Dave Andress
@davidandress.bsky.social
Historian of revolution, pessimistic anarchist. Nobody else wants these views, trust me. 'His real face is a hat' - Fern Riddell.
Reposted by Dave Andress
First they came for the Humanities....
There are just 22.5 postdoctoral positions starting on new STFC astronomy grants in 2026, compared to 80-85 two years ago
Data is from a report by STFC’s Astronomy Grants Panel, whose chair Mark Sullivan did not mince his words, saying UK astronomy faces an “unprecedented funding crisis”
...
Data is from a report by STFC’s Astronomy Grants Panel, whose chair Mark Sullivan did not mince his words, saying UK astronomy faces an “unprecedented funding crisis”
...
February 18, 2026 at 3:40 PM
First they came for the Humanities....
Reposted by Dave Andress
The left is left solely with scolding because the right holds the power to literally kill en masse, which apparently means we are the meanies, not the Gestapo.
I find it frustrating that the left has been characterized as more prone to scolding when the right’s entire culture is built on an openly insidious kind of scolding
February 18, 2026 at 3:41 PM
The left is left solely with scolding because the right holds the power to literally kill en masse, which apparently means we are the meanies, not the Gestapo.
Enjoyed being in a meeting this pm where, one by one, at ten-minute intervals, everyone using an employer-supplied laptop PC had it forcibly reboot on them.
February 18, 2026 at 3:41 PM
Enjoyed being in a meeting this pm where, one by one, at ten-minute intervals, everyone using an employer-supplied laptop PC had it forcibly reboot on them.
So, what we're saying here is, a handful of predatory companies have used borrowed money to buy up not only a vital resource for the functioning of everyday life, but all the future production of that vital resource for several years ahead?
When does the UN Security Council meet on this?
When does the UN Security Council meet on this?
The personal computing market thrived because of healthy demand from a mass of consumers willing to buy all the new upgraded tech pouring into the market. A competitor has arrived, ai data centers, that completely drowns out the aggregate demand of the pc market.
February 18, 2026 at 3:39 PM
So, what we're saying here is, a handful of predatory companies have used borrowed money to buy up not only a vital resource for the functioning of everyday life, but all the future production of that vital resource for several years ahead?
When does the UN Security Council meet on this?
When does the UN Security Council meet on this?
Reposted by Dave Andress
Reposted by Dave Andress
Not to be a dick about this but literally all sci-fi warns you that the instruments of your convenience will also be your demise. The warning signs were there. Also this is why you shouldn’t use things like Rocket Money that claim to get you deals. Sometimes they also screw you into new contracts.
February 18, 2026 at 3:31 PM
Not to be a dick about this but literally all sci-fi warns you that the instruments of your convenience will also be your demise. The warning signs were there. Also this is why you shouldn’t use things like Rocket Money that claim to get you deals. Sometimes they also screw you into new contracts.
This cartoon was supposed to be a learning moment, guys.
February 18, 2026 at 3:34 PM
This cartoon was supposed to be a learning moment, guys.
Reposted by Dave Andress
Uhm. Yeah. This is terrible.
Seagate and WD just declared they've finished selling their stock for the year and won't be stepping up production early. Drives out on retail have doubled in cost this week. There's the rest of the year ahead.
February 18, 2026 at 3:27 PM
Uhm. Yeah. This is terrible.
It's almost as if the UK actually needed a thought-through constitutional structure of executive governance, not just whoever can cram into an old townhouse with a party leader who gets to pretend they're the monarch as long as they have the votes.
This is so good
"Appointments can be good, bad or indifferent, but it is wishful thinking to believe good people can overcome a bad system. When the problem is structural, the PM can feed all the good ... people he wants into the machine and it will ... deliver the same outcomes again and again."
"Appointments can be good, bad or indifferent, but it is wishful thinking to believe good people can overcome a bad system. When the problem is structural, the PM can feed all the good ... people he wants into the machine and it will ... deliver the same outcomes again and again."
Have written about how the below is one symptom of a really bad set-up at the centre of government. It makes sense that in the moment prime ministers keep trying to find a different person to do various jobs, but the problem is also a structural one, and the dysfunctional structure keeps on winning
February 18, 2026 at 3:28 PM
It's almost as if the UK actually needed a thought-through constitutional structure of executive governance, not just whoever can cram into an old townhouse with a party leader who gets to pretend they're the monarch as long as they have the votes.
Reposted by Dave Andress
I was excited about the mRNA work that was making all the vaccines and curing cancer and AIDS and stuff, but your fascist government is killing that for eugenics, so, maybe I don't hate technology I just hate your product and your fascist loving faces.
February 18, 2026 at 3:18 PM
I was excited about the mRNA work that was making all the vaccines and curing cancer and AIDS and stuff, but your fascist government is killing that for eugenics, so, maybe I don't hate technology I just hate your product and your fascist loving faces.
