Kyle Thayer
@kylethayer.com
Assistant teaching professor at UW iSchool. Interested in Programming, Culture, and Education. PhD from UW CSE. Co-author of Social Media, Ethics, and Automation (bit.ly/smeabook). Opinions my own. He/him.
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Kyle Thayer
@kylethayer.com
· Nov 26
Social Media, Ethics, and Automation
Free textbook on programming social media bots and considering the ethical implications of having done so. Automation drives our experience of social media platforms, from timeline feeds to disinfo...
social-media-ethics-automation.github.io
"Social Media, Ethics, and Automation" is a free textbook written by me and @susannotess.bsky.social
We teach new programmers to write social media bots (including Bsky), and think about the ethics of what they did.
Visit the textbook here: social-media-ethics-automation.github.io/book/bsky/in...
We teach new programmers to write social media bots (including Bsky), and think about the ethics of what they did.
Visit the textbook here: social-media-ethics-automation.github.io/book/bsky/in...
Reposted by Kyle Thayer
Still haven't read the full agreement because I deserve nice things occasionally. But there's really a need for a propublica-type investigation into the social network of these boards, presidents, & donors with the admin. At the same time, exploring the similarities and differences across deals.
I would love to see detailed reporting about how these deals come together. This one looks like an inside job even more than Columbia’s.
I’ll look at it in more depth later but Northwestern’s agreement seems more campus-specific than previous deals and imposes restrictions on campus conduct beyond what others ave agreed to. Northwestern seems to have surrendered autonomy to a shocking extent. www.northwestern.edu/president/do...
November 29, 2025 at 4:59 PM
Still haven't read the full agreement because I deserve nice things occasionally. But there's really a need for a propublica-type investigation into the social network of these boards, presidents, & donors with the admin. At the same time, exploring the similarities and differences across deals.
Reposted by Kyle Thayer
On Native American Heritage Day, we highlight the importance of data sovereignty and the need to ensure that Indigenous communities maintain control, representation, access and ownership of culturally sensitive data. Read more about this project led by the Information School bit.ly/44kvwQg
November 28, 2025 at 7:09 PM
On Native American Heritage Day, we highlight the importance of data sovereignty and the need to ensure that Indigenous communities maintain control, representation, access and ownership of culturally sensitive data. Read more about this project led by the Information School bit.ly/44kvwQg
Reposted by Kyle Thayer
I am not writing a thing about gender and math ability and programming because I think it will prevent horrible arguments from resurfacing. I'm not even writing it because I want confused men to hear it.
I am writing it because I want the young women in technical spaces to have what I wish I'd had:
I am writing it because I want the young women in technical spaces to have what I wish I'd had:
November 28, 2025 at 5:24 PM
I am not writing a thing about gender and math ability and programming because I think it will prevent horrible arguments from resurfacing. I'm not even writing it because I want confused men to hear it.
I am writing it because I want the young women in technical spaces to have what I wish I'd had:
I am writing it because I want the young women in technical spaces to have what I wish I'd had:
Reposted by Kyle Thayer
It's terrifying but also weirdly interesting to live in a time when all the status markers and prestige signals we used to lean on are falling apart because it's perfectly possible to imitate, infiltrate or simulate them. It's no guarantee of good science that it comes from x University, x journal
November 28, 2025 at 5:13 PM
It's terrifying but also weirdly interesting to live in a time when all the status markers and prestige signals we used to lean on are falling apart because it's perfectly possible to imitate, infiltrate or simulate them. It's no guarantee of good science that it comes from x University, x journal
Reposted by Kyle Thayer
ok this time i double checked and the source for this claim is an AI company.
Motivation: we are financially invested in narratives of inevitability
Results: we find AI everywhere
Motivation: we are financially invested in narratives of inevitability
Results: we find AI everywhere
November 28, 2025 at 3:30 AM
ok this time i double checked and the source for this claim is an AI company.
Motivation: we are financially invested in narratives of inevitability
Results: we find AI everywhere
Motivation: we are financially invested in narratives of inevitability
Results: we find AI everywhere
Reposted by Kyle Thayer
I suspect that we really do need to emphasize a much more social learning/collaborative knowledge approach to this versus individual understanding, that's the piece that software culture doesn't like to admit though!
November 27, 2025 at 9:29 PM
I suspect that we really do need to emphasize a much more social learning/collaborative knowledge approach to this versus individual understanding, that's the piece that software culture doesn't like to admit though!
Reposted by Kyle Thayer
Even the the damn twitter card for this Nature Scientific Reports is clearly AI Slop.
November 27, 2025 at 6:56 PM
Even the the damn twitter card for this Nature Scientific Reports is clearly AI Slop.
Reposted by Kyle Thayer
Folks who wrote that 'AI autism diagnosis' paper in @nature.com don't give a shit what it actually says; all they care is they scored a high-value pub for their CVs. They should be rewarded with deep scrutiny of every future claim.
One of the purposes of this is, obviously, to completely alienate people from their intellectual and creative labor. When "write an article" becomes "push the big red GIMME SLOP button" you're gonna have less pride and investment in the outcome.
