Katherine Silkaitis
@ksilk.bsky.social
Working in science strategy in Luxembourg. Can also talk about journalism, public policy, music, and cats.
Reposted by Katherine Silkaitis
Remember, BDS is intended as a civil society alternative to violence: a boycott is a non-violent form of protest against well-documented human rights crimes by the Israeli state. What I hear when ppl decry BDS as too strict is that ppl would rather Palestinians not resist their displacement at all
November 28, 2025 at 5:15 AM
Remember, BDS is intended as a civil society alternative to violence: a boycott is a non-violent form of protest against well-documented human rights crimes by the Israeli state. What I hear when ppl decry BDS as too strict is that ppl would rather Palestinians not resist their displacement at all
Reposted by Katherine Silkaitis
Reposted by Katherine Silkaitis
I feel much safer today knowing that we deported a Babson College student back to a country where she hasn't lived since childhood.
She wasn't even flying internationally. She was flying to Texas.
She wasn't even flying internationally. She was flying to Texas.
A Babson College student wanted to surprise her family for Thanksgiving. She was deported instead. - The Boston Globe
Any Lucia Lopez Belloza was at Logan to catch a flight to Texas when immigration authorities detained her as she was about to board the plane.
www.bostonglobe.com
November 27, 2025 at 10:47 AM
I feel much safer today knowing that we deported a Babson College student back to a country where she hasn't lived since childhood.
She wasn't even flying internationally. She was flying to Texas.
She wasn't even flying internationally. She was flying to Texas.
Reposted by Katherine Silkaitis
This feels like a pretext to close a bunch of parks for commercial/industrial development because the foreign visitors don't want to pay the overcharge and the American well has dried up due to the president* crashing the economy and making vacations for the hoi polloi unaffordable.
November 26, 2025 at 1:08 AM
This feels like a pretext to close a bunch of parks for commercial/industrial development because the foreign visitors don't want to pay the overcharge and the American well has dried up due to the president* crashing the economy and making vacations for the hoi polloi unaffordable.
Reposted by Katherine Silkaitis
The National Park Service is introducing a digital annual pass that charges foreign visitors $170 more than United States residents across the federal recreation system.
National parks announce ‘America-first’ upcharges for foreign visitors
The National Park Service's new America-first pricing policy will see foreign visitors pay more to access popular national parks, including Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon.
wapo.st
November 26, 2025 at 1:00 AM
The National Park Service is introducing a digital annual pass that charges foreign visitors $170 more than United States residents across the federal recreation system.
Reposted by Katherine Silkaitis
"It is against the TOS to be talked into suicide by our LLM" is possibly the most evil tech bro thing I've ever read
Additionally, OpenAI argues its not liable because Raine, by using ChatGPT for self-harm, broke its terms of service
November 26, 2025 at 12:29 AM
"It is against the TOS to be talked into suicide by our LLM" is possibly the most evil tech bro thing I've ever read
Reposted by Katherine Silkaitis
I'm going to do a little thread on how the money from books works for traditionally published authors because people have questions, and this is always useful info to share IMO. First, a big disclaimer that every contract is different, and there are a million factors that can change things. 1/
November 26, 2025 at 2:12 PM
I'm going to do a little thread on how the money from books works for traditionally published authors because people have questions, and this is always useful info to share IMO. First, a big disclaimer that every contract is different, and there are a million factors that can change things. 1/
Reposted by Katherine Silkaitis
By the way, note that the description of Biden as being "in obvious mental decline" was left in the speech, while the description of Trump as the "most openly corrupt president in American history" was removed:
Note that the BBC openly admits in an email to me that the removal of this claim about Trump's world-historical corruption was done "on legal advice."
Translation: Trump's threat of a lawsuit, no matter how bogus, has now been rewarded.
newrepublic.com/article/2036...
Translation: Trump's threat of a lawsuit, no matter how bogus, has now been rewarded.
newrepublic.com/article/2036...
November 26, 2025 at 2:03 PM
By the way, note that the description of Biden as being "in obvious mental decline" was left in the speech, while the description of Trump as the "most openly corrupt president in American history" was removed:
Reposted by Katherine Silkaitis
Lanah Burkhardt. Worked for a right-wing company that wanted to replace Scholastic Books. popular.info/p/mysterious...
