Emil Briggs
@emilbriggs.bsky.social
Physicist, dog dad and rock climber. Research interests include electronic structure methods and high performance computing.
Google Scholar.
https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=ooB4aXMAAAAJ&view_op=list_works
Google Scholar.
https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=ooB4aXMAAAAJ&view_op=list_works
It's been said before but worth repeating in light of recent events.
Even if you don't believe in climate change you'll still be subject to it's consequences.
Even if you don't believe in climate change you'll still be subject to it's consequences.
July 6, 2025 at 1:57 PM
It's been said before but worth repeating in light of recent events.
Even if you don't believe in climate change you'll still be subject to it's consequences.
Even if you don't believe in climate change you'll still be subject to it's consequences.
Reposted by Emil Briggs
We were lucky to survive 4 hurricanes when we owned different homes on Topsail Island. Driving back to see the damage to our home after Florence was like going through a warzone. But we’d been warned; the island was evacuated. People will die because of this decision.
abcnews.go.com/amp/US/hurri...
abcnews.go.com/amp/US/hurri...
Hurricane season is here and meteorologists are losing a vital tool for forecasting them
Meteorologists are losing a sophisticated tool that has proved invaluable when monitoring and forecasting hurricanes.
abcnews.go.com
June 30, 2025 at 9:09 PM
We were lucky to survive 4 hurricanes when we owned different homes on Topsail Island. Driving back to see the damage to our home after Florence was like going through a warzone. But we’d been warned; the island was evacuated. People will die because of this decision.
abcnews.go.com/amp/US/hurri...
abcnews.go.com/amp/US/hurri...
Great discussion of the AI-science hype.
May 19, 2025 at 7:06 PM
Great discussion of the AI-science hype.
I don't understand why they thought any economist is qualified to write a paper like this without enlisting a materials scientist or solid state physicist as a coauthor.
Here is a gift link for the glowing coverage this paper got, with photos of the author next to two of the finest economists in the world—who certainly did not deserve what was done to them
www.wsj.com/economy/will...
www.wsj.com/economy/will...
Will AI Help or Hurt Workers? One 26-Year-Old Found an Unexpected Answer.
New research shows AI made some workers more productive — but less happy.
www.wsj.com
May 17, 2025 at 9:15 PM
I don't understand why they thought any economist is qualified to write a paper like this without enlisting a materials scientist or solid state physicist as a coauthor.
Reposted by Emil Briggs
9 people were killed in a tornado last night in KY. The NWS office responsible for that area has faced some of the most extreme cuts by the Trump administration, including the loss of overnight forecasting.
Last night, they were rushing to find help for the office.
www.nytimes.com/2025/05/16/w...
Last night, they were rushing to find help for the office.
www.nytimes.com/2025/05/16/w...
After Cuts, a Kentucky Weather Office Scrambles for Staffing as Severe Storms Bear Down
www.nytimes.com
May 17, 2025 at 1:24 PM
9 people were killed in a tornado last night in KY. The NWS office responsible for that area has faced some of the most extreme cuts by the Trump administration, including the loss of overnight forecasting.
Last night, they were rushing to find help for the office.
www.nytimes.com/2025/05/16/w...
Last night, they were rushing to find help for the office.
www.nytimes.com/2025/05/16/w...
Bizarre tale of a paper that fooled senior MIT economists including a Nobel prize winner as well as being cited by many others. @radiofreetom.bsky.social this looks to be a classic case of death of expertise where lack of subject matter knowledge led some very smart
www.wsj.com/tech/ai/mit-...
www.wsj.com/tech/ai/mit-...
MIT Says It No Longer Stands Behind Student’s AI Research Paper
The university said it has no confidence in a widely circulated paper by an economics graduate student.
www.wsj.com
May 17, 2025 at 5:24 PM
Bizarre tale of a paper that fooled senior MIT economists including a Nobel prize winner as well as being cited by many others. @radiofreetom.bsky.social this looks to be a classic case of death of expertise where lack of subject matter knowledge led some very smart
www.wsj.com/tech/ai/mit-...
www.wsj.com/tech/ai/mit-...
