Jens von Bergmann
@jensvb.bsky.social
Data, analysis, visualization, #CensusMapper, transportation cyclist.
📍Vancouver, BC
📍Vancouver, BC
Reposted by Jens von Bergmann
Vancouver is not a real city
February 9, 2026 at 8:03 PM
Vancouver is not a real city
Reposted by Jens von Bergmann
I made a map of 3.4 million Bluesky users - see if you can find yourself!
bluesky-map.theo.io
I've seen some similar projects, but IMO this seems to better capture some of the fine-grained detail
bluesky-map.theo.io
I've seen some similar projects, but IMO this seems to better capture some of the fine-grained detail
Bluesky Map
Interactive map of 3.4 million Bluesky users, visualised by their follower pattern.
bluesky-map.theo.io
February 8, 2026 at 10:59 PM
I made a map of 3.4 million Bluesky users - see if you can find yourself!
bluesky-map.theo.io
I've seen some similar projects, but IMO this seems to better capture some of the fine-grained detail
bluesky-map.theo.io
I've seen some similar projects, but IMO this seems to better capture some of the fine-grained detail
Reposted by Jens von Bergmann
NEW VIDEO: The Bikeshare Dilemma
Bikeshares and scootershares (also known as “Shared Micromobility) is one of the fastest growing forms of transportation on the planet today, but cities appear deeply divided on how to manage them. youtu.be/qfz6AsYycA8
Bikeshares and scootershares (also known as “Shared Micromobility) is one of the fastest growing forms of transportation on the planet today, but cities appear deeply divided on how to manage them. youtu.be/qfz6AsYycA8
The Bike Share Dilemma
YouTube video by About Here
youtu.be
February 5, 2026 at 3:16 PM
NEW VIDEO: The Bikeshare Dilemma
Bikeshares and scootershares (also known as “Shared Micromobility) is one of the fastest growing forms of transportation on the planet today, but cities appear deeply divided on how to manage them. youtu.be/qfz6AsYycA8
Bikeshares and scootershares (also known as “Shared Micromobility) is one of the fastest growing forms of transportation on the planet today, but cities appear deeply divided on how to manage them. youtu.be/qfz6AsYycA8
Reposted by Jens von Bergmann
Are "pre-rebuttals" a thing, like "pre-zonings"?
If so, here's a pre-rebuttal from @jensvb.bsky.social and I to the latest argument that supply doesn't matter (from CCPA, sigh).
The Key: Doubling up is the demographic indicator demonstrating our shortage. homefreesociology.com/2025/07/06/h...
If so, here's a pre-rebuttal from @jensvb.bsky.social and I to the latest argument that supply doesn't matter (from CCPA, sigh).
The Key: Doubling up is the demographic indicator demonstrating our shortage. homefreesociology.com/2025/07/06/h...
Housing is a Housing Problem
Co-authored by Jens von Bergmann and cross-posted at MountainMath. The main housing problem in Canada is that there is not enough of it. We can see this by looking at prices and rents, but also by …
homefreesociology.com
February 3, 2026 at 11:53 PM
Are "pre-rebuttals" a thing, like "pre-zonings"?
If so, here's a pre-rebuttal from @jensvb.bsky.social and I to the latest argument that supply doesn't matter (from CCPA, sigh).
The Key: Doubling up is the demographic indicator demonstrating our shortage. homefreesociology.com/2025/07/06/h...
If so, here's a pre-rebuttal from @jensvb.bsky.social and I to the latest argument that supply doesn't matter (from CCPA, sigh).
The Key: Doubling up is the demographic indicator demonstrating our shortage. homefreesociology.com/2025/07/06/h...
Reposted by Jens von Bergmann
Strongly agree.
From our 2023 Housing Nationalism paper:
"[R]eactionary nationalism operates as part of a cultural toolkit for solving problems, where entrepreneurs practiced in the tool can advance their own interests by seeking out and magnifying
problems to solve." hdl.handle.net/2429/87373
From our 2023 Housing Nationalism paper:
"[R]eactionary nationalism operates as part of a cultural toolkit for solving problems, where entrepreneurs practiced in the tool can advance their own interests by seeking out and magnifying
problems to solve." hdl.handle.net/2429/87373
February 3, 2026 at 12:29 AM
Strongly agree.
