Zach A.
@awtzach.bsky.social
Dinosauria devotee. Failed paleoartist. Data science BSc. Armchair naturalist philosopher. Sondheim stan. 🌿🦕🦜🏳️🌈🐊🎨
Reposted by Zach A.
Before the midterms of 1866, President Andrew Johnson called his congressional opponents traitors and said they should be hanged.
Voters were so profoundly moved by his words... that they gave his opponents a supermajority in Congress, and the nation got the Fourteenth Amendment.
Voters were so profoundly moved by his words... that they gave his opponents a supermajority in Congress, and the nation got the Fourteenth Amendment.
November 20, 2025 at 3:33 PM
Before the midterms of 1866, President Andrew Johnson called his congressional opponents traitors and said they should be hanged.
Voters were so profoundly moved by his words... that they gave his opponents a supermajority in Congress, and the nation got the Fourteenth Amendment.
Voters were so profoundly moved by his words... that they gave his opponents a supermajority in Congress, and the nation got the Fourteenth Amendment.
Reposted by Zach A.
Legal citizenship should be virtually effortless to obtain and near instantaneous to process, and should be paired with sweeping grants of asylum.
"my least woke opinion is---"
That's enough. We've had enough people indulging in the "thrill of a little conservatism", as a treat. Of considering reactionary thought to be a salacious and taboo in a world descending into reactionary mania.
Give me your MOST woke opinions. We're bringing it back.
That's enough. We've had enough people indulging in the "thrill of a little conservatism", as a treat. Of considering reactionary thought to be a salacious and taboo in a world descending into reactionary mania.
Give me your MOST woke opinions. We're bringing it back.
November 14, 2025 at 4:35 PM
Legal citizenship should be virtually effortless to obtain and near instantaneous to process, and should be paired with sweeping grants of asylum.
Reposted by Zach A.
See, look, U.S.A., it's this easy
(and should have been done immediately upon the knowledge that these cheats and grifters were STEALING our work)
(and should have been done immediately upon the knowledge that these cheats and grifters were STEALING our work)
November 11, 2025 at 12:17 AM
See, look, U.S.A., it's this easy
(and should have been done immediately upon the knowledge that these cheats and grifters were STEALING our work)
(and should have been done immediately upon the knowledge that these cheats and grifters were STEALING our work)
Reposted by Zach A.
So on Epstein, the Democratic position should be "Trump should resign." If you are a Democratic elected, practice saying "We demand the president's resignation" in front of a mirror as many times as it takes until the dry-heaving that comes from having a phobia about actually doing politics passes.
November 12, 2025 at 3:20 PM
So on Epstein, the Democratic position should be "Trump should resign." If you are a Democratic elected, practice saying "We demand the president's resignation" in front of a mirror as many times as it takes until the dry-heaving that comes from having a phobia about actually doing politics passes.
Reposted by Zach A.
Donald Trump is AGAIN suing to avoid sending food to hungry children and seniors.
November 7, 2025 at 3:56 PM
Donald Trump is AGAIN suing to avoid sending food to hungry children and seniors.
Reposted by Zach A.
New:
I sat down with @aljazeera.com to talk about my firing from the Washington Post, being the last Black staff columnist left at the Post.
And how I believe the right is not just engaging in “cancel culture”, but “annihilation culture”.
Full video here: youtu.be/89qMGkK3LBc?...
I sat down with @aljazeera.com to talk about my firing from the Washington Post, being the last Black staff columnist left at the Post.
And how I believe the right is not just engaging in “cancel culture”, but “annihilation culture”.
Full video here: youtu.be/89qMGkK3LBc?...
October 31, 2025 at 2:45 PM
New:
I sat down with @aljazeera.com to talk about my firing from the Washington Post, being the last Black staff columnist left at the Post.
And how I believe the right is not just engaging in “cancel culture”, but “annihilation culture”.
Full video here: youtu.be/89qMGkK3LBc?...
I sat down with @aljazeera.com to talk about my firing from the Washington Post, being the last Black staff columnist left at the Post.
And how I believe the right is not just engaging in “cancel culture”, but “annihilation culture”.
Full video here: youtu.be/89qMGkK3LBc?...
Reposted by Zach A.
"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 Zach A.
Dam been writing a book about this and she just TikToked it in 90 seconds.
September 19, 2025 at 9:33 AM
Dam been writing a book about this and she just TikToked it in 90 seconds.
Reposted by Zach A.
