Kristina McElheran
@kmcelheran.bsky.social
Associate Prof at University of Toronto. Digitization scholar studying firm use of technology, productivity, strategy, and the future of work.
Pinned
The A.I.-Profits Drought and the Lessons of History
Like the steam engine, electricity, and computers, generative artificial intelligence could take longer than expected to transform the economy.
www.newyorker.com
Beware of coverage of AI-related pre-prints...unless they are mine. ;-)
Reposted by Kristina McElheran
my wife just said "the larry summers of our discontent" and i had to sit down for a minute
August 1, 2025 at 8:28 PM
my wife just said "the larry summers of our discontent" and i had to sit down for a minute
Reposted by Kristina McElheran
Extremely upset that a throw-away XKCD joke somehow became the organizing principle for the Internet.
November 20, 2025 at 2:31 AM
Extremely upset that a throw-away XKCD joke somehow became the organizing principle for the Internet.
Reposted by Kristina McElheran
In the last 28 years, Alaska’s rural school districts have made close to 1,800 requests to the state to maintain and repair their crumbling public schools, which also frequently serve as emergency shelters.
Only 14% have been approved.
(Published March w/ KYUK and @npr.org)
Only 14% have been approved.
(Published March w/ KYUK and @npr.org)
A Rural Alaska School Asked the State to Fund a Repair. Nearly Two Decades Later, the Building Is About to Collapse.
Rural school districts depend on the state to fund construction and maintenance projects. But over the past 25 years, Alaska lawmakers have ignored hundreds of requests for public schools that…
www.propublica.org
November 12, 2025 at 10:45 PM
In the last 28 years, Alaska’s rural school districts have made close to 1,800 requests to the state to maintain and repair their crumbling public schools, which also frequently serve as emergency shelters.
Only 14% have been approved.
(Published March w/ KYUK and @npr.org)
Only 14% have been approved.
(Published March w/ KYUK and @npr.org)
Help me understand how anti-inflammatory diets are all the rage but anti-inflammatory medications are trash.
November 12, 2025 at 10:59 PM
Help me understand how anti-inflammatory diets are all the rage but anti-inflammatory medications are trash.
Reposted by Kristina McElheran
Well my assumptions are so bad for this environment...
The RL Agent says "i made big number! Exactly how you told me to. Ive made more GDP than the world and now operate in Space Bucks"
And im just like
"Well.. no.. not like that"
Im laughing crying
youtube.com/shorts/mrmqR...
#econsky
The RL Agent says "i made big number! Exactly how you told me to. Ive made more GDP than the world and now operate in Space Bucks"
And im just like
"Well.. no.. not like that"
Im laughing crying
youtube.com/shorts/mrmqR...
#econsky
When your program does as it’s programmed to do
YouTube video by Devslopes
youtube.com
November 9, 2025 at 5:28 PM
Well my assumptions are so bad for this environment...
The RL Agent says "i made big number! Exactly how you told me to. Ive made more GDP than the world and now operate in Space Bucks"
And im just like
"Well.. no.. not like that"
Im laughing crying
youtube.com/shorts/mrmqR...
#econsky
The RL Agent says "i made big number! Exactly how you told me to. Ive made more GDP than the world and now operate in Space Bucks"
And im just like
"Well.. no.. not like that"
Im laughing crying
youtube.com/shorts/mrmqR...
#econsky
Honestly, I think this is why the “gig economy” is potentially so destabilizing. It really tampers with the deep Connective Tissue of Life in ways that are hard to model. Especially hard to grapple with from within
a disciplinary silo…
a disciplinary silo…
1. Herbert Simon wrote that if a visitor came from Mars and observed the world economy they would call it "organization economy", not "market economy" because almost everyone is either an employer or an employee somewhere, not an independent household.
November 9, 2025 at 2:23 PM
Honestly, I think this is why the “gig economy” is potentially so destabilizing. It really tampers with the deep Connective Tissue of Life in ways that are hard to model. Especially hard to grapple with from within
a disciplinary silo…
a disciplinary silo…
Reposted by Kristina McElheran
1/ The US Government has quietly removed a memorial to Black soldiers who died in World War II from the Netherlands American Cemetery in Margraten, South Limburg. The move follows a complaint from the right-wing Heritage Foundation to the American Battle Monuments Commission. ⬇️
November 9, 2025 at 9:23 AM
1/ The US Government has quietly removed a memorial to Black soldiers who died in World War II from the Netherlands American Cemetery in Margraten, South Limburg. The move follows a complaint from the right-wing Heritage Foundation to the American Battle Monuments Commission. ⬇️
Reposted by Kristina McElheran
The true cost of the trans "conversation", which is and always has been just another name for trans persecution. I hope that all the columnists who are obsessed with dissecting trans people's right to exist and participate in all aspects of life see this and examine the harm they're doing.
For @teenvogue.com I wrote about the death of trans athlete Lia Smith and how trans youth kind themselves with central pillars of their lives being constantly ripped away from them because of politics. www.teenvogue.com/story/politi...
