Silvia Secchi

@profsecchi.bsky.social

7.8K followers 2.4K following 2.9K posts

Natural resource economist, geographer, meanderer, informed agitator, immigrant.
Trans rights are human rights.
💧Dall’acqua salata a quella dolce e zozza💧
My views are my own and do not represent my employer.
I don't consent to AI use of anything of mine. .. more

Videos

Environmental science 35%

Economics 21%

Posts Replies Media Videos

Pinned

Silvia Secchi @profsecchi.bsky.social · Nov 7

Seems like a good time to remind ourselves that in 1931, when Mussolini forced academics to sign an oath of allegiance to the fascist regime, only twelve refused.

Academic freedom and fascism: A new book on the Italian professors who said NO in 1931

Inclusive searches & sources @UvA Romance languages (32) Earlier addressed in the Library333 series Inclusive searches & sources @FMG Library – with posts on the Academic Freedom Inde…

blognostrumuva.wordpress.com

Silvia Secchi @profsecchi.bsky.social · 17m

I do not remember seeing bob cats in the wild but I sure did see one at Bev’s wildlife rehab place! Those turtles! They nibbled at all the melons they could JUST before they were ripe! Not nostalgic about that lol! 😆

Silvia Secchi @profsecchi.bsky.social · 13h

We used to have a big horned owl hang around on one of the tall trees just next to our house in Carbondale and could hear her. It was awesome. We saw wild turkeys, egrets & green herons from the house - plus guinea fowls and peacocks from the neighbor. I still miss it.

CC @manetooleefa.bsky.social

Silvia Secchi @profsecchi.bsky.social · 14h

We used to live in Southern Illinois, where thanks to climate change they are now quite common. It looks like they have made it to Iowa too now.

www.mdpi.com/1424-2818/17...

Figure 1. All reported occurrences of the nine-banded armadillo (Dasypus novemcinctus) in the United States of America. See Data Availability section for data access.

Silvia Secchi @profsecchi.bsky.social · 15h

Introduce yourself with 5 animals you’ve seen in the wild:

Great horned owl
Pink flamingo
Armadillo
Sea urchin
(American) bison

Richard Waite @waiterich.bsky.social · 20h

Introduce yourself with 5 animals you’ve seen in the wild:

Moose
Stoplight parrotfish
Box turtle
Elephant
Wild horse

Dr. Kat Napaaqtuk❄️ @napaaqtuk.bsky.social · 1d

Introduce yourself with 5 animals you've seen in the wild:

Caribou
Ravens
Seals
Kea
Turkeys

Reposted by Silvia Secchi

Civil Eats @civileats.com · 19h

Farmers are heavily reliant on the Affordable Care Act for health insurance, but with tax credits for the ACA set to expire, many will be facing major hikes to their premiums. Many are now weighing difficult decisions, like going uninsured or finding secondary employment.

Farmers Face Prospect of Skyrocketing Healthcare Premiums

More than a quarter of U.S. farmers rely on the Affordable Care Act, but despite the government shutdown, tax credits are set to expire.

civileats.com

Reposted by Dustin Mulvaney, Silvia Secchi

Richard Waite @waiterich.bsky.social · 20h

Introduce yourself with 5 animals you’ve seen in the wild:

Moose
Stoplight parrotfish
Box turtle
Elephant
Wild horse

Dr. Kat Napaaqtuk❄️ @napaaqtuk.bsky.social · 1d

Introduce yourself with 5 animals you've seen in the wild:

Caribou
Ravens
Seals
Kea
Turkeys

Jeanne Timmons @mostlymammoths.bsky.social · 1d

Introduce yourself with 5 animals you've seen in the wild:

Moose
Humpback whales
Giraffes
African Elephants
West African or Nile monitor lizard

Reposted by Silvia Secchi

ᓃᔪᑲᒥᑳᐸᐤ Niiyoka❌igaabaw Deondre S❌iles, Ph.D. (he/they/wiin) @niiyokamigaabaw.bsky.social · 23h

I do not think Smith knows or cares about the broader nuances of the history of the United States' engagement with Indigenous peoples, given the clear editorial bent of the 'Free Press', but articles like this only serve to empower anti-Indigenous ideas and give them faux-intellectual currency.

Silvia Secchi @profsecchi.bsky.social · 1d

But also these Nature group journals. Jeebus. Super expensive open access fees, very few libraries have them (I have an interlibrary loan request for a paper in one of the journals and it’s taking forever), they are all about cashing in on the Nature prestige.

Silvia Secchi @profsecchi.bsky.social · 1d

Downthread, there’s a link to the PubPeer comments w/ people finding hallucinated references. These were abundant in a LLM-written paper I just reviewed (about half the total), I suggest going forward we look at references first in the review process, they are a clear 🚩.
Hallucinated refs = reject.

