Mary Branscombe
@marypcbuk.bsky.social
Omnivorous technology journalist. girl with the USB earring; author of the Cassidy At Large technomysteries. Like my writing? Buy me a ☕ https://ko-fi.com/marybranscombe. she/her. Warning: contains opinions. signal marypcbuk.44
Pinned
Mary Writes
Conveniently collecting together the different articles I write in various places
marybranscombe.leaflet.pub
at the moment I'm writing for CIO, The Stack, the New Stack and AskWoody (and this year's State of the Edge report for the Linux Foundation). I'm very slowly linking my threads about my articles on a Leaflet but it's not at all complete!
Reposted by Mary Branscombe
Did you know that VS Code has an official podcast? The VS Code Insiders Podcast gives you an insider's look at the features, decisions, and people shaping the future of VS Code.
Learn more in our latest blog: code.visualstudio.com/blogs/2025/1...
Learn more in our latest blog: code.visualstudio.com/blogs/2025/1...
Introducing the VS Code Insiders Podcast
The VS Code Insiders Podcast is your insider's guide to the features, decisions, and people shaping the future of Visual Studio Code.
code.visualstudio.com
December 4, 2025 at 11:00 PM
Did you know that VS Code has an official podcast? The VS Code Insiders Podcast gives you an insider's look at the features, decisions, and people shaping the future of VS Code.
Learn more in our latest blog: code.visualstudio.com/blogs/2025/1...
Learn more in our latest blog: code.visualstudio.com/blogs/2025/1...
Reposted by Mary Branscombe
Tried to promote a new Video where Mark and I talk about RSS and it got flagged by YouTube for Election Content? That's a weird false positive. There seems to be no way to appeal?
December 4, 2025 at 10:40 PM
Tried to promote a new Video where Mark and I talk about RSS and it got flagged by YouTube for Election Content? That's a weird false positive. There seems to be no way to appeal?
Reposted by Mary Branscombe
The night before the EU is expected to announce fines against X, JD Vance is already out running defense:
December 4, 2025 at 11:03 PM
The night before the EU is expected to announce fines against X, JD Vance is already out running defense:
Reposted by Mary Branscombe
I was talking to a friend today, and her son is a class at school that is I guess supposed to promote financial responsibility and planning—learning about things like investing in the stock market and the like—and the teacher is hyping PolyMarket.
Chat, we're cooked if we don't ban this stuff.
Chat, we're cooked if we don't ban this stuff.
My strategy of not gambling and just having an advisor who puts my money in blue chip stocks and leaving it there for the long-term seems boring but on the other hand I'm actually on track for retirement atm?
Fuckin people watching Netflix making prop bets on what minute of the episode we’re first gonna see Vecna. People betting on whether it’s gonna be a Toyotathon commercial or an Activia commercial. Just a little QR code in the bottom corner of every show asking you to bet on everything.
December 4, 2025 at 11:03 PM
I was talking to a friend today, and her son is a class at school that is I guess supposed to promote financial responsibility and planning—learning about things like investing in the stock market and the like—and the teacher is hyping PolyMarket.
Chat, we're cooked if we don't ban this stuff.
Chat, we're cooked if we don't ban this stuff.
I am SO HERE for this; Musk will want Trump to nuke the EU (fiscally or physically, he won't really care which) and if Trump doesn't jump to it we might get another glorious weekend of the girls fighting. Ofcom might turn over in its sleep briefly. the discourse will be OFF THE CHARTS
🚨
I am hearing from multiple sources that the EU Commission is announcing its first DSA fine tomorrow against X on ad transparency, blue check & dark pattern, and researcher access to data.
The fine is in the "100s of millions of Euros."
Elon about to get big mad.
I am hearing from multiple sources that the EU Commission is announcing its first DSA fine tomorrow against X on ad transparency, blue check & dark pattern, and researcher access to data.
The fine is in the "100s of millions of Euros."