Politicizing Transgender Athletes Is Dangerous. Lia Smith Deserved Better.
"Let her passing be an inflection point for how you think about trans rights and trans people more generally."
www.teenvogue.com
November 9, 2025 at 1:32 PM
The true cost of the trans "conversation", which is and always has been just another name for trans persecution. I hope that all the columnists who are obsessed with dissecting trans people's right to exist and participate in all aspects of life see this and examine the harm they're doing.
Dark, but having trouble finding the humour. I’m supposed to be writing about data-driven decision making and analytics and AI. But it’s hard to be serious about “improved decision making” when we basically just ignore stuff that makes us uncomfortable.
Dark humor things I think about lately is the fact that I haven’t heard people say the phrase “we have the tools” regarding Covid anymore.
National stockpiles haven’t been replenished, variant surveillance is dying, wastewater surveillance isn’t standardized, mask bans are being pushed…
National stockpiles haven’t been replenished, variant surveillance is dying, wastewater surveillance isn’t standardized, mask bans are being pushed…
November 9, 2025 at 1:56 PM
Dark, but having trouble finding the humour. I’m supposed to be writing about data-driven decision making and analytics and AI. But it’s hard to be serious about “improved decision making” when we basically just ignore stuff that makes us uncomfortable.
This is both informative and hilarious.
November 8, 2025 at 2:32 PM
This is both informative and hilarious.
Reposted by Kristina McElheran
Congratulations to Sabrina Shroff on obtaining a “not guilty” for client: Sean “Sandwich Guy” Dunn on misdemeanor charges of assaulting a federal officer with a Subway sandwich.
I had the pleasure to work alongside Ms. Shroff in a high-profile federal case in SDNY. She is a fierce advocate.
I had the pleasure to work alongside Ms. Shroff in a high-profile federal case in SDNY. She is a fierce advocate.
Jury acquits D.C. 'sandwich guy' charged with chucking a sub at a federal agent
Sean Dunn faced a single misdemeanor after federal grand jurors refused to indict him on the felony charge sought by prosecutors.
www.nbcnews.com
November 7, 2025 at 3:22 AM
Congratulations to Sabrina Shroff on obtaining a “not guilty” for client: Sean “Sandwich Guy” Dunn on misdemeanor charges of assaulting a federal officer with a Subway sandwich.
I had the pleasure to work alongside Ms. Shroff in a high-profile federal case in SDNY. She is a fierce advocate.
I had the pleasure to work alongside Ms. Shroff in a high-profile federal case in SDNY. She is a fierce advocate.
Reposted by Kristina McElheran
By this time next week, the estimated deaths due to the illegal destruction of USAID and the shuttering of its aid efforts will breach 400,000.
More than 260,000 will be children.
Source: www.bu.edu/sph/news/art...
More than 260,000 will be children.
Source: www.bu.edu/sph/news/art...
Tracking Anticipated Deaths from USAID Funding Cuts
Brooke Nichols has launched online tracking tools that capture estimated increases in mortality and disease spread for HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, and other diseases as a result of the near-total...
www.bu.edu
November 5, 2025 at 10:28 PM
By this time next week, the estimated deaths due to the illegal destruction of USAID and the shuttering of its aid efforts will breach 400,000.
More than 260,000 will be children.
Source: www.bu.edu/sph/news/art...
More than 260,000 will be children.
Source: www.bu.edu/sph/news/art...
It’s wild to re-watch the Handmaid’s Tale right now. We are so unbelievably dumb.
November 6, 2025 at 12:26 AM
It’s wild to re-watch the Handmaid’s Tale right now. We are so unbelievably dumb.
Reposted by Kristina McElheran
And this is why the corporate class shut down Teen Vogue.
WOW. 81% of women 18-29 voted for Mamdani, 80% for Sherril, and 78% for Spanberger.
Gen Z women aren't playing around.
Gen Z women aren't playing around.
November 5, 2025 at 4:16 AM
And this is why the corporate class shut down Teen Vogue.
Reposted by Kristina McElheran
My god this is for real one of the most incredible speeches I’ve ever seen by an elected US politician: ‘And if there is any way to terrify a despot, it is to dismantle the very conditions that allowed him to accumulate power. This not only how we stop Trump, it’s how we stop the next one.’
Mamdani: "We can respond to oligarchy and authoritarianism with the strength it fears, not the appeasement it craves. After all, if anyone can show a nation betrayed by Donald Trump how to defeat him, it is the city that gave rise to him."
November 5, 2025 at 4:52 AM
My god this is for real one of the most incredible speeches I’ve ever seen by an elected US politician: ‘And if there is any way to terrify a despot, it is to dismantle the very conditions that allowed him to accumulate power. This not only how we stop Trump, it’s how we stop the next one.’
