Dave Palfrey
@01factory.bsky.social
Ex-historian of social and political thought (Cambridge, Birkbeck). Ex-Amazon (Alexa and AGI). Chief scientist at Mind Mage. LRB reader. 2025 side-mission: fighting global bias on Wikidata & Wikipedia.
"Only that which has no history can be defined"
"Only that which has no history can be defined"
Pinned
Yay! I've reached my first #Wikidata global representation goal! Women from the countries shaded red are 25% of global population, but in Dec '24 were only 0.83% of Wikidata bios. I set a target to increase this to 1%. Four months later, with 10,000 women added, they're now 1.01% of Wikidata bios!
Pleased with this 2025 achievement! The countries shaded red amount to half world population, but are grievously under-represented on Wikidata. 2025 saw over 20,000 women from these countries added, up from ~34,500 to over 55,000. A year ago they were only 0.83% of Wikidata bios. Now they're 1.17%.
Reposted by Dave Palfrey
One of the few things that might actually get some kind of reaction from Musk would be the government and all MPs simply leaving X.
This doesn't require regulatory or legal action. There are no barriers. They could *and should* just do it.
This doesn't require regulatory or legal action. There are no barriers. They could *and should* just do it.
Liz Kendall to give a Commons statement today on online regulation. She wrote this Telegraph piece, calling this a tipping point.
I'd like to hear govt + the regulator show that they are taking the full range of unlawful content seriously - not just one strand
www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/01...
I'd like to hear govt + the regulator show that they are taking the full range of unlawful content seriously - not just one strand
www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/01...
Sexual deepfakes are a disgrace – and we won’t stand for it
This Government is as determined to ensure women and girls are safe online as we are to ensure they are safe in the real world
www.telegraph.co.uk
January 12, 2026 at 8:53 AM
One of the few things that might actually get some kind of reaction from Musk would be the government and all MPs simply leaving X.
This doesn't require regulatory or legal action. There are no barriers. They could *and should* just do it.
This doesn't require regulatory or legal action. There are no barriers. They could *and should* just do it.
Has any research compared the content of the knowledge graph #Wikidata with natural language #Wikipedias? Lev Manovich once contrasted databases and narratives (though they are also here clearly 'natural symbionts', as Katherine Hayles said). Presumably some kinds of information is more amenable 1/
January 12, 2026 at 10:48 AM
Has any research compared the content of the knowledge graph #Wikidata with natural language #Wikipedias? Lev Manovich once contrasted databases and narratives (though they are also here clearly 'natural symbionts', as Katherine Hayles said). Presumably some kinds of information is more amenable 1/
Reposted by Dave Palfrey
this is a persistent pattern with this government - they're not very good at making decisions
i don't even mean they make bad decisions; they equivocate, delay, try to get someone else to make the call
the act of deciding itself is hard for them
i don't even mean they make bad decisions; they equivocate, delay, try to get someone else to make the call
the act of deciding itself is hard for them
January 10, 2026 at 12:55 PM
this is a persistent pattern with this government - they're not very good at making decisions
i don't even mean they make bad decisions; they equivocate, delay, try to get someone else to make the call
the act of deciding itself is hard for them
i don't even mean they make bad decisions; they equivocate, delay, try to get someone else to make the call
the act of deciding itself is hard for them
Reposted by Dave Palfrey
Outgoing talk by @katrohrbacher.bsky.social at Bielefeld University.
13 January 2026, 10:00–12:00
Hybrid, Lecture Hall X-E1-201 and Zoom
Measuring Narrative Space: A Computational Study of German and English Prose Fiction
Details and Zoom access:
www.dhss.phil.fau.eu/2026/01/09/o...
13 January 2026, 10:00–12:00
Hybrid, Lecture Hall X-E1-201 and Zoom
Measuring Narrative Space: A Computational Study of German and English Prose Fiction
Details and Zoom access:
www.dhss.phil.fau.eu/2026/01/09/o...
January 9, 2026 at 12:14 PM
Outgoing talk by @katrohrbacher.bsky.social at Bielefeld University.
13 January 2026, 10:00–12:00
Hybrid, Lecture Hall X-E1-201 and Zoom
Measuring Narrative Space: A Computational Study of German and English Prose Fiction
Details and Zoom access:
www.dhss.phil.fau.eu/2026/01/09/o...
