Melissa
@spunkyblah.bsky.social
Math professor, friend of animals, tabletop games nerd, movie fan
Reposted by Melissa
pre-writing a devastating obituary for your enemy is god-tier hating of a kind you don’t often see anymore. renaissance haterism. beautiful stuff.
A Sharon Begley byline, almost 5 years after her death.
Upon hearing the news James Watson had died, a STAT reporter said in our Slack, "I wish I could read what Sharon would have written."
Incredible news: Sharon in fact did pre-write a Watson obit. And it is masterful and excoriating.
🧪🧬🧫
Upon hearing the news James Watson had died, a STAT reporter said in our Slack, "I wish I could read what Sharon would have written."
Incredible news: Sharon in fact did pre-write a Watson obit. And it is masterful and excoriating.
🧪🧬🧫
James Watson, dead at 97, was a scientific legend and a pariah among his peers
James Watson, the co-discoverer of the structure of DNA who died Thursday at 97, was a scientific legend and a pariah among his peers.
www.statnews.com
November 9, 2025 at 12:55 AM
pre-writing a devastating obituary for your enemy is god-tier hating of a kind you don’t often see anymore. renaissance haterism. beautiful stuff.
Reposted by Melissa
"i asked grok" "i asked chatgpt" yeah well i asked carl sagan and he said the greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance but the illusion of knowledge 🧪
July 18, 2025 at 4:12 AM
"i asked grok" "i asked chatgpt" yeah well i asked carl sagan and he said the greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance but the illusion of knowledge 🧪
Reposted by Melissa
Haha, this from the New Yorker is getting passed around the math dork community. I did a comic about this kind of thought a few years ago: www.smbc-comics.com/comic/commut...
November 7, 2025 at 5:26 PM
Haha, this from the New Yorker is getting passed around the math dork community. I did a comic about this kind of thought a few years ago: www.smbc-comics.com/comic/commut...
Reposted by Melissa
Seattle folks: check to make sure your vote was counted! There’s a link in the thread here.
There's lot of challenged ballots in Seattle. Challenged ballots disproportionately skew younger with over half from people under age 45.
November 7, 2025 at 3:34 PM
Seattle folks: check to make sure your vote was counted! There’s a link in the thread here.
Reposted by Melissa
If you aren't seeing skeets from some of your fave people, they might have been labeled "Rude" by bsky mods. Idk what they are thinking, I don't need a mommy to tell me who to be buddies with. Anyway, go into Settings > moderation > bluesky moderation (advanced) and turn Rude off.
November 5, 2025 at 7:10 AM
If you aren't seeing skeets from some of your fave people, they might have been labeled "Rude" by bsky mods. Idk what they are thinking, I don't need a mommy to tell me who to be buddies with. Anyway, go into Settings > moderation > bluesky moderation (advanced) and turn Rude off.
Reposted by Melissa
Readers in Arizona, Michigan, & Georgia!
Your senators have been getting a LOT of dedicated pressure to end the shutdown, without fixing healthcare.
If you have a minute, go ahead & give them a call!
Their job is to respond to constituents & they're mostly hearing from GOP voters rn.
Your senators have been getting a LOT of dedicated pressure to end the shutdown, without fixing healthcare.
If you have a minute, go ahead & give them a call!
Their job is to respond to constituents & they're mostly hearing from GOP voters rn.
November 6, 2025 at 3:48 PM
Readers in Arizona, Michigan, & Georgia!
Your senators have been getting a LOT of dedicated pressure to end the shutdown, without fixing healthcare.
If you have a minute, go ahead & give them a call!
Their job is to respond to constituents & they're mostly hearing from GOP voters rn.
Your senators have been getting a LOT of dedicated pressure to end the shutdown, without fixing healthcare.
If you have a minute, go ahead & give them a call!
Their job is to respond to constituents & they're mostly hearing from GOP voters rn.
Reposted by Melissa
The Illinois legislature had passed the “Illinois Bivens Act,” allowing people to sue ICE agents in state court. Just waiting for Pritzker’s signature.
dailynorthwestern.com/2025/11/03/c...
dailynorthwestern.com/2025/11/03/c...
November 5, 2025 at 6:46 AM
The Illinois legislature had passed the “Illinois Bivens Act,” allowing people to sue ICE agents in state court. Just waiting for Pritzker’s signature.
dailynorthwestern.com/2025/11/03/c...
dailynorthwestern.com/2025/11/03/c...
Reposted by Melissa
‘Study after study shows that students want to develop these critical thinking skills, are not lazy, and large numbers of them would be in favor of banning ChatGPT and similar tools in universities’, says @olivia.science www.ru.nl/en/research/...
