Tim StearnsDec 11, 2022
A reminder of why we are trying to make a new and improved science community here on Mastodon.
Show threadTim Stearns

Some of the replies to this on twitter are suggesting that science twitter is an important and effective counter to the musk-ox.

This could be, although twitter seems to always turn such opportunities towards polarization rather than useful engagement.

It is important to acknowledge that it gives legitimacy to the site and feeds the advertising machine, their main source of income.

Dec 11, 2022 at 5:06pmWeb
Show threadPat PiaskowskiDec 11, 2022
@StearnsLab maybe staying on birdsite will soon be seen as being part of the problem and not part of the solution. Elon has made it clear by his actions and tweets that any legit sources or tweets will soon be swamped by misinfo and hatred
Show thread@dickretiredDec 11, 2022
@StearnsLab Science Twitter is not an effective counter to Musk. He is allowing people who don't believe in science to post rubbish, and the evidence is that you can't persuade such people by providing data. They just say they don't believe it. So all scientists should leave the site in protest.
Show threadBen GabrielDec 11, 2022
@StearnsLab I agree. There is (most of the time) no real will for discussion or real engagement. And Elon Musk's post today is just one of many examples of that. This is, in my opinion, meant to create a stir, which gets people to interact and continue to use Twitter, which in turn drives the advertising machinery as you just pointed out.
Leaving Twitter is not a passive act of surrender, but an active boycott of an increasingly toxic platform.
Show threadDan UdwaryDec 11, 2022
@StearnsLab I had been feeling that way (that we stay and fight), but it's become increasingly clear the site is headed for self-immolation, and I don't care to participate in that anymore. Science Twitter actually got good once Trump got banned and every post wasn't about him anymore. Now it's all Elon all the time. Today was the last straw, and I don't intend to do more there than occasionally skim the few good science posters that haven't migrated yet.
Show threadDavid G DrubinDec 11, 2022
@StearnsLab If we reply to Musk’s provocations on Twitter he is winning as that is a successful strategy that he can use to get more traffic and hence more advertising dollars.
Show threadTim StearnsDec 11, 2022
@David_G_Drubin It's a screen capture, not a retweet, but point taken. The effect seems to have been to cause many people to reconsider their engagement with Twitter, so perhaps a net positive.