U Michigan admissions office doing its best to distract attention from the UC San Diego admissions debacle: www.reddit.com/r/ApplyingTo...
From the ApplyingToCollege community on Reddit
Explore this post and more from the ApplyingToCollege community
www.reddit.com
January 6, 2026 at 6:17 PM
U Michigan admissions office doing its best to distract attention from the UC San Diego admissions debacle: www.reddit.com/r/ApplyingTo...
Ms17 went to the DMV to get her REAL ID today. After 5 minutes, “I’d like to speak Spanish, but this looks like a place ICE might raid; I’d better not.”
January 5, 2026 at 10:32 PM
Ms17 went to the DMV to get her REAL ID today. After 5 minutes, “I’d like to speak Spanish, but this looks like a place ICE might raid; I’d better not.”
@stevevladeck.bsky.social, "there’s something deeply thuggish about this entire affair, and fundamentally contrary to what I’d always understood the United States’ position in the world to be" www.stevevladeck.com/p/200-five-q...
200. Five Questions About the Maduro Arrest Operation
Friday night's U.S. military operation in Venezuela was a textbook violation of international law. It's also entirely unauthorized by U.S. law, which ought to (but probably won't) matter.
www.stevevladeck.com
January 4, 2026 at 2:03 AM
@stevevladeck.bsky.social, "there’s something deeply thuggish about this entire affair, and fundamentally contrary to what I’d always understood the United States’ position in the world to be" www.stevevladeck.com/p/200-five-q...
Reposted by David Meyer
This person went on a buying spree over the past 24 hours. Fresh wallet. Only existed since Dec 27th and has only bet on Venezuela-related markets.
polymarket.com/@0x31a56e9E6...
polymarket.com/@0x31a56e9E6...
January 3, 2026 at 7:49 AM
This person went on a buying spree over the past 24 hours. Fresh wallet. Only existed since Dec 27th and has only bet on Venezuela-related markets.
polymarket.com/@0x31a56e9E6...
polymarket.com/@0x31a56e9E6...
Reposted by David Meyer
Have been begging to use more analytics for yrs at @caltech.edu. Now it’s used sparingly. We get sooo many applications, a large % are not strong enough.
@virginiatech.bsky.social “A second person will step in if the AI and human reader disagree by more than two points on a 12-point scoring scale”
@virginiatech.bsky.social “A second person will step in if the AI and human reader disagree by more than two points on a 12-point scoring scale”
AI is scoring college essays & conducting interviews www.latimes.com/california/s...
At this rate, it’d be fairest to do college admissions by lottery (with attention to inclusion) of all qualified applicants. Given what’ll obvi go wrong here & the defunding of higher ed, maybe this‘ll lead there?
At this rate, it’d be fairest to do college admissions by lottery (with attention to inclusion) of all qualified applicants. Given what’ll obvi go wrong here & the defunding of higher ed, maybe this‘ll lead there?
AI is scoring college essays and conducting interviews, a new layer in admissions stress
Applicants are not supposed to use AI to write college essays. But colleges are using AI to help assess applications. At Caltech, that includes holding interviews.
www.latimes.com
January 2, 2026 at 9:29 PM
Have been begging to use more analytics for yrs at @caltech.edu. Now it’s used sparingly. We get sooo many applications, a large % are not strong enough.
@virginiatech.bsky.social “A second person will step in if the AI and human reader disagree by more than two points on a 12-point scoring scale”
@virginiatech.bsky.social “A second person will step in if the AI and human reader disagree by more than two points on a 12-point scoring scale”
A college app asks Ms17 to pick a song representing her life, so she's listening to "Il était un petit navire" youtu.be/DL2uZ1fotAw?...
& Édith Piaf, "Non, je ne regrette rien" youtu.be/rzy2wZSg5ZM?...
But assuming readers won't know French, I expect she'll go w/an English one.
& Édith Piaf, "Non, je ne regrette rien" youtu.be/rzy2wZSg5ZM?...
But assuming readers won't know French, I expect she'll go w/an English one.
