Aleksandra Urman
@aurman21.bsky.social
Senior Research Associate, Social Computing Group, U of Zurich. Computational social/communication scientist
Reposted by Aleksandra Urman
Switzerland is joining Horizon Europe!
We are uniting two research powerhouses.
For cutting-edge innovation that will boost our energy security, digital transformation, health and so much more.
Today is a good day for science, and for our EU-Switzerland partnership.
We are uniting two research powerhouses.
For cutting-edge innovation that will boost our energy security, digital transformation, health and so much more.
Today is a good day for science, and for our EU-Switzerland partnership.
November 10, 2025 at 2:58 PM
Switzerland is joining Horizon Europe!
We are uniting two research powerhouses.
For cutting-edge innovation that will boost our energy security, digital transformation, health and so much more.
Today is a good day for science, and for our EU-Switzerland partnership.
We are uniting two research powerhouses.
For cutting-edge innovation that will boost our energy security, digital transformation, health and so much more.
Today is a good day for science, and for our EU-Switzerland partnership.
Reposted by Aleksandra Urman
SCOOP: China's top 2 gay dating apps, Blued and Finka, became unavailable on app stores over the weekend. Apple confirmed to WIRED that it removed the two apps following "an order from the Cyberspace Administration of China."
latest with @lmatsakis.bsky.social
latest with @lmatsakis.bsky.social
Apple Pulls China’s Top Gay Dating Apps After Government Order
The removal of Blued and Finka marks another setback for China’s marginalized LGBTQ+ community.
www.wired.com
November 10, 2025 at 5:27 AM
SCOOP: China's top 2 gay dating apps, Blued and Finka, became unavailable on app stores over the weekend. Apple confirmed to WIRED that it removed the two apps following "an order from the Cyberspace Administration of China."
latest with @lmatsakis.bsky.social
latest with @lmatsakis.bsky.social
Reposted by Aleksandra Urman
Looking forward to a new colleague at the University of Vienna!:) New post doc position in Political Text Analyses with @chriswratil.bsky.social 👇
🚨 Job Alert! Postdoc in POLITICAL TEXT ANALYSIS in the MULTIREP project
You do quant text analysis? You are interested in political representation? Enjoy working in teams? Would like to live in a great city? Consider joining us in Vienna!
⏱️ Apply by 15/12/2025
wratil.eu/files/MULTIR...
1/4 🧵
You do quant text analysis? You are interested in political representation? Enjoy working in teams? Would like to live in a great city? Consider joining us in Vienna!
⏱️ Apply by 15/12/2025
wratil.eu/files/MULTIR...
1/4 🧵
November 10, 2025 at 8:18 AM
Looking forward to a new colleague at the University of Vienna!:) New post doc position in Political Text Analyses with @chriswratil.bsky.social 👇
Ich habe den Fehler gemacht, die Kommentare unter diesem Artikel zu lesen. Und ich weiss jetzt nicht, ob ich eher traurig oder eher wütend bin oder... Einfach WTF.
Die Schweiz streitet über die Aufnahme von 20 Kindern aus Gaza – doch wer sind sie? Ich habe den Leidensweg der schwer verletzten Layla (2) rekonstruiert. Die Geschichte eines Kindes, das im Krieg fast alles verlor – und zum Politikum wurde. Jetzt online: www.blick.ch/schweiz/sie-...
November 9, 2025 at 10:32 AM
Ich habe den Fehler gemacht, die Kommentare unter diesem Artikel zu lesen. Und ich weiss jetzt nicht, ob ich eher traurig oder eher wütend bin oder... Einfach WTF.
Reposted by Aleksandra Urman
A fantastic piece of data journalism. #JournalismMatters💪
"How Elon Musk is Boosting the British Right. For nine months, Sky News' Data and Forensics team has been investigating whether X's algorithm amplifies right-wing and extreme content. It does."
news.sky.com/story/the-x-...
"How Elon Musk is Boosting the British Right. For nine months, Sky News' Data and Forensics team has been investigating whether X's algorithm amplifies right-wing and extreme content. It does."
news.sky.com/story/the-x-...
Elon Musk is boosting the British right - and this shows how
Elon Musk is boosting the British right - and this shows how
news.sky.com
November 6, 2025 at 11:32 AM
A fantastic piece of data journalism. #JournalismMatters💪
"How Elon Musk is Boosting the British Right. For nine months, Sky News' Data and Forensics team has been investigating whether X's algorithm amplifies right-wing and extreme content. It does."
news.sky.com/story/the-x-...
