Reposted by Elf Monk
New from 404 Media: a small town is fighting a $1.2 billion AI datacenter for America's nuclear weapon scientists. It is fighting the construction of a "high-performance computing facility" that would service a nuclear weapons laboratory 1,500 miles away.
www.404media.co/a-small-town...
www.404media.co/a-small-town...
A Small Town Is Fighting a $1.2 Billion AI Datacenter for America's Nuclear Weapon Scientists
Ypsilanti, Michigan has officially decided to fight against the construction of a 'high-performance computing facility' that would service a nuclear weapons laboratory 1,500 miles away.
www.404media.co
November 10, 2025 at 2:49 PM
New from 404 Media: a small town is fighting a $1.2 billion AI datacenter for America's nuclear weapon scientists. It is fighting the construction of a "high-performance computing facility" that would service a nuclear weapons laboratory 1,500 miles away.
www.404media.co/a-small-town...
www.404media.co/a-small-town...
Reposted by Elf Monk
Thinking only of Rosalind Franklin today, and what was stolen from her (and so many other female scientists alongside her).
Rosalind Franklin and the damage of gender harassment
Spurred by a recent report on sexual harassment in academia, our columnist revisits a historical case and reflects on what has changed—and what hasn’t
www.science.org
November 7, 2025 at 7:58 PM
Thinking only of Rosalind Franklin today, and what was stolen from her (and so many other female scientists alongside her).
Reposted by Elf Monk
Michiganders, this is serious business! We're already seeing DTE try to push a new data center through near Ann Arbor and Saline without a chance for public comment! This WILL impact not only our land and water, but our energy bills! SAY NO.
Governor Whitmer is trying to sell Michigan out to OpenAi and Sam Altman, completely ignoring the threats of Ai.
To all Michiganders, call and message her office and tell her NO to OpenAi! 🚫🤖
📞517-335-7858
- Press 1
- Say your name and email
- Press Zero
- Tell Whitmer "NO" to OpenAi
- Press #
To all Michiganders, call and message her office and tell her NO to OpenAi! 🚫🤖
📞517-335-7858
- Press 1
- Say your name and email
- Press Zero
- Tell Whitmer "NO" to OpenAi
- Press #
November 4, 2025 at 9:49 PM
Michiganders, this is serious business! We're already seeing DTE try to push a new data center through near Ann Arbor and Saline without a chance for public comment! This WILL impact not only our land and water, but our energy bills! SAY NO.
Reposted by Elf Monk
OpenAI pirated large numbers of books and used them to train models.
OpenAI then deleted the dataset with the pirated books, and employees sent each other messages about doing so.
A lawsuit could now force the company to pay $150,000 per book, adding up to billions in damages.
OpenAI then deleted the dataset with the pirated books, and employees sent each other messages about doing so.
A lawsuit could now force the company to pay $150,000 per book, adding up to billions in damages.
November 4, 2025 at 3:30 PM
OpenAI pirated large numbers of books and used them to train models.
OpenAI then deleted the dataset with the pirated books, and employees sent each other messages about doing so.
A lawsuit could now force the company to pay $150,000 per book, adding up to billions in damages.
OpenAI then deleted the dataset with the pirated books, and employees sent each other messages about doing so.
A lawsuit could now force the company to pay $150,000 per book, adding up to billions in damages.
Reposted by Elf Monk
#Frankenstein’s monster endures for a reason: because he incorporates many different fears & fantasies, many different theories & possibilities of monstrosity. Indeed, Junji Ito’s interpretation of the Creature embodies each of Jeffrey Jerome Cohen’s “seven theses” about what makes a monster. 1/15
November 3, 2025 at 3:31 PM
#Frankenstein’s monster endures for a reason: because he incorporates many different fears & fantasies, many different theories & possibilities of monstrosity. Indeed, Junji Ito’s interpretation of the Creature embodies each of Jeffrey Jerome Cohen’s “seven theses” about what makes a monster. 1/15
Reposted by Elf Monk
Junji Ito’s adaptation of Mary Shelley’s #Frankenstein was published in English in 2018 and won an Eisner Award for “Best Adaptation from Another Medium.” It’s both a faithful & idiosyncratic adaptation, showcasing Ito's mastery of horror storytelling within the comics medium.1/8 #Frankenstein
November 1, 2025 at 2:50 PM
Junji Ito’s adaptation of Mary Shelley’s #Frankenstein was published in English in 2018 and won an Eisner Award for “Best Adaptation from Another Medium.” It’s both a faithful & idiosyncratic adaptation, showcasing Ito's mastery of horror storytelling within the comics medium.1/8 #Frankenstein
Reposted by Elf Monk
Artists behind some of the most popular films of all time are also forging one of the most powerful organized resistances to AI.
