Gordon
@gordon.bsky.social
Everything around me was someone’s lifework.
Pinned
Gordon
@gordon.bsky.social
· Apr 22
self-certifying data… over http
Reposted by Gordon
infinte jestcore
In Neal Stephenson’s novel Fall, they called this getting “facebooked”. Algorithmic fever hallucination injected straight into the eyeballs. Like digital meth.
The videos have no plot, no stories, no characters. All I see are explanatory-seeming kernels of truth-sounding bites, churned up in a stupefying, frothing soup of morphing images, captions, voices.
I don't know how to fight against this.
I don't know how to fight against this.
January 15, 2026 at 9:28 PM
infinte jestcore
In Neal Stephenson’s novel Fall, they called this getting “facebooked”. Algorithmic fever hallucination injected straight into the eyeballs. Like digital meth.
The videos have no plot, no stories, no characters. All I see are explanatory-seeming kernels of truth-sounding bites, churned up in a stupefying, frothing soup of morphing images, captions, voices.
I don't know how to fight against this.
I don't know how to fight against this.
January 15, 2026 at 9:19 PM
In Neal Stephenson’s novel Fall, they called this getting “facebooked”. Algorithmic fever hallucination injected straight into the eyeballs. Like digital meth.
2026: the year of Linux on the desktop 😈
Kind of surreal seeing Claude Code Cowork use the same Linux-as-a-library-VM trick on macOS we first shipped in Docker for Desktop a decade ago (anil.recoil.org/papers/2025-...). Looks like the architecture of embedding Linux on any non-Linux desktop is now everywhere!
anil.recoil.org
January 14, 2026 at 8:58 AM
2026: the year of Linux on the desktop 😈
Reposted by Gordon
reading a record? i'll show you something interesting. the two types of data formats are json and sqlite. all data fall into these two categories
January 12, 2026 at 7:12 PM
reading a record? i'll show you something interesting. the two types of data formats are json and sqlite. all data fall into these two categories
Reposted by Gordon
One idea that stuck with me is that the job of the ego is to negotiate between the desires of the superego (moralizing self) and the id (instinctual self). Finding excuses to engage in self-righteous cruelty is therefore very popular, because it satisfies both!
November 25, 2024 at 4:46 PM
One idea that stuck with me is that the job of the ego is to negotiate between the desires of the superego (moralizing self) and the id (instinctual self). Finding excuses to engage in self-righteous cruelty is therefore very popular, because it satisfies both!
Always bet on text.
administration of a Linux system is done by editing text files, since pretty much all settings of the system are a defined in some text file.
this quirk has, by accident, turned into a UX superpower in the age of text-based AIs, which will fix your problem... by asking it to do so.
this quirk has, by accident, turned into a UX superpower in the age of text-based AIs, which will fix your problem... by asking it to do so.
January 14, 2026 at 7:28 AM
Always bet on text.
friction is generated from a differential in speeds
January 13, 2026 at 12:20 PM
friction is generated from a differential in speeds
Reposted by Gordon
context is like modelling a world in a text adventure. by arranging the set of actions at locations in a space(time), a world is implied.
in a “good game” the arrangement of the context must try to anticipate many traversals of that space while leaving room for agency and (hopefully) fun
in a “good game” the arrangement of the context must try to anticipate many traversals of that space while leaving room for agency and (hopefully) fun
January 13, 2026 at 11:44 AM
context is like modelling a world in a text adventure. by arranging the set of actions at locations in a space(time), a world is implied.
in a “good game” the arrangement of the context must try to anticipate many traversals of that space while leaving room for agency and (hopefully) fun
in a “good game” the arrangement of the context must try to anticipate many traversals of that space while leaving room for agency and (hopefully) fun
It’s astounding how fully the artists of the 70s anticipated the tensions that would arise in generative AI. Eno, Cage, Riley, le Witt…
“Art, at its most significant, is a Distant Early Warning system that can always be relied on to tell the old culture what is beginning to happen to it”. -McLuhan
“Art, at its most significant, is a Distant Early Warning system that can always be relied on to tell the old culture what is beginning to happen to it”. -McLuhan
I like seeing this through the lens of generative music. “An experimental composition aims to set in motion a system that will generate unique (that is, not necessarily repeatable) outputs, but that, at the same, seeks to limit the range of these outputs.” www.moredarkthanshark.org/eno_int_stud...
Brian Eno is MORE DARK THAN SHARK
Brian Eno is MORE DARK THAN SHARK - an archive of interviews, articles, albums, lyrics and other information about the ambient music master, visual artist and producer of David Bowie, U2 and Coldplay.
www.moredarkthanshark.org
January 13, 2026 at 9:50 AM
It’s astounding how fully the artists of the 70s anticipated the tensions that would arise in generative AI. Eno, Cage, Riley, le Witt…
“Art, at its most significant, is a Distant Early Warning system that can always be relied on to tell the old culture what is beginning to happen to it”. -McLuhan
“Art, at its most significant, is a Distant Early Warning system that can always be relied on to tell the old culture what is beginning to happen to it”. -McLuhan
Another challenge here is navigating who holds requisite variety and for what. Where are we willing to allow the agent variety? There’s a fundamental tension between exactness and creativity.