‘Opposing the inevitability of AI at universities is possible and necessary’ | Radboud University
Since the widespread release of ChatGPT in December of 2022, AI has taken over much of the world by storm – including academia. Most of this happened with very little pushback, despite a myriad of iss...
www.ru.nl
November 1, 2025 at 10:26 PM
‘Study after study shows that students want to develop these critical thinking skills, are not lazy, and large numbers of them would be in favor of banning ChatGPT and similar tools in universities’, says @olivia.science www.ru.nl/en/research/...
Reposted by Melissa
Last chance to turn it off.
On Monday, November 3rd, Microsoft will start using your LinkedIn data for AI training. And remember, you're opted in by default.
To toggle it off 👉 Account - Settings & Privacy > Data privacy > Data for Generative AI Improvement.
On Monday, November 3rd, Microsoft will start using your LinkedIn data for AI training. And remember, you're opted in by default.
To toggle it off 👉 Account - Settings & Privacy > Data privacy > Data for Generative AI Improvement.
October 31, 2025 at 1:37 PM
Last chance to turn it off.
On Monday, November 3rd, Microsoft will start using your LinkedIn data for AI training. And remember, you're opted in by default.
To toggle it off 👉 Account - Settings & Privacy > Data privacy > Data for Generative AI Improvement.
On Monday, November 3rd, Microsoft will start using your LinkedIn data for AI training. And remember, you're opted in by default.
To toggle it off 👉 Account - Settings & Privacy > Data privacy > Data for Generative AI Improvement.
Reposted by Melissa
I love to see stuff like this because it helps explain to people trapped in tech-sponsored information bubbles the actually obvious fact that universities teach people to know & think things, and AI is a way to produce the effect of knowing & thinking things w/o actually knowing & thinking them.
Opinion | Why Even Basic A.I. Use Is So Bad for Students
www.nytimes.com
October 31, 2025 at 11:13 AM
I love to see stuff like this because it helps explain to people trapped in tech-sponsored information bubbles the actually obvious fact that universities teach people to know & think things, and AI is a way to produce the effect of knowing & thinking things w/o actually knowing & thinking them.
Reposted by Melissa
This is how.
Every Dem, please, this is how.
EVERYONE in the media, please!!
Every Dem, please, this is how.
EVERYONE in the media, please!!
October 31, 2025 at 1:48 PM
This is how.
Every Dem, please, this is how.
EVERYONE in the media, please!!
Every Dem, please, this is how.
EVERYONE in the media, please!!
Reposted by Melissa
Amazon is helping fund a $300 million build of a ballroom for the White House.
Independent bookstores are donating to food banks and organizations that help with food insecurity.
They are not the same.
Independent bookstores are donating to food banks and organizations that help with food insecurity.
They are not the same.
October 30, 2025 at 4:01 PM
Amazon is helping fund a $300 million build of a ballroom for the White House.
Independent bookstores are donating to food banks and organizations that help with food insecurity.
They are not the same.
Independent bookstores are donating to food banks and organizations that help with food insecurity.
They are not the same.
Reposted by Melissa
Citing a Trump executive order banning "gender ideology," the VA is withholding coverage and treatment for male veterans with breast cancer, an increasing condition among veterans exposed to toxic chemicals during service. 100 male veterans a year are diagnosed with breast cancer.
Citing Trump Order on “Biological Truth,” VA Makes It Harder for Male Veterans With Breast Cancer to Get Coverage
A Department of Veterans Affairs memo obtained by ProPublica erects new roadblocks to care for veterans with the rare but deadly cancer. The agency cites no new science but relies on an executive orde...
www.propublica.org
October 30, 2025 at 12:21 AM
Citing a Trump executive order banning "gender ideology," the VA is withholding coverage and treatment for male veterans with breast cancer, an increasing condition among veterans exposed to toxic chemicals during service. 100 male veterans a year are diagnosed with breast cancer.
Reposted by Melissa
October 30, 2025 at 4:24 PM
Reposted by Melissa
The UC Regents finally released the “settlement agreement” the Trump administration proposed in August. It’s a doozy.
UC alumni, faculty, staff, students, parents, donors—and all citizens of California:
Now is the time to let the UC Regents know you do not want them to sign this bad deal.
UC alumni, faculty, staff, students, parents, donors—and all citizens of California:
Now is the time to let the UC Regents know you do not want them to sign this bad deal.
October 25, 2025 at 6:53 AM
The UC Regents finally released the “settlement agreement” the Trump administration proposed in August. It’s a doozy.
UC alumni, faculty, staff, students, parents, donors—and all citizens of California:
Now is the time to let the UC Regents know you do not want them to sign this bad deal.
UC alumni, faculty, staff, students, parents, donors—and all citizens of California:
Now is the time to let the UC Regents know you do not want them to sign this bad deal.
Reposted by Melissa
Reposted by Melissa
I’ve been watching it, and it does what all good works about fascists should do: shows them to be pathetic, insecure pieces of shit underneath it all.
Helluva moment for MUBI to release an eight-part Joe Wright miniseries about the rise of Mussolini, but it's here, and it's as stylish as it is occasionally overwhelming.