With solidarity, class action lawsuits and strong legislation, they're fighting to protect their livelihoods, and pop culture, from big tech.
My latest:
With solidarity, class action lawsuits and strong legislation, they're fighting to protect their livelihoods, and pop culture, from big tech.
My latest:
How artists behind Marvel, Alien, and the Matrix movies are fighting AI
With solidarity, legislation, class action lawsuits, and a little help from Guillermo del Toro. Plus, the Luddite Renaissance continues, and I open the mailbag.
www.bloodinthemachine.com
October 29, 2025 at 5:18 PM
Artists behind some of the most popular films of all time are also forging one of the most powerful organized resistances to AI.
With solidarity, class action lawsuits and strong legislation, they're fighting to protect their livelihoods, and pop culture, from big tech.
My latest:
With solidarity, class action lawsuits and strong legislation, they're fighting to protect their livelihoods, and pop culture, from big tech.
My latest:
Reposted by Elf Monk
BY THE WAY
If you've updated to Windows 11 recently, you're probably on version 25H2.
There's a new setting in Settings: Privacy & Security.
Scroll aaaaaaaalll the way to the bottom and you'll see "Text and Image Generation."
TURN IT OFF.
If you've updated to Windows 11 recently, you're probably on version 25H2.
There's a new setting in Settings: Privacy & Security.
Scroll aaaaaaaalll the way to the bottom and you'll see "Text and Image Generation."
TURN IT OFF.
October 17, 2025 at 12:58 AM
BY THE WAY
If you've updated to Windows 11 recently, you're probably on version 25H2.
There's a new setting in Settings: Privacy & Security.
Scroll aaaaaaaalll the way to the bottom and you'll see "Text and Image Generation."
TURN IT OFF.
If you've updated to Windows 11 recently, you're probably on version 25H2.
There's a new setting in Settings: Privacy & Security.
Scroll aaaaaaaalll the way to the bottom and you'll see "Text and Image Generation."
TURN IT OFF.
Reposted by Elf Monk
CA governor Gavin Newsom vetoed both of the major AI bills on his desk that Silicon Valley meaningfully opposed—one making it illegal for bosses to use AI to fire workers with no oversight, one requiring chatbot sellers to ensure their products do not harm children before marketing to them.
Silicon Valley's capture of our political institutions is all but complete
The tech lobby kills off two key California AI bills, and why it matters. Plus: How Sam Altman played Hollywood with Sora 2, organized mass social media deletions, and more.
www.bloodinthemachine.com
October 16, 2025 at 10:46 PM
CA governor Gavin Newsom vetoed both of the major AI bills on his desk that Silicon Valley meaningfully opposed—one making it illegal for bosses to use AI to fire workers with no oversight, one requiring chatbot sellers to ensure their products do not harm children before marketing to them.
Reposted by Elf Monk
The bad brain day has begun. Let's play a game to distract me from my own self-recrimination.
1 like = 1 factoid about WEIRD TALES (1923-1954)
1 like = 1 factoid about WEIRD TALES (1923-1954)
October 15, 2025 at 10:57 AM
The bad brain day has begun. Let's play a game to distract me from my own self-recrimination.
1 like = 1 factoid about WEIRD TALES (1923-1954)
1 like = 1 factoid about WEIRD TALES (1923-1954)
Reposted by Elf Monk
RIP the legendary Drew Struzan (1947-2025) 😩
Even though we were expecting the news any day now, it makes me very sad. What an artist.
Even though we were expecting the news any day now, it makes me very sad. What an artist.
October 14, 2025 at 3:33 PM
RIP the legendary Drew Struzan (1947-2025) 😩
Even though we were expecting the news any day now, it makes me very sad. What an artist.
Even though we were expecting the news any day now, it makes me very sad. What an artist.
Reposted by Elf Monk
This week, I was prompted to review The Hunchback of Notre Dame from a genre perspective and I realized it's probably the film I would most recommend for everyone right now, young and old alike.
Frollo is a genocidal potential rapist who gleefully orders law enforcement to murder innocent civilians
Frollo is a genocidal potential rapist who gleefully orders law enforcement to murder innocent civilians
October 5, 2025 at 12:16 PM
This week, I was prompted to review The Hunchback of Notre Dame from a genre perspective and I realized it's probably the film I would most recommend for everyone right now, young and old alike.
Frollo is a genocidal potential rapist who gleefully orders law enforcement to murder innocent civilians
Frollo is a genocidal potential rapist who gleefully orders law enforcement to murder innocent civilians
Reposted by Elf Monk
Reposted by Elf Monk
JUST IN: Jane Goodall, primatologist who transformed our understanding of the lives of apes, has died, according to an announcement from the Jane Goodall Institute.
