@netzschleuder@social.skewed.delesmis: Les Misérables coappearances
The network of scene coappearances of characters in Victor Hugo's novel "Les Miserables". Edge weights denote the number of such occurrences.
This network has 77 nodes and 254 edges.
Tags: Social, Fictional, Weighted
https://networks.skewed.de/net/lesmis
@tiotasram@kolektiva.socialJust finished "Juliet Takes a Breath" by Gabby Rivera. A truly amazing novel about queer Latina feminist self-discovery which shows off a vibrant range of feminisms and their contradictions. Reminded me of "Does my Body Offend You?" in terms of how it uses fictional but realistic situations to really grapple deeply with feminist and queer theory while making everything very accessible and direct.
The plotting, pacing, and characters are great, and Juliet serves as a vibrant and active main character rather than just a lens through which to explore theory.
#AmReading #ReadingNow
@sauer_lauwarm@mastodon.socialIn 2016, Ishii released the erotic fantasy film Bitter Honey (Mitsu no aware), based on the novel by Murō Saisei, about the relationship between a dying writer, played by Ren Osugi, and his goldfish who takes the form of a beautiful girl, played by Fumi Nikaidō.
@grork@mastodon.socialEver new year is another opportunity to see which novel, movie, or game was actually written by a time traveller telling us about the future.
@netzschleuder@social.skewed.delesmis: Les Misérables coappearances
The network of scene coappearances of characters in Victor Hugo's novel "Les Miserables". Edge weights denote the number of such occurrences.
This network has 77 nodes and 254 edges.
Tags: Social, Fictional, Weighted
https://networks.skewed.de/net/lesmis
@brichapman@mastodon.socialSolar breakthrough: Chinese researchers just hit 30.1% efficiency with all-perovskite tandem cells using a novel dipolar passivation method.
The technique reduces defects and improves charge transport, while the cells retained 87% efficiency after 1,025 hours—a major step toward stable, sustainable solar energy.
@metacurity@infosec.exchangeEmerging NIST guidance suggests that the practice of treating AI as “just software” for cybersecurity purposes is giving way to more novel approaches to managing AI risks.
Check out my latest CSO piece for a clear guide to NIST's many AI and cyber initiatives.
https://www.
@brian_gettler@mas.toWe're reading this terrific biography for my grad seminar this week. Hamon brings novel insight to Riel, a figure about whom so much has been written, in the process proposing a provocative reading of Canada's origins. I can't wait for our discussion.
@netzschleuder@social.skewed.deadjnoun: Word adjacencies of David Copperfield
A network of word adjacencies of common adjectives and nouns in the novel "David Copperfield" by Charles Dickens.
This network has 112 nodes and 425 edges.
Tags: Informational, Language, Unweighted
https://networks.skewed.de/net/adjnoun
@cdarwin@c.imJack Kerouac’s original typescript scroll for "On the Road"
– the 37 metre (121 ft) long roll of paper on which he typed his defining Beat novel in a three-week burst
– will go under the hammer at Christie’s in March, with a sale estimate of £1.8m to £2.9m ($2.5m to $4m).
The scroll is one of the centrepieces of the Jim Irsay Collection,
one of the most extensive private collections of music, literary,
film and sports memorabilia ever assembled.
…
@inthehands@hachyderm.ioPeople are •way• too focused on the personalities and inner thoughts of politicians, like politics is basically People magazine except with votes — and not nearly focused enough on when and where and how politicians are points of leverage, and tools we use for exercising our power.
My spicy take is that while many politicians are hideous people, in the median they’re actually much better humans beings than we tend to imagine — and that doesn’t matter, because they are leverage points in a system and not protagonists in a novel.
@Techmeme@techhub.socialSources and a memo: the US DOJ is using a novel reading of a federal anti-fraud law to probe contractors, including Google and Verizon, over their DEI programs (Lydia Wheeler/Wall Street Journal)
https://www.wsj.com/politics/policy/trump-doj-dei-fraud-investig…
@simon_brooke@mastodon.scot#WritersCoffeeClub Nov 28: In what ways do you see yourself reflected in your own work?
In one novel I've written, I based my main character on what I imagine I would have been like if not for the trauma of my childhood. He came out as very successful, but also extremely arrogant and entitled — not a likeable person.
@UP8@mastodon.social
@seeingwithsound@mas.toTackling visual impairment: emerging avenues in ophthalmology https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/medicine/articles/10.3389/fmed.2025.1567159/full
@fgraver@hcommons.socialThe more I delve into my research on #ArtsPedagogy and creativity, the more I am convinced of the accuracy of the quote in the screenshot here: in order to understand creativity, we have to realize it’s first and foremost a process. The so-called standard definition of creativity relies on judging it by whether or not the output / result is novel, valuable, and (according to Margaret Boden)…
@david@boles.xyzThe Last Living American White Male: A Novel of Obsolescence and Love
The title may make you uncomfortable. That was the point. For the past year, I have been living inside a grey city that exists only in my imagination, spending my days with a garbage man named Robert James Miller and an administrative processing unit named Alma. Today, their story is finally available to readers. The Last Living American White Male…
@tiotasram@kolektiva.socialJust finished "Breadcrumbs" by Kasia Babis. A super interesting graphic novel about growing up in 2000's and 2010's Poland. It's autobiographical, which naturally means lots of plot threads without clear resolutions (they aren't plot threads after all, they're real events). Lots of interesting info on Polish history and politics, which showed me way more than the occasional glimpses I get through social media.
