Taran RampersadFeb 3

It was challenging finding these two perspectives to meet regarding centralized #socialmedia and #ai, and I didn't cover AI as well as I would want to in this piece.

Hopefully I explained it well enough.

https://knowprose.com/2026/02/the-building-of-the-stochastic-social-media-penal-colony/

@apparebit @microglyphics

The Building of the Stochastic Social Media Penal Colony - KnowProSE.com

Through Mastodon, I came across two posts from people who seem to be pointing in the same general direction I am. Chronologically, I first encountered a post by Robert Grimm, linking to his paper “Mapping the Stochastic Penal Colony” on arXiv. That paper, in turn, references Michel Foucault’s Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the

KnowProSE.com - Where one line can make a difference.
Show threadRobert GrimmFeb 4
@knowprose @microglyphics Nice synthesis! Alas, at least the French penal colonies were surprisingly devoid of chains. Being surrounded by almost impenetrable jungle made them superfluous.
Show threadTaran RampersadFeb 4

@apparebit @microglyphics I live not far from where those French penal colonies were, and grew up in an English post-colonial culture, so yes.

In fact, in Trinidad and Tobago, there is an area called 'Penal', where allegedly the most difficult indentured laborers were sent. So yes.

The with and without water in modern usage explains the gradients of usability of a system and it's effects quite well.

Yeah. It resonated. It took some work, but it was fulfilling. Thanks for the paper!

Show threadRobert GrimmFeb 4
@knowprose @microglyphics And thank you in return for the with and without water framework. I find it a compelling way to explain differences in impact!
Show threadTaran RampersadFeb 4

@apparebit @microglyphics yeah, I thought that bridged things nicely.

Of course, it's a gradient. It helps to explain those that don't leave platforms. Some, anyway.

I did toss Cavafy in too because of the liminality of it all, and his poems show a lived in liminality that describes it from within.

#humanities are useful. 🙃

Show threadRobert Grimm
@knowprose @microglyphics Oh yeah, humanities are the secret weapon in this technology-infested age...
Feb 4 at 2:58pmWeb
Show threadTaran RampersadFeb 4

@apparebit @microglyphics technology infestation, artificial tempos creating anxiety... misaligned incentives, asymmetric structures...

If it weren't such a practical pain, it would be a fun world to write characters for. 🤣