"How Elon Musk is Boosting the British Right. For nine months, Sky News' Data and Forensics team has been investigating whether X's algorithm amplifies right-wing and extreme content. It does."
news.sky.com/story/the-x-...
Reposted by Aleksandra Urman
I was told there would be flying cars in this future, instead all we get is fascism.
A new paper suggests a photo can tell a recruiter much about an applicant’s personality
Should facial analysis help determine whom companies hire?
A new paper suggests a photo can tell a recruiter much about an applicant’s personality
econ.st
November 7, 2025 at 9:27 AM
I was told there would be flying cars in this future, instead all we get is fascism.
Reposted by Aleksandra Urman
Der Economist Artikel liest sich so, als würde die/der Author(in) ein bissl einer abgehen, beim Gedanken, dass das produktiv eingesetzt wird.
archive.ph/7pFbH#select...
Das Paper gibt es hier:
papers.ssrn.com/sol3/Deliver...
Liebe dieses Zitat aus dem Paper im Artikel. Schauen wir das Paper an. 🧵
archive.ph/7pFbH#select...
Das Paper gibt es hier:
papers.ssrn.com/sol3/Deliver...
Liebe dieses Zitat aus dem Paper im Artikel. Schauen wir das Paper an. 🧵
November 7, 2025 at 8:57 AM
Der Economist Artikel liest sich so, als würde die/der Author(in) ein bissl einer abgehen, beim Gedanken, dass das produktiv eingesetzt wird.
archive.ph/7pFbH#select...
Das Paper gibt es hier:
papers.ssrn.com/sol3/Deliver...
Liebe dieses Zitat aus dem Paper im Artikel. Schauen wir das Paper an. 🧵
archive.ph/7pFbH#select...
Das Paper gibt es hier:
papers.ssrn.com/sol3/Deliver...
Liebe dieses Zitat aus dem Paper im Artikel. Schauen wir das Paper an. 🧵
Reposted by Aleksandra Urman
Meta's AI plan is to automatically create personalized advertisements for companies that are different for different users, further siloing people
Zuckerberg says advertisers will "be able to give us a business objective and a credit card" and AI will do the rest
www.404media.co/the-future-o...
Zuckerberg says advertisers will "be able to give us a business objective and a credit card" and AI will do the rest
www.404media.co/the-future-o...
The Future of Advertising Is AI Generated Ads That Are Directly Personalized to You
"Advertisers are increasingly just going to be able to give us a business objective and give us a credit card or bank account, and have the AI system basically figure out everything else."
www.404media.co
November 3, 2025 at 3:16 PM
Meta's AI plan is to automatically create personalized advertisements for companies that are different for different users, further siloing people
Zuckerberg says advertisers will "be able to give us a business objective and a credit card" and AI will do the rest
www.404media.co/the-future-o...
Zuckerberg says advertisers will "be able to give us a business objective and a credit card" and AI will do the rest
www.404media.co/the-future-o...
Reposted by Aleksandra Urman
A "frontier" RCT showing college students preferred LLM (ChatGPT-4) and peer feedback to teacher feedback, but teacher feedback most improved performance. I hope they analyze feedback for style. I wonder whether students positively responded to sycophancy in LLM. #PsychSciSky #AcademicSky #EduSky
Teacher, peer, or AI? Comparing effects of feedback sources in higher education
With the emergence of Large Language Models (LLMs), AI-generated feedback is gaining traction as a scalable feedback source for higher education. To q…
doi.org
November 3, 2025 at 1:15 PM
A "frontier" RCT showing college students preferred LLM (ChatGPT-4) and peer feedback to teacher feedback, but teacher feedback most improved performance. I hope they analyze feedback for style. I wonder whether students positively responded to sycophancy in LLM. #PsychSciSky #AcademicSky #EduSky
Reposted by Aleksandra Urman
Just got this email from Instagram.
The drive to adtech was going to be the only way they were actually monetizing any of this.
The drive to adtech was going to be the only way they were actually monetizing any of this.
November 3, 2025 at 1:45 PM
Just got this email from Instagram.
The drive to adtech was going to be the only way they were actually monetizing any of this.
