Mastodawn

Chris Simmons Jul 11, 2023

Mindy Weisberger (she/her)Jul 11, 2023

Be ungovernable, like birds who make nests OUT OF ANTI-BIRD SPIKES. A new study describes resourceful Dutch & Belgian corvids besting evil architecture by stealing metal anti-bird strips and using them like thorny twigs, to construct their homes.

Like thorns, the spikes may protect their nests from predators.

Lead author Auke-Florian Hiemstra wrote an epic 🧵 about his research that's worth a read: https://twitter.com/AukeFlorian/status/1678703433900064773

Paper: https://www.hetnatuurhistorisch.nl/organisatie/publicaties/deinsea/deinsea-21/

#science #SciComm #birds #netherlands

Auke-Florian on Twitter

“Bird nests made from anti-bird spikes! 🤯 Even for me as a nest researcher, these are the craziest bird nests I've ever seen. Today my paper came out on this rebellious behaviour. And it's like telling a joke... A thread. 🧵”

Twitter

Chris Simmons Jul 11, 2023

Ars Technica Jul 11, 2023

How AI can make gaming better for all players

Artificial intelligence can make gaming more accessible and learn what individuals need.

https://arstechnica.com/ai/2023/07/how-ai-can-make-gaming-better-for-all-players/?utm_brand=arstechnica&utm_social-type=owned&utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=social

How AI can make gaming better for all players

Artificial intelligence can make gaming more accessible and learn what individuals need.

Ars Technica

Chris Simmons Jul 8, 2023

Today for #caturday, rocket cats

Chris Simmons Jul 3, 2023

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mcc Jun 30, 2023

2006 - 2022: Corporate content hosts are so cheap and easy that no one has an incentive to learn to self-host content, and people who were previously self-hosting content move over to big "social" platforms

2022 - … : Platforms close off in every imaginable way and start taking every opportunity to extract rents from users, benefits that originally got people to move over now gone, but the network effects are such you can no longer switch to open alternatives or convince other people to do so

Chris Simmons Jun 21, 2023

#aquarium #feedingtime at the #academyofsciences #sf

Chris Simmons Jun 20, 2023

The German Aerospace Center has released a stunning new color-enhanced image of #Mars . The geological features are so much more visible and the typical patchwork effect is removed. The effect itself is frequently caused by dust clouds, which will kick up in between susbsequent satellite passes.

https://www.dlr.de/en/latest/news/2023/02/mars-in-colour-as-never-seen-before

Mars in colour as never seen before

To mark the 20th anniversary of ESA's Mars Express spacecraft, the High Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC) team is announcing the upcoming release of a global color mosaic of Mars that is unparalleled in its accuracy of color information and provides insight into the diverse composition of surface materials.

Chris Simmons Jun 18, 2023

Archives.design - a curated digital collection of design resources at the Internet Archive

https://archives.design

#internetarchive #design #designresources

archives.design

A curated, easier to browse graphic design repository for the Internet Archives

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Chris Simmons Jun 17, 2023

And since I don’t see a lot of people talking about this part, these api fees have to be, in part, an attempt to get #ai companies to pay for the content they’re training on. I’m sure there was a meeting that came to the conclusion that it was worth the PR hit now in order to stop, in essence, bankrolling the competition. What that means for the future of #reddit and #llms (as the free data hoses start turning off) remains to be seen.

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Chris Simmons Jun 17, 2023

It’s a really solid case story for #storytelling as well. It’s got everything, plucky little guys, out of touch corporate types, users in revolt. What’s really good in this case is the balance of action-reaction. Mods protest - admins threaten to bring in scab mods to ‘serve needs of community’ - community votes to change content to continue protesting - is a pitch perfect escalation of tension. Very exciting from a narrative perspective.

Chris Simmons Jun 17, 2023

We’ve reached the ‘it’s funny’ period in watching #Reddit crater. Today’s development (major subs are now only posting about comedian John Oliver) highlights something kind of unique about it: every day is funnier than the last. Like I don’t want to take away from how genuinely devastating this is for the indie devs involved, but after years of sickness and isolation and wannabe dictators, having a story that’s almost pure Internet Drama is a marvel.