13 January 2026, 10:00–12:00
Hybrid, Lecture Hall X-E1-201 and Zoom
Measuring Narrative Space: A Computational Study of German and English Prose Fiction
Details and Zoom access:
www.dhss.phil.fau.eu/2026/01/09/o...
Reposted by Dave Palfrey
poets.org/2020-on-lear...
On Learning to Dissect Fetal Pigs
by Renée Nicole Macklin
i want back my rocking chairs,
solipsist sunsets,
& coastal jungle sounds that are tercets from cicadas and pentameter from the hairy legs of
cockroaches...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killing...
On Learning to Dissect Fetal Pigs
by Renée Nicole Macklin
i want back my rocking chairs,
solipsist sunsets,
& coastal jungle sounds that are tercets from cicadas and pentameter from the hairy legs of
cockroaches...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killing...
2020 Academy of American Poets Prize
On Learning to Dissect Fetal Pigs by Renée Nicole Macklin
poets.org
January 8, 2026 at 5:30 AM
poets.org/2020-on-lear...
On Learning to Dissect Fetal Pigs
by Renée Nicole Macklin
i want back my rocking chairs,
solipsist sunsets,
& coastal jungle sounds that are tercets from cicadas and pentameter from the hairy legs of
cockroaches...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killing...
On Learning to Dissect Fetal Pigs
by Renée Nicole Macklin
i want back my rocking chairs,
solipsist sunsets,
& coastal jungle sounds that are tercets from cicadas and pentameter from the hairy legs of
cockroaches...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killing...
@trinityhallcamb.bsky.social this is miserable. Marcus Tomalin's claim to be concerned about the possibility of "reverse discrimination" is especially shameful. (Full disclosure: I myself went to Trinity Hall after attending an elite private school.)
January 8, 2026 at 9:46 AM
@trinityhallcamb.bsky.social this is miserable. Marcus Tomalin's claim to be concerned about the possibility of "reverse discrimination" is especially shameful. (Full disclosure: I myself went to Trinity Hall after attending an elite private school.)
Reposted by Dave Palfrey
Where the hell are Google and Apple enforcing their app store terms of service on X? Grok doing CSAM should instantly be a removal from the app store. Any other app doing this would be pulled instantly. Journalists should be asking for comment from these companies.
January 7, 2026 at 1:58 PM
Where the hell are Google and Apple enforcing their app store terms of service on X? Grok doing CSAM should instantly be a removal from the app store. Any other app doing this would be pulled instantly. Journalists should be asking for comment from these companies.
Reposted by Dave Palfrey
If the Palestine Action hunger strikers die - which they could do at any moment, as they are now very close to the end - it will be the government that killed them. Today’s column explains why. Please share, and write urgently to your MP.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Let’s be clear: if the Palestine Action hunger strikers die, the government will bear moral responsibility | George Monbiot
The three remaining hunger strikers have been convicted of nothing. Yet with astonishing cruelty, ministers refuse to listen to their reasonable demands, says Guardian columnist George Monbiot
www.theguardian.com
January 7, 2026 at 8:07 AM
If the Palestine Action hunger strikers die - which they could do at any moment, as they are now very close to the end - it will be the government that killed them. Today’s column explains why. Please share, and write urgently to your MP.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Reposted by Dave Palfrey
I am extremely confused as to why the UK government and police are saying Grok’s mass-scale CSAM generation is an issue for Ofcom.
This isn’t about X failing to moderate CSAM, which is an Online Safety Act issue. It is about the company and its technology being actively involved in its generation.
This isn’t about X failing to moderate CSAM, which is an Online Safety Act issue. It is about the company and its technology being actively involved in its generation.
January 7, 2026 at 7:37 AM
I am extremely confused as to why the UK government and police are saying Grok’s mass-scale CSAM generation is an issue for Ofcom.
This isn’t about X failing to moderate CSAM, which is an Online Safety Act issue. It is about the company and its technology being actively involved in its generation.
This isn’t about X failing to moderate CSAM, which is an Online Safety Act issue. It is about the company and its technology being actively involved in its generation.
