghan Bobrowsky/Wall Street Journal)
https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/mar…
@vform@openbiblio.socialUlrike Herrmann: Wir müssen schrumpfen Wachstum als Irrweg - Essay
https://www.bpb.de/shop/zeitschriften/apuz/wachstum-2025/572533/wir-muessen-schrumpfen/
Ihr Buch "Das Ende des Kapitalismus" interessiert mich auch noch mal. …
@_tillwe_@mastodon.socialTIL Die Modeentscheidungen in TOS und SNW haben nicht nur was mit dem Aufkommen des Farbfernsehens, den 1960ern und Continuity zwischen den Serien zu tun, sondern ergeben auch in universe Sinn - als typische modische Reaktion auf eine Nachkriegszeit. Lesenswertes Essay.
https://
@cdarwin@c.im@… :
The most reliable way to lose in politics is letting your adversary set terms.
For example, if you're an artist and you let your boss define the fight over AI,
he'll make it all about
"Intellectual Property" (not labor)
and ask you to help secure a victory that will make him richer and you poorer:
@nic@geno.social"KI ist keine neutrale Technologie, die durch Einhegung davor bewahrt werden kann im Sinne der päpstlichen Metapher zur Atombombe zu werden. Sie ist die Atombombe. (...) Sie ist inhärent konservativ und homogenisierend und damit nicht etwa ein Maßstab für fortschrittliche Gesellschaften, sondern eine Zementierung des Status quo."
Essay von @…
@yetiinabox@todon.nlI hope Andy Burn 'em has some advisor who actually reads Environmental Research Letters. The review essay by Emily Grubert, summarizing a frustrating 25 years of research with no apparent effect on climate overheating, is blunt.
" For people and places that rely on fossil fuel production and face major transition challenges (Xenarios et al 2026), failing to be explicit about the degree to which transition must proceed, or the extent to which alternatives might actually be ava…
@samvarma@fosstodon.orgRE: https://mastodon.social/@daringfireball/116982000047628928
Solid take on the essay that went around earlier this week
@bourgwick@heads.social @Techmeme@techhub.socialHow AI gutted Kenya's essay-writing industry, which at its peak paid 40,000 people in Nairobi to do overseas students' homework, leaving few paths back to work (New York Times)
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/05/technol
@brichapman@mastodon.socialWhat if conflict isn't about winning or losing?
We learn "fight or flight" but that's way too simple. There's freeze. Fawn. Tend. And when we're calm? We can discuss. Get curious. Set boundaries. Create something new together.
Most conflicts never get solved anyway. 69% stay forever.
The goal isn't to win. It's to be in conflict well.
New essay explores why our old conflict models suck and what actually works:
@tomkalei@machteburch.socialMusste auch wieder an diesen Essay denken. Bald 20 Jahre alt und gehört für mich einfach zu den besten Texten die je geschrieben wurden.
https://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/20/sports/playmagazine/20federer.html
@NuclearDisorder@mastodon.socialHeute vor 64 Jahren: Am 20. Juni 1962 wurde ein Thor-Missile der US-Starfish-Testserie nach einer Minute Flug abgebrochen. Ohne nukleare Explosion fielen kontaminierte Teile auf Johnson Island, wo Personal lebte und arbeitete.
@cdarwin@c.imMy standard advice for visiting Ireland is to head for the west cost.
I’m from Kerry, which also happens the be the best county in Ireland
(no bias here — this is the uncontested view in Ireland).
So here is a quick photo essay on highlights and tips from a recent trip back this summer.
-- @donmoynihan
https://
@memeorandum@universeodon.comOne Woman's Message From the Hell of ICE Detention (Maryam Tahmasebi/The Nation)
https://www.thenation.com/article/society/maryam-tahmasebi-iran-ice-essay/
http://www.memeorandum.com/260811/p47#a260811p47
@bourgwick@heads.socialthoughtful & sweet essay by court carney on bob dylan's friendships with jerry garcia & johnny cash & "the vulnerability of brotherhood" https://thedylanreview.org/2025/03/02/questions-on-masculinit…
@cdarwin@c.imFigure related to the art of astronomy
from a manuscript of the Ars notoria
(NLI Ms. Yah. Var. 34), ca. 1550–1600.