Erik Angner @erikangner.com · 2d

"Runctitiononal features"? "Medical fymblal"? "1 Tol Line storee"? This gets worse the longer you look at it. But it's got to be good, because it was published in Nature Scientific Reports last week: www.nature.com/articles/s41... h/t @asa.tsbalans.se

Infographic with AI slop published in Nature Scientific Reports

Reposted by Silvia Secchi

Hannah Daly @hannahdaly.ie · 1d

Saw a LinkedIn post today from a Serious Person who hailed progress on Ireland's planned LNG import terminal, and hilariously suggesting the gas could be sourced from cheap overseas biomethane.

Sadly, they weren't joking.

It might as well be powered by vibes.

Silvia Secchi @profsecchi.bsky.social · 1d

Today I am thankful that many of us recognize the horror we are living under, are not being quiet about it, and do our best to oppose it.

Sam @sammc.bsky.social · 6d

seen on WT Harris in E Charlotte

Sign reading "he sold you flowers and ICE took him."

Reposted by Michael E. Mann, Jonathan Wolff, David Rothschild , and 4 more Michael E. Mann, Jonathan Wolff, David Rothschild, Trevon D. Logan, Silvia Secchi, Stacy D. VanDeveer, Ann Bartow

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 1d

Trump calls Tim Walz “seriously retarded”

migrant earning $30,000 with a green card will get roughly $50,000 in yearly benefits for their family. The real migrant population is much higher. This refugee burden is the leading cause of social dysfunction in America, something that did not exist after World War II (Failed schools, high crime, urban decay, overcrowded hospitals, housing shortages, and large deficits, etc.). As an example, hundreds of thousands of refugees from Somalia are completely taking over the once great State of Minnesota. Somalian gangs are roving the streets looking for “prey” as our wonderful people stay locked in their apartments and houses hoping against hope that they will be left alone. The seriously retarded Governor of Minnesota, Tim Walz, does nothing, either through fear, incompetence, or both, while the worst “Congressman/woman” in our Country, Ilhan Omar, always wrapped in her swaddling hijab, and who probably came into the U.S.A. illegally in that you are not allowed to marry your brother, does nothing but hatefully complain about our Country, its Constitution, and how “badly” she is treated, when her place of origin is a decadent, backward, and crime ridden nation…

Silvia Secchi @profsecchi.bsky.social · 1d

Be safe! It looks like it’s going to be bad.

Reposted by Dustin Mulvaney

Silvia Secchi @profsecchi.bsky.social · 1d

We are about to sit down and eat a dinner that includes Brussels sprouts. As I was cooking them I was thinking about the workers who tended to and harvested them, and the water and chemicals they require.

Dustin Mulvaney @dustinmulvaney.bsky.social · 2d

Nearly the entire brussels sprouts supply in the US comes from California’s central coast.

United Farm Workers @ufw.bsky.social · 3d

Brussels sprouts grow upright on a tough, woody stem. This picture is a partly mechanized harvest, but a crew of workers used machetes to cut off the stalks in the field, while another worker trims off the leaves as he feeds the stalks into the machine. It's grueling work especially when it is hot.

Silvia Secchi @profsecchi.bsky.social · 1d

Thank you! It’s wood so it’s got years of good use. Artifact puzzles is one of our puzzle splurge places.

Reposted by Silvia Secchi, Stephen A. Meserve, Nathan P. Kalmoe

Gregory Hays @aristofontes.bsky.social · 1d

Endowing a faculty position runs about $2–3 million, in case you were wondering

LSU confirms Kelly was fired 'without cause' and is owed his full $54 million buyout

Former LSU coach Brian Kelly has received a letter from LSU confirming that he was fired without cause and is owed his full $54 million buyout.

apnews.com

Reposted by Norbert Schwarz, Steve Peers, Efrén O. Pérez , and 7 more Norbert Schwarz, Steve Peers, Efrén O. Pérez, Juan Cole, Alan Richardson, Silvia Secchi, Brian Keegan, Mark Rice, Prakash Kashwan, Nathan P. Kalmoe

Mark Jacob @markjacob.bsky.social · 1d

Homeland Security doesn’t grasp the fact that the first Thanksgiving was about making “room at the table” for European “invaders.”

Homeland Security tweet says “there us no room at the table for invaders.”

Silvia Secchi @profsecchi.bsky.social · 1d

First puzzle of the holiday season

Photo of the puzzle “Monastery” by Artifact puzzles. A multicolored pastel building with many turkeys on top of a mountain.

Reposted by Michael J. Allen, Ilya Somin, Smith , and 2 more Michael J. Allen, Ilya Somin, Smith, Silvia Secchi, Nora V. Demleitner

Reposted by Richard Waite, Silvia Secchi

Dustin Mulvaney @dustinmulvaney.bsky.social · 2d

Nearly the entire brussels sprouts supply in the US comes from California’s central coast.

United Farm Workers @ufw.bsky.social · 3d

Erik Angner @erikangner.com · 2d

Silvia Secchi @profsecchi.bsky.social · 2d

We spend billions subsidizing the corn/soybean duopoly via crop insurance, direct & conservation payments, R&D at land grants plus pay for ethanol & biodiesel mandates. We ignore their massive environmental impacts. Meanwhile, the majority of US oats is imported (from Canada). Smart AND sustainable!