I’m many ways, high level languages with frameworks and decent libraries already resemble spec writing.. perhaps this should just be pushed further to eliminate all boilerplate.
The tension is really: how to be precise in your instructions while also being time efficient
The tension is really: how to be precise in your instructions while also being time efficient
January 13, 2026 at 9:06 AM
Another challenge here is navigating who holds requisite variety and for what. Where are we willing to allow the agent variety? There’s a fundamental tension between exactness and creativity.
There is a fundamental tension in decentralized networks such as the Internet. They actually increase centralization because they remove gatekeepers, making preferential attachment frictionless.
January 13, 2026 at 8:41 AM
There is a fundamental tension in decentralized networks such as the Internet. They actually increase centralization because they remove gatekeepers, making preferential attachment frictionless.
powerful
the only agency I feel nowadays is to make my own software
January 12, 2026 at 3:50 PM
powerful
Reposted by Gordon
“the cybernetic equivalent of logic is oscillation”
Risk, uncertainty, and the difference between a forecast and a scenario newsletter.squishy.computer/p/strategy-i...
Strategy in four worlds
Different environments require different survival strategies
newsletter.squishy.computer
January 11, 2026 at 10:08 PM
“the cybernetic equivalent of logic is oscillation”
The concentric circles of Gobekli Tepe remind me of Richard Serra sculptures
January 11, 2026 at 5:33 PM
The concentric circles of Gobekli Tepe remind me of Richard Serra sculptures
Risk, uncertainty, and the difference between a forecast and a scenario newsletter.squishy.computer/p/strategy-i...
Strategy in four worlds
Different environments require different survival strategies
newsletter.squishy.computer
January 11, 2026 at 3:54 PM
Risk, uncertainty, and the difference between a forecast and a scenario newsletter.squishy.computer/p/strategy-i...
Unironically, this makes me realize that our physical environment will be increasingly reorganized around the logic of vectors that happen to be clustered in latent space.
*OF COURSE AI-clusters "belong in outer space," not because that makes any sense technically, but because they're very closely-related stochastically in the scraped-and-harvested Internet discourse
January 10, 2026 at 7:43 AM
Unironically, this makes me realize that our physical environment will be increasingly reorganized around the logic of vectors that happen to be clustered in latent space.
Reposted by Gordon
Survival of the fittest code!
Our paper explores LLMs driving an evolutionary arms race in Core War, where assembly programs fight each other. We task LLMs with evolving "Warriors" in a virtual machine, producing chaotic, self-modifying code dynamics.
Blog: sakana.ai/drq
Paper: pub.sakana.ai/drq/
Our paper explores LLMs driving an evolutionary arms race in Core War, where assembly programs fight each other. We task LLMs with evolving "Warriors" in a virtual machine, producing chaotic, self-modifying code dynamics.
Blog: sakana.ai/drq
Paper: pub.sakana.ai/drq/
Introducing Digital Red Queen (DRQ): Adversarial Program Evolution in Core War with LLMs.
In this work, we explore how LLMs can drive open-ended adversarial evolution of programs within the Core War environment.
Blog sakana.ai/drq
Website pub.sakana.ai/drq/
ArXiv arxiv.org/abs/2601.03335
Thread:
In this work, we explore how LLMs can drive open-ended adversarial evolution of programs within the Core War environment.
Blog sakana.ai/drq
Website pub.sakana.ai/drq/
ArXiv arxiv.org/abs/2601.03335
Thread:
January 8, 2026 at 5:11 PM
Survival of the fittest code!
Our paper explores LLMs driving an evolutionary arms race in Core War, where assembly programs fight each other. We task LLMs with evolving "Warriors" in a virtual machine, producing chaotic, self-modifying code dynamics.
Blog: sakana.ai/drq
Paper: pub.sakana.ai/drq/
Our paper explores LLMs driving an evolutionary arms race in Core War, where assembly programs fight each other. We task LLMs with evolving "Warriors" in a virtual machine, producing chaotic, self-modifying code dynamics.
Blog: sakana.ai/drq
Paper: pub.sakana.ai/drq/
"Anekāntavāda ("many-sidedness") is the Jain doctrine that ultimate truth and reality is complex and has multiple aspects and viewpoints. According to Jainism, no single, specific statement can describe the nature of existence and the absolute truth." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anekant...
Anekantavada - Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org
January 8, 2026 at 6:53 PM
"Anekāntavāda ("many-sidedness") is the Jain doctrine that ultimate truth and reality is complex and has multiple aspects and viewpoints. According to Jainism, no single, specific statement can describe the nature of existence and the absolute truth." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anekant...