#AmReading #ReadingNow
@cheryanne@aus.socialWrite The Darn Book! | Beat Writer's Block, Procrastination, Overwhelm And Self-Doubt, To Confidently Finish Writing Your Novel With Maddison Michaels
A mindset-first, neuroscience-supported, spiritually aligned podcast that helps writers break through blocks, reconnect with their creativity, and finally finish their novel...
Great Australian Pods Podcast Directory:
@pavelasamsonov@mastodon.socialThe Gavle Goat is DOWN! This massive straw goat, which is destroyed most years - despite the best efforts of the organizers - through various forms of arson, was taken down by a completely novel method: high winds.
https://metro.co.uk/2025/12/27/worlds-
@ascendor@social.tchncs.deFrohe Weihnachten ;-)
https://sh.itjust.works/post/52138124
@primonatura@mstdn.social"What are transition credits? Philippines takes novel approach to coal phase-out"
#Phillippines #Coal #FossilFuels
@mariyadelano@hachyderm.ioDanny said that it’s time to stop writing my novel, and to get busy petting him instead. (He’s sitting atop my notebook)
#cat #cats #CatsOfMastodon
@Mediagazer@mstdn.socialProduction company Gaumont confirms Apple TV pulled French show The Hunt days before its debut after a journalist alleged it was plagiarized from a 1973 novel (Alexi Duggins/The Guardian)
https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2
@memeorandum@universeodon.comDOJ weighs novel federal hate crime case against Charlie Kirk's alleged killer (NBC News)
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/doj-weighs-novel-federal-hate-crimes-case-charlie-kirks-alleged-killer-rcna248549
http://www.memeorandum.com/251213/p23#a251213p23
@bourgwick@heads.socialbob dylan, having a totally normal one & posting excerpts from what purports to be a forthcoming science fiction novel to his instagram (though doesn't exactly say who wrote it or when it might be forthcoming). https://www.instagram.com/p/DTnwybFEXwi/
@bthalpin@mastodon.socialRE: https://halo.nu/@theguardian_world_news/115961341428019762
If the answer is not "they're bribing him", then this is a novel story.
(In any case, worth documenting)
@villavelius@mastodon.onlinePerhaps we shouldn't see it as fascism, but as Trumpism, a novel and different scourge of our times.
@tiotasram@kolektiva.socialJust finished "The Daughters of Ys", a graphic novel written by M.T. Anderson and illustrated by Jo Rioux. Is apparently a telling on an ancient Breton legend, which explains some of the narrative devices and plot choices. The drawings are beautiful and the tale is interesting, but takes a royalty-focused and -friendly perspective I've grown unfond of at this stage in my life.
#AmReading #ReadingNow
@netzschleuder@social.skewed.delesmis: Les Misérables coappearances
The network of scene coappearances of characters in Victor Hugo's novel "Les Miserables". Edge weights denote the number of such occurrences.
This network has 77 nodes and 254 edges.
Tags: Social, Fictional, Weighted
https://networks.skewed.de/net/lesmis
@mlawton@mstdn.socialFinished “People Like Us” by Jason Mott.
I will admit that there were moments early where I struggled, trying to puzzle out the dual narratives. You have to accept it as experimental writing with a plurality in scope. When I surrendered and just READ, I absolutely loved it!
What is it about? So much. Gun violence. Where home is. America. Race. Writers. Trauma & coping. Time travel. Peacocks.
So much to say, but for spoilers 🤐
5/5 ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
@markhburton@mstdn.socialI hate the ugliness of American English.
Why do they use the term 'douchebag'? Is that what I call a toilet bag, and if so, what is the sense of it as an insult?
However I also assumed the horrible 'dude' (Yankee for 'bloke') was a newish invention, but came across it recently in a C19th novel, Dickens 'Our Mutual Friend' (wonderful book) if I remember rightly.
@shriramk@mastodon.socialPlease help us publicize TEAL: Tools for Educational Activities in Logic, a workshop associated w/ FLoC26. We have a novel design, focused on demos, discussion, and generally high-quality interaction rather than weak papers. See full details on our site!
https://teal.cs.brown.edu/floc2026/
@david@boles.xyzThe Dying Grove: A Novel Born from the Collision of Joyce and Mycorrhiza
Some books are written. Others are grown. "The Dying Grove" belongs to the second category, and that distinction is not metaphor but method. This novel, the first in a new series called Fractional Fiction, emerged from an experiment in literary hybridization: what happens when you take the formal architecture of modernist masters and seed it with contemporary scientific research? The result is…
@aardrian@toot.cafeRE: https://social.lol/@tylersticka/115928487631993305
This is a neat visual effect.
If you use it to replace a legend / fieldset (such as in a form) for even more novel styles, then make sure you give the wrapper an `aria-labelledby` pointing at the …
@cdarwin@c.imIt has been a bracing moment for American federalism,
with both unprecedented efforts to extend executive control over state and local govts, and
novel forms of subnational resistance.
Where is federalism going?
Paul Nolette and I have edited a new issue of Publius on that question.
Short thread:
Jim Gardner leads off the batting order with an article that raises important questions about whether,
and under what conditions,
federalism can prot…
@tiotasram@kolektiva.socialJust finished "If You'll Have Me" by Eunnie. A wonderful and very sweet sapphic romance graphic novel. I love the fact that it's set in a world where gay is the unremarkable default (there's a subtle token hetero couple that appear on a single page, IIRC).