Reposted by Dave Andress
Since the troll column seems to have worked: The very very very very very very very obvious question is not "why hasn't the left embraced AI" but "why has the right so eagerly embraced a tech product built on theft, sold by fraud, and optimized for abuse and misinformation"
February 18, 2026 at 3:19 PM
Since the troll column seems to have worked: The very very very very very very very obvious question is not "why hasn't the left embraced AI" but "why has the right so eagerly embraced a tech product built on theft, sold by fraud, and optimized for abuse and misinformation"
Reposted by Dave Andress
“My bot, called Molty, likes to call itself a ‘chaos gremlin.’”
I’m gonna go ahead and stop you there.
I’m gonna go ahead and stop you there.
I Loved My OpenClaw AI Agent—Until It Turned on Me
I used the viral AI helper to order groceries, sort emails, and negotiate deals. Then it decided to scam me.
www.wired.com
February 18, 2026 at 3:23 PM
“My bot, called Molty, likes to call itself a ‘chaos gremlin.’”
I’m gonna go ahead and stop you there.
I’m gonna go ahead and stop you there.
Rather wry to have watched in my adult lifetime one of those handy little bits of Latin, like etcetera or passim, become indelibly associated in the public mind with pornography.
February 18, 2026 at 3:16 PM
Rather wry to have watched in my adult lifetime one of those handy little bits of Latin, like etcetera or passim, become indelibly associated in the public mind with pornography.
Reposted by Dave Andress
nice that the NYT is finally noticing that the USA's democratic institutions were as flawed as they were broken well before he came along
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/18/u...
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/18/u...
Why Other Democracies Don’t Gerrymander Like the U.S.
www.nytimes.com
February 18, 2026 at 3:11 PM
nice that the NYT is finally noticing that the USA's democratic institutions were as flawed as they were broken well before he came along
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/18/u...
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/18/u...
Reposted by Dave Andress
< wrestling announcer voice >
the BIBLE'S!! OOOOOOOOOORIGINAL!!!!!WOOOOOMAANNNNN!!!!!!! < airhorns >
the BIBLE'S!! OOOOOOOOOORIGINAL!!!!!WOOOOOMAANNNNN!!!!!!! < airhorns >
February 18, 2026 at 3:07 PM
< wrestling announcer voice >
the BIBLE'S!! OOOOOOOOOORIGINAL!!!!!WOOOOOMAANNNNN!!!!!!! < airhorns >
the BIBLE'S!! OOOOOOOOOORIGINAL!!!!!WOOOOOMAANNNNN!!!!!!! < airhorns >
Iceland. Population 393,000. Annual tourist visits 2,200,000.
If the UK welcomed 400 million visitors a year, it could milk them all nicely.
[We actually get about 10% of that number, who spend over £32bn. 10x that is a quarter of ALL public expenditure. So, yep.]
If the UK welcomed 400 million visitors a year, it could milk them all nicely.
[We actually get about 10% of that number, who spend over £32bn. 10x that is a quarter of ALL public expenditure. So, yep.]
I regularly see people wondering how it's possible that there are so many musicians and writers and film makers and artists from a tiny nation like Iceland.
And the answer is really simple: State funding for art education and artists. I literally get a salary from the government to write books.
And the answer is really simple: State funding for art education and artists. I literally get a salary from the government to write books.
I’m constantly astounded at the sheer level of artistic production coming out of Iceland. Novels, movies, music. Amazing.
February 18, 2026 at 3:10 PM
Iceland. Population 393,000. Annual tourist visits 2,200,000.
If the UK welcomed 400 million visitors a year, it could milk them all nicely.
[We actually get about 10% of that number, who spend over £32bn. 10x that is a quarter of ALL public expenditure. So, yep.]
If the UK welcomed 400 million visitors a year, it could milk them all nicely.
[We actually get about 10% of that number, who spend over £32bn. 10x that is a quarter of ALL public expenditure. So, yep.]
Reposted by Dave Andress
Really excellent Sonja Drimmer essay on art history and the insidiousness of "prophesying" the supposed value of genAI.
I especially appreciate the criticism of assumptions that "collaboration" with comp sci is some good in itself. Good for who and on whose terms?
bsky.app/profile/sonj...
I especially appreciate the criticism of assumptions that "collaboration" with comp sci is some good in itself. Good for who and on whose terms?
bsky.app/profile/sonj...
People who would never otherwise agree with the premise of "downsizing" but nevertheless want to stop paying people to do necessary work now get exactly the panacea they need to justify this position. AI is nothing but permission structures all the way down.
www.artforum.com/features/gen...
www.artforum.com/features/gen...
February 18, 2026 at 2:42 PM
Really excellent Sonja Drimmer essay on art history and the insidiousness of "prophesying" the supposed value of genAI.