Mysterious woman tells school board that Scholastic book sparked porn addiction
On November 14, a 20-year-old woman named Lanah Burkhardt appeared before the school board of the Conroe Independent School District in Texas.
popular.info
November 26, 2025 at 3:10 PM
Lanah Burkhardt. Worked for a right-wing company that wanted to replace Scholastic Books. popular.info/p/mysterious...
Reposted by Katherine Silkaitis
The average medieval peasant could not buy a gas station delta 9 gummy and watch “Scooter Fail Compilation 5” on YouTube, which makes it difficult to compare GDP across time
November 26, 2025 at 5:03 AM
The average medieval peasant could not buy a gas station delta 9 gummy and watch “Scooter Fail Compilation 5” on YouTube, which makes it difficult to compare GDP across time
Reposted by Katherine Silkaitis
Phil Knight is almost single handedly funding the OR GOP, one of the more extreme state GOPs in the country. Keep that in mind next time you’re in the market for sportswear or sneakers. www.oregonlive.com/politics/202...
Nike co-founder Phil Knight makes record-setting donation to help elect Republicans
It is the single largest donation Knight has made to an Oregon candidate or political action committee.
www.oregonlive.com
November 25, 2025 at 3:31 AM
Phil Knight is almost single handedly funding the OR GOP, one of the more extreme state GOPs in the country. Keep that in mind next time you’re in the market for sportswear or sneakers. www.oregonlive.com/politics/202...
Reposted by Katherine Silkaitis
I wish I didn’t have to share this. But the BBC has decided to censor my first Reith Lecture.
They deleted the line in which I describe Donald Trump as “the most openly corrupt president in American history.” /1
They deleted the line in which I describe Donald Trump as “the most openly corrupt president in American history.” /1
November 25, 2025 at 9:26 AM
I wish I didn’t have to share this. But the BBC has decided to censor my first Reith Lecture.
They deleted the line in which I describe Donald Trump as “the most openly corrupt president in American history.” /1
They deleted the line in which I describe Donald Trump as “the most openly corrupt president in American history.” /1
Reposted by Katherine Silkaitis
When Tony Blair came to power in 1997, the UK economy was bigger than China and India combined.
November 24, 2025 at 4:07 PM
When Tony Blair came to power in 1997, the UK economy was bigger than China and India combined.
Reposted by Katherine Silkaitis
Udo Keir tweeted but a single time. RIP you strange king
November 24, 2025 at 4:52 AM
Udo Keir tweeted but a single time. RIP you strange king
Reposted by Katherine Silkaitis
do you have any idea how much you have to piss somebody off to make them change their gauge
#Finland will begin to #Russia - proof its rail network, integrate with EU train infrastructure.
The Finnish government has announced the conversion of its rail network from Russian gauge (1,524 mm) to European standard (1,435 mm).
www.trenvista.net/en/news/flas...
The Finnish government has announced the conversion of its rail network from Russian gauge (1,524 mm) to European standard (1,435 mm).
www.trenvista.net/en/news/flas...
November 23, 2025 at 4:40 PM
do you have any idea how much you have to piss somebody off to make them change their gauge
Reposted by Katherine Silkaitis
It's that time of year
November 22, 2025 at 11:54 AM
It's that time of year
Reposted by Katherine Silkaitis
Reposted by Katherine Silkaitis
The grind & grift: (Starbucks) paid our CEO $98 million for the first four months of his employment with this company. They spent $81 million for a four-day manager's retreat in Vegas (in) June. It would cost less ... to finalize a multi-year union contract ... less than a single day's profit."
"Facing Unprecedented Labor violations, Starbucks Workers Overwhelmingly Agree to Strike Indefinitely"
Now that's what we call a headline! 🤭 #NoContractNoCoffee
inthesetimes.com/article/star...
Now that's what we call a headline! 🤭 #NoContractNoCoffee
inthesetimes.com/article/star...
