Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Travis Holland @travish.co · 11h

Living in regional Australia, you become used to (if not accepting of) roadkill roos, wombats, birds, snakes. The fix for koalas is relatively simple and easy compared to those, and we can't get it done. Photo ops over real improvements.
www.abc.net.au/news/2025-10...

How a koala conservation success story became a political embarrassment

Koala deaths on Appin Road are not unusual this time of year, but the fatality of rescued koala Gage is cause for more than the usual frustration and despair.

www.abc.net.au

Reposted by Travis Holland

Huw C. Davies @huwcdavies.bsky.social · 1d

When was the last time we heard anyone who represents universities let alone any politician defend the public university as a fundamentally important social institution that transforms lives and improves societies?

UK HE News @ukhenews.bsky.social · 1d

University managers used tuition fees to justify a model where the 'product' is simple information transmission, which ultimately can be delivered via an AI app.

That the market value for such 'degrees' will soon reach zero is not management's problem.

They get paid even as the sector implodes.

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Reposted by Travis Holland

The Conversation AUNZ @aunz.theconversation.com · 5d

📚 EXCERPT: In 2002, an online database was set up allowing birdwatchers to record their species observations. It is now a vast resource, shaping scientific research.

👉 theconversation.com/the-rem...

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Travis Holland @travish.co · 10d

This was a horrifying read. And not to minimise what's happening in games at all, but so much of this is going on everywhere lately. Either HR depts are just getting slammed or HR software is under-delivering.

Reposted by Travis Holland

Merriam-Webster @merriam-webster.com · 11d

We are thrilled to announce that our NEW Large Language Model will be released on 11.18.25.

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Reposted by Travis Holland

Mark Witton @markwitton.bsky.social · 12d

New #paleoart posted to #Patreon: woolly mammoths around a duck-filled lake. Accompanying the hi-res and WIPs of this image is a discussion about mammoth colour: the uniform red-brown mammoths of classic palaeoart seem unlikely now. Check it out at www.patreon.com/posts/night-...
#fossil #sciart

A herd of mammoths, with three large individuals up front, and lots of smaller, more distant individuals in the background, surrounding a shallow Pleistocene lake. They stand on browning, yellowing grass in front of a blue, partly cloudy sky. The mammoths are variable in colour, some being dark, some pale. A juvenile mammoth, blonde all over, has broken ranks and started chasing mallards around a pond. He has made a little grebe nervous. Why has this baby mammoth started attacking other species? Well, animals are a lot like people, Mrs. Simpson. Some of them act badly because they’ve had a hard life or have been mistreated. But, like people, some of them are just jerks.

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Reposted by Travis Holland

Holly Kirk @hollykirk.bsky.social · 12d

Some lovely things on the Aussie #urbanNature scene this week!

First up - the work and creativity of friend-colleague @drkyliesoanes.bsky.social has been beautifully profiled by the ABC.

If you use TikTok or Insta I highly encourage you to add Kylie to your feeds!🌏
www.abc.net.au/news/2025-09...

One woman's mission to rewild our cities

Kylie Soanes says urban development should not come at the expense of nature and there's no reason why we should not spot a fairy wren on the way to the bus stop.

www.abc.net.au

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Reposted by Travis Holland

Travis Holland @travish.co · 25d

Are podcasts legitimate research outputs? My new survey is exploring how Australian academics view podcasting as a scholarly practice. Research-active staff are invited to share experiences here forms.cloud.microsoft/r/mYr4KvsiND

Microsoft Forms

forms.cloud.microsoft

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Reposted by Travis Holland

Ed Zitron @edzitron.com · 13d

Newsletter: This is The Case Against Generative AI, a comprehensive analysis of a financial collapse built on myths I’ll dispel, the markets’ unhealthy obsession with NVIDIA's growth, and the fact that there is not enough money in the world to fund OpenAI.
www.wheresyoured.at/the-case-aga...