Reposted by Dave Palfrey
I’ve been scanning the November and December file releases at the National Archives
Some quick notes:
November 2025: 9853 files, a quarter of which are regular Treasury files
Oldest has documents from 1896 on India and stamp duty
Some quick notes:
November 2025: 9853 files, a quarter of which are regular Treasury files
Oldest has documents from 1896 on India and stamp duty
January 6, 2026 at 8:21 AM
I’ve been scanning the November and December file releases at the National Archives
Some quick notes:
November 2025: 9853 files, a quarter of which are regular Treasury files
Oldest has documents from 1896 on India and stamp duty
Some quick notes:
November 2025: 9853 files, a quarter of which are regular Treasury files
Oldest has documents from 1896 on India and stamp duty
Reposted by Dave Palfrey
🧵 All the academics who are smarter than I am are doing "explainer" threads.
I'll just provide some readings on indirect rule that might be increasingly relevant over the next few years.
1. David Lake's work on indirect rule and U.S. foreign policy.
I'll just provide some readings on indirect rule that might be increasingly relevant over the next few years.
1. David Lake's work on indirect rule and U.S. foreign policy.
Indirect Rule by David A. Lake | Paperback | Cornell University Press
Indirect Rule examines how states indirectly exercise authority over others and how this mode of rule affects domestic and international politics. Indirect rule has long characterized interstate relat...
www.cornellpress.cornell.edu
January 5, 2026 at 5:29 PM
🧵 All the academics who are smarter than I am are doing "explainer" threads.
I'll just provide some readings on indirect rule that might be increasingly relevant over the next few years.
1. David Lake's work on indirect rule and U.S. foreign policy.
I'll just provide some readings on indirect rule that might be increasingly relevant over the next few years.
1. David Lake's work on indirect rule and U.S. foreign policy.
Reposted by Dave Palfrey
This poster is one of the best on here and I’m so sad we’re losing her because of the appalling harassment she has been subjected to. Of course she must look after herself. And the rest of us need to do whatever we can to challenge and change this cruel, sick, dangerous, culture.
I‘m discontinuing my social media use for the foreseeable future and I want to explain why.
I woke up in the new year to discover that some guy on here had saved photos I took on New Year’s Eve and used Grok to remove my clothes. I know this because he showed me.
I woke up in the new year to discover that some guy on here had saved photos I took on New Year’s Eve and used Grok to remove my clothes. I know this because he showed me.
January 4, 2026 at 11:26 AM
This poster is one of the best on here and I’m so sad we’re losing her because of the appalling harassment she has been subjected to. Of course she must look after herself. And the rest of us need to do whatever we can to challenge and change this cruel, sick, dangerous, culture.
Reposted by Dave Palfrey
A point that Wallerestein made often: as overall US power declines, it overplays its best card—military force. But each time it does so, it accelerates the decline of its overall power. SeeVietnam, Iraq. Violent coercion is the strength of the weak.
January 3, 2026 at 9:33 PM
A point that Wallerestein made often: as overall US power declines, it overplays its best card—military force. But each time it does so, it accelerates the decline of its overall power. SeeVietnam, Iraq. Violent coercion is the strength of the weak.
Reposted by Dave Palfrey
Which of the two "pillars" Bezos said would lay at the heart of the Post's editorial philosophy does this represent: "free markets" or "personal liberties"?
"This is a major victory for American interests," the Editorial Board writes.
"The next step is ensuring that this triumph sets Venezuela up for stability rather than chaos." https://wapo.st/495Y5E0
"The next step is ensuring that this triumph sets Venezuela up for stability rather than chaos." https://wapo.st/495Y5E0
Opinion | Justice in Venezuela
The next challenge is setting the country up for long-term success.
www.washingtonpost.com
January 3, 2026 at 6:15 PM
Which of the two "pillars" Bezos said would lay at the heart of the Post's editorial philosophy does this represent: "free markets" or "personal liberties"?
BlueSky library lovers! What's been the Dewey Decimal number for the best non-fiction work of 2025?
January 2, 2026 at 10:25 PM
BlueSky library lovers! What's been the Dewey Decimal number for the best non-fiction work of 2025?
Reposted by Dave Palfrey
File under, we never quite know what's coming next.
One of my favourite embassy reports. The UK ambassador in East Berlin reporting in after the fall of the Wall...
One of my favourite embassy reports. The UK ambassador in East Berlin reporting in after the fall of the Wall...