Facing Unprecedented Labor Violations, Starbucks Workers Overwhelmingly Agree to Strike Indefinitely
Unfair wages, chronic understaffing and hundreds of ULPs have led to a Starbucks Workers United super-majority vote to strike.
inthesetimes.com
November 21, 2025 at 5:03 PM
The grind & grift: (Starbucks) paid our CEO $98 million for the first four months of his employment with this company. They spent $81 million for a four-day manager's retreat in Vegas (in) June. It would cost less ... to finalize a multi-year union contract ... less than a single day's profit."
Reposted by Katherine Silkaitis
type for books used to be set using little metal letters built into words in racks and then inked and pressed on to paper. If you had stock phrases you wanted to reuse a lot you could make a cast of them called a ‘stereotype’. The sound of them *clicking* into place, in French, is ‘cliché’
Man, everything is so bleak, anyone got a fun fact or little bit of trivia they want to share
November 21, 2025 at 10:17 AM
type for books used to be set using little metal letters built into words in racks and then inked and pressed on to paper. If you had stock phrases you wanted to reuse a lot you could make a cast of them called a ‘stereotype’. The sound of them *clicking* into place, in French, is ‘cliché’
Reposted by Katherine Silkaitis
This is how you destroy science and research in the country
The administration is building a legal pathway for ad hoc grant terminations:
"if the agency determines that the award no longer effectuates the program goals or agency priorities"
Converting multiyear grants to 'at whim' coin flips will undermine the stability & leadership of American science.
"if the agency determines that the award no longer effectuates the program goals or agency priorities"
Converting multiyear grants to 'at whim' coin flips will undermine the stability & leadership of American science.
Update on a significant development NIH grant terms.
On 10/1, a change to grant making regs went into effect that gives NIH more power to terminate grants for policy reasons.
But to use this power, new grant terms must include specific language. See @aniloza.bsky.social w/ the story from July.
1/
On 10/1, a change to grant making regs went into effect that gives NIH more power to terminate grants for policy reasons.
But to use this power, new grant terms must include specific language. See @aniloza.bsky.social w/ the story from July.
1/
November 20, 2025 at 4:17 PM
This is how you destroy science and research in the country
Reposted by Katherine Silkaitis
Know the difference.
November 19, 2025 at 10:08 PM
Know the difference.
Reposted by Katherine Silkaitis
the gulf between the swift brutality with which places like harvard treated students protesting genocide and the endless, endless latitude those same institutions have given people like larry summers tells you everything you need to know
November 20, 2025 at 1:36 AM
the gulf between the swift brutality with which places like harvard treated students protesting genocide and the endless, endless latitude those same institutions have given people like larry summers tells you everything you need to know
Reposted by Katherine Silkaitis
A few months ago @thelocal.to got a promising pitch from a writer with bylines in whole bunch of reputable publications—The Cut, The Guardian, Dwell, Architectural Digest, etc. Then I started investigating. Here's a story about fabulists in journalism's AI slop era. thelocal.to/investigatin...
Investigating a Possible Scammer in Journalism’s AI Era | The Local
A suspicious pitch from a freelancer led editor Nicholas Hune-Brown to dig into their past work. By the end, four publications, including The Guardian and Dwell, had removed articles from their sites.
thelocal.to
November 19, 2025 at 2:10 PM
A few months ago @thelocal.to got a promising pitch from a writer with bylines in whole bunch of reputable publications—The Cut, The Guardian, Dwell, Architectural Digest, etc. Then I started investigating. Here's a story about fabulists in journalism's AI slop era. thelocal.to/investigatin...
Reposted by Katherine Silkaitis
Ethicists say AI-powered advances will threaten the privacy and autonomy of people who use mind-reading devices
go.nature.com/4r947us
go.nature.com/4r947us
Mind-reading devices can now predict preconscious thoughts: is it time to worry?
Ethicists say AI-powered advances will threaten the privacy and autonomy of people who use neurotechnology.
go.nature.com
November 19, 2025 at 10:55 AM
Ethicists say AI-powered advances will threaten the privacy and autonomy of people who use mind-reading devices
go.nature.com/4r947us
go.nature.com/4r947us
Reposted by Katherine Silkaitis