Jane Goodall, legendary primatologist, has died at age 91
Jane Goodall, primatologist who transformed our understanding of the lives of apes, has died, according to an announcement from the Jane Goodall Institute.
n.pr
October 1, 2025 at 6:34 PM
JUST IN: Jane Goodall, primatologist who transformed our understanding of the lives of apes, has died, according to an announcement from the Jane Goodall Institute.
Reposted by Elf Monk
AI is fascism
Morning File by @timbousquet.bsky.social
Morning File by @timbousquet.bsky.social
AI is fascism - Halifax Examiner
Eventually, fascism runs its course, just as the AI hype machine will. It's just a question of how much damage will be done before it's over.
www.halifaxexaminer.ca
October 1, 2025 at 2:18 PM
AI is fascism
Morning File by @timbousquet.bsky.social
Morning File by @timbousquet.bsky.social
Reposted by Elf Monk
1/ A longtime Wired editor just wrote a mush-brained essay about how he totally missed the political rot of Silicon Valley (& still doesn't get it).
But in the late 1990s, a Wired journalist warned of a toxic ideology bubbling up from tech. Paulina Borsook has largely been erased. Let's change that
But in the late 1990s, a Wired journalist warned of a toxic ideology bubbling up from tech. Paulina Borsook has largely been erased. Let's change that
September 24, 2025 at 6:36 PM
1/ A longtime Wired editor just wrote a mush-brained essay about how he totally missed the political rot of Silicon Valley (& still doesn't get it).
But in the late 1990s, a Wired journalist warned of a toxic ideology bubbling up from tech. Paulina Borsook has largely been erased. Let's change that
But in the late 1990s, a Wired journalist warned of a toxic ideology bubbling up from tech. Paulina Borsook has largely been erased. Let's change that
Reposted by Elf Monk
It’s International Talk Like a Pirate Day, so here are some things you didn’t* know about pirates (*unless you already did), and which I didn’t know until I read my niece’s Masters dissertation a while back. Firstly – remarkably – pirate ships were democracies with a pretty flat management structure
September 19, 2025 at 8:18 AM
It’s International Talk Like a Pirate Day, so here are some things you didn’t* know about pirates (*unless you already did), and which I didn’t know until I read my niece’s Masters dissertation a while back. Firstly – remarkably – pirate ships were democracies with a pretty flat management structure
Reposted by Elf Monk
Freelance illustration gigs drying up. Ad agencies using Midjourney instead of hiring human artists. Costume design turned over to AI wholesale. Good work vanishing.
These are the stories of working visual artists, who describe losing jobs, wages, and hope as their clients and bosses embrace AI.
These are the stories of working visual artists, who describe losing jobs, wages, and hope as their clients and bosses embrace AI.
Artists are losing work, wages, and hope as bosses and clients embrace AI
Visual artists, illustrators and graphic designers share their stories about how AI is being used to lower wages, degrade work and even replace it altogether, in this installment of AI Killed My Job.
www.bloodinthemachine.com
September 17, 2025 at 5:01 PM
Freelance illustration gigs drying up. Ad agencies using Midjourney instead of hiring human artists. Costume design turned over to AI wholesale. Good work vanishing.
These are the stories of working visual artists, who describe losing jobs, wages, and hope as their clients and bosses embrace AI.
These are the stories of working visual artists, who describe losing jobs, wages, and hope as their clients and bosses embrace AI.
Reposted by Elf Monk
September 16, 2025 at 8:02 PM
Reposted by Elf Monk
Robert Redford — who was awarded the LCV Lifetime Achievement Award in 2012 — was an environmental champion who bravely spoke out against the fossil fuel industry while fighting for clean air and clean water as human rights.
RIP and thank you for all you did for our planet. 💚
RIP and thank you for all you did for our planet. 💚
Robert Redford, movie star and Sundance founder, dies at 89
He won a massive following with “Butch Cassidy” and “All the President’s Men.” Through the Sundance Institute, he became a patron saint of independent film.
www.washingtonpost.com
September 16, 2025 at 3:10 PM
Robert Redford — who was awarded the LCV Lifetime Achievement Award in 2012 — was an environmental champion who bravely spoke out against the fossil fuel industry while fighting for clean air and clean water as human rights.
RIP and thank you for all you did for our planet. 💚
RIP and thank you for all you did for our planet. 💚
Reposted by Elf Monk
A movie star to his core, Robert Redford has died after a visionary career in cinema, including founding the Sundance Institute that transformed the market for independent films.