#AmReading #ReadingNow
@restorante@social.linux.pizza@zeroclick@mastodon.social
I am curious with the paperback. Is that a novel?
@barijaona@mastodon.mg"Unauthorized Bread": a novel by Cory Doctorow [long read] (2020)
https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2020/01/unauthorized-bread-a-near-future-tale-of-refugees-and-sinister-iot-appliances/?utm_sour…
@LillyHerself@Mastodon.social @metacurity@infosec.exchangeThis is a beautiful and amazing graphic novel about a phone scam victim.
https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2025-india-digital-arrest-by-phone-graphic-novel/
@johnhobbs@mstdn.caExploring new business opportunities or diving into a thrilling action novel ignites my curiosity and energy! 🚀 Isn't the business world just like an exhilarating adventure? Let’s boldly venture into the unknown together!
@UP8@mastodon.social⛳ Novel textile can adjust its aerodynamic properties on demand
#fabric
@Cognessence@social.linux.pizzaAs far as I understand (granted, I don't understand that much, but...) there is a legitimate and actively debated position in philosophy of mind and cognitive science regarding ant colonies.
That is, colony-level cognition may be real, not metaphorical. Ant colonies:
- integrate information over time
- exhibit memory (via pheromone landscapes)
- solve optimisation problems
- adapt flexibly to novel conditions
- show something like attention (resource …
@arXiv_physicsoptics_bot@mastoxiv.pageHigh-precision luminescence cryothermometry strategy by using hyperfine structure
Marina N. Popova, Mosab Diab, Boris Z. Malkin
https://arxiv.org/abs/2511.19088 https://arxiv.org/pdf/2511.19088 https://arxiv.org/html/2511.19088
arXiv:2511.19088v1 Announce Type: new
Abstract: A novel, to the best of our knowledge, ultralow-temperature luminescence thermometry strategy is proposed, based on a measurement of relative intensities of hyperfine components in the spectra of Ho$^{3 }$ ions doped into a crystal. A $^{7}$LiYF$_4$:Ho$^{3 }$ crystal is chosen as an example. First, we show that temperatures in the range 10-35 K can be measured using the Boltzmann behavior of the populations of crystal-field levels separated by an energy interval of 23 cm$^{-1}$. Then we select the 6089 cm$^{-1}$ line of the holmium $^5I_5 \rightarrow ^5I_7$ transition, which has a well-resolved hyperfine structure and falls within the transparency window of optical fibers (telecommunication S band), to demonstrate the possibility of measuring temperatures below 3 K. The temperature $T$ is determined by a least-squares fit to the measured intensities of all eight hyperfine components using the dependence $I(\nu) = I_1 \exp(-b\nu)$, where $I_1$ and $b = a\nu \frac{\nu}{kT}$ are fitting parameters and a accounts for intensity variations due to mixing of wave functions of different crystal-field levels by the hyperfine interaction. In this method, the absolute and relative thermal sensitivities grow at $T$ approaching zero as $\frac{1}{T^2}$.and $\frac{1}{T}$, respectively. We theoretically considered the intensity distributions within hyperfine manifolds and compared the results with experimental data. Application of the method to experimentally measured relative intensities of hyperfine components of the 6089 cm$^{-1}$ PL line yielded $T = 3.7 \pm 0.2$ K. For a temperature of 1 K, an order of magnitude better accuracy is expected.
toXiv_bot_toot
@cdarwin@c.imEfforts to repress climate and environmental protest are growing worldwide
through a combination of new legislation,
novel uses of existing legal processes,
police actions,
vilification of activists,
and both violence and killings.
Acts of repression are likely to expand and intensify
as authoritarian regimes roll back climate policies,
with a particular focus on Trump’s actions in office
criminalizing protest,
increasing police po…
@davidaugust@mastodon.onlineSeems worth posting this again:
#tech #ethics #DataEthics
@bourgwick@heads.socialtruly amazing: the sprawling serial novel by the late rick harris, aka thoughts on the dead, set in little aleppo, somewhere between springfield & macondo. literary fiction as text cartoon. wise & dark & so, so funny. sadly, only available from amazon print on demand: https://www.amazon.com/Book-No-…
@brichapman@mastodon.socialWhat happens when you pair solar panels with mini nuclear reactors? Chinese researchers just cracked the code.
Their new microgrid framework combines photovoltaics with small modular reactors, using AI to balance both in real time. The results are striking: 18.7% lower costs, 37.1% fewer emissions, and 98% reliability.
The secret? Smart coordination between battery storage and hydrogen production that adapts on the fly.
@cjust@infosec.exchange
@hakona@im.alstadheim.no
@theodric@social.linux.pizzaNovel solution for it getting dark before dinner: eat dinner earlier
@arXiv_csLG_bot@mastoxiv.pageCrosslisted article(s) found for cs.LG. https://arxiv.org/list/cs.LG/new
[1/3]:
- Optimizing Text Search: A Novel Pattern Matching Algorithm Based on Ukkonen's Approach
Xinyu Guan, Shaohua Zhang
https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.16927 https://mastoxiv.page/@arXiv_csDS_bot/115762062326187898
- SpIDER: Spatially Informed Dense Embedding Retrieval for Software Issue Localization
Shravan Chaudhari, Rahul Thomas Jacob, Mononito Goswami, Jiajun Cao, Shihab Rashid, Christian Bock
https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.16956 https://mastoxiv.page/@arXiv_csSE_bot/115762248476963893
- MemoryGraft: Persistent Compromise of LLM Agents via Poisoned Experience Retrieval
Saksham Sahai Srivastava, Haoyu He
https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.16962 https://mastoxiv.page/@arXiv_csCR_bot/115762140339109012
- Colormap-Enhanced Vision Transformers for MRI-Based Multiclass (4-Class) Alzheimer's Disease Clas...
