New COVID subvariant 'Cicada' on the rise in California, just in time for summer The emergence of the BA.3.2 strain comes amid broader uneasiness about COVID vaccination rates among seniors, who are especially susceptible to the virus.

www.latimes.com/california/s...

Comic: Types of Board Game. [Each panel has a person, a person with a ponytail, a person with shoulder-length hair, and a person with a white hat seated around a table with different board game and pieces on top. (1) Boring: PERSON 3: Each turn, roll a die and move your token. Turns proceed clockwise around the table until we all get tired and go home. (2) Abstract: PERSON 1: Each turn, you can place any number of red triangles or blue squares on a hexagon, or move any hexagon to a... (3) Hyperspecific Theme: PERSON 2: It’s October 2, 1814. The Congress of Vienna convenes. You are each in charge of distributing and lighting candles for the opening ball, which was held at these three locations... (4) Overcomplicated: PERSON 4: It’s a cross between *Twilight Imperium* and *Cones of Dunshhire*, but implemented entirely in category theory. Every cone is a monad, and... (5) Cooperative: PERSON 3: We’re working together to sort these decks of cards using only hand gestures. After that, we’ll silently organize my junk drawer. (6) Branded: PERSON 1: You can play as Phoebe, Chandler, Monica, Rachel, Ross, Joey, or, due to an ill-advised tie-in, Goku. (7) Party: PERSON 2: Each of the cards in your hand has a bad word on it. On the count of three, yell the... (8) Social Deduction: PERSON 3: Remember, per our *find the secret murderer* house rules from last week, discovering that a player has committed a real-life murder does *not* count.

Types of Board Game

xkcd.com/3235/

Wikipedia Bans AI-Generated Content “In recent months, more and more administrative reports centered on LLM-related issues, and editors were being overwhelmed.”

NEW: Wikipedia has banned AI-generated content.

From Meta Glasses to smartwatches, the AI revolution is every woman’s worst nightmare Women’s safety is not being overlooked; it's being traded.

“Refuge, the UK’s largest specialist domestic violence organisation, has revealed that referrals to its Technology-Facilitated Abuse and Economic Empowerment team rose by more than 62% in 2025 compared with the previous year.”

Lots of folks asking how to join the class. My lawyers' emails and contact-form here. As well as the complaint if you want to take a look.

prf-law.com/current-case...

‘I wish I could push ChatGPT off a cliff’: professors scramble to save critical thinking in an age of AI As AI has upended the way students learn, academics worry about the future of the humanities - and society at large

I'm one of many professors quoted in this report from Alice Speri. I really appreciate The Guardian taking an angle which has basically eluded every other major outlet.

Grammarly will keep using authors’ identities without permission unless they opt-out expertoptout@superhuman.com.

“Now, Grammarly has finally addressed the backlash — but not by apologizing, and not by walking the feature back. For now, it will graciously give us the chance to opt-out of something we didn’t know it was doing to begin with.”

Report: #COVID survivors at nearly 5 times the risk for kidney failure

SARS-CoV-2 infection was also implicated in new-onset chronic kidney disease, acute kidney injury, and end-stage renal disease.

www.cidrap.umn.edu/c...

I have seen a lot of cursed stuff in my time in academia but this is among the *most* cursed.
Grammarly is generating miniature LLMs based on academic work so that users can have their writing ‘reviewed’ by experts like David Abulafia, who died less than two months ago.

Me, 2021. So many of us saw this coming. theconversation.com/how-ai-is-hi...

A woodcut of a bird beside the text "i cannot see the end of this bullshit"

In 2025, wind and solar electricity production in Europe surpassed that of fossil fuels Nuclear energy remains the leading source of electricity generation in the European Union, according to the London-based think tank Ember. Coal has continued its decline, while solar power is taking off.

In 2025, wind and solar electricity production in Europe surpassed that of fossil fuels

From an email to one of our faculty members....

Not even Plato can escape censorship at Texas A&M!

Cozy living room with a lit Christmas tree in the background. A person wearing a medical mask lies under a patterned blanket on a couch, looking unwell. Large white headline text overlays the scene. Full text on image: “No one wants to be sick for the holidays.” “People may carry COVID, flu, RSV, or measles without knowing it — and pass it on before symptoms ever appear. This season is about kindness and generosity. That care should extend to protecting one another’s health.” Footer: “The World Health Network is a network devoted to global compassion—working together to inspire collective action through science for a safer, healthier world.”