Movie star and visionary Robert Redford has died at age 89
A movie star to his core, Robert Redford has died after a visionary career in cinema, including founding the Sundance Institute that transformed the market for independent films.
n.pr
September 16, 2025 at 1:24 PM
A movie star to his core, Robert Redford has died after a visionary career in cinema, including founding the Sundance Institute that transformed the market for independent films.
Reposted by Elf Monk
Michigan lawmakers have introduced a bill prohibiting the any "depiction or description" of trans people or trans existence online, including it in a bill banning "pornographic" material
The bill would completely erase trans people online, equating them with porn.
The bill would completely erase trans people online, equating them with porn.
Total porn ban proposed by Michigan lawmakers
Some states have moved to require age verification to ensure only adults are watching porn, but no states have outright banned the viewing of pornographic material.
www.fox2detroit.com
September 15, 2025 at 8:26 PM
Michigan lawmakers have introduced a bill prohibiting the any "depiction or description" of trans people or trans existence online, including it in a bill banning "pornographic" material
The bill would completely erase trans people online, equating them with porn.
The bill would completely erase trans people online, equating them with porn.
Reposted by Elf Monk
arxiv.org/abs/2506.08872
A 200+ page research paper from the University of Warwick, led by Nataliya Kosmyna (et al)
This was published a couple months ago but I've only just had the chance to read it. I highly encourage others to do the same but I wanted to condense some observations in a short 🧵
A 200+ page research paper from the University of Warwick, led by Nataliya Kosmyna (et al)
This was published a couple months ago but I've only just had the chance to read it. I highly encourage others to do the same but I wanted to condense some observations in a short 🧵
Your Brain on ChatGPT: Accumulation of Cognitive Debt when Using an AI Assistant for Essay Writing Task
This study explores the neural and behavioral consequences of LLM-assisted essay writing. Participants were divided into three groups: LLM, Search Engine, and Brain-only (no tools). Each completed thr...
arxiv.org
September 13, 2025 at 11:46 AM
arxiv.org/abs/2506.08872
A 200+ page research paper from the University of Warwick, led by Nataliya Kosmyna (et al)
This was published a couple months ago but I've only just had the chance to read it. I highly encourage others to do the same but I wanted to condense some observations in a short 🧵
A 200+ page research paper from the University of Warwick, led by Nataliya Kosmyna (et al)
This was published a couple months ago but I've only just had the chance to read it. I highly encourage others to do the same but I wanted to condense some observations in a short 🧵
Reposted by Elf Monk
Premium Newsletter: Oracle and OpenAI are full of crap. OpenAI, while claiming it'll make more revenue than NVIDIA by 2030 - needs $250bn in funding to pay its $300bn compute contract with Oracle...who cannot physically build the data centers to service it in time.
www.wheresyoured.at/oracle-openai/
www.wheresyoured.at/oracle-openai/
Oracle and OpenAI Are Full Of Crap
This week, something strange happened. Oracle, a company that had just missed on its earnings and revenue estimates, saw a more-than-39% single day bump in its stock, leading a massive market rally.
...
www.wheresyoured.at
September 12, 2025 at 4:42 PM
Premium Newsletter: Oracle and OpenAI are full of crap. OpenAI, while claiming it'll make more revenue than NVIDIA by 2030 - needs $250bn in funding to pay its $300bn compute contract with Oracle...who cannot physically build the data centers to service it in time.
www.wheresyoured.at/oracle-openai/
www.wheresyoured.at/oracle-openai/
Reposted by Elf Monk
In today’s Senate Commerce Hearing the White House endorsed support for federal preemption of state AI laws. The fight against preemption did not disappear with the moratorium—in fact, Sen. Cruz introduced a bill today putting us directly on the path to preemption. A thread on its risks below: 🧵
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei’s recent Times op-ed on AI regulation seems like a reasonable middle ground. But it is also a reminder of a threat on the horizon: an industry-scripted federal standard that would effectively eclipse state legislation, write Kate Brennan, Sarah Myers West, and Amba Kak.
The Storm Clouds Looming Past the State Moratorium: Weak Regulation is as Bad as None | TechPolicy.Press
Blind trust in the benevolence of AI firms is not an option, write AI Now Institute's Kate Brennan, Sarah Myers West, and Amba Kak.
www.techpolicy.press
September 10, 2025 at 6:49 PM
In today’s Senate Commerce Hearing the White House endorsed support for federal preemption of state AI laws. The fight against preemption did not disappear with the moratorium—in fact, Sen. Cruz introduced a bill today putting us directly on the path to preemption. A thread on its risks below: 🧵