ABrockwell @aebrockwell@social.cleverlibre.org

Both parties have held the debt ceiling hostage as a political tool. For example, in 2011, the Republicans did it. But in 2013, the Republicans did it. On the other hand, this year it is the Republicans who are doing it.

#FlowersOfMastodon
#FlowersAndNurses
This was the height of the Pandemic in a Covid ward. And no, I was not there. But they loved the flowers and sent pictures.

Thirteen years ago the Supreme Court decided corporations are people under the First Amendment.

Today, sold-out politicians block progress on all fronts to appease their corporate donors.

Citizens United is among the worst decisions in history. It corrupts our system every day.

A major problem with ChatGPT is that it's so good at providing beautifully written and convincing answers to questions -- but its statements and answers are often factually incorrect. This is far more dangerous than simply providing incorrect statements and answers.

Raising the debt ceiling does not increase spending or the federal debt. It simply allows the government to pay bills it has already taken on. Know the truth.

It’s very funny to me that the dominant Twentieth Century conception of AI was a slightly awkward nerd with an inhuman mastery of facts and logic, when what we actually got is smooth-talking bullshit artists who can’t do eighth-grade math.

Yesterday I was part of a group that peacefully protested the expansion of a coal mine in Germany. We were kettled by police and then detained but were let go later that evening.

Climate protection is not a crime.
#LuetziBleibt #LuetziLebt #KeepItInTheGround #ClimateJustice

The crackpots have come to Congress. I wrote about how conspiracy theories have taken over the Republican party, in ways that are distinct from other peer democracies. The battle for American democracy is a battle over reality. https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2023/01/conspiratorial-thinking-polarization-america-united-kingdom/672726/

Loving this response from Nick Cave to AI-generated song lyrics:

"Writing a good song is not mimicry, or replication, or pastiche, it is the opposite... It is those dangerous, heart-stopping departures that catapult the artist beyond the limits of what he or she recognises as their known self... it is the redemptive artistic act that stirs the heart of the listener..."

#ChatGPT #creativity #art #music #redemption #songs #NickCave

https://www.theredhandfiles.com/chat-gpt-what-do-you-think/

How Finland Is Teaching a Generation to Spot Misinformation

The Nordic country is testing new ways to teach students about propaganda. Here’s what other countries can learn from its success.

#GiftLink
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/10/world/europe/finland-misinformation-classes.html?unlocked_article_code=AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACEIPuonUktbfqIhkSVUaAybKWsIjolqLmOLI2LF7iH74KCGTRXNHzv8UBYaH4ULEeatkYZ442z2AX9Jadr8zQfg4hsluA3tQcSj66J2VhMZCZCwvtYO4Wm5x1smXBO5nqDKvYjbndKIileKy-huKO2n1UPDY1nZ3JV1np5pkZkjqjSJTvtrNFuF-3dV83f4zVNstFXpbOn7877S_AA5-Od6Hchjf9gE0PupbUj3RltSXgKkSJEQQURmVCSMivhtvrY9UK9gVP6zgLhY_e8eYgrwZDmVgLofBFIS5pvO9ZV-vudr4BKbnXCby

#WorldNews #Education #Finland #Misinformation #Disinformation

If it is not literally the warmest year ever, someone will complain that global warming has stopped.

Year-to-year fluctuations are a normal part of the ongoing global warming trend. Don't be distracted by the noise.

#GlobalWarming #ClimateChange

It's commonly held by well-meaning people that we must respect the beliefs of others.

This presupposes that any and all beliefs are respectable. No one thinks this; and if you think you do, I can establish with a very small number of questions that in fact you don't.

AI has won. It's too late for us. #AIart

If you still have a Twitter account, disable it and never go back. Instead invite your friends to a Mastodon, Pleroma or other Fediverse instance you trust.

You really don't need Twitter.

It's taken me a while to figure out how to write an #Introduction. Here goes:

I’d appreciate a boost to help meet like-minded here.

I’m a professor of medicine at McMaster University #MacDeptMed, #McMasterU

Clinically, I work as a #KidneyDoctor (#Nephrology)

I’m an associate member of #HEI (#Epidemiology) at #McMasterU

I’m a member of the Centre of Excellence in Protective Equipment and Materials (#PPE, #N95, #CEPEM) at #McMasterU

My #ClinicalResearch is in #KidneyDisease #KidneyEpi (#CKD, #Potassium, #CKDProgression) and #Masks

I’m editor-in-chief of #CJKHD (@CanJKHD on the birdsite, not here yet) an #OpenAccess kidney journal with #PublishingPolicy:

#SupportiveReview (#Kindness, #KidneyKindness) https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/20543581221080327
https://theconversation.com/peer-review-can-this-critical-step-in-the-publication-of-science-research-be-kinder-182142

#PortableReview (was your hard work rejected by a journal with IF>=4? Submit clean, redline, point-by-point response-to-reviews, and tell us which journal and undertake that you responded to all reviews received)
https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/canadian-journal-of-kidney-health-and-disease/journal202590#aims-and-scope

I’m editor-in-chief of https://maskevidence.org/ which curates evidence on #BetterMasks and #MasksWork

For the pandemic, we need #SystemsApproaches because #CovidIsAirborne and #CovidIsNotOver. #DoAllTheThings #ventilation #filtration #PaidSickDays #BringBackMasks #WearAMask #MasksSaveLives #MaskeAuf #MaskUp #MaskMandate #MaskMandateNow #CovidLong #LongCovid

I’d like to see #KidneyVerse as the tag to find others with interest in #KidneyHealth and #KidneyDisease. #AskKidney #AskRenal

Also trying to be #LGBTQ #LGBTQ2 ally, working on #EDI #equity #diversity #inclusion, interested in #SocialJustice #UrbanPlanning.

Treaty 3|Dish with One Spoon, Turtle Island; Hamilton ON Canada. She/her

"I build little people out of acorns and sticks, then photograph them in the wild with real animals.
Join me as I share my process of building and photographing.
Learn more and buy prints at www.davidmbird.com."

https://youtube.com/channel/UC6q7I1DD2Jv5Ur9UEIavIrA/

#birds #wildlife #critters

Sitting at a traffic light an hour ago, I saw a transfer-style sticker in the rear window of the SUV in front of me, that read

WHY ARE YOU WEARING A MASK IN YOUR CAR??

Two things came to mind:
1) Why are you so concerned about what other people do to protect themselves and others that you not only obsess over it but actually went to the trouble to obtain and apply this message to the back window of your car?
2. I often don't bother to pull my mask off right away when I get into the car. Sometimes I don't get around to taking it off at all between stops. Because unlike you, I don't like to imagine that my mask is hurting me, and I genuinely forget about it sometimes.

i put up a shelf above my bed. i thought i could put plänt there, and maybe store some things. it may end up remaining empty however, as i’ve discovered that waking up and seeing this first thing is good for my mental health