Elon about to get big mad.
December 4, 2025 at 11:16 PM
I am SO HERE for this; Musk will want Trump to nuke the EU (fiscally or physically, he won't really care which) and if Trump doesn't jump to it we might get another glorious weekend of the girls fighting. Ofcom might turn over in its sleep briefly. the discourse will be OFF THE CHARTS
Reposted by Mary Branscombe
I guess if you’re going to test drone delivery, might as well do it over one of the most heavily-armed counties in the country?
Wait until word spreads about skeet shooting with random presents.
Wait until word spreads about skeet shooting with random presents.
December 4, 2025 at 2:54 PM
I guess if you’re going to test drone delivery, might as well do it over one of the most heavily-armed counties in the country?
Wait until word spreads about skeet shooting with random presents.
Wait until word spreads about skeet shooting with random presents.
I know LLMs don't think, reason, or understand; I know they're just using what's encoded in the semantic space. sometimes they do it *really well* in a way that looks as if they 'understand' a complex process and can fit points from a rambling conversation into that, which is pretty impressive
December 4, 2025 at 7:39 PM
I know LLMs don't think, reason, or understand; I know they're just using what's encoded in the semantic space. sometimes they do it *really well* in a way that looks as if they 'understand' a complex process and can fit points from a rambling conversation into that, which is pretty impressive
Reposted by Mary Branscombe
Nobody nailed it harder than Marshall McLuhan.
“World War 3 is a guerrilla information war with no division between military and civilian participation.”
“World War 3 is a guerrilla information war with no division between military and civilian participation.”
December 4, 2025 at 6:32 PM
Nobody nailed it harder than Marshall McLuhan.
“World War 3 is a guerrilla information war with no division between military and civilian participation.”
“World War 3 is a guerrilla information war with no division between military and civilian participation.”
Reposted by Mary Branscombe
"We are at war. In a hybrid conflict, the frontline is everywhere and everyone is on it." — @stollmeyer.bsky.social
December 4, 2025 at 5:58 PM
"We are at war. In a hybrid conflict, the frontline is everywhere and everyone is on it." — @stollmeyer.bsky.social
Reposted by Mary Branscombe
By 2040, ~40% of the images from Hubble Space Telescope, and more than 96% from new and future space telescopes like SPHEREx, ARRAKIHS, and Xuntian will be contaminated by internet satellite constellations.
Read our new NASA article in Nature:
nature.com/articles/s4158…
Read our new NASA article in Nature:
nature.com/articles/s4158…
December 3, 2025 at 6:55 PM
By 2040, ~40% of the images from Hubble Space Telescope, and more than 96% from new and future space telescopes like SPHEREx, ARRAKIHS, and Xuntian will be contaminated by internet satellite constellations.
Read our new NASA article in Nature:
nature.com/articles/s4158…
Read our new NASA article in Nature:
nature.com/articles/s4158…
Reposted by Mary Branscombe
Book production timeline thread incoming!
The first thing everyone needs to understand is that the people who do the work—from copyediting to design to typesetting to printing to stocking the warehouse to shipping it to booksellers—are each working on multiple projects at once.
1/19
The first thing everyone needs to understand is that the people who do the work—from copyediting to design to typesetting to printing to stocking the warehouse to shipping it to booksellers—are each working on multiple projects at once.
1/19
There are rhythms to publishing. *Written on the Dark* will appear in paperback everywhere in April/May and I was just sent the proposed Canadian cover for approval (I approved!). They just added ‘National Bestseller’ and a gold seal for the Globe’s Best Books list. I’ll share when it is final.
December 3, 2025 at 7:03 PM
Book production timeline thread incoming!
The first thing everyone needs to understand is that the people who do the work—from copyediting to design to typesetting to printing to stocking the warehouse to shipping it to booksellers—are each working on multiple projects at once.
