of course they never cared about Pride, but the world in which they pretend to care is vastly better than the one in which they don't pretend and we are seeing it in real time we want the money to think there's more profit in being performatively woke than performatively bigoted

I figured out pretty early that "saving the world" is too nebulous and too grandiose. These days my bar is "am I helping someone, somewhere."

a big reason the research drain under Trump 2 is so bad is there just isn’t enough infrastructure in the world to pick up the slack here even if other countries want to nothing out there matches the sheer scale of the university system in the US and you can’t spin it up that fast what a disaster

Discworld QOTD, from Moving Pictures ‘“Did I hear things, or can that little dog speak?” said Dibbler. “He says he can’t,” said Victor. Dibbler hesitated. The excitement was unhinging him a little. “Well,” he said, “I suppose he should know.”’

Oh my. This is spectacular. sinceyouarrived.world/taken

Brassica oleracea, Brassica oleracea, Brassica oleracea

GNU Terry Pratchett, whose words will echo long after we, and our children, and our children’s children have moved on thank you, as always, for making me a better person (quote from Reaper Man)

the basic theory of DOGE was that if powerful people said it was fine it didn’t matter what the law said. I think proving that theory wrong is worth significant effort

A billion dollars is the socio-economic equivalent of a loose nuke, and we should work to prevent the acquisition of the former with the same urgency and ruthlessness we use to prevent the acquisition of the latter.

Hunger levels have increased across Africa over the last decade— In every region of Africa, hunger is more prevalent than a decade ago. The chart shows the increase in the share of the population that is undernourished, comparing 2014 and 2024 (the most recent year available).

Happy Confederate Surrender Day from Minnesota where we still have your goddamn flag and we’re not giving it up. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/28th_Vi...

"When you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others... But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen." Matthew 6:5

buddy, we came out when it was 20 below.

I am aware that this is the stupidest thing in the WORLD to be annoyed about, but: bridge protests on I-35 don't go from the Mexican to Canadian borders *because I-35 stops in Duluth*

Rather than seeking to phase out or ban glyphosate, we should aim to preserve its benefits — minimizing weed resistance for instance — while investing in new alternatives: not only pesticide-free systems like robotic weeders but also precision spraying and new herbicides.

rude.

"In agriculture, there are no solutions, only tradeoffs." YES.

In case you're unaware, in the US if you're disabled from birth the only monetary support you can receive is SSI. SSI has a $2k asset/savings limit before they dock your benefits, and marriage cancels all benefits. See below numbers: beyond poverty numbers w/ no allowed addition. Eugenics in action.

It’s day 77 of the ICE occupation of MSP. This long weekend ICE continued to hit suburban communities hard - ICE is still very present across the metro There are still thousands of ICE agents in Minnesota, and tens of thousands of neighbors ready to stand up. ICE OUT.

actually I listened to a bootleg version that got passed around the ICRISAT office, which is different from the official release (better, I think)

I listened to this album on a lot of bumpy rides through southern Mali youtu.be/HpPW8hKXfhk?...

I think people often wonder this, and it's a great question, so let me explain the advantages of 3D printing whistles. There are many. The 3D printing effort started from one of our organizers who started by sourcing mass-produced whistles.

the fact that we DON'T know this would have been unthinkable 10 years ago.

Honestly, true words

you're not "in theater" you're in Minnesota.

NEW from me: Every morning for the past week or so, a group of ~24 clergy in Portland, Maine drive out to a business. They form a line near a door, shielding a group of mostly immigrant workers as they exit their shift. Then faith leaders stare down DHS agents. religionnews.com/2026/01/29/m...

For everyone, but especially people outside MN looking for ways to support: CTUL is legit and "uniquely positioned to support immigrant families who have been longtime members of CTUL and rely on us for support." Contribute to their rent/rapid response fund:

Wow. This is devastating. www.science.org/content/arti...

I have been actively involved in protest movements for 24 years. I have never seen anything approaching this scale. Minneapolis is not accepting what's happening here. ICE fucking murdered a woman for participating in this, and all that did is bring out more people, from more walks of life.

This is the most astonishing graph of what the Trump regime has done to US science. They have destroyed the federal science workforce across the board. The negative impacts on Americans will be felt for generations, and the US might never be the same again. www.nature.com/immersive/d4...

Running Nazis out of town and then whimsical cardboard sleds at Powderhorn - you just have to love Minneapolis.

I did tell my mom at the time that I was more likely to get shot in the US, but still: it's wild how much safer I was in Mali in 2016 than I am in Minnesota in 2026

hey remember when Obama wore a tan suit and Fox News went crazy? ....crazier, anyway

I used to live about 3 blocks from here (and have friends who still do). Absolutely devastating.

My workplace - The University of Minnesota’s Institute on the Environment (IonE) is hiring up to two Interdisciplinary Sustainability Research Professors. Application deadline is JANUARY 5, 2026 More info: environment.umn.edu/research-pro... Happy to chat if you’re interested!

or, in the words of the Nac Mac Feegle: “Free Men! Nae king! Nae quin! Nae laird! Nae master! We willna' be fooled again!”

notice the general mood of the timeline? how everyone is in a good mood and there’s a lot less misery and dooming? how there’s a lot of “we’re going to beat these assholes”? anyway that’s why these events are important

"Freedom isn't free" isn't just for soldiers. It's for all of us. And sometimes it just means "If you're lucky enough to be entrusted with land, do a good job with it. "Don't just shoot yourself in the foot & grovel for refunds."

One of the most important skills a techie can have and one which far too few actually have is knowing when the best solution to a problem isn't a technical one.

Melissa Hortman, who was assassinated last night, was the Speaker of the Minnesota House in the 2023-2024 session, when Democrats ran the state government. That means she had a leading role in shepherding the many landmark reforms that Dems adopted in that period—an important legacy. Brief 🧵.

Are you a PhD student whose funding is in jeopardy because of recent executive actions, or a faculty member in a program dealing with these considerations? @mkhaw.bsky.social and I want to hear from you @chronicle.com. DM or email! #AcademicSky #PhDSky #HigherEd

I'm begging a major news org to cover the fact NSF is defying the courts to enact Trump's unconstitutional executive order

the hardest problem in computer science is where did I save the code I already wrote to solve this problem

Great data journalism: people report “best times” is when they were 10-15 yo www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...

I just want a TEENY little truck that runs on ELECTRICITY and looks like I bought it from Richard Scarry's LOWLY WORM, is that too much to ask??

@ione-umn.bsky.social is the rare academic institution that actually means what they say about supporting interdisciplinary research and team science. Applications for the postdoc program are open now - and yes, they can sponsor visas! More here: z.umn.edu/ApplybyFeb2