From our 2023 Housing Nationalism paper:
"[R]eactionary nationalism operates as part of a cultural toolkit for solving problems, where entrepreneurs practiced in the tool can advance their own interests by seeking out and magnifying
problems to solve." hdl.handle.net/2429/87373
From our 2023 Housing Nationalism paper:
"[R]eactionary nationalism operates as part of a cultural toolkit for solving problems, where entrepreneurs practiced in the tool can advance their own interests by seeking out and magnifying
problems to solve." hdl.handle.net/2429/87373
Still stunned every time a planning prof looks at the landscape of rising rates of doubling up and concludes that’s entirely due to people’s preferences. And that the strong correlation of doubling with rents is purely coincidental. And that adding homes won’t change doubling up rates.
Nearly 7 in 10 Americans say the amount of available housing contributes “a great deal” to the cost of housing, a survey found.
But supply skeptics like Michael Storper, an urban planning professor, argue that enough homes are already being built.
But supply skeptics like Michael Storper, an urban planning professor, argue that enough homes are already being built.
Are YIMBYs winning the housing wars? Not so fast, these people say.
Though the “build more” movement is chalking up wins, supply skeptics contend housing affordability calls for government policies, not just market forces.
wapo.st
February 1, 2026 at 9:15 PM
Still stunned every time a planning prof looks at the landscape of rising rates of doubling up and concludes that’s entirely due to people’s preferences. And that the strong correlation of doubling with rents is purely coincidental. And that adding homes won’t change doubling up rates.
Could all have been avoided if he had thought to sign his emails up top…
Duke professor and economist Dan Ariely had longstanding friendship with Jeffrey Epstein, newly released files show
dukechronicle.com/article/duke...
dukechronicle.com/article/duke...
Duke professor Dan Ariely had longstanding friendship with Jeffrey Epstein, newly released files show
Ariely is named in 636 of the some 3 million newly released files. He was a prominent professor at Duke over the course of his correspondence with Epstein.
dukechronicle.com
January 31, 2026 at 11:50 PM
Could all have been avoided if he had thought to sign his emails up top…
Randomly remembered going to this concert, and was trying to think how this song (originally from 1982!) fits in with current events. Back then it felt like a future to try and prevent, now it feels like a stage we already passed, roughly around the “they are eating the dogs and cats” phase.
BAP - "Kristallnaach" (Arsch huh 9.11.1992)
YouTube video by Arsch Huh
youtu.be
January 31, 2026 at 4:12 AM
Randomly remembered going to this concert, and was trying to think how this song (originally from 1982!) fits in with current events. Back then it felt like a future to try and prevent, now it feels like a stage we already passed, roughly around the “they are eating the dogs and cats” phase.
Random browsing through today's StatCan data releases, electricity generation by type in Canada. canviz.mountainmath.ca/plot?v=62783...
January 30, 2026 at 4:24 PM
Random browsing through today's StatCan data releases, electricity generation by type in Canada. canviz.mountainmath.ca/plot?v=62783...
Super interesting article. And yes, high vacancy rates in non-market housing is a sign of poorly designed policy. Also, pretty depressing what some seem think a "solution" to this misalignment is.
January 29, 2026 at 6:48 PM
Super interesting article. And yes, high vacancy rates in non-market housing is a sign of poorly designed policy. Also, pretty depressing what some seem think a "solution" to this misalignment is.
Such a confused article. Vacancy rate for “affordable housing” is not a meaningful metric.
That metric is useful for housing allocated by market mechanisms, but non-market housing gets allocated as soon as it’s available. We should look at wait lists instead, 8000+ long and ~2 years wait time in NS.
That metric is useful for housing allocated by market mechanisms, but non-market housing gets allocated as soon as it’s available. We should look at wait lists instead, 8000+ long and ~2 years wait time in NS.
January 29, 2026 at 5:33 PM
Such a confused article. Vacancy rate for “affordable housing” is not a meaningful metric.
That metric is useful for housing allocated by market mechanisms, but non-market housing gets allocated as soon as it’s available. We should look at wait lists instead, 8000+ long and ~2 years wait time in NS.