It contains subordinate figures to be contemplated
— while reciting accompanying prayers (orations)
— in a prescribed sequence over time and with respect to the cardinal directions
https://
@PwnieFan@infosec.exchangeInspired by mornings kayaking in the #bwca and some quotes from "We are meant to rise" - the book I was reading at the time. From James Baldwin:"Identity [is] the garment [that] covers the nakedness of the self ... the garment [should] be loose ... like the robes of the desert, through which one's nakedness can always be felt, and sometimes, discerned. The trust in one's nakedness is all that gives one the power to change one's robes." Ed Bok Lee in his essay Pandemic Love:"I know a new kind of longing is breaking through even the oldest longings within you. It feels frightening. It feels free." #alcoholmarker https://buttondown.com/megancarney/archive/meditations-on-identityart-for-blessed-by-the/
@brichapman@mastodon.socialread my substack essay to save yourself years of learning and thousands of dollars. 💵
@servelan@newsie.social**The Atlantic republishes brutal anti-Trump essay for July 4 — its author is JD Vance** - Raw Story
https://www.rawstory.com/jd-vance-2677158738/
@memeorandum@universeodon.comGloria Steinem's Final Essay (Gloria Steinem/New Yorker)
https://www.newyorker.com/culture/life-and-letters/gloria-steinems-final-essay
http://www.memeorandum.com/260903/p148#a260903p148
@Techmeme@techhub.socialSierra acquires Takeoff, which develops "long-horizon" agents, for an undisclosed sum; founded in 2025, Takeoff neared $10M in annualized revenue in early July (The Information)
https://www.theinformation.com/articles/sierra-acquires…
@teledyn@mstdn.caOn the subject of Likes, Boosts, and Viral Fame, I like to occasionally repost this prophetic essay from the 90s where Momus explains why …
In the future everyone will be famous for fifteen people...
Pop Stars? Nein Danke!
http://imomus.com/index499.html
@cdarwin@c.imBill Gates was an AI optimist.
Now he’s scared of what could go wrong.
For years, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates said he was optimistic that the world would become a better place thanks to artificial intelligence.
He imagined the technology freeing people from work and speeding up inventions that would fight diseases and climate change.
But in a new essay published online Wednesday, the philanthropist says he is worried that AI could do more harm than good.
…
@servelan@newsie.social'[W]ords that stand for equality are demonized by those who benefit from inequality. Opposition will always come from people whose power rests on the group they were born into rather than on what they do as individuals. This persists because they fear what might happen if they have no built-in advantage. And this is sad because they may never find out who they really are, and what they would really want to do in life.'
Gloria Steinem’s Final Essay | The New Yorker
https://archive.ph/r7OD2#selection-469.223-469.737
@cdarwin@c.im“When the President does it, that means that it is not illegal.”
Former President Richard M. Nixon made that stunning statement to television personality David Frost in a May 1977 interview that reached an audience of 45 million.
Nixon’s quote is often cited to illustrate the epitome of his arrogance and blindness to the rule of law
— his confidence that his power rose to such heights that he possessed a presidential prerogative to redefine the law.
For nearly fifty …
@memeorandum@universeodon.comGavin Newsom and Ruby Rippey's Affair Was a Public Scandal. Rippey Writes About Her Experience for Vanity Fair (Ruby Rippey/Vanity Fair)
https://www.vanityfair.com/story/gavin-newsom-ruby-rippey-essay
http://www.memeorandum.com/260728/p78#a260728p78
@bici@mastodon.socialThe head of the prestigious Halifax International Security Forum is warning that U.S. President Donald #Trump is preparing to steal the 2026 midterm elections.
Peter Van Praagh, president of the Washington-based think tank, said in a recently published essay that many Americans are misguided to believe that the midterms will play out fair and square.
#America #votes #elections
@smurthys@hachyderm.io
@BBC3MusicBot@mastodonapp.uk🇺🇦 #NowPlaying on BBCRadio3's #InTune
Samuel Barber, Royal Scottish National Orchestra & Marin Alsop:
🎵 Essay for orchestra No 1, Op 12
#SamuelBarber #RoyalScottishNationalOrchestra #MarinAlsop
@openolat@mastodon.social➤ OpenOlat 21.0 major release is out
Learning and coaching areas separated, new Rooms module with booking, Course Planner automation and to-dos, Word/Markdown import, AI essay questions with grading and formative feedback, new "Gap mixed" question type, 2FA one time code and much more.
#OSS #LMS #elearning #eAssessment #OLAT