My review of MUSSOLINI: SON OF THE CENTURY for @ebertvoices.bsky.social:
www.rogerebert.com/reviews/muss...
My review of MUSSOLINI: SON OF THE CENTURY for @ebertvoices.bsky.social:
www.rogerebert.com/reviews/muss...
Mussolini: Son of the Century movie review (2025) | Roger Ebert
It's all very presentational and Brechtian, and the nonstop pace leaves you breathless.
www.rogerebert.com
October 24, 2025 at 6:07 PM
I’ve been watching it, and it does what all good works about fascists should do: shows them to be pathetic, insecure pieces of shit underneath it all.
Reposted by Melissa
New: Correctional staff at a Western Maryland prison shut off the water to a mentally ill man’s cell, then allowed him to suffer for eight days before he finally died of dehydration, according to a recent court filing.
www.thebanner.com/community/cr...
www.thebanner.com/community/cr...
How a Maryland prisoner died an ‘excruciating’ death from dehydration
Lamont Mealy died of dehydration in an isolation cell at Western Correctional Institution in 2023. A lawsuit claims state officials covered it up.
www.thebanner.com
October 23, 2025 at 11:29 AM
New: Correctional staff at a Western Maryland prison shut off the water to a mentally ill man’s cell, then allowed him to suffer for eight days before he finally died of dehydration, according to a recent court filing.
www.thebanner.com/community/cr...
www.thebanner.com/community/cr...
Reposted by Melissa
I do silly cat art! My big project right now is the Ask the Cats oracle deck, coming to Kickstarter in January! I have a coloring book available too! www.angrygatodesigns.com/cats
October 24, 2025 at 2:06 AM
I do silly cat art! My big project right now is the Ask the Cats oracle deck, coming to Kickstarter in January! I have a coloring book available too! www.angrygatodesigns.com/cats
Reposted by Melissa
🎃Los Angeles! More dates have been added to our residency at Alamo Drafthouse Cinema!🎃
Check website for dates and times: drafthouse.com/los-angeles/...
#fleischerstudios #maxfleischer #cartoon #animation #cartoons #bimbothedog #kokotheclown #bettyboop
Check website for dates and times: drafthouse.com/los-angeles/...
#fleischerstudios #maxfleischer #cartoon #animation #cartoons #bimbothedog #kokotheclown #bettyboop
October 24, 2025 at 2:56 AM
🎃Los Angeles! More dates have been added to our residency at Alamo Drafthouse Cinema!🎃
Check website for dates and times: drafthouse.com/los-angeles/...
#fleischerstudios #maxfleischer #cartoon #animation #cartoons #bimbothedog #kokotheclown #bettyboop
Check website for dates and times: drafthouse.com/los-angeles/...
#fleischerstudios #maxfleischer #cartoon #animation #cartoons #bimbothedog #kokotheclown #bettyboop
Reposted by Melissa
October 23, 2025 at 7:20 PM
Reposted by Melissa
Relatedly, I bought four great CDs for a total of $4 plus tax at a thrift shop the other day. 🤷
Spotify customer service is immediately ending conversations if you ask about them airing ICE advertisements on the platform.
Cancel your Spotify subscription.
#BoycottSpotify
Cancel your Spotify subscription.
#BoycottSpotify
October 23, 2025 at 8:07 PM
Relatedly, I bought four great CDs for a total of $4 plus tax at a thrift shop the other day. 🤷
Reposted by Melissa
Why does everyone keep calling it “The Epstein Ballroom?” Please stop repeating “The Epstein Ballroom” because it is not called “The Epstein Ballroom!” Don’t tell the news that it’s called “The Epstein Ballroom” and please don’t repost this!!!!!
October 22, 2025 at 10:33 PM
Why does everyone keep calling it “The Epstein Ballroom?” Please stop repeating “The Epstein Ballroom” because it is not called “The Epstein Ballroom!” Don’t tell the news that it’s called “The Epstein Ballroom” and please don’t repost this!!!!!
Reposted by Melissa
Good, and thanks to Amanda Moore, who has been reporting on Ingrassia a long time. So long that any notion that this collapse means Trumpism thinks Ingrassia went too far was absurd; they’ve long known and tried to get him in anyway.
October 21, 2025 at 11:13 PM
Good, and thanks to Amanda Moore, who has been reporting on Ingrassia a long time. So long that any notion that this collapse means Trumpism thinks Ingrassia went too far was absurd; they’ve long known and tried to get him in anyway.
Reposted by Melissa
Last week our local humane society took in 28 cats from a woman who had gotten in over her head with too many litters. They require a lot of care to get them healthy and adoptable - please consider a donation if you can! www.hsccvt.org/donate
October 22, 2025 at 12:10 AM
Last week our local humane society took in 28 cats from a woman who had gotten in over her head with too many litters. They require a lot of care to get them healthy and adoptable - please consider a donation if you can! www.hsccvt.org/donate