That metric is useful for housing allocated by market mechanisms, but non-market housing gets allocated as soon as it’s available. We should look at wait lists instead, 8000+ long and ~2 years wait time in NS.
Could not help myself, ran the numbers. Scrapping the Capped Assessment Program (similar to California's Prop 13) so that incumbent homeowners pay the same effective rates as newcomers or renters would yield a substantial tax revenue increase for HRM. The CAP has grown into a large fiscal liability.
January 29, 2026 at 5:52 AM
Could not help myself, ran the numbers. Scrapping the Capped Assessment Program (similar to California's Prop 13) so that incumbent homeowners pay the same effective rates as newcomers or renters would yield a substantial tax revenue increase for HRM. The CAP has grown into a large fiscal liability.
Reposted by Jens von Bergmann
Great to see Andy Ramlo's liquid demography contribution below!
Wish @jensvb.bsky.social and I had been able to include it in our post criticizing the solid demography alternatives (i.e. his red lines)... homefreesociology.com/2025/12/08/t...
Wish @jensvb.bsky.social and I had been able to include it in our post criticizing the solid demography alternatives (i.e. his red lines)... homefreesociology.com/2025/12/08/t...
January 29, 2026 at 1:36 AM
Great to see Andy Ramlo's liquid demography contribution below!
Wish @jensvb.bsky.social and I had been able to include it in our post criticizing the solid demography alternatives (i.e. his red lines)... homefreesociology.com/2025/12/08/t...
Wish @jensvb.bsky.social and I had been able to include it in our post criticizing the solid demography alternatives (i.e. his red lines)... homefreesociology.com/2025/12/08/t...
Epic thread on budget meeting and potential property tax increases in Halifax, and I wonder how much can be raised simply by killing the CAP that has protected (predominantly rich) incumbent owners from paying the higher effective tax rates newcomers and renters face.
I am at budget committee and will be live posting about it, but during public consultation I will be a member of the public, so live posts will start around 9:35
January 28, 2026 at 7:17 PM
Epic thread on budget meeting and potential property tax increases in Halifax, and I wonder how much can be raised simply by killing the CAP that has protected (predominantly rich) incumbent owners from paying the higher effective tax rates newcomers and renters face.
My work relies heavily on both, text and code. Written in a (quarto) notebook that combines both, in an editor with LLM integration. The LLMs are sometimes useful for the code part, but I always turn it off for the text. And if I forget and it autocompletes my paragraphs it’s a vivid reminder that …
“The idea is to put ChatGPT front and center inside software that scientists use to write up their work in much the same way that chatbots are now embedded into popular programming editors.
It’s vibe coding, but for science.”
It’s vibe coding, but for science.”
OpenAI’s latest product lets you vibe code science
Prism is a ChatGPT-powered text editor that automates much of the work involved in writing scientific papers.
www.technologyreview.com
January 28, 2026 at 1:50 AM
My work relies heavily on both, text and code. Written in a (quarto) notebook that combines both, in an editor with LLM integration. The LLMs are sometimes useful for the code part, but I always turn it off for the text. And if I forget and it autocompletes my paragraphs it’s a vivid reminder that …
Reposted by Jens von Bergmann
Victoria (City) v. Adams decision on right to shelter:
if there's not enough shelter space you can't stop people from sheltering in public
Seems like a start for right to housing:
if there's not enough housing, you can't stop people from housing themselves in RVs.
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
if there's not enough shelter space you can't stop people from sheltering in public
Seems like a start for right to housing:
if there's not enough housing, you can't stop people from housing themselves in RVs.
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
Regional District of Nanaimo proposes new measures to deal with full-time RV living | CBC News
The district's board is scheduled to consider staff recommendations to rescind a temporary suspension of bylaw enforcement for individuals living year-round at campsites and resorts.
www.cbc.ca
January 27, 2026 at 5:26 PM
Victoria (City) v. Adams decision on right to shelter:
if there's not enough shelter space you can't stop people from sheltering in public
Seems like a start for right to housing:
if there's not enough housing, you can't stop people from housing themselves in RVs.
