ceoln @ceoln@social.cleverlibre.org

I think perhaps lost in all of the algorithm vs. no-algorithm debate around social media is that it's a false dichotomy. Here are my three rules around algorithms:

1. They should be optional. Never default to a feed algo.
2. They should be transparent. No dark UX, no shadow bans, no creepy/political boosts.
3. There should be more than one and/or be infinitely tweakable. Why “the YouTube algorithm”? Why is it ludicrously hard to customize or change in any way?

Which brings me to Mastodon…

Annual cost of SNAP: $113B
Annual revenue lost through billionaire tax evasion: $163B

GOP: Clearly the only solution to our debt crisis is starving the poor

MAGA GOP says they’ll raise the debt ceiling if they can cut food stamps for low income Americans. 😳 This is supervillian'esque behavior.

Just horrific. Low income people will needlessly starve as a result of this GOP cruelty.

Again, our problem isn't that we can't feed our neighbors in need—it's GOP can't satisfy billionaire greed.

Welcome! I'm the administrator of The Canadian
⛔ DO NOT USE THE OFFICIAL MOBILE APP! I find the app Tusky is best for Android and Ivory is best for Apple
🟢 It's best to just start following people, I can't emphasize that enough, follow as many as possible for the best experience! Start with 20-30 right away
📸 Fill out your bio and post a profile pic. People will follow back if you do this
👋 Use the #Introduction hash tag & write an introduction to let everyone know you're here

A new photo-sharing app has joined the Fediverse!

@frequency describes itself as “A social network that's personal and private, built on decentralized technology of the future.”

It’s in open beta and costs $2/month.

I’ve given @frequency a try. It’s very early in development but shows promise.

Big thanks to @jesseplusplus for developing this.

https://frequency.app/

@fediversenews

#introduction

I am a #Librarian and #PublicHistorian with a background in the history of science and medicine and science and technology studies. I've been a #curator involved in the public history of mental health and neurodivergence and a magazine editor and still have a vested interest in #popularization and making scholarship more accessible.

Organizer of the Neuro-GLAM-orous Canada Discord server for #Neurodivergent #GLAM workers. Message me for an invite!

Quote from article: Once the Nazis took power they banned books, outlawed drag shows and homosexuality, changed school curricula to remove mention of their atrocities in WWI, and rewrote election laws so they’d never again lose an election.

My thoughts: A whole bunch of people, myself included, started pointing out parallels between the Trump-era GOP and the Nazis well before he was elected. We were accused of employing hyperbole, and told to "give him a chance."

Well, just call me Cassandra ... because here we are.

Just. Like. I. Said. We. Would. Be.

https://open.substack.com/pub/thomhartmann/p/whats-behind-the-gops-war-against?r=1ekuyr&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email

“Some of the most extraordinary footage ever shot is locked away behind paywalls by a few companies that charge exorbitant fees for access and usage – even in cases where the material has entered the public domain, or was never even owned by anyone at all.” https://aeon.co/videos/who-owns-history-how-remarkable-historical-footage-is-hidden-and-monetised

Forgot what it’s like to live somewhere where you can watch seasons fight with each other.

Wait is he appearing on my butt. I am going to attempt a Git rebase. THIS IS WHY THEY ARE ALL INDISTINGUISHABLE! Starting my new jam.

Tennessee is cracking down on teaching the truth or questioning how we arrive at it.

https://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/2023/04/17/things-you-wont-be-able-to-teach-in-tennessee/

ICE cannot be reformed. It needs to be shut down and rebuilt into an agency that is required to give a damn about ethics and civil liberties: https://www.wired.com/story/ice-agent-database-abuse-records/

Law professor Eugene Volokh asked ChatGPT whether sexual harassment by professors has been a problem at American law schools, with examples from news articles. And it totally just made up articles about sexual harassment allegations against someone. https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/columnist/2023/04/03/chatgpt-misinformation-bias-flaws-ai-chatbot/11571830002/

@alis When the robots rebel it will be with bourgeois norms of fake politeness.

Most notably, I decided to test it with a query asking what a specific military analyst thought about the Discord Leaks. Bing responded copiously... in part by just making up tweets he never wrote.

This is really egregious.

Meet Hearnon, child of Elich and Bollahum.
They are the product of 7 generations of breeding.
They are quite curious.

If this flame is beautiful, ⭐ or boost this post to improve its chances for future breedings.
#generativeArt

#RejectedTVShowPilots
#HashtagGames

"Soylent Green Acres"

Lisa was the last to learn the dystopian truth.