November 27, 2025 at 3:24 PM
Folks who wrote that 'AI autism diagnosis' paper in @nature.com don't give a shit what it actually says; all they care is they scored a high-value pub for their CVs. They should be rewarded with deep scrutiny of every future claim.
Reposted by Kyle Thayer
Hey @nature.com, have you got an explanation for how the hell THIS happened? & especially why you accepted a paper with such a bizarre piece of genAI slop in it?!
& more to the point, why we should take you seriously at all going forward?
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
& more to the point, why we should take you seriously at all going forward?
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
November 27, 2025 at 3:03 PM
Hey @nature.com, have you got an explanation for how the hell THIS happened? & especially why you accepted a paper with such a bizarre piece of genAI slop in it?!
& more to the point, why we should take you seriously at all going forward?
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
& more to the point, why we should take you seriously at all going forward?
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by Kyle Thayer
Found out how to make interactive PDFs in InDesign and immediately used it to make the worst info input format I could think of
November 27, 2025 at 4:48 AM
Found out how to make interactive PDFs in InDesign and immediately used it to make the worst info input format I could think of
I'll promote me and @susannotess.bsky.social's book, though it's a free online textbook and not formally "published"
Social Media, Ethics, and Automation
We teach how to write social media bots, and then reflect on the ethics of what we did
social-media-ethics-automation.github.io/book/bsky/in...
Social Media, Ethics, and Automation
We teach how to write social media bots, and then reflect on the ethics of what we did
social-media-ethics-automation.github.io/book/bsky/in...
November 26, 2025 at 10:38 PM
I'll promote me and @susannotess.bsky.social's book, though it's a free online textbook and not formally "published"
Social Media, Ethics, and Automation
We teach how to write social media bots, and then reflect on the ethics of what we did
social-media-ethics-automation.github.io/book/bsky/in...
Social Media, Ethics, and Automation
We teach how to write social media bots, and then reflect on the ethics of what we did
social-media-ethics-automation.github.io/book/bsky/in...
Reposted by Kyle Thayer
but with AI you don't write the code, you just ask for something, and probabilistically it gives you an output.
You have something in mind, maybe specific, maybe vague. And sometimes it gives you what you wanted. Jackpot!
Sometimes, though, it's not quite right. 7️⃣7️⃣🍒
damn, it was so close!
You have something in mind, maybe specific, maybe vague. And sometimes it gives you what you wanted. Jackpot!
Sometimes, though, it's not quite right. 7️⃣7️⃣🍒
damn, it was so close!
November 26, 2025 at 9:41 PM
but with AI you don't write the code, you just ask for something, and probabilistically it gives you an output.
You have something in mind, maybe specific, maybe vague. And sometimes it gives you what you wanted. Jackpot!
Sometimes, though, it's not quite right. 7️⃣7️⃣🍒
damn, it was so close!
You have something in mind, maybe specific, maybe vague. And sometimes it gives you what you wanted. Jackpot!
Sometimes, though, it's not quite right. 7️⃣7️⃣🍒
damn, it was so close!
Reposted by Kyle Thayer
1) genuine life changing moment of my early 20s was realizing I actually didn't have to do this at all. tell the youths
2) I feel like there's a class discussion to be had around the stakes of this kind of decision though
2) I feel like there's a class discussion to be had around the stakes of this kind of decision though
So many men go through life like that. You can play poker because it's right-coded, you can't enjoy fruity alcoholic drinks because they're women-coded, you can't lick an ice cream cone because it's gay-coded. All day, every day, choosing and judging things based on coding for narrow norms.
November 26, 2025 at 3:43 PM
1) genuine life changing moment of my early 20s was realizing I actually didn't have to do this at all. tell the youths
2) I feel like there's a class discussion to be had around the stakes of this kind of decision though
2) I feel like there's a class discussion to be had around the stakes of this kind of decision though
Reposted by Kyle Thayer
"It is against the TOS to be talked into suicide by our LLM" is possibly the most evil tech bro thing I've ever read
Additionally, OpenAI argues its not liable because Raine, by using ChatGPT for self-harm, broke its terms of service
November 26, 2025 at 12:29 AM
"It is against the TOS to be talked into suicide by our LLM" is possibly the most evil tech bro thing I've ever read
Reposted by Kyle Thayer
I'm excited to have updated our color naming in different languages project to use the new Oklab/Oklch color space.
The new views highlight the differences in how English and Korean divide blues, greens and purples.
idl.uw.edu/color-naming...
@jheer.org @uwcse.bsky.social @ischool.uw.edu
The new views highlight the differences in how English and Korean divide blues, greens and purples.
idl.uw.edu/color-naming...
@jheer.org @uwcse.bsky.social @ischool.uw.edu
November 24, 2025 at 5:03 AM
I'm excited to have updated our color naming in different languages project to use the new Oklab/Oklch color space.
The new views highlight the differences in how English and Korean divide blues, greens and purples.
idl.uw.edu/color-naming...
@jheer.org @uwcse.bsky.social @ischool.uw.edu
The new views highlight the differences in how English and Korean divide blues, greens and purples.
idl.uw.edu/color-naming...