Evidence that even when LLMs produce similar results to humans, they “rely on lexical associations and statistical priors rather than contextual reasoning or normative criteria. We term this divergence epistemia: the illusion of knowledge emerging when surface plausibility replaces verification”
PNAS
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), a peer reviewed journal of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) - an authoritative source of high-impact, original research that broadly spans...
www.pnas.org
October 17, 2025 at 7:40 AM
Evidence that even when LLMs produce similar results to humans, they “rely on lexical associations and statistical priors rather than contextual reasoning or normative criteria. We term this divergence epistemia: the illusion of knowledge emerging when surface plausibility replaces verification”
Reposted by Zach A.
A friend who teaches at a South Side high school reports attendance is down as much as 50% some days due to fears of ICE raids. This is state terrorism.
ICE is now targeting Black and Latino children in Chicago, arresting and zip-tying them. Their goal is simply to terrorize these kids and families of color with no regard for legality, let alone basic humanity. It's Nazi-level shit. ICE must be abolished.
October 16, 2025 at 4:32 PM
A friend who teaches at a South Side high school reports attendance is down as much as 50% some days due to fears of ICE raids. This is state terrorism.
Reposted by Zach A.
Christopher Columbus was dragged back to Spain in chains by a crusading knight, convicted of tyranny and immeasurable cruelty, pardoned by Isabella but banned from returning to Hispaniola.
Fuck Columbus.
Fuck Columbus.
October 13, 2025 at 2:16 PM
Christopher Columbus was dragged back to Spain in chains by a crusading knight, convicted of tyranny and immeasurable cruelty, pardoned by Isabella but banned from returning to Hispaniola.
Fuck Columbus.
Fuck Columbus.
Reposted by Zach A.
I will not back down.
Trump is now calling for the arrest of elected representatives checking his power.
What else is left on the path to full-blown authoritarianism?
Trump is now calling for the arrest of elected representatives checking his power.
What else is left on the path to full-blown authoritarianism?
October 8, 2025 at 1:44 PM
I will not back down.
Trump is now calling for the arrest of elected representatives checking his power.
What else is left on the path to full-blown authoritarianism?
Trump is now calling for the arrest of elected representatives checking his power.
What else is left on the path to full-blown authoritarianism?
Reposted by Zach A.
Horrific reporting from the AP on the Myanmar families watching their kids starve to death from Trump and Musk’s aid cuts apnews.com/article/myan...
Starving children screaming for food as US aid cuts unleash devastation and death across Myanmar
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has repeatedly said “no one has died" because of his government’s decision to gut its foreign aid program.
apnews.com
October 8, 2025 at 10:41 AM
Horrific reporting from the AP on the Myanmar families watching their kids starve to death from Trump and Musk’s aid cuts apnews.com/article/myan...
Reposted by Zach A.
Evidence-based review of the Tylenol/ paracetamol - autism controversy stirred up by MAGA and their friends - FREE podcast + detailed notes
from evidence-based health/ longevity/ exercise podcaster Peter Attia (not on BSky): share with US friends!! peterattiamd.com/tylenolandau...
from evidence-based health/ longevity/ exercise podcaster Peter Attia (not on BSky): share with US friends!! peterattiamd.com/tylenolandau...
#367 - Tylenol, pregnancy, and autism: What recent studies show and how to interpret the data
“Science is not about being right or wrong in an absolute sense. It's really about constantly updating our priors, understanding the probability of something as new evidence becomes emergent.” —Peter ...
peterattiamd.com
October 7, 2025 at 4:18 PM
Evidence-based review of the Tylenol/ paracetamol - autism controversy stirred up by MAGA and their friends - FREE podcast + detailed notes
from evidence-based health/ longevity/ exercise podcaster Peter Attia (not on BSky): share with US friends!! peterattiamd.com/tylenolandau...
from evidence-based health/ longevity/ exercise podcaster Peter Attia (not on BSky): share with US friends!! peterattiamd.com/tylenolandau...
Reposted by Zach A.
“Conversion therapy” is pseudoscience. Period.
The Supreme Court must uphold the constitutionality of these legal restrictions and stand strongly between our children and these abusive practices.
The Supreme Court must uphold the constitutionality of these legal restrictions and stand strongly between our children and these abusive practices.
October 7, 2025 at 5:00 PM
“Conversion therapy” is pseudoscience. Period.
The Supreme Court must uphold the constitutionality of these legal restrictions and stand strongly between our children and these abusive practices.
The Supreme Court must uphold the constitutionality of these legal restrictions and stand strongly between our children and these abusive practices.
Reposted by Zach A.
This is a big #WhiteChristianNationalism red flag.
Bari Weiss launched The Free Press with funding from Peter Thiel allies Marc Andreessen and David Sacks. She’s the new editor-in-chief of CBS News. 1/
October 6, 2025 at 9:16 PM
This is a big #WhiteChristianNationalism red flag.
Reposted by Zach A.
More Gestapo THUGGERY.
October 3, 2025 at 7:25 PM
More Gestapo THUGGERY.