Reposted by Emil Briggs
A Path Forward to Save American Bio-Medical Research talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/a-pat...
A Path Forward to Save American Bio-Medical Research
Over the past four months I’ve spoken to dozens of biomedical researchers...
talkingpointsmemo.com
May 16, 2025 at 5:32 PM
A Path Forward to Save American Bio-Medical Research talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/a-pat...
Reposted by Emil Briggs
"Women are PIs on 58% of the canceled grants, although they are PIs on only 34% of all active NSF grants.
Similarly, Blacks are PIs on 17% of the terminated grants, although they make only 4% of the total pool. Hispanic PIs and those with disabilities were twice as likely to lose a grant."
Similarly, Blacks are PIs on 17% of the terminated grants, although they make only 4% of the total pool. Hispanic PIs and those with disabilities were twice as likely to lose a grant."
Another scoop from Jeff Mervis (@policyhound.bsky.social): NSF's ~1400 grant terminations have disproportionately affected PIs from groups underrepresented in science: women, racial & ethnic minorities, & those with disabilities. 1/3
www.science.org/content/arti...
www.science.org/content/arti...
Trump officials take steps toward a radically different NSF
Efforts to shrink staff, budget, and focus have alarmed members of Congress
www.science.org
May 13, 2025 at 10:09 PM
"Women are PIs on 58% of the canceled grants, although they are PIs on only 34% of all active NSF grants.
Similarly, Blacks are PIs on 17% of the terminated grants, although they make only 4% of the total pool. Hispanic PIs and those with disabilities were twice as likely to lose a grant."
Similarly, Blacks are PIs on 17% of the terminated grants, although they make only 4% of the total pool. Hispanic PIs and those with disabilities were twice as likely to lose a grant."
Reposted by Emil Briggs
Thinking about devastating cuts to NSF: US gov-funded science has been the engine upon which most of the tech wealth was generated. But the oligarchs (currently hoarding much of that $) think it’s their own brilliance & not the accident of standing close to the scientific engine that made them rich.
May 4, 2025 at 5:47 PM
Thinking about devastating cuts to NSF: US gov-funded science has been the engine upon which most of the tech wealth was generated. But the oligarchs (currently hoarding much of that $) think it’s their own brilliance & not the accident of standing close to the scientific engine that made them rich.
Reposted by Emil Briggs
It’s only getting much play in the trade/transport niche press. But pretty real product shortages beginning in mid-May or so are already locked in. They’re maybe a thousand miles out in the Pacific Ocean. Modern trade takes place in gargantuan container ships. There are very detailed records …
April 27, 2025 at 2:19 PM
It’s only getting much play in the trade/transport niche press. But pretty real product shortages beginning in mid-May or so are already locked in. They’re maybe a thousand miles out in the Pacific Ocean. Modern trade takes place in gargantuan container ships. There are very detailed records …
Reposted by Emil Briggs
Take a lesson academia!
WATCH: Elephants at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park react to Monday's 5.2 magnitude earthquake that shook San Diego County. The elephants formed an "alert circle" meant to protect the young and the entire herd from any threats, according to the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance.
April 15, 2025 at 1:46 AM
Take a lesson academia!
Sad to see what Bezos has done to the Washington Post.
Washington Post has just defined 1900 top scientists as "several."
April 1, 2025 at 10:47 PM
Sad to see what Bezos has done to the Washington Post.
Normally the only emotion I would feel for parents who lost a child is empathy but this couple is making that really difficult.
www.independent.co.uk/news/world/a...
www.independent.co.uk/news/world/a...
Parents of child killed by measles appear in anti-vaccine video
Children’s Health Defense official says parents affected by measles outbreak ‘would rather have’ untested treatments ‘than the MMR vaccination’
www.independent.co.uk
March 21, 2025 at 12:12 AM
Normally the only emotion I would feel for parents who lost a child is empathy but this couple is making that really difficult.
www.independent.co.uk/news/world/a...
www.independent.co.uk/news/world/a...
Well dang I'm in there too!
So where do I sign up for the class action lawsuit?
Meta used at least 16 of my books, and numerous articles, to help train the AI it will use to make billions.
