Eric Brown
@sophisteuein.bsky.social
I teach philosophy, mostly ancient Greek philosophy, at Washington University in St. Louis. I’m here for the zeitgeist.
Pinned
Eric Brown
@sophisteuein.bsky.social
· Nov 22
As an undeserved break from grading, I made a starter pack. I've no doubt made lots of mistakes, and I hope you'll help me correct them. But I also hope it's helpful to some people who are interested in ancient Greek philosophy.
Reposted by Eric Brown
Authors -- you are entitled to a payment for the books of yours that Anthropic stole for its AI. It's about $1,500 per book. I just filed - you should too!
www.anthropiccopyrightsettlement.com?_gl=1*1ersia....
www.anthropiccopyrightsettlement.com?_gl=1*1ersia....
Homepage | Bartz v Anthropic Settlement Site
www.anthropiccopyrightsettlement.com
November 13, 2025 at 5:17 PM
Authors -- you are entitled to a payment for the books of yours that Anthropic stole for its AI. It's about $1,500 per book. I just filed - you should too!
www.anthropiccopyrightsettlement.com?_gl=1*1ersia....
www.anthropiccopyrightsettlement.com?_gl=1*1ersia....
Reposted by Eric Brown
I am particularly proud of this snippet that they pulled
November 11, 2025 at 8:17 PM
I am particularly proud of this snippet that they pulled
Reposted by Eric Brown
Loved the words of Mamdani’s field director about their incredible 104,000 volunteers:
“Every number is in a way an act of bravery. Door knocking is not the easiest thing. For many, including myself, it takes a moment of bravery at the beginning. Asking a stranger something about their lives…” 1/
“Every number is in a way an act of bravery. Door knocking is not the easiest thing. For many, including myself, it takes a moment of bravery at the beginning. Asking a stranger something about their lives…” 1/
November 5, 2025 at 3:14 PM
Loved the words of Mamdani’s field director about their incredible 104,000 volunteers:
“Every number is in a way an act of bravery. Door knocking is not the easiest thing. For many, including myself, it takes a moment of bravery at the beginning. Asking a stranger something about their lives…” 1/
“Every number is in a way an act of bravery. Door knocking is not the easiest thing. For many, including myself, it takes a moment of bravery at the beginning. Asking a stranger something about their lives…” 1/
Looks like the Great Schism will be with us for a while longer.
Pope Leo Gets Cubs Jersey from Mar Awa III
Mar Awa III gifts Pope Leo XIV a Cubs jersey, poking fun at the pontiff’s loyalty to White Sox. Baseball meets Vatican diplomacy.
ewtnvatican.com
November 4, 2025 at 9:44 PM
Looks like the Great Schism will be with us for a while longer.
Reposted by Eric Brown
St Louis Halloween is probably better than your town’s Halloween, because the kids here tell a joke to get their treat.
November 1, 2025 at 12:55 AM
St Louis Halloween is probably better than your town’s Halloween, because the kids here tell a joke to get their treat.
Reposted by Eric Brown
Good morning, faculty colleagues of all ranks and types of employment. By show of hands, comments, puke emoji, etc., how many of of you are experiencing claims that your institution is in a “budget crisis,” that is going under- or unexplained, yet has resulted in austerity?
October 29, 2025 at 1:08 PM
Good morning, faculty colleagues of all ranks and types of employment. By show of hands, comments, puke emoji, etc., how many of of you are experiencing claims that your institution is in a “budget crisis,” that is going under- or unexplained, yet has resulted in austerity?
Reposted by Eric Brown
Maybe the thing that gives me a pulse-pounding throbbing headache is when I think of how techbros sold ChatGPT to universities as ‘revolutionizing’ higher education and our institutions just forked over money without even asking for actual evidence
When people learn with ChatGPT instead of following their own searches, they end up knowing less, caring less, and producing worse advice, even when the facts are the same.
Friction is an essential ingredient for learning! Convenience makes us shallow.
academic.oup.com/pnasnexus/ar...
Friction is an essential ingredient for learning! Convenience makes us shallow.
academic.oup.com/pnasnexus/ar...