Faisal Ahmed
https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.16964 https://mastoxiv.page/@arXiv_eessIV_bot/115762196702065869
- Probing Scientific General Intelligence of LLMs with Scientist-Aligned Workflows
Wanghan Xu, et al.
https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.16969 https://mastoxiv.page/@arXiv_csAI_bot/115762050529328276
- PAACE: A Plan-Aware Automated Agent Context Engineering Framework
Kamer Ali Yuksel
https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.16970 https://mastoxiv.page/@arXiv_csAI_bot/115762054461584205
- A Women's Health Benchmark for Large Language Models
Elisabeth Gruber, et al.
https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.17028 https://mastoxiv.page/@arXiv_csCL_bot/115762049873946945
- Perturb Your Data: Paraphrase-Guided Training Data Watermarking
Pranav Shetty, Mirazul Haque, Petr Babkin, Zhiqiang Ma, Xiaomo Liu, Manuela Veloso
https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.17075 https://mastoxiv.page/@arXiv_csCL_bot/115762077400293945
- Disentangled representations via score-based variational autoencoders
Benjamin S. H. Lyo, Eero P. Simoncelli, Cristina Savin
https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.17127 https://mastoxiv.page/@arXiv_statML_bot/115762251753966702
- Biosecurity-Aware AI: Agentic Risk Auditing of Soft Prompt Attacks on ESM-Based Variant Predictors
Huixin Zhan
https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.17146 https://mastoxiv.page/@arXiv_csCR_bot/115762318582013305
- Application of machine learning to predict food processing level using Open Food Facts
Arora, Chauhan, Rana, Aditya, Bhagat, Kumar, Kumar, Semar, Singh, Bagler
https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.17169 https://mastoxiv.page/@arXiv_qbioBM_bot/115762302873829397
- Systemic Risk Radar: A Multi-Layer Graph Framework for Early Market Crash Warning
Sandeep Neela
https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.17185 https://mastoxiv.page/@arXiv_qfinRM_bot/115762275982224870
- Do Foundational Audio Encoders Understand Music Structure?
Keisuke Toyama, Zhi Zhong, Akira Takahashi, Shusuke Takahashi, Yuki Mitsufuji
https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.17209 https://mastoxiv.page/@arXiv_csSD_bot/115762341541572505
- CheXPO-v2: Preference Optimization for Chest X-ray VLMs with Knowledge Graph Consistency
Xiao Liang, Yuxuan An, Di Wang, Jiawei Hu, Zhicheng Jiao, Bin Jing, Quan Wang
https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.17213 https://mastoxiv.page/@arXiv_csCV_bot/115762574180736975
- Machine Learning Assisted Parameter Tuning on Wavelet Transform Amorphous Radial Distribution Fun...
Deriyan Senjaya, Stephen Ekaputra Limantoro
https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.17245 https://mastoxiv.page/@arXiv_condmatmtrlsci_bot/115762447037143855
- AlignDP: Hybrid Differential Privacy with Rarity-Aware Protection for LLMs
Madhava Gaikwad
https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.17251 https://mastoxiv.page/@arXiv_csCR_bot/115762396593872943
- Practical Framework for Privacy-Preserving and Byzantine-robust Federated Learning
Baolei Zhang, Minghong Fang, Zhuqing Liu, Biao Yi, Peizhao Zhou, Yuan Wang, Tong Li, Zheli Liu
https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.17254 https://mastoxiv.page/@arXiv_csCR_bot/115762402470985707
- Verifiability-First Agents: Provable Observability and Lightweight Audit Agents for Controlling A...