Authors, search your name here:
www.theatlantic.com/technology/a...
Authors, search your name here:
www.theatlantic.com/technology/a...
March 20, 2025 at 7:07 PM
Well dang I'm in there too!
Reposted by Emil Briggs
Oh, no. Fuck, no. A great way to breed lethal disease, possibly seeing more human infections, and to wipe out the living of every chicken farmer in the country. And the price of eggs?
Dumb piece of work, that Kennedy.
Dumb piece of work, that Kennedy.
The Great Barrington Declaration, but for chickens.
RFK Jr. is truly the stupidest motherfucker.
RFK Jr. is truly the stupidest motherfucker.
RFK Jr.’s Prescription for Bird Flu on Farms: Let It Spread (Gift Article)
The health secretary has suggested allowing the virus to spread, so as to identify birds that may be immune. Such an experiment would be disastrous, scientists say.
www.nytimes.com
March 18, 2025 at 11:01 PM
Oh, no. Fuck, no. A great way to breed lethal disease, possibly seeing more human infections, and to wipe out the living of every chicken farmer in the country. And the price of eggs?
Dumb piece of work, that Kennedy.
Dumb piece of work, that Kennedy.
So talking about forward bias in semiconductors would be verboten? Great.
God, that was hard to bear. Students told a physics town hall that grad schools have rescinded admission. NSF proposals are censored for words like “bias,” even when the meaning is technical. Physics curricula are being banned by school districts for encouraging girls. #APSGlobalSummit2025 #APSMarch
March 17, 2025 at 10:20 AM
So talking about forward bias in semiconductors would be verboten? Great.
Reposted by Emil Briggs
Two of the most decorated U.S. military units get scrubbed from Army website.
JACL condemns Trump erasure of 442nd and 100th Infantry Battalion – AsAmNews
The accomplishments of the Japanese American 442nd Regimental Combat unit and the 100th Infantry Battalion have been removed from the Army's website.
asamnews.com
March 15, 2025 at 7:33 PM
Two of the most decorated U.S. military units get scrubbed from Army website.
Reposted by Emil Briggs
Powerful Speeches From Trans Dems Flip 29 Republicans, Anti-Trans Bills Die In Montana
open.substack.com/pub/erininth...
open.substack.com/pub/erininth...
Powerful Speeches From Trans Dems Flip 29 Republicans, Anti-Trans Bills Die In Montana
Transgender Reps Zooey Zephyr and SJ Howell delivered powerful speeches on the Montana House floor on Thursday. Republicans defected en masse to join them in voting against anti-trans bills.
open.substack.com
March 7, 2025 at 12:07 AM
Powerful Speeches From Trans Dems Flip 29 Republicans, Anti-Trans Bills Die In Montana
open.substack.com/pub/erininth...
open.substack.com/pub/erininth...
Reposted by Emil Briggs
Some of his readers have asked Mike Masnick @mmasnick.bsky.social why his technology news site, Tech Dirt, has been covering politics so intensely lately. www.techdirt.com/2025/03/04/w...
I cannot recommend Mike's reply enough. It's exactly what readers need to hear, what journalists need to do.
I cannot recommend Mike's reply enough. It's exactly what readers need to hear, what journalists need to do.
March 7, 2025 at 12:09 AM
Some of his readers have asked Mike Masnick @mmasnick.bsky.social why his technology news site, Tech Dirt, has been covering politics so intensely lately. www.techdirt.com/2025/03/04/w...
I cannot recommend Mike's reply enough. It's exactly what readers need to hear, what journalists need to do.
I cannot recommend Mike's reply enough. It's exactly what readers need to hear, what journalists need to do.
Reposted by Emil Briggs
Ahem ... Is this on?
Yesterday our crew at @TPM launched our annual March membership drive. If you're not a member, I hope you'll consider joining. The link is right here. I wanted to take a moment to give you what I hope are good reasons to join. talkingpointsmemo.com/memberships?...
Yesterday our crew at @TPM launched our annual March membership drive. If you're not a member, I hope you'll consider joining. The link is right here. I wanted to take a moment to give you what I hope are good reasons to join. talkingpointsmemo.com/memberships?...