Minimal dark background with serif white text. Full text on image: “The pandemic is not over.” “SARS-CoV-2 continues to circulate, causing serious illness and death worldwide. COVID spreads through the air — exhaled by people who may feel completely fine. Virus particles can linger indoors long after someone leaves the room. And COVID is not ‘just a cold.’ Even mild or asymptomatic infections can lead to long-term, life-altering consequences. Long COVID remains a real and growing risk — especially with repeat infections.” Footer: “The World Health Network is a network devoted to global compassion—working together to inspire collective action through science for a safer, healthier world.”

Dark gradient background with large serif headline and bullet list. Full text on image: “There are simple, concrete ways to reduce harm. • Stay home if you’re sick, testing positive, or recently exposed • Prevent household spread • Get vaccinated to reduce severity — knowing it doesn’t fully prevent transmission Being considerate isn’t restrictive. It’s protective — and it allows more people to participate safely.” Footer: “The World Health Network is a network devoted to global compassion—working together to inspire collective action through science for a safer, healthier world.”

Dark background with large serif headline and bullet list. Full text on image: “Stopping transmission means acting on what we know. • Wear a well-fitted respirator (N95) • Be cautious during travel and crowded spaces • Improve ventilation and clean indoor air with HEPA filters • Test before and after gatherings • Meet outdoors or keep groups small • Agree on mitigation measures together A COVID-conscious holiday isn’t about fear. It’s about care and choosing to protect one another.” Footer: “The World Health Network is a network devoted to global compassion—working together to inspire collective action through science for a safer, healthier world.”

The holidays are meant for connection, not illness.

COVID, flu, RSV & measles can spread easily during gatherings, often from people who don’t yet feel sick. COVID in particular remains airborne, persistent & capable of causing long-term health impacts — even after mild or asymptomatic infections.

ACLU Sues San Francisco Landlords over AI-Powered Surveillance in Tenants' Homes | ACLU of Northern CA

“Landlords may say ‘smart home’ devices are a tenant convenience. But the reality is, these AI-enabled systems can track patterns of tenant behavior, identify when people are home, and provide landlords with personal information that could be used to push out tenants perceived as too costly.”

Bronze plaque saying "A Letter to the Future. Ok is the first Icelandic glacier to lose its status as a glacier. In the next 200 years all our glaciers are expected to follow the same path. This monument is to acknowledge that we know what is happening and what needs to be done. Only you know if we did it. August 2019. 415ppm CO2"

TIL about a memorial ceremony in Iceland in 2019 to mark the end of a glacier, changing the place name from Okjökull to Ok (jökull = glacier). Uncompromising wording on the bronze plaque:
"This is to acknowledge that we know what is happening and what needs to be done. Only you know if we did it".

Again: the Purpose of LLM- type "AI" bullshit engines is not to tell you the truth or to lie to you, but to tell you something you are statistically determined to be more likely to accept, irrespective of facts— which makes them perfect for accelerating dis- & misinformation & persuasive propaganda…

AI is Destroying the University and Learning Itself Students use AI to write papers, professors use AI to grade them, degrees become meaningless, and tech companies make fortunes. Welcome to the death of higher education.

“The math is brutal and the juxtaposition stark: millions for OpenAI while pink slips go out to longtime lecturers. The CSU isn’t investing in education—it’s outsourcing it, paying premium prices for a chatbot many students were already using for free.“
www.currentaffairs.org/news/ai-is-d...

Will continue to bang this drum: this is the system university admins are cramming into every aspect of education. This is the system we are told “isn’t going anywhere” so we all have to adjust to it.

Minimalist white poster with a subtle crumpled-paper texture; small ‘whn.global’ logo centered at the top. A small intro line sits above a huge headline where ‘COVID’ is bright red and ‘is different.’ is black. Text: ‘Paraphrased from David Brasure’s WHN blog post, “COVID Is Different.” Read the full article at whn.global/covid-is-different. COVID is different. SARS-CoV-2 behaves differently from the viruses most of us grew up with. And treating it like “another flu” is costing people their health.’ Footer: The World Health Network is a network devoted to global compassion—working together to inspire collective action through science for a safer, healthier world.