The drive to adtech was going to be the only way they were actually monetizing any of this.
Reposted by Aleksandra Urman
November 2, 2025 at 4:03 PM
For the Swiss bubble - is there a good analysis of the platform regulation proposal somewhere already? I won't have time/headspace to read the thing myself in detail until Monday evening, but I'd like to read some nice summary/analysis!
October 31, 2025 at 10:56 AM
For the Swiss bubble - is there a good analysis of the platform regulation proposal somewhere already? I won't have time/headspace to read the thing myself in detail until Monday evening, but I'd like to read some nice summary/analysis!
Reposted by Aleksandra Urman
90% der Daten sind "intern" oder "geheim", trotzdem setzt die BK voll auf M365.
Wie der Kanton Luzern (cc @rahelestermann.bsky.social ) der Bund setzt unbeirrt auf M365. Trotz dem Irren in Washington, D.C.
Danke @adfichter.bsky.social fürs dranbleiben.
www.republik.ch/2025/10/31/d...
Wie der Kanton Luzern (cc @rahelestermann.bsky.social ) der Bund setzt unbeirrt auf M365. Trotz dem Irren in Washington, D.C.
Danke @adfichter.bsky.social fürs dranbleiben.
www.republik.ch/2025/10/31/d...
Der Armeechef stemmt sich gegen Microsoft
Thomas Süssli fordert eine eigene IT-Infrastruktur für sensible Daten.
www.republik.ch
October 31, 2025 at 8:08 AM
90% der Daten sind "intern" oder "geheim", trotzdem setzt die BK voll auf M365.
Wie der Kanton Luzern (cc @rahelestermann.bsky.social ) der Bund setzt unbeirrt auf M365. Trotz dem Irren in Washington, D.C.
Danke @adfichter.bsky.social fürs dranbleiben.
www.republik.ch/2025/10/31/d...
Wie der Kanton Luzern (cc @rahelestermann.bsky.social ) der Bund setzt unbeirrt auf M365. Trotz dem Irren in Washington, D.C.
Danke @adfichter.bsky.social fürs dranbleiben.
www.republik.ch/2025/10/31/d...
Reposted by Aleksandra Urman
Endlich ist sie da, aber hält sie auch was sie verspricht? Ein erster Einblick in die Vorlage zur #Plattformregulierung. Sie beinhaltet wichtige Fortschritte, bleibt aber bei vielen Risiken und #Suchmaschinen zahm.
www.digitale-gesellschaft.ch/2025/10/30/p...
www.digitale-gesellschaft.ch/2025/10/30/p...
Plattformregulierung: Der späte und zahme Aufbruch des Bundesrats
Der Bundesrat gibt endlich die Vorlage zur Regulierung von Kommunikationsplattformen und Suchmaschinen in die Vernehmlassung. Ein erster Blick in die Vorlage zeigt, dass sie wichtige Fortschritte wie ...
www.digitale-gesellschaft.ch
October 31, 2025 at 7:48 AM
Endlich ist sie da, aber hält sie auch was sie verspricht? Ein erster Einblick in die Vorlage zur #Plattformregulierung. Sie beinhaltet wichtige Fortschritte, bleibt aber bei vielen Risiken und #Suchmaschinen zahm.
www.digitale-gesellschaft.ch/2025/10/30/p...
www.digitale-gesellschaft.ch/2025/10/30/p...
Reposted by Aleksandra Urman
"I DON'T NEED YOU TO FUCKING REWRITE WHAT I'VE JUST WRITTEN!"
October 28, 2025 at 10:46 AM
"I DON'T NEED YOU TO FUCKING REWRITE WHAT I'VE JUST WRITTEN!"
Reposted by Aleksandra Urman
As a scholar I rarely offer electoral guidance. But today I do:
DO NOT USE AI CHATBOTS AS YOUR VOTE ADVICE APPLICATION AHEAD OF (THE DUTCH) ELECTIONS
Full of errors, bias and lack of transparency.
@ernesto-deleon.com @favstats.eu @theoaraujo.bsky.social and🙋unpack why
algosoc.org/results/1-in...
DO NOT USE AI CHATBOTS AS YOUR VOTE ADVICE APPLICATION AHEAD OF (THE DUTCH) ELECTIONS
Full of errors, bias and lack of transparency.
@ernesto-deleon.com @favstats.eu @theoaraujo.bsky.social and🙋unpack why
algosoc.org/results/1-in...