MPR News @mprnews.org · 4d

Some corn and soybean farmers in southern Minnesota and northern Iowa have started planting oats for environmental reasons, but also in an effort to diversify what’s grown in the Midwest. One area farmer has broken ground on a new oat mill in Albert Lea, Minn. for a local market.

‘Oat Mafia’ in search of a market for oats in the upper Midwest market

www.mprnews.org

Reposted by Silvia Secchi, Peter Gratton

Olúfẹ́mi O. Táíwò @olufemiotaiwo.bsky.social · 2d

another Lizza article is circulating, which reminds me to tap the sign reminding you to please support independent, worker-run, billionaire and felch-free news outlets when and how you can. if you can spare some $, here's some w/NewsMatch, which will 2x your donation through the end of the year!

The 51st @51st.news · 10d

Through December 31, we’re participating in a program called NewsMatch, which doubles donations to small nonprofit newsrooms like ours. Subscriptions and one-time gifts are all eligible to be doubled! Support today:

The 51st

Information with representation, by and for District of Columbia residents. A worker-led, independent nonprofit newsroom.

51st.news

Reposted by Silvia Secchi

Chuang Tzu @chuangtzucat.bsky.social · 2d

Aurora tonight outside of Reykjavik.
#travel
#northernlights
#Iceland

Silvia Secchi @profsecchi.bsky.social · 2d

Well I have a paper in the same journal forthcoming and I am not the corresponding author so I thought it might be about that…

Reposted by Brendan Nyhan, Robert W. Wallace, Ian Campbell , and 9 more Brendan Nyhan, Robert W. Wallace, Ian Campbell, Charles West, Dustin Mulvaney, Cathy N. Davidson, Gerry Canavan, Silvia Secchi, Stephen Jones, Alfie Kohn, Jason A. Heppler, Manisha Sinha

Colin Dickey @colindickey.com · 3d

Handing back student work that’s been written by ChatGPT with a 0 followed by the comment “This essay will never stand in authentic wonder before the Beauty of God’s creation.”

Vulture @vulture.com · 3d

Pope Leo XIV told students not to use artificial intelligence for homework, saying that AI ‘won’t stand in authentic wonder before the beauty of God’s creation.’

Even God Is Worried About ChatGPT

Pope Leo XIV told students not to use artificial intelligence for homework, saying that AI ‘won’t stand in authentic wonder before the beauty of God’s creation.’

www.vulture.com

Reposted by John R. Hutchinson, Smith, Silvia Secchi , and 2 more John R. Hutchinson, Smith, Silvia Secchi, Zen Faulkes, Dan Hicks

Robin G Nelson @robingnelson.blacksky.app · 3d

The NSF Bio Anthro Program DDRIG, Cultural Anthrpology DDRIG, and Archaeology DDRIG have all been archived (as of yesterday afternoon). Please speak with your grad students and plan accordingly. To say I am angry and depressed about this is an understatement.

Vulture @vulture.com · 3d

Pope Leo XIV told students not to use artificial intelligence for homework, saying that AI ‘won’t stand in authentic wonder before the beauty of God’s creation.’

Even God Is Worried About ChatGPT

Pope Leo XIV told students not to use artificial intelligence for homework, saying that AI ‘won’t stand in authentic wonder before the beauty of God’s creation.’

www.vulture.com

Silvia Secchi @profsecchi.bsky.social · 3d

Got this email this morning from Springer about a recently published article of mine.
This is completely absurd, particularly since last week I reviewed an article w/ tons of fake references that were obviously AI generated.
There really are no adults in the room, just greedy unethical publishers.

Dear Silvia Secchi,
You have every right to be proud of your work and your publications. So, what are the best ways to tell your peers and the wider community about it? Based on your accepted article by "Agriculture and Human Values" with Springer from the Springer Nature family you are invited to explore promotional tools to enhance the visibility of your work.
Promote your article
AI-generated social media posts

AI-Generated social media posts
Promote your latest article quickly and easily, saving time while expanding your reach.
Let AI do the work with ready-to-use social media posts.
Promote your article

Reposted by Katharine Hayhoe, Lisa W. Fazio, Gavin A. Schmidt , and 11 more Katharine Hayhoe, Lisa W. Fazio, Gavin A. Schmidt, Thomas Backhaus, Simon J. Greenhill, Rosemary A. Joyce, Lesley A. Hall, Fabián Muniesa, Smith, Alan Richardson, Silvia Secchi, Dana R. Fisher, Larry W. Hunter, Peter Jacobs

Virginia Gewin @virginiagewin.bsky.social · 3d

Scientists: have you been the target of an online harassment campaign, doxxing, or weaponized FOIA requests? I'd like to talk to you about steps you had to take to protect your digital security for an upcoming Nature story. (You can be anonymous if necessary.)

RTs appreciated.

Add to Home Screen

Light up
your news

Add to Home Screen

Light upyour news

Sign in to Lightnews

Sign up to start reading

Connect Bluesky

Connect with Bluesky

Light up
your news