1/19
The first thing everyone needs to understand is that the people who do the work—from copyediting to design to typesetting to printing to stocking the warehouse to shipping it to booksellers—are each working on multiple projects at once.
1/19
Reposted by Mary Branscombe
If you live in the US, you may be more concerned than ever about what happens when law enforcement shows up at a telco and demands information about your account.
A new anonymous phone carrier startup Phreeli, launching today, will let you sign up for cellular service with almost no personally identifiable information—not even your name. All it asks for is a ZIP code, the minimum info legally required for tax purposes. www.wired.com/story/new-an...
A New Anonymous Phone Carrier Lets You Sign Up With Nothing but a Zip Code
Privacy stalwart Nicholas Merrill spent a decade fighting an FBI surveillance order. Now he wants to sell you phone service—without knowing almost anything about you.
www.wired.com
December 4, 2025 at 5:56 PM
If you live in the US, you may be more concerned than ever about what happens when law enforcement shows up at a telco and demands information about your account.
answers a lot of questions about how the dumb plate swapping thing works
Enterprise Rent-A-Car license plate revoked after immigration agents illegally swapped it out. This follows our reporting on an encounter where a federal agent told a woman, “You can record all you want. We change the plates out every day.” www.chicagotribune.com/2025/12/04/i...
Enterprise Rent-A-Car license plate revoked after immigration agents illegally swapped it out, records show
Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias warned federal agents against swapping out license plates. Records show it happened anyway.
www.chicagotribune.com
December 4, 2025 at 7:04 PM
answers a lot of questions about how the dumb plate swapping thing works
Reposted by Mary Branscombe
Early in this ACIP meeting, Vicky Pebsworth blamed gay men, promiscuous women, urban residents, and immigrants for spreading HBV in the U.S.
Then Evelyn Griffin said, out loud, that “illegal immigrants” are to blame.
This committee should be DISBANDED and exiled to science Siberia.
Then Evelyn Griffin said, out loud, that “illegal immigrants” are to blame.
This committee should be DISBANDED and exiled to science Siberia.
December 4, 2025 at 6:30 PM
Early in this ACIP meeting, Vicky Pebsworth blamed gay men, promiscuous women, urban residents, and immigrants for spreading HBV in the U.S.
Then Evelyn Griffin said, out loud, that “illegal immigrants” are to blame.
This committee should be DISBANDED and exiled to science Siberia.
Then Evelyn Griffin said, out loud, that “illegal immigrants” are to blame.
This committee should be DISBANDED and exiled to science Siberia.
reserving judgement till i see it it but i *like* the idea of Starfleet Academy being set when the federation is rebuilding from nothing, because you get the possibilities of early Star Trek but not set in a period that is so mined out that you have to alt universe Kirk & Spock to do anything
December 4, 2025 at 6:41 PM
reserving judgement till i see it it but i *like* the idea of Starfleet Academy being set when the federation is rebuilding from nothing, because you get the possibilities of early Star Trek but not set in a period that is so mined out that you have to alt universe Kirk & Spock to do anything
Reposted by Mary Branscombe
This is what government censorship actually looks like: defunding entire fields, deporting researchers, and quite effectively chilling speech that helps people understand how our information systems are being exploited and calls out powerful people and platforms for their bullshit.
For the last decade, the pervasive spread of bullshit & manipulation of online platforms have been widely recognized societal concerns. Now non US citizens studying those subjects can be labeled “censors” & denied visas or deported from the US. Censorship, indeed. www.reuters.com/world/us/tru...
Exclusive: Trump administration orders enhanced vetting for applicants of H-1B visa
An internal State Department memo said that anyone involved in "censorship" of free speech should be considered for rejection.
www.reuters.com
December 4, 2025 at 5:27 PM
This is what government censorship actually looks like: defunding entire fields, deporting researchers, and quite effectively chilling speech that helps people understand how our information systems are being exploited and calls out powerful people and platforms for their bullshit.