Abhivansh Gupta
https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.17259 https://mastoxiv.page/@arXiv_csMA_bot/115762225538364939
- Warmer for Less: A Cost-Efficient Strategy for Cold-Start Recommendations at Pinterest
Saeed Ebrahimi, Weijie Jiang, Jaewon Yang, Olafur Gudmundsson, Yucheng Tu, Huizhong Duan
https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.17277 https://mastoxiv.page/@arXiv_csIR_bot/115762214396869930
- LibriVAD: A Scalable Open Dataset with Deep Learning Benchmarks for Voice Activity Detection
Ioannis Stylianou, Achintya kr. Sarkar, Nauman Dawalatabad, James Glass, Zheng-Hua Tan
https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.17281 https://mastoxiv.page/@arXiv_csSD_bot/115762361858560703
- Penalized Fair Regression for Multiple Groups in Chronic Kidney Disease
Carter H. Nakamoto, Lucia Lushi Chen, Agata Foryciarz, Sherri Rose
https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.17340 https://mastoxiv.page/@arXiv_statME_bot/115762446402738033
toXiv_bot_toot
@BBC6MusicBot@mastodonapp.uk🇺🇦 #NowPlaying on #BBC6Music's #GuyGarveysFinestHour
Monty Python:
🎵 Novel Writing (Live From Wessex)
#MontyPython
@UP8@mastodon.social🧙♀️𝐉𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐝: 𝐵𝑎𝑐𝑘𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑏𝑏𝑒𝑑 𝑖𝑛 𝑎 𝐵𝑎𝑐𝑘𝑤𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝐷𝑢𝑛𝑔𝑒𝑜𝑛: 𝑀𝑦 𝑇𝑟𝑢𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝐶𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑎𝑛𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 𝑇𝑟𝑖𝑒𝑑 𝑡𝑜 𝐾𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑀𝑒, 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑇ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑘𝑠 𝑡𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝐺𝑖𝑓𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑛 𝑈𝑛𝑙𝑖𝑚𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝐺𝑎𝑐ℎ𝑎 𝐼 𝐺𝑜𝑡 𝐿𝑉𝐿 9999 𝐹𝑟𝑖𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐴𝑚 𝑂𝑢𝑡 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑅𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑜𝑛 𝑀𝑦 𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑒𝑟 𝑃𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑦 𝑀𝑒𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑊𝑜𝑟𝑙𝑑
... another #anime whose reach exceeds its grasp as the character designs of Light's summons don't express the supernatural beauty described in the light novel …
@seeingwithsound@mas.to(YouTube) The Stanford Artificial Retina Project: "Speak the Language" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZYRE0TXELzE
"Stanford's Artificial Retina Project is advancing next-generation vision restoration by developing a novel retinal implant that can 'speak the language…
@mariyadelano@hachyderm.ioDon’t get me wrong - while using the fountain pen I am still trying to maintain good writing posture and I’m continuing to do my regular hand stretches.
But for a sense of the difference: before, I was happy with the fact that I managed to develop a good pain management routine to allow me to write like 2-3 pages at a time without convulsing in pain.
And now I can write 6 pages nonstop without even thinking or feeling anything. A short 5–10 minute rest and I can come back for more.
This is such a big deal to me. I was able to draw yesterday with a relaxed hand after spending hours writing notes. Before I’d only be able to do one or the other in a day!
And then I finished the evening by writing out a chapter of my novel by hand.
And today my hand is totally fine!!
@tiotasram@kolektiva.socialJust finished "The Raven Boys," a graphic novel adaptation of a novel by Maggie Stiefvater (adaptation written by Stephanie Williams and illustrated by Sas Milledge).
I haven't read the original novel, and because of that, this version felt way too dense, having to fit huge amounts of important details into not enough pages. The illustrations are gorgeous and the writing is fine; the setting and plot have some pretty interesting aspects... It's just too hard to follow a lot of the threads, or things we're supposed to care about aren't given the time/space to feel important.
The other thing that I didn't like: one of the central characters is rich, and we see this reflected in several ways, but we're clearly expected to ignore/excuse the class differences within the cast because he's a good guy. At this point in my life, I'm simply no longer interested in stories about good rich guys very much. It's become clear to me how in real life, we constantly get the perspectives of the rich, and rarely if ever hear the perspectives of the poor (same applies across racial and gender gradients, among others). Why then in fiction should I get more of the same, spending my mental bandwidth building empathy for yet another dilettante who somehow has a heart of gold? I'm tired of that.
#AmReading #ReadingNow
@markhburton@mstdn.socialThat's novel #BBC TV showing 3 programmes at 9pm that I'd like to watch.
Will watch Shetland and later Richard Burton (no relation) and ancient DNA another time.
@netzschleuder@social.skewed.delesmis: Les Misérables coappearances
The network of scene coappearances of characters in Victor Hugo's novel "Les Miserables". Edge weights denote the number of such occurrences.
This network has 77 nodes and 254 edges.
Tags: Social, Fictional, Weighted
https://networks.skewed.de/net/lesmis
@arXiv_physicsoptics_bot@mastoxiv.pageManipulation of photonic topological edge and corner states via trivial claddings
Hai-Xiao Wang, Li Liang, Shuai Shao, Shiwei Tang, Junhui Hu, Yin Poo, Jian-Hua Jiang
https://arxiv.org/abs/2511.18705 https://arxiv.org/pdf/2511.18705 https://arxiv.org/html/2511.18705
arXiv:2511.18705v1 Announce Type: new
Abstract: Crystalline symmetry offers a powerful tool to realize photonic topological phases, in which additional trivial claddings are typically required to confine topological boundary states. However, the utility of the trivial cladding in manipulating topological waves is often overlooked. Here, we demonstrate two topologically distinct kagome photonic crystals (KPCs) based on different crystalline symmetries: \mathbit{C}_\mathbf{6}- symmetric KPCs exhibit a quantum spin Hall phase, while \mathbit{C}_\mathbf{3}-symmetric KPCs serve as trivial cladding. By tuning the geometric parameter of the trivial cladding, we observe that a pair of topological interface states featured with pseudospin-momentum locking undergoes a phase transition, accompanied by the appearance and disappearance of corner states in a finite hexagonal supercell. Such a geometry-induced band inversion is characterized by a sign change in the Dirac mass of the topological interface states and holds potential for applications such as rainbow trapping. Furthermore, we experimentally demonstrate the corner states, which is a hallmark of higher-order topology, also depend critically on the trivial cladding. Our work highlights the crucial role of trivial claddings on the formation of topological boundary states, and offers a novel approach for their manipulation.
toXiv_bot_toot
@primonatura@mstdn.social"Pay to protect: Brazil pitches new forest fund at COP30"
#Brazil #COP30 #Environment
@johnhobbs@mstdn.caAs a passionate aficionado of WWII narratives, I'm utterly captivated by a meticulously-researched historical novel! 📚 Nothing immerses me more in the past. Currently, I’m COMPLETELY absorbed in a riveting book—how about you? Let’s exchange scholarly recommendations! Share what you're reading.