Edith Piaf - Non, je ne regrette rien (Officiel) [Live Version]
YouTube video by Edith Piaf
youtu.be
December 31, 2025 at 10:35 PM
A college app asks Ms17 to pick a song representing her life, so she's listening to "Il était un petit navire" youtu.be/DL2uZ1fotAw?...
& Édith Piaf, "Non, je ne regrette rien" youtu.be/rzy2wZSg5ZM?...
But assuming readers won't know French, I expect she'll go w/an English one.
& Édith Piaf, "Non, je ne regrette rien" youtu.be/rzy2wZSg5ZM?...
But assuming readers won't know French, I expect she'll go w/an English one.
Reposted by David Meyer
WORD FACT
What it really means to make a New Year’s resolution:
“Resolution” comes from the Latin “resolvere”: to loosen, untie, or dissolve.
What is “soluble” can be broken into components. “Resolution” means making something clear by unbinding it.
[1/3]
What it really means to make a New Year’s resolution:
“Resolution” comes from the Latin “resolvere”: to loosen, untie, or dissolve.
What is “soluble” can be broken into components. “Resolution” means making something clear by unbinding it.
[1/3]
December 31, 2025 at 10:57 AM
WORD FACT
What it really means to make a New Year’s resolution:
“Resolution” comes from the Latin “resolvere”: to loosen, untie, or dissolve.
What is “soluble” can be broken into components. “Resolution” means making something clear by unbinding it.
[1/3]
What it really means to make a New Year’s resolution:
“Resolution” comes from the Latin “resolvere”: to loosen, untie, or dissolve.
What is “soluble” can be broken into components. “Resolution” means making something clear by unbinding it.
[1/3]
I'm reading an interview with Marxist Japanese physicist and philosopher, 武谷 三男/Taketani Mitsuo: academic.oup.com/ptps/article...
"Many accelerator experiments can be described as 'selling dog's meat by advertising with a sheep's head'."
"Many accelerator experiments can be described as 'selling dog's meat by advertising with a sheep's head'."
7. Physics and Philosophy: Interview with Mituo Taketani
Abstract. This is an interview with Mituo Taketani carried out by L. M. Brown, Y. Fujimoto, M. Konuma, M. Nagasaki and T. Tsuji at Taketani’s office, Shinj
academic.oup.com
December 30, 2025 at 10:08 AM
I'm reading an interview with Marxist Japanese physicist and philosopher, 武谷 三男/Taketani Mitsuo: academic.oup.com/ptps/article...
"Many accelerator experiments can be described as 'selling dog's meat by advertising with a sheep's head'."
"Many accelerator experiments can be described as 'selling dog's meat by advertising with a sheep's head'."
Moon among the clouds:
December 30, 2025 at 5:34 AM
Moon among the clouds:
Geiser, "Academic standards haven’t slipped." This is a lie. See the @ucsandiego.bsky.social Senate-Administration Workgroup on Admissions report: senate.ucsd.edu/media/740347...
December 29, 2025 at 6:22 AM
Geiser, "Academic standards haven’t slipped." This is a lie. See the @ucsandiego.bsky.social Senate-Administration Workgroup on Admissions report: senate.ucsd.edu/media/740347...
Reposted by David Meyer
New paper published in @physreva.bsky.social, jointly with Kyrylo Simonov (Vienna) and Rafael Wagner (INL/Minho/Ulm)! We simplify the estimation of multivariate traces/Bargmann invariants using partial classical info. Thanks @quantumrw.bsky.social and Kyrylo! journals.aps.org/pra/abstract...
Estimation of multivariate traces of states given partial classical information
Bargmann invariants of order $n$, defined as multivariate traces of quantum states $\text{Tr}[{\ensuremath{\rho}}_{1}{\ensuremath{\rho}}_{2}...{\ensuremath{\rho}}_{n}]$, are useful in applications ran...
journals.aps.org
December 26, 2025 at 9:09 PM
New paper published in @physreva.bsky.social, jointly with Kyrylo Simonov (Vienna) and Rafael Wagner (INL/Minho/Ulm)! We simplify the estimation of multivariate traces/Bargmann invariants using partial classical info. Thanks @quantumrw.bsky.social and Kyrylo! journals.aps.org/pra/abstract...