Reposted by Mary Branscombe
Holy shit.
Reuters reporting that new admin instructions on visas are if you worked at a platform in trust & safety or content moderation or on fact checking or online safety at an platform you *and your loved ones* are ineligible for H-1B visa.
www.reuters.com/world/us/tru...
Reuters reporting that new admin instructions on visas are if you worked at a platform in trust & safety or content moderation or on fact checking or online safety at an platform you *and your loved ones* are ineligible for H-1B visa.
www.reuters.com/world/us/tru...
December 4, 2025 at 5:41 PM
Holy shit.
Reuters reporting that new admin instructions on visas are if you worked at a platform in trust & safety or content moderation or on fact checking or online safety at an platform you *and your loved ones* are ineligible for H-1B visa.
www.reuters.com/world/us/tru...
Reuters reporting that new admin instructions on visas are if you worked at a platform in trust & safety or content moderation or on fact checking or online safety at an platform you *and your loved ones* are ineligible for H-1B visa.
www.reuters.com/world/us/tru...
Reposted by Mary Branscombe
Thought: if AVS Group have not even bothered responding to #ofcom *AT ALL* then should we not be asking:
WHO THE HELL IS REGULATING ALL OF THE #AGEVERIFICATION DATA THAT AVS IS COLLECTING, AND WHY IS THAT NOT OFCOM'S PRIMARY CONCERN?
WHO THE HELL IS REGULATING ALL OF THE #AGEVERIFICATION DATA THAT AVS IS COLLECTING, AND WHY IS THAT NOT OFCOM'S PRIMARY CONCERN?
Ofcom: “I can levy vasty £1m fines upon Porn!” Internet: “So can I, so can any regulator; but will they pay when you levy them?”
https://alecmuffett.com/article/133522
#AvsGroup #OnlineSafety #OnlineSafetyAct #ofcom #porn #shakespeare
https://alecmuffett.com/article/133522
#AvsGroup #OnlineSafety #OnlineSafetyAct #ofcom #porn #shakespeare
Ofcom: “I can levy vasty £1m fines upon Porn!” Internet: “So can I, so can any regulator; but will they pay when you levy them?”
This will be interesting: Ofcom have imposed a headline-grabbing fine on “AVS Group” for £1 million — plus a second fine of £50,000 — for dereliction under the Online Safety Act. The fi…
alecmuffett.com
December 4, 2025 at 6:18 PM
Thought: if AVS Group have not even bothered responding to #ofcom *AT ALL* then should we not be asking:
WHO THE HELL IS REGULATING ALL OF THE #AGEVERIFICATION DATA THAT AVS IS COLLECTING, AND WHY IS THAT NOT OFCOM'S PRIMARY CONCERN?
WHO THE HELL IS REGULATING ALL OF THE #AGEVERIFICATION DATA THAT AVS IS COLLECTING, AND WHY IS THAT NOT OFCOM'S PRIMARY CONCERN?
really hoping this is live action Lower Decks
🚨 BREAKING - New Star Trek: #StarfleetAcademy Poster!
The first season of the new #StarTrek live-action series premieres January 15th on Paramount+
🖖 Will YOU be watching?
The first season of the new #StarTrek live-action series premieres January 15th on Paramount+
🖖 Will YOU be watching?
December 4, 2025 at 6:35 PM
really hoping this is live action Lower Decks
UK peeps; Palantir is just getting massive contracts with NHS trusts. if you feel they're not great people to have around healthcare data @goodlawproject.org has a letter writing campaign to tell your local trust that/try and make Wes Streeting walk it back
Palantir CEO Says Making War Crimes Constitutional Would Be Good for Business
Palantir CEO Says Making War Crimes Constitutional Would Be Good for Business
Alex Karp vows to use his "whole influence" on immigration and defense policy.
gizmodo.com
December 4, 2025 at 6:34 PM
UK peeps; Palantir is just getting massive contracts with NHS trusts. if you feel they're not great people to have around healthcare data @goodlawproject.org has a letter writing campaign to tell your local trust that/try and make Wes Streeting walk it back
Reposted by Mary Branscombe
For what it's worth, my experience was the exact opposite.