Experimental evidence of the effects of large language models versus web search on depth of learning
Abstract. The effects of using large language models (LLMs) versus traditional web search on depth of learning are explored. A theory is proposed that when
academic.oup.com
October 28, 2025 at 7:32 PM
Maybe the thing that gives me a pulse-pounding throbbing headache is when I think of how techbros sold ChatGPT to universities as ‘revolutionizing’ higher education and our institutions just forked over money without even asking for actual evidence
Reposted by Eric Brown
The unlikely predecessor to lengthy World Series games? Brad Paisley national anthems
#World #Series #Baseball
#World #Series #Baseball
The unlikely predecessor to lengthy World Series games? Brad Paisley national anthems
Monday's marathon matchup between the Dodgers and Blue Jays marked the fourth time the country star has sung the anthem before an extra-inning World Series game.See What Happened →
bskysports.org
October 29, 2025 at 1:50 AM
I watched the first seven innings, listened to the next six innings, but then had to surrender to the dormitive virtue.
There’s arguably too much baseball in this baseball game. I’m still processing stuff from a full inning ago
October 28, 2025 at 12:49 PM
I watched the first seven innings, listened to the next six innings, but then had to surrender to the dormitive virtue.
This is an insightful explanation, and I probably applies to a lot of non-Jewish institutions, too.
If you want to understand why Jewish institutional leadership is so out of touch with actual American Jews, you need to understand the funding dynamic of basically every legacy Jewish institution. 1/
October 26, 2025 at 6:45 PM
This is an insightful explanation, and I probably applies to a lot of non-Jewish institutions, too.
Reposted by Eric Brown
I would sincerely like for my colleagues to read this
Belgian AI scientists are advocating *against* the use of AI in academia. “If independent thinking is no longer encouraged at university, where would it?” apache.be/2025/10/24/b...
Belgian AI scientists resist the use of AI in academia
Several AI scientists have published an open letter calling for a ban on AI use by students.
apache.be
October 25, 2025 at 5:40 PM
I would sincerely like for my colleagues to read this
Reposted by Eric Brown
This is great.
She was head coach at MIT when I was at Coast Guard and I can say she got the most out of her players from what I saw.
Her past players there are doctors, scientists, engineers.
From D3 to WNBA head cosch. Awesome!
She was head coach at MIT when I was at Coast Guard and I can say she got the most out of her players from what I saw.
Her past players there are doctors, scientists, engineers.
From D3 to WNBA head cosch. Awesome!
NY Liberty assistant Sonia Raman has agreed to a multiyear deal to become the new head coach of the Seattle Storm, sources tell ESPN. Raman makes WNBA history as the first person of Indian-origin to be head coach – after being the first Indian-American woman to be NBA assistant.
October 24, 2025 at 9:28 PM
This is great.
She was head coach at MIT when I was at Coast Guard and I can say she got the most out of her players from what I saw.
Her past players there are doctors, scientists, engineers.
From D3 to WNBA head cosch. Awesome!
She was head coach at MIT when I was at Coast Guard and I can say she got the most out of her players from what I saw.
Her past players there are doctors, scientists, engineers.
From D3 to WNBA head cosch. Awesome!
Reposted by Eric Brown
NEW: AP investigation finds over 420 anti-science bills attacking longstanding public health protections have been introduced in statehouses across the US this year, part of an organized, politically savvy campaign to enshrine a conspiracy theory-driven agenda into law. w/ @lauraungar.bsky.social
Anti-science bills hit statehouses, stripping away public health protections built over a century
More than 420 anti-science bills attacking longstanding public health protections – vaccines, milk safety and fluoride – have been introduced in statehouses across the U.S. this year.
apnews.com
October 21, 2025 at 5:53 PM
NEW: AP investigation finds over 420 anti-science bills attacking longstanding public health protections have been introduced in statehouses across the US this year, part of an organized, politically savvy campaign to enshrine a conspiracy theory-driven agenda into law. w/ @lauraungar.bsky.social
Reposted by Eric Brown
Remember when we used to worry about social media because of the kinds of social links and social comparisons that thrived there? Well, it turns out that the key problems had been identified in the 80s by critics of TV: loneliness and amusing ourselves to death.
Everything Is Television
A theory of culture and attention
www.derekthompson.org
October 20, 2025 at 6:45 PM
Remember when we used to worry about social media because of the kinds of social links and social comparisons that thrived there? Well, it turns out that the key problems had been identified in the 80s by critics of TV: loneliness and amusing ourselves to death.