Memberships
Talking Points Memo (TPM) is an independent news organization that publishes reporting and analysis about American politics, public policy and political culture.
talkingpointsmemo.com
March 5, 2025 at 11:08 PM
Ahem ... Is this on?
Yesterday our crew at @TPM launched our annual March membership drive. If you're not a member, I hope you'll consider joining. The link is right here. I wanted to take a moment to give you what I hope are good reasons to join. talkingpointsmemo.com/memberships?...
Yesterday our crew at @TPM launched our annual March membership drive. If you're not a member, I hope you'll consider joining. The link is right here. I wanted to take a moment to give you what I hope are good reasons to join. talkingpointsmemo.com/memberships?...
Reposted by Emil Briggs
I don't think there's precedent for this level of open corruption at the federal level, certainly not in the last 100+ years.
SCOOP: Business leaders are paying as much as $5,000,000 to meet one-on-one with President Donald Trump at his Florida compound, sources tell WIRED, while others are paying $1,000,000 apiece to dine with him in a group setting.
People Are Paying Millions to Dine With Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago
Business leaders are paying as much as $5,000,000 to meet one-on-one with the president at his Florida compound, sources tell WIRED, while others are paying $1,000,000 apiece to dine with him in a…
buff.ly
March 4, 2025 at 4:06 PM
I don't think there's precedent for this level of open corruption at the federal level, certainly not in the last 100+ years.
Reposted by Emil Briggs
we may be one of the few pubs that got this headline right
Trump And Vance Ambush Zelensky In Prelude To Betrayal talkingpointsmemo.com/news/trump-a...
Trump And Vance Ambush Zelensky In Prelude To Betrayal talkingpointsmemo.com/news/trump-a...
Trump And Vance Ambush Zelensky In Prelude To Betrayal
President Donald Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance moved to betray a...
talkingpointsmemo.com
February 28, 2025 at 10:38 PM
we may be one of the few pubs that got this headline right
Trump And Vance Ambush Zelensky In Prelude To Betrayal talkingpointsmemo.com/news/trump-a...
Trump And Vance Ambush Zelensky In Prelude To Betrayal talkingpointsmemo.com/news/trump-a...
Reposted by Emil Briggs
We talk about Bezos, or Citi, or Big Tech, but cancer's brand is seriously in the toilet. Everyone hates it. And yet, day one hit from Trump/Musk was to shut down all federal funding for cancer cure research. And it's still mostly shut down. Have you ever known anyone with cancer?
Looking at some survey data here. Trump/Elon cutting off all cancer cure research is the issue that freaks voters out more than any other, also the one they've heard the least about. Important for voters to hear more about this.
February 28, 2025 at 2:02 PM
We talk about Bezos, or Citi, or Big Tech, but cancer's brand is seriously in the toilet. Everyone hates it. And yet, day one hit from Trump/Musk was to shut down all federal funding for cancer cure research. And it's still mostly shut down. Have you ever known anyone with cancer?
Reposted by Emil Briggs
We’ve had a good discussion today of why millions of 2024 Trump voters didn’t really know what they were voting for. None of that applies to CEOs.
February 27, 2025 at 10:25 PM
We’ve had a good discussion today of why millions of 2024 Trump voters didn’t really know what they were voting for. None of that applies to CEOs.
Reposted by Emil Briggs
Quite hard to describe massive cuts at Social Security Admin plus cancelling (without explanation) the flu vaccine committee meeting as anything other than an intentional financial, physical, and psychological attack on everyone over 65 years old.
www.nytimes.com/2025/02/26/u...
www.nytimes.com/2025/02/26/u...
SSA employee to me re: 50% staff reduction: "Can say unequivocally that such deep cuts to SSA, which is already at historically low staffing, will cause significant to extreme degradation of services, very likely including checks missed and individuals dying before their claims can be processed."
February 27, 2025 at 12:51 AM
Quite hard to describe massive cuts at Social Security Admin plus cancelling (without explanation) the flu vaccine committee meeting as anything other than an intentional financial, physical, and psychological attack on everyone over 65 years old.
www.nytimes.com/2025/02/26/u...
www.nytimes.com/2025/02/26/u...