1 in 10 Dutch citizens are likely to ask AI for election advice. This is why they shouldn't | AlgoSoc
algosoc.org
October 29, 2025 at 7:24 AM
As a scholar I rarely offer electoral guidance. But today I do:
DO NOT USE AI CHATBOTS AS YOUR VOTE ADVICE APPLICATION AHEAD OF (THE DUTCH) ELECTIONS
Full of errors, bias and lack of transparency.
@ernesto-deleon.com @favstats.eu @theoaraujo.bsky.social and🙋unpack why
algosoc.org/results/1-in...
DO NOT USE AI CHATBOTS AS YOUR VOTE ADVICE APPLICATION AHEAD OF (THE DUTCH) ELECTIONS
Full of errors, bias and lack of transparency.
@ernesto-deleon.com @favstats.eu @theoaraujo.bsky.social and🙋unpack why
algosoc.org/results/1-in...
Reposted by Aleksandra Urman
In a given week, OpenAI estimated that around .07 percent of active ChatGPT users show “possible signs of mental health emergencies related to psychosis or mania” and .15 percent “have conversations that include explicit indicators of potential suicidal planning or intent.”
Here's How Many People May Use ChatGPT During a Mental Health Crisis Each Week
OpenAI released initial estimates about the share of users who may be experiencing symptoms like delusional thinking, mania, or suicidal ideation, and says it has tweaked GPT-5 to respond more effecti...
www.wired.com
October 27, 2025 at 5:08 PM
In a given week, OpenAI estimated that around .07 percent of active ChatGPT users show “possible signs of mental health emergencies related to psychosis or mania” and .15 percent “have conversations that include explicit indicators of potential suicidal planning or intent.”
Reposted by Aleksandra Urman
🎇New package alert @wired.com! This one has been in the works for months. If WIRED was going to tackle AI -- something we cover daily -- we had to go big. So here are 17 different stories about the way AI is changing us, even as the technology itself keeps moving www.wired.com/ai-issue/
AI of a Thousand Faces
What happens now that AI is everywhere and in everything? WIRED can’t tell the future, but we can try to make sense of it. Behold: 17 readings from the furthest reaches of the AI age.
www.wired.com
October 27, 2025 at 11:21 AM
🎇New package alert @wired.com! This one has been in the works for months. If WIRED was going to tackle AI -- something we cover daily -- we had to go big. So here are 17 different stories about the way AI is changing us, even as the technology itself keeps moving www.wired.com/ai-issue/
Reposted by Aleksandra Urman
Cool paper by @eddieyang.bsky.social, confirming our LLM hacking findings (arxiv.org/abs/2509.08825):
✓ LLMs are brittle data annotators
✓ Downstream conclusions flip frequently: LLM hacking risk is real!
✓ Bias correction methods can help but have trade-offs
✓ Use human expert whenever possible
✓ LLMs are brittle data annotators
✓ Downstream conclusions flip frequently: LLM hacking risk is real!
✓ Bias correction methods can help but have trade-offs
✓ Use human expert whenever possible
October 21, 2025 at 8:02 AM
Cool paper by @eddieyang.bsky.social, confirming our LLM hacking findings (arxiv.org/abs/2509.08825):
✓ LLMs are brittle data annotators
✓ Downstream conclusions flip frequently: LLM hacking risk is real!
✓ Bias correction methods can help but have trade-offs
✓ Use human expert whenever possible
✓ LLMs are brittle data annotators
✓ Downstream conclusions flip frequently: LLM hacking risk is real!
✓ Bias correction methods can help but have trade-offs
✓ Use human expert whenever possible
Reposted by Aleksandra Urman
Can AI simulations of human research participants advance cognitive science? In @cp-trendscognsci.bsky.social, @lmesseri.bsky.social & I analyze this vision. We show how “AI Surrogates” entrench practices that limit the generalizability of cognitive science while aspiring to do the opposite. 1/
AI Surrogates and illusions of generalizability in cognitive science
Recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI) have generated enthusiasm for using AI simulations of human research participants to generate new know…
www.sciencedirect.com
October 21, 2025 at 8:24 PM
Can AI simulations of human research participants advance cognitive science? In @cp-trendscognsci.bsky.social, @lmesseri.bsky.social & I analyze this vision. We show how “AI Surrogates” entrench practices that limit the generalizability of cognitive science while aspiring to do the opposite. 1/
Reposted by Aleksandra Urman
The Federal Trade Commission received 200 complaints mentioning ChatGPT between November 2022 and August 2025. Several attributed delusions, paranoia, and spiritual crises to the chatbot: www.wired.com/story/ftc-co...