THOMASINA: Do we believe nature is written in numbers?
SEPTIMUS: We do.
THOMASINA: Then why do your shapes describe only the shapes of manufacture?
SEPTIMUS: I do not know.
THOMASINA: Armed thus, God could only make a cabinet.
SEPTIMUS: We do.
THOMASINA: Then why do your shapes describe only the shapes of manufacture?
SEPTIMUS: I do not know.
THOMASINA: Armed thus, God could only make a cabinet.
January 8, 2026 at 6:40 PM
THOMASINA: Do we believe nature is written in numbers?
SEPTIMUS: We do.
THOMASINA: Then why do your shapes describe only the shapes of manufacture?
SEPTIMUS: I do not know.
THOMASINA: Armed thus, God could only make a cabinet.
SEPTIMUS: We do.
THOMASINA: Then why do your shapes describe only the shapes of manufacture?
SEPTIMUS: I do not know.
THOMASINA: Armed thus, God could only make a cabinet.
Reposted by Gordon
This reminds me of the Law of Requisite Variety -- controlling a situation (that is, reducing its variability) doesn't _eliminate_ the variability, it moves it elsewhere in the (larger) system.
January 7, 2026 at 2:56 PM
This reminds me of the Law of Requisite Variety -- controlling a situation (that is, reducing its variability) doesn't _eliminate_ the variability, it moves it elsewhere in the (larger) system.
the most ambitious crossover event in history
SFI welcomes Miller Scholar Francis Spufford.
A Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, he teaches at Goldsmiths, University of London. His books, including Red Plenty, Golden Hill, and the forthcoming Nonesuch, explore the entanglement of historical, economic, and social forces.
A Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, he teaches at Goldsmiths, University of London. His books, including Red Plenty, Golden Hill, and the forthcoming Nonesuch, explore the entanglement of historical, economic, and social forces.
SFI welcomes Miller Scholar Francis Spufford
Francis Spufford, an internationally award-winning writer of nonfiction and fiction, has joined SFI as Miller Scholar. A Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, Francis Spufford teaches writing at ...
www.santafe.edu
January 7, 2026 at 6:16 PM
the most ambitious crossover event in history
Reposted by Gordon
The bots will not use physical cash.
January 6, 2026 at 4:01 PM
The bots will not use physical cash.
LLM-as-judge is unreasonably effective
Its noticing others gaining the same insight about adverserial loops improving output
www.reddit.com/r/ClaudeAI/c...
www.reddit.com/r/ClaudeAI/c...
From the ClaudeAI community on Reddit
Explore this post and more from the ClaudeAI community
www.reddit.com
January 7, 2026 at 5:47 AM
LLM-as-judge is unreasonably effective
Reposted by Gordon
this niche/targeted bluesky client that @mariaa.bsky.social and @eugenevinitsky.bsky.social are building is super interesting — it’s for researchers, by researchers…
super excited to see more new clients popping up that aren’t trying to be for everyone but rather for a specific community
super excited to see more new clients popping up that aren’t trying to be for everyone but rather for a specific community
While we also hype the moderation features, I'm really excited about the paper discovery tools @mariaa.bsky.social and I are starting to build. Open social means we can bootstrap onto existing discussions that are happening
January 6, 2026 at 1:33 AM
this niche/targeted bluesky client that @mariaa.bsky.social and @eugenevinitsky.bsky.social are building is super interesting — it’s for researchers, by researchers…
super excited to see more new clients popping up that aren’t trying to be for everyone but rather for a specific community
super excited to see more new clients popping up that aren’t trying to be for everyone but rather for a specific community
Reposted by Gordon
I am so glad Moxie is building again. We all benefit.
The architecture described here is how to use cloud for compute in a privacy-preserving way.* In this case, for a personal AI agent.
*Yes, I'm aware TEEs have been broke in the past...
confer.to/blog/2026/01...
The architecture described here is how to use cloud for compute in a privacy-preserving way.* In this case, for a personal AI agent.
*Yes, I'm aware TEEs have been broke in the past...
confer.to/blog/2026/01...
Private inference
When you use an AI service, you’re handing over your thoughts in plaintext. The operator stores them, trains on them, and–inevitably–will monetize them. You get a response; they get everything.
confer.to
January 5, 2026 at 6:47 PM
I am so glad Moxie is building again. We all benefit.
The architecture described here is how to use cloud for compute in a privacy-preserving way.* In this case, for a personal AI agent.
*Yes, I'm aware TEEs have been broke in the past...
confer.to/blog/2026/01...
The architecture described here is how to use cloud for compute in a privacy-preserving way.* In this case, for a personal AI agent.
*Yes, I'm aware TEEs have been broke in the past...
confer.to/blog/2026/01...