A bookish Christmas at our house:
@rfkuang.bsky.social, Katabasis
S. S. Yambao, Water Moon
E. Woods, The Lost Bookshop
@kma500.sfba.social.ap.brid.gy, The Expert of Subtle Revisions
K. X. Song, The Dragon Wakes with Thunder
B. Garmus, Lessons in Chemistry
@philippullman.bsky.social, The Book of Dust
@rfkuang.bsky.social, Katabasis
S. S. Yambao, Water Moon
E. Woods, The Lost Bookshop
@kma500.sfba.social.ap.brid.gy, The Expert of Subtle Revisions
K. X. Song, The Dragon Wakes with Thunder
B. Garmus, Lessons in Chemistry
@philippullman.bsky.social, The Book of Dust
December 26, 2025 at 12:17 AM
A bookish Christmas at our house:
@rfkuang.bsky.social, Katabasis
S. S. Yambao, Water Moon
E. Woods, The Lost Bookshop
@kma500.sfba.social.ap.brid.gy, The Expert of Subtle Revisions
K. X. Song, The Dragon Wakes with Thunder
B. Garmus, Lessons in Chemistry
@philippullman.bsky.social, The Book of Dust
@rfkuang.bsky.social, Katabasis
S. S. Yambao, Water Moon
E. Woods, The Lost Bookshop
@kma500.sfba.social.ap.brid.gy, The Expert of Subtle Revisions
K. X. Song, The Dragon Wakes with Thunder
B. Garmus, Lessons in Chemistry
@philippullman.bsky.social, The Book of Dust
Robinson Jeffers, Wonder and Joy
⋮
And I, so long as life and sense endure,
(Or brief be they!) shall nevermore inure
My heart to the recurrence of the springs,
Of gray dawns, the gracious evenings,
The infinite wheeling stars. ...
poets.org/poem/wonder-...
⋮
And I, so long as life and sense endure,
(Or brief be they!) shall nevermore inure
My heart to the recurrence of the springs,
Of gray dawns, the gracious evenings,
The infinite wheeling stars. ...
poets.org/poem/wonder-...
Wonder and Joy
The things that one grows tired of—O, be sure
poets.org
December 24, 2025 at 11:37 PM
Robinson Jeffers, Wonder and Joy
⋮
And I, so long as life and sense endure,
(Or brief be they!) shall nevermore inure
My heart to the recurrence of the springs,
Of gray dawns, the gracious evenings,
The infinite wheeling stars. ...
poets.org/poem/wonder-...
⋮
And I, so long as life and sense endure,
(Or brief be they!) shall nevermore inure
My heart to the recurrence of the springs,
Of gray dawns, the gracious evenings,
The infinite wheeling stars. ...
poets.org/poem/wonder-...
We took a break from Ms17 writing college application essays to hike down to the beach where we saw this great blue heron:
December 24, 2025 at 6:08 PM
We took a break from Ms17 writing college application essays to hike down to the beach where we saw this great blue heron:
“It was unclear how property material complies with the redaction standard under the law.”
December 24, 2025 at 3:45 AM
“It was unclear how property material complies with the redaction standard under the law.”
Not a big fan of “reading group guides” at the end of books, but this question is funny. The author is the right age to know Harlan Ellison’s “A boy and his dog”, but I see no acknowledgment of its influence thenerddaily.com/author-inter...
December 23, 2025 at 3:56 AM
Not a big fan of “reading group guides” at the end of books, but this question is funny. The author is the right age to know Harlan Ellison’s “A boy and his dog”, but I see no acknowledgment of its influence thenerddaily.com/author-inter...