The Case Against Generative AI

Soundtrack: Queens of the Stone Age - First It Giveth Before we go any further: This is, for the third time this year, the longest newsletter I've ever written, weighing in somewhere around 18,500 wo...

www.wheresyoured.at

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Travis Holland @travish.co · 20d

It's not a pyramid scheme when publicly listed companies are doing it

Ketan Joshi @ketanjoshi.co · 20d

"The FT sought to categorise the expected positive benefits of the technology. Most of the anticipated benefits, such as increased productivity, were vaguely stated and harder to categorise than the risks"

www.ft.com/content/e93e...

(note: Entergy is the fossil fuel company supplying Meta)

Please use the sharing tools found via the share button at the top or side of articles. Copying articles to share with others is a breach of FT.com T&Cs and Copyright Policy. Email licensing@ft.com to buy additional rights. Subscribers may share up to 10 or 20 articles per month using the gift article service. More information can be found at https://www.ft.com/tour.
https://www.ft.com/content/e93e56df-dd9b-40c1-b77a-dba1ca01e473

While non-tech companies are upbeat about AI, their filings suggest less clear upsides. During an earnings call in February, Coca-Cola was excited about the technology — even though the key use was in the production of a TV commercial.

The FT sought to categorise the expected positive benefits of the technology. Most of the anticipated benefits, such as increased productivity, were vaguely stated and harder to categorise than the risks.

Companies anticipated being able to optimise workflows through automation, and hope to achieve market differentiation through their use of AI. Some hoped to be able to use the technology to improve the personalisation of their products.

Filings do reveal that the companies able to give clear AI upsides include those that serve the rising AI-driven data centre boom. Energy companies First Solar and Entergy cited AI as a demand driver.

Freeport-McMoran, which has a stockpile of copper, stated that “data centres and artificial intelligence developments” would support the metal’s price. The company also said the technology can help with material characterisation and mineral extraction.

Equipment manufacturer Caterpillar reported that its energy business was benefiting from supporting “data centre growth related to cloud computing and generative artificial intelligence”.

Travis Holland @travish.co · 21d

We are watching the wholesale destruction of the Australian university

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Reposted by Travis Holland

Brendan Keogh @brkeogh.bsky.social · 23d

It remains so bewildering why we as a country let entirely unexperienced non-experts who have no real knowledge of the sector run the country’s universities for million+ salaries.

Jayne Persian @drjpersian.bsky.social · 23d

Every single brain fart here is horrendous
theconversation.com/bill-shorten...

Bill Shorten ‘re-imagines universities’, with specialist institutions and bespoke degrees

University of Canberra Vice-Chancellor Bill Shorten has called for a “fundamental re-imagining” of Australia’s universities

theconversation.com

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Travis Holland @travish.co · 25d

good luck. Not having a podcast "counted" was something that spurred the thinking leading to this project for me, though I later published the work as a journal article instead, more or less. WLU has been one of the main examples I've seen where this is being addressed.

Travis Holland @travish.co · 25d

I'm also happy to share the survey questions if any international colleagues are interested in comparison/replication and/or collaboration, but I have designed it specifically to interrogate the Australian system at this stage.

Travis Holland @travish.co · 25d

Thanks! I considered going for a global survey but pulled back because of resourcing limitations (it's just me!) and also because I'm thinking about a quite specific framing within the Australian research evaluation system. But keen for international examples and comparisons.

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Travis Holland @travish.co · 25d

Are podcasts legitimate research outputs? My new survey is exploring how Australian academics view podcasting as a scholarly practice. Research-active staff are invited to share experiences here forms.cloud.microsoft/r/mYr4KvsiND

Microsoft Forms

forms.cloud.microsoft

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Reposted by Travis Holland

Tim McLellan @timmclellan.bsky.social · 26d

Private consultants are taking control of how public universities are evaluated and run.

My submission to the Senate university governance inquiry raises concerns about the impact of Nous Group and their dodgy UniForum data on our universities.

www.aph.gov.au/DocumentStor...

A thread

Image shows a screenshot of the conclusion of the linked Senate inquiry submission. This text can be found on page 10.

The text is too long for alt text, but here is the first three quarters of the text:

Conclusion

Over the past decade, Nous Group’s UniForum data has quietly taken on the status of authoritative benchmark for the quality of a range of professional and academic services performed by public universities in Australia and across the world. This authoritative status is performed through scientific-looking graphs and scientific-sounding jargon designed to imply UniForum data is generated through rigorous methods and backed by expert consensus. This performance of authority is significant: it lends UniForum data an air of credibility and facticity that makes acting upon its results irresistible.