Reposted by Kristina McElheran
Here's another bit of conventional wisdom Zohran completely blew away: His speech was at well above a 10th-grade level. It was complex, erudite, punctuated by deep and fluent references. You don't have to condescend to voters with baby talk! Part of re-establishing norms is speaking like an adult.
November 5, 2025 at 5:14 AM
Here's another bit of conventional wisdom Zohran completely blew away: His speech was at well above a 10th-grade level. It was complex, erudite, punctuated by deep and fluent references. You don't have to condescend to voters with baby talk! Part of re-establishing norms is speaking like an adult.
Reposted by Kristina McElheran
Some charts for those who don't know the extent of the US public (and private) investment in research (particularly in biomedical research) compared to other countries and institutions. The destruction of the US' scientific institutions has global implications.
November 2, 2025 at 10:52 AM
Some charts for those who don't know the extent of the US public (and private) investment in research (particularly in biomedical research) compared to other countries and institutions. The destruction of the US' scientific institutions has global implications.
Reposted by Kristina McElheran
Pay $500/month&request on phone app a task to be done-human virtually in your house teleops robot-sometimes succeeds. "In reality, projects like Tesla’s Optimus or 1X’s NEO are less about practical consumer robotics and more about cashing in off of technological hype." futurism.com/future-socie...
$20,000 Robot Servant Comes With a Major Catch
Owners of the NEO butler-bot from 1X will have to schedule a time for remote operators to plug in and complete tasks.
futurism.com
November 2, 2025 at 12:32 AM
Pay $500/month&request on phone app a task to be done-human virtually in your house teleops robot-sometimes succeeds. "In reality, projects like Tesla’s Optimus or 1X’s NEO are less about practical consumer robotics and more about cashing in off of technological hype." futurism.com/future-socie...
Reposted by Kristina McElheran
Dark comedy where adult convert JD Vance keeps going back to the Vatican after direct insult from the Pope, that Pope dies under mysterious circumstances, and the next Pope gets even more liberal and direct with why Vance is wrong. This repeats.
November 1, 2025 at 3:48 PM
Dark comedy where adult convert JD Vance keeps going back to the Vatican after direct insult from the Pope, that Pope dies under mysterious circumstances, and the next Pope gets even more liberal and direct with why Vance is wrong. This repeats.
Come for the alliteration, stay for the insight.
Let me excerpt the concluding paragraph:
November 1, 2025 at 2:07 PM
Come for the alliteration, stay for the insight.
Reposted by Kristina McElheran
You can now search our database of 3.5 million U.S. political, election, and social issue ads on Facebook and Instagram, dating back to October 10, 2023. Discover who’s running these ads and who they’re targeting. app.polidashboard.org/meta_ads?cou...
November 1, 2025 at 12:01 PM
You can now search our database of 3.5 million U.S. political, election, and social issue ads on Facebook and Instagram, dating back to October 10, 2023. Discover who’s running these ads and who they’re targeting. app.polidashboard.org/meta_ads?cou...
Reposted by Kristina McElheran
From an Evanston resident filming an arrest at Oakton/Asbury ~an hour ago:
"He was being very violent with her, I said ‘You got to stop that,’ and he said, ‘Step back or I’ll fucking shoot you.‘ I step back, and then I continue to record, at which point he turned around and pointed a gun at me.”
"He was being very violent with her, I said ‘You got to stop that,’ and he said, ‘Step back or I’ll fucking shoot you.‘ I step back, and then I continue to record, at which point he turned around and pointed a gun at me.”
October 31, 2025 at 6:28 PM
From an Evanston resident filming an arrest at Oakton/Asbury ~an hour ago:
"He was being very violent with her, I said ‘You got to stop that,’ and he said, ‘Step back or I’ll fucking shoot you.‘ I step back, and then I continue to record, at which point he turned around and pointed a gun at me.”
"He was being very violent with her, I said ‘You got to stop that,’ and he said, ‘Step back or I’ll fucking shoot you.‘ I step back, and then I continue to record, at which point he turned around and pointed a gun at me.”
Reposted by Kristina McElheran
look at these down to earth, regular guys
October 31, 2025 at 8:42 PM
look at these down to earth, regular guys
Reposted by Kristina McElheran
Ahead of the 1st shutdown of US food aid to hungry Americans in 60 years, some of the 200,000 Little Free Library locations are converting into food pantries. Thanks @littlefreelibrary.bsky.social
October 30, 2025 at 8:31 PM
Ahead of the 1st shutdown of US food aid to hungry Americans in 60 years, some of the 200,000 Little Free Library locations are converting into food pantries. Thanks @littlefreelibrary.bsky.social
I loved Tigana so much. I should go hide in it again one weekend soon…
There was a time, not all that long ago, when I really liked Tony Geer, who owns and runs Conversation Tree Press. That was then, now is his having sent me nearly a thousand sheets of his (drop-dead gorgeous) forthcoming special edition of TIGANA to sign. I’ll need lots of good jazz. And pens.
October 30, 2025 at 7:55 PM
I loved Tigana so much. I should go hide in it again one weekend soon…