Aaronson, More on whether useful quantum computing is “imminent” scottaaronson.blog?p=9425
"after you hack away the dense thickets of obfuscation and hype"
"after you hack away the dense thickets of obfuscation and hype"
More on whether useful quantum computing is “imminent”
These days, the most common question I get goes something like this: A decade ago, you told people that scalable quantum computing wasn’t imminent. Now, though, you claim it plausibly is immi…
scottaaronson.blog
December 21, 2025 at 10:26 PM
Aaronson, More on whether useful quantum computing is “imminent” scottaaronson.blog?p=9425
"after you hack away the dense thickets of obfuscation and hype"
"after you hack away the dense thickets of obfuscation and hype"
Reposted by David Meyer
We’ve served our country in uniform. Now we are stepping up to serve again.
We are The Hell Cats — four female veterans that are going to flip the House in 2026.
Join the mission → hellcats.us
We are The Hell Cats — four female veterans that are going to flip the House in 2026.
Join the mission → hellcats.us
November 12, 2025 at 10:16 PM
We’ve served our country in uniform. Now we are stepping up to serve again.
We are The Hell Cats — four female veterans that are going to flip the House in 2026.
Join the mission → hellcats.us
We are The Hell Cats — four female veterans that are going to flip the House in 2026.
Join the mission → hellcats.us
A very happy prickly pear in #RoseCanyon, #SanDiego.
December 19, 2025 at 3:36 AM
A very happy prickly pear in #RoseCanyon, #SanDiego.
@pbaskar.bsky.social, Korea’s English Exam Was So Hard It Prompted an Apology. How Would You Do? www.nytimes.com/2025/12/13/w...
4/4 Good to confirm I know English (although helping Ms17 prepare for ACT & AP English last year no doubt helped!). Definitely couldn't do this in any other language.
4/4 Good to confirm I know English (although helping Ms17 prepare for ACT & AP English last year no doubt helped!). Definitely couldn't do this in any other language.
Korea’s English Exam Was So Hard It Prompted an Apology. How Would You Do?
www.nytimes.com
December 15, 2025 at 11:27 PM
@pbaskar.bsky.social, Korea’s English Exam Was So Hard It Prompted an Apology. How Would You Do? www.nytimes.com/2025/12/13/w...
4/4 Good to confirm I know English (although helping Ms17 prepare for ACT & AP English last year no doubt helped!). Definitely couldn't do this in any other language.
4/4 Good to confirm I know English (although helping Ms17 prepare for ACT & AP English last year no doubt helped!). Definitely couldn't do this in any other language.
@anthonyetherin.bsky.social, "My background in formal poetry led me to compose palindromic sonnets and other metred palindromes, but my background in mathematical physics soon took me in a very different experimental direction."
Also in July, I participated in the Bridges 2025 conference in Eindhoven, where I presented my paper “Aelindromes: Advancing the Palindrome”: archive.bridgesmathart.org/2025/bridges...
archive.bridgesmathart.org
December 15, 2025 at 6:55 PM
@anthonyetherin.bsky.social, "My background in formal poetry led me to compose palindromic sonnets and other metred palindromes, but my background in mathematical physics soon took me in a very different experimental direction."
@theswinerepublic.bsky.social, Tiling for Dollars riverraccoon.substack.com/p/tiling-for...
"Since the wetlands are now long gone, the reasons for continued tiling in the present day have evolved into something akin to Pete Hegseth rationalizing why he needs another Red Bull."
"Since the wetlands are now long gone, the reasons for continued tiling in the present day have evolved into something akin to Pete Hegseth rationalizing why he needs another Red Bull."
Tiling for Dollars
A high level discussion is needed about drainage tile
riverraccoon.substack.com
December 15, 2025 at 6:24 PM
@theswinerepublic.bsky.social, Tiling for Dollars riverraccoon.substack.com/p/tiling-for...
"Since the wetlands are now long gone, the reasons for continued tiling in the present day have evolved into something akin to Pete Hegseth rationalizing why he needs another Red Bull."
"Since the wetlands are now long gone, the reasons for continued tiling in the present day have evolved into something akin to Pete Hegseth rationalizing why he needs another Red Bull."