Reposted by Eric Brown
Beefing over pears in the pages of Cooks Illustrated: a most excellent 🧵
pleased to announce that there seems to be a passive-aggressive conflict roiling the august pages of Cooks Illustrated, Fall Harvest recipes edition. allow me to explain:
October 20, 2025 at 4:50 AM
Beefing over pears in the pages of Cooks Illustrated: a most excellent 🧵
So Trump and the White House post images of him as a king, and Trump posts a video of him as a king, flying a jet that dumps shit on American citizens. That’s pretty clear that he does not see himself as a president for all, but as a monarch. Is this, too, no big deal to MAGA?
October 19, 2025 at 5:47 PM
So Trump and the White House post images of him as a king, and Trump posts a video of him as a king, flying a jet that dumps shit on American citizens. That’s pretty clear that he does not see himself as a president for all, but as a monarch. Is this, too, no big deal to MAGA?
Reposted by Eric Brown
this rocks. when indiana edu killed the student newspaper, Purdue stepped up, printed the forbidden issue, drove it to Bloomington and stocked the boxes.
October 18, 2025 at 6:27 PM
this rocks. when indiana edu killed the student newspaper, Purdue stepped up, printed the forbidden issue, drove it to Bloomington and stocked the boxes.
My favorite response to Schuringa yet.
I wrote something about analytic Philospphy, and Christoph Schuringa’s book for the Ideas Letter @stefanschubert.bsky.social @lbenardo.bsky.social www.theideasletter.org/essay/bloodl...
“Bloodless Pedantry” - The Ideas Letter
The academic study of philosophy tends to inspire contempt, from within and from without. Stephen Hawking’s pompous pronouncement in 2010 that “philosophy is dead” is just one version of a…
www.theideasletter.org
October 18, 2025 at 2:39 AM
My favorite response to Schuringa yet.
It is fun watching one of your favorite players have a great game in a high-pressure situation.
October 18, 2025 at 2:15 AM
It is fun watching one of your favorite players have a great game in a high-pressure situation.
So grateful for Jennifer Frey.
New on our Substack, an @interintellect.bsky.social conversation between Jennifer Frey and Anastasia Berg on whether the fight for liberal education can be anything but a losing battle:
Can the Humanities Be Saved?
A conversation with Jennifer Frey and Anastasia Berg
thepointmag.substack.com
October 15, 2025 at 3:47 PM
So grateful for Jennifer Frey.
One of Grover Cleveland’s granddaughters was an excellent philosopher.
October 3, 2025 at 8:47 PM
One of Grover Cleveland’s granddaughters was an excellent philosopher.
Reposted by Eric Brown
You'll be shocked to learn New College of Florida is on the brink of implosion just a couple of years after DeSantis engineered an extreme right-wing takeover
Fun fact: NCF's new overlords spend $134K per student (!!...the average at other FL publics is $10K) www.insidehighered.com/news/governa...
Fun fact: NCF's new overlords spend $134K per student (!!...the average at other FL publics is $10K) www.insidehighered.com/news/governa...
Spending Soars, Rankings Fall at New College of Florida
Student outcomes and rankings are slipping at the liberal arts college while spending is up. Critics believe the college is at risk of implosion, and some are calling for privatization.
www.insidehighered.com
October 1, 2025 at 12:26 PM
You'll be shocked to learn New College of Florida is on the brink of implosion just a couple of years after DeSantis engineered an extreme right-wing takeover
Fun fact: NCF's new overlords spend $134K per student (!!...the average at other FL publics is $10K) www.insidehighered.com/news/governa...
Fun fact: NCF's new overlords spend $134K per student (!!...the average at other FL publics is $10K) www.insidehighered.com/news/governa...
As a lifelong fan, I’d rather see the Reds in the playoffs than not, but the new expanded playoffs are still a sad joke. The regular season is the best barometer of success, and it is not a good year when you win only 83 games.
September 30, 2025 at 2:59 AM
As a lifelong fan, I’d rather see the Reds in the playoffs than not, but the new expanded playoffs are still a sad joke. The regular season is the best barometer of success, and it is not a good year when you win only 83 games.