January 2, 2026 at 9:36 AM
File under, we never quite know what's coming next.
One of my favourite embassy reports. The UK ambassador in East Berlin reporting in after the fall of the Wall...
One of my favourite embassy reports. The UK ambassador in East Berlin reporting in after the fall of the Wall...
Reposted by Dave Palfrey
biggest technological revolution of our lifetimes and it's not AI or blockchain or cryptocurrency or metaverse.
“South Africans like Dr. Booley have found a remedy for power cuts that have plagued people in the developing world for years. Thanks to swiftly falling prices of Chinese made solar panels and batteries, they now draw their power from the sun.”
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/30/c...
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/30/c...
Cheap Solar Is Transforming Lives and Economies Across Africa
www.nytimes.com
December 30, 2025 at 6:35 PM
biggest technological revolution of our lifetimes and it's not AI or blockchain or cryptocurrency or metaverse.
Reposted by Dave Palfrey
2025 has provided a terrifying sense of how dramatically socio-technical systems can career out of human control. In 2026 let’s all find ways to re-assert the common good together. Happy New Year Bluesky!
January 1, 2026 at 12:04 AM
2025 has provided a terrifying sense of how dramatically socio-technical systems can career out of human control. In 2026 let’s all find ways to re-assert the common good together. Happy New Year Bluesky!
Pleased with this 2025 achievement! The countries shaded red amount to half world population, but are grievously under-represented on Wikidata. 2025 saw over 20,000 women from these countries added, up from ~34,500 to over 55,000. A year ago they were only 0.83% of Wikidata bios. Now they're 1.17%.
Yay! I've reached my first #Wikidata global representation goal! Women from the countries shaded red are 25% of global population, but in Dec '24 were only 0.83% of Wikidata bios. I set a target to increase this to 1%. Four months later, with 10,000 women added, they're now 1.01% of Wikidata bios!
December 31, 2025 at 9:15 PM
Pleased with this 2025 achievement! The countries shaded red amount to half world population, but are grievously under-represented on Wikidata. 2025 saw over 20,000 women from these countries added, up from ~34,500 to over 55,000. A year ago they were only 0.83% of Wikidata bios. Now they're 1.17%.
Reposted by Dave Palfrey
UN experts urge UK “to immediately guarantee appropriate healthcare for all hunger strikers, and engage in meaningful dialogue and action to address not only the claims of the protestors, but also … an end to the repression of Palestine activism.”
www.ohchr.org/en/press-rel...
www.ohchr.org/en/press-rel...
UN experts urge UK to protect lives and rights of pro-Palestinian detainees on hunger strike
GENEVA – UN experts* today expressed grave concern for the lives and fundamental rights of eight pro-Palestinian activists imprisoned in the United Kingdom, who have been on indefinite hunger strike s...
www.ohchr.org
December 27, 2025 at 7:55 AM
UN experts urge UK “to immediately guarantee appropriate healthcare for all hunger strikers, and engage in meaningful dialogue and action to address not only the claims of the protestors, but also … an end to the repression of Palestine activism.”
www.ohchr.org/en/press-rel...
www.ohchr.org/en/press-rel...
Reposted by Dave Palfrey
We are so back baby
私たちは戻ってきたぞ、ベイビー！
私たちは戻ってきたぞ、ベイビー！
potential EME alert 🚨- apparently the Japanese are signing up to bluesky in droves. If you check the newskies feed 99% of posts are now Japanese
cc: @surfdude29.ispost.ing @laurenshof.online
cc: @surfdude29.ispost.ing @laurenshof.online
December 24, 2025 at 11:24 PM
We are so back baby
私たちは戻ってきたぞ、ベイビー！
私たちは戻ってきたぞ、ベイビー！
Reposted by Dave Palfrey
I am working on a Medieval (late 13th C.) Latin translation of Ibn Rushd. I found this annotation in Hebrew on the last folium. Can someone help me with this? Might it be a Latin hand writing in Hebrew? Thanks 🙏
December 22, 2025 at 11:22 AM
I am working on a Medieval (late 13th C.) Latin translation of Ibn Rushd. I found this annotation in Hebrew on the last folium. Can someone help me with this? Might it be a Latin hand writing in Hebrew? Thanks 🙏