Same white, paper-texture poster and top ‘whn.global’ logo. Large title reads ‘What makes COVID different?’ with ‘COVID’ in red, followed by a bulleted list. Text: ‘Paraphrased from David Brasure’s WHN blog post, “COVID Is Different.” Read the full article at whn.global/covid-is-different. What makes COVID different? • It can breach the blood–brain barrier • It can damage your endothelial lining and increase clot risk • It can persist in tissues • It can lower key immune cells • It may increase cancer risk • You can catch it multiple times per year These are not “normal cold virus” behaviors.’ Footer line about the World Health Network.

Same clean white poster with paper texture; ‘whn.global’ at top. Big statement line mid-page where ‘Long COVID’ appears in red and the rest in black; two short paragraphs below. Text: ‘Paraphrased from David Brasure’s WHN blog post, “COVID Is Different.” Read the full article at whn.global/covid-is-different. Long COVID is caused by SARS-CoV-2. Persistent symptoms come from real, documented damage. Not anxiety, not imagination, not “just needing rest.” Hundreds of thousands of studies show SARS-CoV-2 affects the body in ways we’re still uncovering. Just because you’ve had multiple infections and “felt fine” doesn’t mean it will stay that way.’ Footer line about the World Health Network.

Same minimalist white, paper-texture layout with ‘whn.global’ at top. A large heading ‘Here’s what you can do.’ sits above a simple bullet list; the final URL slug ‘covid-is-different’ is in red. Text: ‘Paraphrased from David Brasure’s WHN blog post, “COVID Is Different.” Read the full article at whn.global/covid-is-different. Here’s what you can do. • Improve air quality (filters, ventilation) • Wear a high-filtration mask in shared indoor air • Test when exposed or symptomatic • Stay home when sick • Use layered protections with friends, family, and workplaces Read more at whn.global/covid-is-different’ Footer line about the World Health Network.

COVID isn’t acting like the viruses most of us grew up with, and treating it like “just a cold” is putting people at real risk. David Brasure breaks down why SARS-CoV-2 is fundamentally different, how it causes long-term damage, and what we can do to protect ourselves.

Fifteen Years

i’m not crying you’re crying

xkcd: Fifteen Years

AI bot recorded doctors’ meeting, sent patient info to current and former hospital staff, watchdog says The transcription tool recorded the meeting on behalf of a physician who no longer worked at the hospital

Physician who was no longer at the hospital but was on the email list had Otter ai installed and his bot “attended” the meeting, generated a transcript, and sent it to all 65 people on the email list, 12 of whom also no longer worked at the hospital.

some other familiar grocery store names that are brands for producer-owned agricultural co-ops:

Blue Diamond
Bob's Red Mill
Land O'Lakes
Tillamook
Welch's

As Langdon Winner put so well 40 years ago, don't fall into the trap of accepting "RISK" as a good framework for these conversations. Business interests love framing their violence in terms of "risks & rewards" bc as a society, we love to heroize & reward risk-takers. Talk instead about "HAZARD."

Don't Buy Starbucks! At any location, today and beyond, while workers are on ULP strike!

As of this morning, Starbucks workers across the country are officially ON STRIKE. And we're prepared for this to become the biggest and longest ULP strike in Starbucks history.

Say #NoContractNoCoffee with us: DON'T BUY STARBUCKS for the duration of our open-ended ULP strike! $SBUX

Maybe the thing that gives me a pulse-pounding throbbing headache is when I think of how techbros sold ChatGPT to universities as ‘revolutionizing’ higher education and our institutions just forked over money without even asking for actual evidence

Cal State’s growing industry ties offer a glimpse into an extraordinary shift in campus power dynamics unfolding across the United States. Some major universities are inviting tech companies, which typically supply campus computers and email, to take on a much bigger role as education thought partners, A.I. instructors and curriculum providers. That means dominant tech companies are now helping to steer what an entire generation of students learn about A.I, and how they use it — with little rigorous evidence of educational benefits and mounting concerns that chatbots are spreading misinformation and eroding critical thinking.

A good note here.
In our co-authored paper (now in pre-print), Kenney and I wrote “The National Education Policy Center argues that the promise of genAI is currently supported only by 'commercial marketing claims' (...) and not by peer-reviewed evidence.”

Screenshot of archived paper

Who today is influencing science a la Big Tobacco or Oil and Gas?
In our new preprint we show how tech companies like Meta are capturing research on their product, using mechanisms that subtly (or not so subtly) shape what science gets produced

If you want to push back against tech's encroachment into every corner of our lives, you have to read books. They're eager to create a future in which most people are illiterate and hooked on slop, a world without imagination or knowledge. Reading is resistance.