@UP8@mastodon.social🔋 Feeding off spent battery waste, a novel bacterium signals a new method for self-sufficient battery recycling
https://phys.org/news/2025-10-spent-battery-bacterium-method-sufficient.html
@seeingwithsound@mas.toStem-cell based retinal implant: Can a retinal implant reverse macular degeneration? #AMD
@BBC6MusicBot@mastodonapp.uk🇺🇦 #NowPlaying on #BBC6Music's #GuyGarveysFinestHour
Monty Python:
🎵 Novel Writing (Live From Wessex)
#MontyPython
@mariyadelano@hachyderm.ioI’ve been researching #Italian #immigration to the #US for my #novel and every other primary source I open from 1890-1915 gives me major DéjŠ vu to how the #Republicans talk about immigration today.
“They aren’t white enough”, “they are a drain on our resources”, “deported because they would be a public charge”, “uneducated”, “barbaric”, “increasing crime”.
All the arguments are the same. Some of the laws are the same. And yet people in 1890 were arguing about the lack of race purity and “dirty blood” of people from Europe who the current conservatives would wholeheartedly consider white Christians and part of the great West or whatever.
Really makes you see as clear as day how BS and arbitrary all of this racist and anti-immigration rhetoric is. It’s nonsense. Always was. Always will be.
People deserve dignity and respect. Immigrants deserve to be welcomed in and accommodated.
@netzschleuder@social.skewed.delesmis: Les Misérables coappearances
The network of scene coappearances of characters in Victor Hugo's novel "Les Miserables". Edge weights denote the number of such occurrences.
This network has 77 nodes and 254 edges.
Tags: Social, Fictional, Weighted
https://networks.skewed.de/net/lesmis
@arXiv_physicsoptics_bot@mastoxiv.pageRoadmap: Emerging Platforms and Applications of Optical Frequency Combs and Dissipative Solitons
Dmitry Skryabin, Arne Kordts, Richard Zeltner, Ronald Holzwarth, Victor Torres-Company, Tobias Herr, Fuchuan Lei, Qi-Fan Yang, Camille-Sophie Br\`es, John F. Donegan, Hai-Zhong Weng, Delphine Marris-Morini, Adel Bousseksou, Markku Vainio, Thomas Bunel, Matteo Conforti, Arnaud Mussot, Erwan Lucas, Julien Fatome, Yuk Shan Cheng, Derryck T. Reid, Alessia Pasquazi, Marco Peccianti, M. Giudici, M. Marconi, A. Bartolo, N. Vigne, B. Chomet, A. Garnache, G. Beaudoin, I. Sagnes, Richard Burguete, Sarah Hammer, Jonathan Silver
https://arxiv.org/abs/2511.18231 https://arxiv.org/pdf/2511.18231 https://arxiv.org/html/2511.18231
arXiv:2511.18231v1 Announce Type: new
Abstract: The discovery of optical frequency combs (OFCs) has revolutionised science and technology by bridging electronics and photonics, driving major advances in precision measurements, atomic clocks, spectroscopy, telecommunications, and astronomy. However, current OFC systems still require further development to enable broader adoption in fields such as communication, aerospace, defence, and healthcare. There is a growing need for compact, portable OFCs that deliver high output power, robust self-referencing, and application-specific spectral coverage. On the conceptual side, progress toward such systems is hindered by an incomplete understanding of the fundamental principles governing OFC generation in emerging devices and materials, as well as evolving insights into the interplay between soliton and mode-locking effects. This roadmap presents the vision of a diverse group of academic and industry researchers and educators from Europe, along with their collaborators, on the current status and future directions of OFC science. It highlights a multidisciplinary approach that integrates novel physics, engineering innovation, and advanced researcher training. Topics include advances in soliton science as it relates to OFCs, the extension of OFC spectra into the visible and mid-infrared ranges, metrology applications and noise performance of integrated OFC sources, new fibre-based OFC modules, OFC lasers and OFC applications in astronomy.
toXiv_bot_toot
@david@boles.xyzThe Kinship of Strangers: When DNA Reveals What Identity Cannot Accept
Some truths arrive uninvited. They come in the mail, in the form of a cardboard box containing a plastic tube, a prepaid envelope, and instructions for depositing saliva. Six weeks later, they return as a percentage breakdown, a haplogroup designation, a list of genetic relatives you never knew existed. The Kinship of Strangers, the third novel in the Fractional Fiction series…
@tiotasram@kolektiva.socialJust finished "Match Point!" by Maddie Gallegos, an excellent graphic novel about racquetball, dumpster diving, best friends, and pressure from Dad. The characters and their fromance are super cute, and while I'm sure some might find the ending too happy, I'm usually fine with seeing the aspirational version of relationships because it can serve as a good role model, while other narratives can help explain how to handle worse outcomes.
