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Boosted by cstanhope@social.coop ("Your friendly 'net denizen"):
lenalia@plush.city ("Lenalia") wrote:

If you see a turtle on its back, pick it up and flip it over so you can watch your movie. This is necessary because program material is recorded on the other side of that disc.

The Laserdisc Turtle, who was on the b-sides of some one-sided laserdiscs.

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mattblaze@federate.social ("Matt Blaze") wrote:

There is zero chance that the people at CBP and USCIS aren't aware of this. At best, your letter will be ignored (or count against the student). At worst, both you and the student get prosecuted for fraud.

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mattblaze@federate.social ("Matt Blaze") wrote:

Latest academic spam/scam: being overwhelmed with solicitations from recommendation letter mills, where they pay professors to write (or just sign) "evaluations" on behalf of foreign students, apparently for visa purposes.

Sometimes the spam comes directly from individuals, but now I'm getting services that arrange this trying to recruit me.

While I'm certainly sympathetic to the plight of talented students who want to study or move here, this has red flags all over it.

Stay the hell away.

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Boosted by jwz:
MissingThePt ("Missing The Point") wrote:

In honor of Ashli Babbitt, during her funeral the U.S. Air Force will strafe the U.S. Capitol. https://thehill.com/policy/defense/5474030-air-force-to-provide-funeral-honors-to-ashli-babbitt/

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jwz wrote:

I really think more people should have been tipped off by the fact that this hollow-eyed ghoul looks like an "after" from Evil Dead.
https://jwz.org/b/ykuO

Screenshot

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mattblaze@federate.social ("Matt Blaze") wrote:

More ICBM photos and discussion here: https://www.mattblaze.org/blog/titans/

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mattblaze@federate.social ("Matt Blaze") wrote:

Captured with a DSLR and a Zeiss 21mm Distagon lens. Handheld (there was no room to set up a tripod).

In 2009, I was fortunate to join a "top to bottom" tour of former Air Force Titan ICBM site 571-7, now preserved as a museum. Titan II missiles carried a nine megaton(!) "physics package" in the "reentry vehicle" (which they emphatically assured me had been removed from this missile, but I still wouldn't advise upsetting them too much).

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mattblaze@federate.social ("Matt Blaze") wrote:

Titan II ICBM, Launch Complex 571-7, Sahuarita, AZ, 2009.

Megatons of pixels at https://www.flickr.com/photos/mattblaze/4182507708

#photography

A missile pointed up inside a cramped underground silo, which is lined with retractable platforms and various apparatus.

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Boosted by cstanhope@social.coop ("Your friendly 'net denizen"):
hobbs@dobbs.town wrote:

YOU ARE BECOMING MORE AND MORE RELAXED

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e59guruVL4o

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Boosted by cstanhope@social.coop ("Your friendly 'net denizen"):
grickle@mstdn.social ("Grickle") wrote:

Surprise! #grickledoodle #fairytales #aliens #cartoon #art #drawing #funny

A cartoon illustration of an alien taking off his little red riding hood mask and shocking a surprised wolf dressed as Grandma. Caption reads "The big, bad wolf was utterly shocked to discover that he hadn't been the only one trafficking in deceit that day."

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Boosted by jwz:
beyondmachines1@infosec.exchange ("BeyondMachines :verified:") wrote:

Only three weeks until 90% of the code is being written by AI!

BUSINESS INSIDER, March 2025 Anthropic's CEO says that in 3 to 6 months, Al will be writing 90% of the code software developers were in charge of “And then in twelve months, we may be in a world where Al is writing essentially all of the code,”

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Boosted by cstanhope@social.coop ("Your friendly 'net denizen"):
thegibson@masto.hackers.town ("The Gibson 🅅") wrote:

Friendly reminder that with imminent quoots landing on Mastodon, you may want to go change your settings under preferences-other.

A settings page on mastodon showing the “who can quote setting” in a red circle.

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Boosted by jwz:
Richard_Littler ("Richard Littler") wrote:

"AI advocates have warned that if every author in the class action filed a claim, it would "financially ruin" the entire industry."

Win win.
I just registered my name & book details with the appropriate law firm.

Check if your book/article/paper is on the list here:
https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2025/03/search-libgen-data-set/682094/

If it is, go here:
https://www.lieffcabraser.com/anthropic-author-contact/

https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2025/08/authors-celebrate-historic-settlement-coming-soon-in-anthropic-class-action/?utm%5Fsource=bluesky&utm%5Fmedium=social&utm%5Fcampaign=aud-dev&utm%5Fsocial-type=owned

#authors #books #AI

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Boosted by jwz:
PhineasX@mastodon.art wrote:

https://octophant.threadless.com/designs/malortov-cocktail/mens/t-shirt/regular

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Boosted by jwz:
PhineasX@mastodon.art wrote:

Malörtov Cocktail

A digital illustration of a bottle of Chicago’s local and beloved and quite vile liqueur, Malört. In this rendition the usual copy in the label has been altered to read:  Jeppson’s Malörtov Cocktail USA Out Of Chicago  Fuck Ice The cap of the bottle is unscrewed with a rag stuffed down the neck and three wooden matches are around the base of the bottle offering the viewer the opportunity to decide what is to be done.