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
if there's not enough shelter space you can't stop people from sheltering in public
Seems like a start for right to housing:
if there's not enough housing, you can't stop people from housing themselves in RVs.
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
Looking on from Vancouver I chuckle at the suggestion that impeding apartment construction was "unintended".
January 28, 2026 at 12:07 AM
Looking on from Vancouver I chuckle at the suggestion that impeding apartment construction was "unintended".
Updated population projections out from StatCan this morning. A good opportunity to reiterate that net NPR is a stationary process that’s essentially zero except for policy change induced short term fluctuations. canviz.mountainmath.ca/plot?v=88837...
January 27, 2026 at 4:45 PM
Updated population projections out from StatCan this morning. A good opportunity to reiterate that net NPR is a stationary process that’s essentially zero except for policy change induced short term fluctuations. canviz.mountainmath.ca/plot?v=88837...
Reposted by Jens von Bergmann
Small town Kimberley rallying in support for Greenland matches well their progressive history also rallying in support for zoning reform.
True story: we used their 2022 code for modelling possible results from BC's Small Scale Multi-Unit Housing legislation. news.gov.bc.ca/files/bc_SSM...
True story: we used their 2022 code for modelling possible results from BC's Small Scale Multi-Unit Housing legislation. news.gov.bc.ca/files/bc_SSM...
January 26, 2026 at 5:45 AM
Small town Kimberley rallying in support for Greenland matches well their progressive history also rallying in support for zoning reform.
True story: we used their 2022 code for modelling possible results from BC's Small Scale Multi-Unit Housing legislation. news.gov.bc.ca/files/bc_SSM...
True story: we used their 2022 code for modelling possible results from BC's Small Scale Multi-Unit Housing legislation. news.gov.bc.ca/files/bc_SSM...
It got postponed, but they already made a book about it.
January 24, 2026 at 4:34 AM
It got postponed, but they already made a book about it.
Reposted by Jens von Bergmann
Super interesting peek at inheritance as a portion of property transfers in the US, amounting to 7% overall and 18% in pricey California by cotality data.
@jensvb.bsky.social and I saw some similar patterns in Canadian data looking at non-market transfers. homefreesociology.com/2021/08/13/c...
@jensvb.bsky.social and I saw some similar patterns in Canadian data looking at non-market transfers. homefreesociology.com/2021/08/13/c...
January 24, 2026 at 12:05 AM
Super interesting peek at inheritance as a portion of property transfers in the US, amounting to 7% overall and 18% in pricey California by cotality data.
@jensvb.bsky.social and I saw some similar patterns in Canadian data looking at non-market transfers. homefreesociology.com/2021/08/13/c...
@jensvb.bsky.social and I saw some similar patterns in Canadian data looking at non-market transfers. homefreesociology.com/2021/08/13/c...
Reposted by Jens von Bergmann
With 2025 housing starts data in a quick check where select metro areas are at, and how that fits in historically. Montréal, Calgary, and Vancouver beat out Toronto for 2025 starts.
Live version: canviz.mountainmath.ca/plot?v=42127...
Live version: canviz.mountainmath.ca/plot?v=42127...
January 23, 2026 at 12:33 AM
With 2025 housing starts data in a quick check where select metro areas are at, and how that fits in historically. Montréal, Calgary, and Vancouver beat out Toronto for 2025 starts.
Live version: canviz.mountainmath.ca/plot?v=42127...
Live version: canviz.mountainmath.ca/plot?v=42127...
Reposted by Jens von Bergmann
I can’t wait to watch these! Knowing Andy, they’re going to be great.
I just created a series of seven deep-dive videos about AI, which I've posted to youtube and now here. 😊
Targeted to laypeople, they explore how LLMs work, what they can do, and what impacts they have on learning, well-being, disinformation, the workplace, the economy, and the environment.
Targeted to laypeople, they explore how LLMs work, what they can do, and what impacts they have on learning, well-being, disinformation, the workplace, the economy, and the environment.
Part 1: How do LLMs work?
YouTube video by Andrew Perfors
www.youtube.com
January 22, 2026 at 4:33 AM
I can’t wait to watch these! Knowing Andy, they’re going to be great.