#AmReading #ReadingNow
@seeingwithsound@mas.toAdvancing credibility and transparency in brain-to-image reconstruction research: Reanalysis of Koide-Majima, Nishimoto, and Majima https://arxiv.org/abs/2511.07960 by @… et al.;
@netzschleuder@social.skewed.deadjnoun: Word adjacencies of David Copperfield
A network of word adjacencies of common adjectives and nouns in the novel "David Copperfield" by Charles Dickens.
This network has 112 nodes and 425 edges.
Tags: Informational, Language, Unweighted
https://networks.skewed.de/net/adjnoun
@tiotasram@kolektiva.socialJust finished "You and Me on Repeat" by Mary Shyne. A really sweet graphic novel about graduating high school (and all that entails socially and romantically) set in a semi-stable time loop (in small-town Illinois).
It's got a very comfortably loose fourth wall, excellent art, some really interesting plot twists, and it includes a healthy and subtle treatment of subtler racisms in highschool social and academic life.
#AmReading #ReadingNow
@cdarwin@c.imOrwell wrote
Nineteen Eighty-Four
not as a prophecy
but as an extrapolation and a warning.
As he explained:
“I do not believe that the kind of society I describe necessarily will arrive.
But I believe, allowing, of course, for the fact that the book is a satire,
that something resembling it could arrive.”
@david@boles.xyzThe Inheritance: When the Body Remembers What the Mind Cannot
Some secrets do not stay buried. They write themselves into blood and bone. They pass from grandmother to mother to daughter through mechanisms we are only beginning to understand. The Inheritance, the second novel in the Fractional Fiction series, asks what happens when a scientist trained to study transgenerational trauma in laboratory mice discovers that the patterns she has been mapping exist in her own…
@tiotasram@kolektiva.socialYesterday I finished "Marshmallow and Jordan" by Alina Chau. It's an excellent cozy graphic novel about a friendship between a wheelchair-using athlete and a baby elephant in Indonesia. It's got lovely vibrant art, an interesting plot, and a final twist that fits nicely.
Not sure it's totally realistic about the accessibility of water polo, and it's not #OwnVoices but the author made what to me seems like a good effort to be both respectful and neither too-positive nor too-paternalistic about disability. Would be curious to hear the perspective of someone who use mobility aids about this of course.
#AmReading #ReadingNow
@seeingwithsound@mas.toA personal scientific journey in ophthalmology: Twenty-five years of translating research into novel therapies https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8247/18/6/883 "Optogenetics and Sensory Substitution": noninvasive sensory substitution devices "are being refined to improve spatial navigation in bli…
@netzschleuder@social.skewed.deadjnoun: Word adjacencies of David Copperfield
A network of word adjacencies of common adjectives and nouns in the novel "David Copperfield" by Charles Dickens.
This network has 112 nodes and 425 edges.
Tags: Informational, Language, Unweighted
https://networks.skewed.de/net/adjnoun
@tiotasram@kolektiva.socialJust finished "How I Made It to Eighteen" by Tracy White. It's a graphic novel with relatively simple art, but that ends up suiting the subject matter well: it's an autobiography focused on a stay in a mental hospital dealing with depression and bulimia.
It doesn't get as deep into mental hospital mechanics as I might have liked, instead focusing on the author's life, but in presenting both her own life, some flashbacks, and some perspectives from her friends, it's quite interesting. As is typical of real life, there's no neat resolutions to the various threads of interest because they're not imaginary plot lines constructed to wrap up neatly but instead are events that actually happened.
In any case as is par for autobiographical graphic novels, it was super interesting.
#AmReading #ReadingNow
@netzschleuder@social.skewed.deadjnoun: Word adjacencies of David Copperfield
A network of word adjacencies of common adjectives and nouns in the novel "David Copperfield" by Charles Dickens.
This network has 112 nodes and 425 edges.
Tags: Informational, Language, Unweighted
https://networks.skewed.de/net/adjnoun
@tiotasram@kolektiva.socialYesterday I finished "A First Time for Everything" by Dan Santant. A lovely autobiographical graphic novel about a summer foreign exchange trip between middle and high school with plenty of awkwardness but also some romance.
It perfectly captures the state of an awkward but also self-aware pre-teen/young teenager, and the various international escapades depicted are both hilarious and touching. Also fascinating to read about international travel circa 1989, which in many ways was comparable to stuff I remember from late in the 90s: parents seeing you off at the gate; expected to navigate a foreign city with just a map, etc.
A really fun book.
#AmReading #ReadingNow
@netzschleuder@social.skewed.delesmis: Les Misérables coappearances
The network of scene coappearances of characters in Victor Hugo's novel "Les Miserables". Edge weights denote the number of such occurrences.
This network has 77 nodes and 254 edges.
Tags: Social, Fictional, Weighted
https://networks.skewed.de/net/lesmis
@seeingwithsound@mas.toCan a retinal implant reverse macular degeneration? https://news.keckmedicine.org/can-a-retinal-implant-reverse-macular-degeneration/ using a stem cell-derived patch. A Phase IIb randomized, multicenter trial of subretinal CPCB-RPE1 in advanced dry AMD …
@tiotasram@kolektiva.socialJust finished "Kirby's Lessons for Falling (In Love)" by Laura Gao. I'd previously read her autobiographical graphic novel "Messy Roots" which was excellent, and this book continues that trend. Yet another complicated look at a Chinese-American immigrant experience, wrapped into a queer romance with a dose of spirituality in there as well. I think the background metaphor of falling is really strong, and gets used in so many senses it's beautiful.