Reposted by Zach A.
Not a drag queen
Robert Morris, Texas megachurch pastor, pleads guilty to sexually abusing a child www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...
Robert Morris, Texas megachurch pastor, pleads guilty to sexually abusing a child
Under a negotiated plea agreement, he was given a ten year sentence, but he will only serve six months of that sentence.
www.nbcnews.com
October 3, 2025 at 1:43 AM
Not a drag queen
Reposted by Zach A.
Great issue of Phil Trans B @royalsocietypublishing.org on the BIG QUESTION of the origin of life: royalsocietypublishing.org/toc/rstb/202...
Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences: Vol 380, No 1936
royalsocietypublishing.org
October 3, 2025 at 7:12 AM
Great issue of Phil Trans B @royalsocietypublishing.org on the BIG QUESTION of the origin of life: royalsocietypublishing.org/toc/rstb/202...
Reposted by Zach A.
Here’s my new paper which our last #CoolWorlds video discussed. Paper tackles two existential puzzles: why don’t we live around the most common star type, an M-dwarf, and, why do we live so early in cosmic chronology?
arxiv.org/abs/2510.01215
arxiv.org/abs/2510.01215
Solar Hegemony: M-Dwarfs Are Unlikely to Host Observers Such as Ourselves
With no firm evidence for life beyond our solar system, inferences about the population observers such as ourselves rests upon the Earth as a single input, at least for now. Whilst the narrative of ou...
arxiv.org
October 3, 2025 at 7:04 AM
Here’s my new paper which our last #CoolWorlds video discussed. Paper tackles two existential puzzles: why don’t we live around the most common star type, an M-dwarf, and, why do we live so early in cosmic chronology?
arxiv.org/abs/2510.01215
arxiv.org/abs/2510.01215
Reposted by Zach A.
Finally! 🤩 Our position piece: Against the Uncritical Adoption of 'AI' Technologies in Academia:
doi.org/10.5281/zeno...
We unpick the tech industry’s marketing, hype, & harm; and we argue for safeguarding higher education, critical
thinking, expertise, academic freedom, & scientific integrity.
1/n
doi.org/10.5281/zeno...
We unpick the tech industry’s marketing, hype, & harm; and we argue for safeguarding higher education, critical
thinking, expertise, academic freedom, & scientific integrity.
1/n
September 6, 2025 at 8:13 AM
Finally! 🤩 Our position piece: Against the Uncritical Adoption of 'AI' Technologies in Academia:
doi.org/10.5281/zeno...
We unpick the tech industry’s marketing, hype, & harm; and we argue for safeguarding higher education, critical
thinking, expertise, academic freedom, & scientific integrity.
1/n
doi.org/10.5281/zeno...
We unpick the tech industry’s marketing, hype, & harm; and we argue for safeguarding higher education, critical
thinking, expertise, academic freedom, & scientific integrity.
1/n
Reposted by Zach A.
I wrote about the dangerous fantasy of the civility framework in political discourse. www.nytimes.com/2025/09/24/o...
Opinion | Civility Is a Fantasy
www.nytimes.com
September 24, 2025 at 2:28 PM
I wrote about the dangerous fantasy of the civility framework in political discourse. www.nytimes.com/2025/09/24/o...
Reposted by Zach A.
I get that the news cycle is packed right now, but I just heard from a colleague at the Smithsonian that this is fully a GIANT SQUID BEING EATEN BY A SPERM WHALE and it’s possibly the first ever confirmed video according to a friend at NOAA
10 YEAR OLD ME IS LOSING HER MIND (a thread 🧵)
10 YEAR OLD ME IS LOSING HER MIND (a thread 🧵)
September 24, 2025 at 8:30 PM
I get that the news cycle is packed right now, but I just heard from a colleague at the Smithsonian that this is fully a GIANT SQUID BEING EATEN BY A SPERM WHALE and it’s possibly the first ever confirmed video according to a friend at NOAA
10 YEAR OLD ME IS LOSING HER MIND (a thread 🧵)
10 YEAR OLD ME IS LOSING HER MIND (a thread 🧵)
Reposted by Zach A.
major traffic incident
September 24, 2025 at 12:04 PM
major traffic incident
Reposted by Zach A.
"The Spanish government approves a “total” arms embargo on Israel, part of a package of measures aimed at halting what Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez called “the genocide in Gaza.”"
www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_ent...
www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_ent...
Spain approves ‘total’ arms embargo in Israel
* * *
www.timesofisrael.com
September 24, 2025 at 8:56 PM
"The Spanish government approves a “total” arms embargo on Israel, part of a package of measures aimed at halting what Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez called “the genocide in Gaza.”"
www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_ent...
www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_ent...