People Who Say They’re Experiencing AI Psychosis Beg the FTC for Help
The Federal Trade Commission received 200 complaints mentioning ChatGPT between November 2022 and August 2025. Several attributed delusions, paranoia, and spiritual crises to the chatbot.
www.wired.com
October 22, 2025 at 10:53 PM
The Federal Trade Commission received 200 complaints mentioning ChatGPT between November 2022 and August 2025. Several attributed delusions, paranoia, and spiritual crises to the chatbot: www.wired.com/story/ftc-co...
Reposted by Aleksandra Urman
wikipedia's data shows that AI is siphoning traffic away from the site, which is a danger to its sustainability. ironically Wikipedia is more important than ever to users who want reliable information instead of slop, and to AI companies that need it for training data www.404media.co/wikipedia-sa...
Wikipedia Says AI Is Causing a Dangerous Decline in Human Visitors
“With fewer visits to Wikipedia, fewer volunteers may grow and enrich the content, and fewer individual donors may support this work.”
www.404media.co
October 17, 2025 at 1:15 AM
wikipedia's data shows that AI is siphoning traffic away from the site, which is a danger to its sustainability. ironically Wikipedia is more important than ever to users who want reliable information instead of slop, and to AI companies that need it for training data www.404media.co/wikipedia-sa...
Reposted by Aleksandra Urman
Hab meinen Sitegeist gebeten zu recherchieren, welche Chatbots es auf Österreichs staatlichen Websites es so gibt. Und dann hab ich erm gsagt, "let's break them".
Beginnen wir mit einem Kuriosum: es gibt diese Seite:
www.verwaltungspreis.gv.at/%C3%96sterre...
Darauf ist jeder Scheiss Chatbot 🧵
Beginnen wir mit einem Kuriosum: es gibt diese Seite:
www.verwaltungspreis.gv.at/%C3%96sterre...
Darauf ist jeder Scheiss Chatbot 🧵
October 16, 2025 at 7:06 PM
Hab meinen Sitegeist gebeten zu recherchieren, welche Chatbots es auf Österreichs staatlichen Websites es so gibt. Und dann hab ich erm gsagt, "let's break them".
Beginnen wir mit einem Kuriosum: es gibt diese Seite:
www.verwaltungspreis.gv.at/%C3%96sterre...
Darauf ist jeder Scheiss Chatbot 🧵
Beginnen wir mit einem Kuriosum: es gibt diese Seite:
www.verwaltungspreis.gv.at/%C3%96sterre...
Darauf ist jeder Scheiss Chatbot 🧵
Reposted by Aleksandra Urman
Reddit’s conversational AI product, Reddit Answers, suggested users who are interested in pain management try heroin and kratom
🔗 www.404media.co/reddit-answe...
🔗 www.404media.co/reddit-answe...
Reddit's AI Suggests Users Try Heroin
AI-generated Reddit Answers are giving bad advice in medical subreddits and moderators can’t opt out.
www.404media.co
October 16, 2025 at 7:14 PM
Reddit’s conversational AI product, Reddit Answers, suggested users who are interested in pain management try heroin and kratom
🔗 www.404media.co/reddit-answe...
🔗 www.404media.co/reddit-answe...
Reposted by Aleksandra Urman
⚡️Across Central Europe, politicians used paid social media ads to attack journalists, activists, NGOs. From Hungary to Slovakia, these campaigns spread disinformation and hate, reaching tens of thousands while Meta and Google profit from #SponsoredHate.
Sponsored Hate: How Politicians Paid for Meta Ads to Attack Journalists - VSquare.org
Across the Visegrád countries, politicians have increasingly used paid social media ads to attack journalists, human rights activists, and civil society organizations.
vsquare.org
October 12, 2025 at 5:57 PM
⚡️Across Central Europe, politicians used paid social media ads to attack journalists, activists, NGOs. From Hungary to Slovakia, these campaigns spread disinformation and hate, reaching tens of thousands while Meta and Google profit from #SponsoredHate.