I especially appreciate the criticism of assumptions that "collaboration" with comp sci is some good in itself. Good for who and on whose terms?
bsky.app/profile/sonj...
I especially appreciate the criticism of assumptions that "collaboration" with comp sci is some good in itself. Good for who and on whose terms?
bsky.app/profile/sonj...
"Bug".
Assholes.
Assholes.
Microsoft said the bug meant that its Copilot AI chatbot was reading and summarizing paying customers' confidential emails, bypassing data protection policies.
Microsoft says Office bug exposed customers' confidential emails to Copilot AI | TechCrunch
Microsoft said the bug meant that its Copilot AI chatbot was reading and summarizing paying customers' confidential emails, bypassing data protection policies.
techcrunch.com
February 18, 2026 at 3:04 PM
"Bug".
Assholes.
Assholes.
Nazi who takes drugs & has multiple cosmetic surgeries is narcissistic asshole, in shock news.
The disturbing rise of Clavicular: how a looksmaxxer turned his ‘horror story’ into fame
The disturbing rise of Clavicular: how a looksmaxxer turned his ‘horror story’ into fame
His gonzo argot of ‘mogging’ and ‘jestermaxxing’ masks a malign chauvinist philosophy, and his audience keeps growing
www.theguardian.com
February 18, 2026 at 2:52 PM
Nazi who takes drugs & has multiple cosmetic surgeries is narcissistic asshole, in shock news.
Reposted by Dave Andress
If you own every possible channel for information you can do whatever you like in terms of shaping perceptions of Folk Demands.
The shocking thing is despite all this, there's not a hugely unanimous hostility to trans people after years of intensive exposure to hate.
The shocking thing is despite all this, there's not a hugely unanimous hostility to trans people after years of intensive exposure to hate.
These people never grapple with the reality that the right not only outspends trans people 20:1 but they also control social media algorithms and many legacy media institutions.
They never ask the questions why public opinion changed and why certain issues are so central to the debate.
They never ask the questions why public opinion changed and why certain issues are so central to the debate.
February 18, 2026 at 2:11 PM
If you own every possible channel for information you can do whatever you like in terms of shaping perceptions of Folk Demands.
The shocking thing is despite all this, there's not a hugely unanimous hostility to trans people after years of intensive exposure to hate.
The shocking thing is despite all this, there's not a hugely unanimous hostility to trans people after years of intensive exposure to hate.
Reposted by Dave Andress
Should have waited to post this one champ
February 18, 2026 at 2:35 PM
Should have waited to post this one champ
Reposted by Dave Andress
At a certain point we need to discuss the mental regression of the average UK politician into an actual manchild
I said I was considering a protest vote for the Greens (which I acknowledge makes no sense in a local election) and his response was "yeah, but the Greens don't know what a woman is" 🙄
February 18, 2026 at 2:44 PM
At a certain point we need to discuss the mental regression of the average UK politician into an actual manchild
Reposted by Dave Andress
“Is there a technology the left is excited about?”
High-speed rail! MRNA vaccines! New cancer treatments! Solar and wind energy collection! Better and longer-range EVs! That wood that's harder than steel! New apples! Fibermaxxing! Buldak Swicy ramen! Muppets! Muppets are too a technology, shut up!
High-speed rail! MRNA vaccines! New cancer treatments! Solar and wind energy collection! Better and longer-range EVs! That wood that's harder than steel! New apples! Fibermaxxing! Buldak Swicy ramen! Muppets! Muppets are too a technology, shut up!
February 18, 2026 at 1:40 PM
“Is there a technology the left is excited about?”
High-speed rail! MRNA vaccines! New cancer treatments! Solar and wind energy collection! Better and longer-range EVs! That wood that's harder than steel! New apples! Fibermaxxing! Buldak Swicy ramen! Muppets! Muppets are too a technology, shut up!
High-speed rail! MRNA vaccines! New cancer treatments! Solar and wind energy collection! Better and longer-range EVs! That wood that's harder than steel! New apples! Fibermaxxing! Buldak Swicy ramen! Muppets! Muppets are too a technology, shut up!
Reposted by Dave Andress
Reposted by Dave Andress
I honestly think this was a wayyyy undertheorized aspect of the Obama coalition—the addition of "technology" to the Democratic party appeal allowed a multiracial, cross-class, multi-faith group to say similar words about "progress" while meaning totally different things
for a minute there a certain popular and universally positive view of "technology" really was a kind of secular religion that held the vestiges of an "American mainstream" together, but the titans on top sold off the goose that lays golden eggs and now they want to believe AI adoption is the problem
February 18, 2026 at 2:44 PM
I honestly think this was a wayyyy undertheorized aspect of the Obama coalition—the addition of "technology" to the Democratic party appeal allowed a multiracial, cross-class, multi-faith group to say similar words about "progress" while meaning totally different things