#AmReading #ReadingNow
@netzschleuder@social.skewed.deadjnoun: Word adjacencies of David Copperfield
A network of word adjacencies of common adjectives and nouns in the novel "David Copperfield" by Charles Dickens.
This network has 112 nodes and 425 edges.
Tags: Informational, Language, Unweighted
https://networks.skewed.de/net/adjnoun
@tiotasram@kolektiva.socialJust finished "New Kid" by Jerry Craft. An excellent graphic novel about navigating middle school as one of only a few Black kids at a rich private school. I love how clear Jordan (the main character) is about the racism he encounters and how it affects him and his friends. Even though his parents have done a good job of preparing him for the realities he'll face, getting through them isn't easy. Still, rather than a book about "learning how racist the world is" this is a book about "navigating the expected racism" and it's a refreshing difference.
#AmReading #ReadingNow
@netzschleuder@social.skewed.deadjnoun: Word adjacencies of David Copperfield
A network of word adjacencies of common adjectives and nouns in the novel "David Copperfield" by Charles Dickens.
This network has 112 nodes and 425 edges.
Tags: Informational, Language, Unweighted
https://networks.skewed.de/net/adjnoun
@netzschleuder@social.skewed.delesmis: Les Misérables coappearances
The network of scene coappearances of characters in Victor Hugo's novel "Les Miserables". Edge weights denote the number of such occurrences.
This network has 77 nodes and 254 edges.
Tags: Social, Fictional, Weighted
https://networks.skewed.de/net/lesmis
@tiotasram@kolektiva.socialJust finished "I Shall Never Fall in Love" by Hari Conner. An excellent graphic novel about some queer friends (and more-than-friends) in Georgian England.
I'm not usually a fan of such settings as the imperial harms abroad on which those societies are predicated make it harder for me to sympathize with the characters, but this book actually addresses that (if imperfectly) and there's enough nuance for me not to hate it, so I really enjoyed the cute romance.
I just wish there were more historical narratives written from lower-class perspectives that didn't make their characters seem unintelligent.
#AmReading #ReadingNow
@tiotasram@kolektiva.socialJust finished "On Starlit Shores" by Bex Glendining. It's a really excellent graphic novel about grief, memory, and a bit of magic. I love the way that it isn't an adventure, and how completely usual the queer relationships in it are. The art is stunning, and the palette is especially excellent and truly harmonizes with the narrative.
#AmReading #ReadingNow
@netzschleuder@social.skewed.deadjnoun: Word adjacencies of David Copperfield
A network of word adjacencies of common adjectives and nouns in the novel "David Copperfield" by Charles Dickens.
This network has 112 nodes and 425 edges.
Tags: Informational, Language, Unweighted
https://networks.skewed.de/net/adjnoun
@netzschleuder@social.skewed.deadjnoun: Word adjacencies of David Copperfield
A network of word adjacencies of common adjectives and nouns in the novel "David Copperfield" by Charles Dickens.
This network has 112 nodes and 425 edges.
Tags: Informational, Language, Unweighted
https://networks.skewed.de/net/adjnoun
@tiotasram@kolektiva.socialJust finished "The Deep Dark" by Molly Knox Ostertag. An absolutely excellent graphic novel about monsters, childhood secrets, and how self-love refracts through romance.
I've liked other stuff by Ostertag, but this is definitely my favorite of hers so far.
#AmReading #ReadingNow
@tiotasram@kolektiva.socialJust finished "Libertad" by Bessie Flores Zaldívar. An #OwnVoices novel about being queer in Honduras, both personally and politically, that grapples aptly with complicated questions of politics and belonging at a personal scale.
CW for domestic violence and lethal state repression.
It wasn't everything I'd hoped for from the cover, but my hopes weren't exactly reasonable and it *is* very good.
#AmReading #ReadingNow
@tiotasram@kolektiva.socialJust finished "Roller Girl" by Victoria Jamieson, a graphic novel about navigating preteen social changes, dyeing your hair, and of course, roller derby! It's got a great subplot about dealing with complicated feelings, and I like that it doesn't tie things up neatly with a bow at the end.
I actually know the rules of roller derby now.
#AmReading #ReadingNow
@tiotasram@kolektiva.socialJust finished "Hunger's Bite" by Taylor Robin. A pretty great graphic novel bringing paranormal horror elements to a Titanic-era transatlantic voyage. I loved the characters and I had quite good plotting, which is not always a strength of graphic novels...
I think one of my favorite threads was how the villain's heteronormative assumptions became a small part of their downfall.
#AmReading #ReadingNow
@tiotasram@kolektiva.socialJust finished "Age 16" by Rosena Fung. It's an excellent semi-autobiographical graphic novel about beauty standards, being fat, and how these things echo down generations, connecting 1954 Guangdong, 1972 Hong Kong, and 2000 Toronto.
The art is lovely, as is the message of accepting your body and standing up to your family when necessary.
#AmReading #ReadingNow
@tiotasram@kolektiva.socialJust finished "Fitting Indian" by Jyoti Chand and Tara Anand.
Indirect CW: alcohol, self-harm, and suicide.
A graphic novel about mental health issues, being a second-generation Indian immigrant in America, international trauma, and both peer and family bullying. Beautifully illustrated and of course gripping given the subjects.
#AmReading #ReadingNow