@jheer.org @uwcse.bsky.social @ischool.uw.edu
Reposted by Kyle Thayer
I do not believe that the majority of the software people I have worked with all these years sit around thinking, "I want cancer research to be destroyed." We have mountains to climb no doubt, we are trapped in some bad cultures no doubt, but I do not believe this of you for one moment.
November 24, 2025 at 4:12 PM
I do not believe that the majority of the software people I have worked with all these years sit around thinking, "I want cancer research to be destroyed." We have mountains to climb no doubt, we are trapped in some bad cultures no doubt, but I do not believe this of you for one moment.
Reposted by Kyle Thayer
there is some amazing internet lore in this thread
Hell, even in the last few years before Usenet functionally died outside of moderated newsgroups (and by "last few years before Usenet died" I mean "shortly after Cantor & Siegel's green-card spam in 1994/Sanford Wallace era") even spam moderation was becoming largely automated (cancelbots)
1/2
1/2
November 25, 2025 at 2:09 AM
there is some amazing internet lore in this thread
Reposted by Kyle Thayer
AI has been devastating for the “checking on youtube to see if the movie has any trailers yet” user cohort
November 25, 2025 at 3:03 AM
AI has been devastating for the “checking on youtube to see if the movie has any trailers yet” user cohort
Reposted by Kyle Thayer
thank you for watching me talk about PBS Kids so I can donate money to PBS Kids and we can support the team. It's like a circular loop that leads to 0.03% of a Donkey Hodie episode being produced.
November 24, 2025 at 7:35 PM
thank you for watching me talk about PBS Kids so I can donate money to PBS Kids and we can support the team. It's like a circular loop that leads to 0.03% of a Donkey Hodie episode being produced.
Reposted by Kyle Thayer
I’m writing something about AI and collecting the worst examples of workslop — and AI slop, in general. If you have any particularly appalling and / or hilarious suggestions, send ‘em to me!
November 24, 2025 at 7:00 PM
I’m writing something about AI and collecting the worst examples of workslop — and AI slop, in general. If you have any particularly appalling and / or hilarious suggestions, send ‘em to me!
Reposted by Kyle Thayer
The UW Center for an Informed Public is looking for postdocs (for 2026-2028) from across diverse disciplines whose research sheds light on the challenges of our modern information environment, promotes civic health, and/or helps people/communities navigate online spaces: apply.interfolio.com/177901
Apply - Interfolio
{{$ctrl.$state.data.pageTitle}} - Apply - Interfolio
apply.interfolio.com
November 24, 2025 at 6:26 PM
The UW Center for an Informed Public is looking for postdocs (for 2026-2028) from across diverse disciplines whose research sheds light on the challenges of our modern information environment, promotes civic health, and/or helps people/communities navigate online spaces: apply.interfolio.com/177901
I'm excited to have updated our color naming in different languages project to use the new Oklab/Oklch color space.
The new views highlight the differences in how English and Korean divide blues, greens and purples.
idl.uw.edu/color-naming...
@jheer.org @uwcse.bsky.social @ischool.uw.edu
The new views highlight the differences in how English and Korean divide blues, greens and purples.
idl.uw.edu/color-naming...
@jheer.org @uwcse.bsky.social @ischool.uw.edu
November 24, 2025 at 5:03 AM
I'm excited to have updated our color naming in different languages project to use the new Oklab/Oklch color space.
The new views highlight the differences in how English and Korean divide blues, greens and purples.
idl.uw.edu/color-naming...
@jheer.org @uwcse.bsky.social @ischool.uw.edu
The new views highlight the differences in how English and Korean divide blues, greens and purples.
idl.uw.edu/color-naming...
@jheer.org @uwcse.bsky.social @ischool.uw.edu
Are image uploads not working?
November 24, 2025 at 3:19 AM
Are image uploads not working?
Reposted by Kyle Thayer
I know very few people who think the cost of public transit is prohibitive.
It’s that public transit in the US is treated in most cities like the thing you slap on after the fact.
It’s that public transit in the US is treated in most cities like the thing you slap on after the fact.
November 24, 2025 at 2:00 AM
I know very few people who think the cost of public transit is prohibitive.
It’s that public transit in the US is treated in most cities like the thing you slap on after the fact.
It’s that public transit in the US is treated in most cities like the thing you slap on after the fact.
Reposted by Kyle Thayer
My hot take is that over the next 10 years, we're going to see more emphasis on and investment in the humanities at Ivy League and other fancy schools just as state schools and small privates continue to decimate and even eliminate the humanities.
"While other universities report that the humanities are shrinking, at Berkeley, the opposite is true. The music major is the fastest-growing major on campus. We are finding bigger classrooms because film is exploding. English is back to the numbers we saw 15 years ago. We are hiring" bit.ly/4ohKuOe
"The humanities really are a resource — a confidence for living in our times.” Dean Sara Guyer on the modern utility of humanities degrees
This interview originally appeared on the Division of Arts
bit.ly
November 23, 2025 at 4:13 PM
My hot take is that over the next 10 years, we're going to see more emphasis on and investment in the humanities at Ivy League and other fancy schools just as state schools and small privates continue to decimate and even eliminate the humanities.