I found my students this semester to be more engaged and excited about the work than they have been in years.
I found my students this semester to be more engaged and excited about the work than they have been in years.
Hearing, and seeing, many university professors express despair, of this sort, this fall. Faculty are famously headstrong and truculent, if sometimes grouchy. But this affect is new. ’ve never seen the widespread descent into sorrow before, that I am seeing now.
Today I'm teaching the last few classes of the worst semester of my career. Just poor attendance, rampant AI use, disruptive students, and a sea of blank, disinterested faces. That last one is especially tough. It's hard to perform for a crowd that seems intent on giving no reaction whatsoever.
December 4, 2025 at 2:34 PM
For what it's worth, my experience was the exact opposite.
I found my students this semester to be more engaged and excited about the work than they have been in years.
I found my students this semester to be more engaged and excited about the work than they have been in years.
Watching The Librarians and is that an @davidmalki.com Wondermark in the portfolio of Grim Reaper drawings?
December 4, 2025 at 5:03 PM
Watching The Librarians and is that an @davidmalki.com Wondermark in the portfolio of Grim Reaper drawings?
I'm crazy busy this month so I haven't been doing jamvent postings (it's all nice jam so far, sad it's not the US pullout boxes), we only started ginvent last night with a blood orange gin that was in an orange bottle but not itself orange and chocvent is nice Divine dark chocolate hearts every day
December 4, 2025 at 4:41 PM
I'm crazy busy this month so I haven't been doing jamvent postings (it's all nice jam so far, sad it's not the US pullout boxes), we only started ginvent last night with a blood orange gin that was in an orange bottle but not itself orange and chocvent is nice Divine dark chocolate hearts every day
Reposted by Mary Branscombe
"Corn ethanol requires millions of acres that could instead be used for food crops or more efficient energy sources. One recent study found that solar panels can generate as much energy as corn ethanol on roughly 3% of the land."
Corn’s clean-energy promise is clashing with its climate footprint
Corn dominates U.S. farmland and fuels the ethanol industry. But the fertilizer it relies on drives emissions and fouls drinking water.
floodlightnews.org
December 4, 2025 at 2:37 PM
"Corn ethanol requires millions of acres that could instead be used for food crops or more efficient energy sources. One recent study found that solar panels can generate as much energy as corn ethanol on roughly 3% of the land."
Reposted by Mary Branscombe
> LLMs have, along with their many other direct and indirect societal effects, are democratizing software development in a way nothing since Apple's Hypercard really has.
yes
100%. i'm experiencing the same effect on myself although i *am* a dev — sidetrail.app is very much a Claude collaboration
yes
100%. i'm experiencing the same effect on myself although i *am* a dev — sidetrail.app is very much a Claude collaboration
I wrote something that isn't a development log! @dame.is and @laurenshof.online have been up to some cool stuff, and it got me thinking.
alpha.weaver.sh/nonbinary.co...
alpha.weaver.sh/nonbinary.co...
Connected Places, LLMs and slop
Friend of the channel Laurens ([@laurenshof.online](at://did:plc:mdjhvva6vlrswsj26cftjttd)) writes among other things a blog called The ATmosphere Report on...
alpha.weaver.sh
December 4, 2025 at 2:24 PM
> LLMs have, along with their many other direct and indirect societal effects, are democratizing software development in a way nothing since Apple's Hypercard really has.
yes
100%. i'm experiencing the same effect on myself although i *am* a dev — sidetrail.app is very much a Claude collaboration
yes
100%. i'm experiencing the same effect on myself although i *am* a dev — sidetrail.app is very much a Claude collaboration