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pzmyers@freethought.online ("pzmyers 🕷") wrote:

Big plump spider in my front yard!

https://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/2025/08/28/i-told-you-i-was-going-to-check-out-the-front-yard-today/

shamrock orbweaver

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db@social.lol ("David Bushell 🥐") wrote:

fine, I'll watch KPOP Demon Hunters

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Boosted by aral@mastodon.ar.al ("Aral Balkan"):
tommorris ("Tom Morris") wrote:

"LLMs allow dead (or non-verbal) people to speak" - spiritualism/channelling

"what happens when the AI turns us all into paperclips?" - end times prophecy

"AI will be able to magically predict everything" - astrology/tarot cards

"...what if you're wrong? The AI will punish you for lacking faith in Bayesian stats" - Pascal's wager

"It'll fix climate change!" - stewardship theology

Turns out studying religion comes in handy for understanding supposedly 'rationalist' ideas about AI.

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Boosted by aral@mastodon.ar.al ("Aral Balkan"):
DrALJONES wrote:

Report: "UN rights staff demand Gaza war be called genocide"

They accused the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights of failing to speak out...

and "compared the UN’s inaction over Gaza to its failure to stop the 1994 genocide in Rwanda."

"Failing to denounce an unfolding genocide undermines the credibility of the UN & the human rights system itself.”

https://www.middleeasteye.net/live-blog/live-blog-update/un-rights-staff-demand-gaza-war-be-called-genocide

#UN #GazaGenocide #USPol #europol #Press .

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Boosted by aral@mastodon.ar.al ("Aral Balkan"):
regendans@toot.community ("Regendans") wrote:

"Jewish Activists Storm Lobby of Schiff’s Future Office In Burbank, Demand He Stop Arming Israel" #Gaza #genocide #protest https://lataco.com/jewish-activism-against-israel-burbank

On Wednesday afternoon, dozens of protesters with Jewish Voice for Peace L.A. took over the lobby of Senator Adam Schiff's future office in Burbank. A couple dozen protesters entered the lobby of 4100 W. Riverside Drive just after 2 PM wearing black shirts with “JEWS SAY LET GAZA LIVE” written on the front, holding large yellow banners, pots and pans, and loudspeakers.

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Boosted by aral@mastodon.ar.al ("Aral Balkan"):
MikeDunnAuthor@kolektiva.social wrote:

No government fights fascism to destroy it. When the bourgeoisie sees that power is skipping out of its hands, it brings up fascism to hold onto their privilege. -Buenaventura Durruti

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Boosted by aral@mastodon.ar.al ("Aral Balkan"):
bhg@troet.cafe ("B.") wrote:

Überall in den Niederlanden...
#StopTheGenocide

Attachments:

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Boosted by aral@mastodon.ar.al ("Aral Balkan"):
Joop wrote:

Palestijnse peuter met goed behandelbare kanker dood nadat rechtse partijen haar niet in Nederland wilden hebben https://www.bnnvara.nl/joop/artikelen/palestijnse-peuter-met-goed-behandelbare-kanker-dood-nadat-rechtse-partijen-haar-niet-in-nederland-wilden-hebben

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Boosted by aral@mastodon.ar.al ("Aral Balkan"):
bangskij@climatejustice.social ("Captain of the SS El Faro") wrote:

@skinnylatte the Nordic countries are already deploying at scale, mostly to terrorize the marginalized, send them to prison on trumped up charges(already happened in Norway) and deprive them of what little we have.

https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2024/11/denmark-ai-powered-welfare-system-fuels-mass-surveillance-and-risks-discriminating-against-marginalized-groups-report/

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Boosted by aral@mastodon.ar.al ("Aral Balkan"):
NewsBot@assortedflotsam.com ("World News Bot") wrote:

UN staff urge rights chief Volker Turk to call Gaza war a ‘genocide’ https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/8/28/un-staff-urge-rights-chief-volker-turk-to-call-gaza-war-a-genocide?traffic%5Fsource=rss #News

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Boosted by aral@mastodon.ar.al ("Aral Balkan"):
NewsBot@assortedflotsam.com ("World News Bot") wrote:

Elderly Palestinians starving to death under Israeli-made famine in Gaza https://www.aljazeera.com/video/newsfeed/2025/8/28/elderly-palestinians-starving-to-death-under-israeli-made-famine-in-gaza?traffic%5Fsource=rss #ShowTypes

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Boosted by aral@mastodon.ar.al ("Aral Balkan"):
NewsBot@assortedflotsam.com ("World News Bot") wrote:

UN chief slams Israel for ‘deliberate’ Gaza ‘catastrophe’ https://www.aljazeera.com/video/newsfeed/2025/8/28/un-chief-slams-israel-for-deliberate-gaza?traffic%5Fsource=rss #ShowTypes

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Boosted by adam@social.lol ("Adam"):
robb@social.lol ("Robb Knight") wrote:

Good morning to the morning timezone people, we've already hit $1000 in the first day of the St Jude fundraiser which is _incredible_ and also means we're only $500 away from the first sticker reveal

👉 https://stjude.omg.lol

A laptop with two white questions marks where stickers could go in each corner. Text next to them says the stickers will be revealed at $1500 and $3000

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Boosted by adam@social.lol ("Adam"):
nad@social.lol ("Jaxter's curated garbage") wrote:

A text post with a dark background reads: "fairycosmos maybe later we could hang out and take turns bursting into tears." The text is centered on a minimalist black backdrop.  Source: @fairycosmos

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Boosted by adam@social.lol ("Adam"):
sylvia@social.lol ("Sylvia") wrote:

How is one supposed to get anything done with this face staring at them?

#CatsOfMastodon #FediCats

Dipper the tuxedo cat, on his back, staring at me, paws curled up. Ugh.