When one begins to open the black box and examine how UniForum data is actually produced, however, it becomes difficult to justify the degree to which Australian university executives are relying upon it in their decision-making. My analysis is based on a review of publicly available documents, and it is therefore possible that Nous or its clients would point to things not in the public domain that address some of the conceptual and methodological flaws that I have highlighted in UniForum. But the fact that the underlying UniForum data and methodology is not in the public domain is itself one of the key causes for concerns. When the stakes are so high, it cannot be acceptable for Nous Group and its clients to simply tell university staff and governing councils, ‘trust us, these numbers are based on rigorous methods and analysis.’ The lack of rigor, external scrutiny, and transparency in UniForum’s underlying data and methodology would be a cause for concern in any public institution, but it is especially concerning in the context of universities where rigorous, transparent, and accountable knowledge production is a core part of what we do. ...

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Reposted by Travis Holland

Renee DiResta @noupside.bsky.social · 26d

My hot take that got me yelled at by ppl here was "doesn't seem 'leftist', extremely online but not getting NVE, not much evidence for groyper, doesn't read as cohesively strongly ideological in any direction, there's just not enough info, wait 48 hrs":

www.kenklippenstein.com/p/exclusive-...

Exclusive: Leaked Messages from Charlie Kirk Assassin

Accused shooter’s “politics” is not what government and media say

www.kenklippenstein.com

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Reposted by Travis Holland

The Conversation AUNZ @aunz.theconversation.com · 28d

The sobering assessment is a national call to action. The sooner Australia mitigates and adapts, the safer we will be.

Is this Australia’s climate wake-up call? Official report reveals a hotter, harder future if we don’t act now

theconversation.com

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Reposted by Travis Holland

Spencer Sunshine @transform6789.bsky.social · 29d

best one-line insight about the Kirk assassin: “To them, murder is the ultimate act of trolling, and they want to be remembered for it.”

www.theatlantic.com/technology/a...

Something Is Very Wrong Online

The cycle of violence will continue as long as the medium doesn’t change.

www.theatlantic.com

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Travis Holland @travish.co · 28d

A thoughtful and powerful critique of the modern university
www.abc.net.au/religion/anu...

Has meritocracy gotten the better of our universities? Why events at ANU are grounds for hope - ABC Religion & Ethics

It’s not every day that the students and staff of a university succeed in forcing a vice-chancellor from office — that’s what happened last week at ANU, but why did change take so long when it was cle...

www.abc.net.au

Reposted by Travis Holland

ryan cooper @ryanlcooper.com · Sep 12

"We have let school shootings in America persist long enough that we have created a culture where kids grow up seeing them as a path towards fame and glory." www.garbageday.email/p/charlie-ki...

Charlie Kirk was killed by a meme

Making sense of our dark new era of extremely online political violence

www.garbageday.email

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Travis Holland @travish.co · Sep 12

During the course of editing this piece, I suggested to Yifei that cesuo might be the Chinese version of shitposting...

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Travis Holland @travish.co · Sep 12

New on Persona Studies: A Peek at Cesuo as Nonhuman Online Fan Persona on Weibo by Yifei Yang from @ucddublin.bsky.social ojs.deakin.edu.au/index.php/ps...

A Peek at Cesuo as Nonhuman Online Fan Persona on Weibo | Persona Studies

ojs.deakin.edu.au

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Reposted by Travis Holland

J.A. Prentice @japrenticewrites.bsky.social · Sep 11

I really love this piece. It engages with the ideas behind the orcs in a way most analysis of them doesn’t—neither apologia for Tolkien nor a dismissal of him.

Asher Hellbein @asherelbein.bsky.social · Sep 11

Today, on Heat Death! To celebrate our podcast appearance on @thelorehounds.com, we're re-running a classic piece on Tolkien's orcs and the narrative myth of the eternal enemy. If you missed it the first time, this is a piece I'm *tremendously* proud of

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