@JMMaok@mastodon.online
@JMMaok@mastodon.online avatar

JMMaok

@JMMaok@mastodon.online

Advancing open knowledge and civic technology

PhD in Public Policy, M.S. in Technical Communication. Research focused on science and technology policy, especially scientific workforce and university research centers.

Current interests: open science, including science as a human right and multilingual science. Also an active civic tech volunteer with current / recent projects in open government and open data.

Posts will include policy, politics, and propaganda awareness content.

This profile is from a federated server and may be incomplete. Browse more on the original instance.

christianschwaegerl, (edited ) to random
@christianschwaegerl@mastodon.social avatar

The continued use of “race” as a way to categorise people in the US has always struck me as anti-science and, well, racist. But the next US census will take this to a new level of craziness: For example you can claim to be of “German race” or “German ethnicity”, but only if you are “white”. This is so bad it hurts!
Two recent articles highlight the controversy, one from NYT https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2023/10/16/us/census-race-ethnicity.html one from the @washingtonpost
https://wapo.st/3ZVVGFD I’ve now sent a press request to US Census.

JMMaok,
@JMMaok@mastodon.online avatar

@christianschwaegerl @washingtonpost

I hope you will open-mindedly inform yourself about the role of this data in the US.

Having worked with this data professionally, I don’t think your statement about “only if you are white” is literally correct. For example, the Hispanic or Latino section has an option to write in additional identities. It doesn’t show in the screen capture, but the Black section probably does, too. 1/2

JMMaok,
@JMMaok@mastodon.online avatar

@christianschwaegerl @washingtonpost

It looks like checkboxes are provided for the most common combinations, with less common combinations using free text fields.

I’m not defending this particular reformulation of the question. But that also doesn’t seem like an absurd survey design choice for a survey of US residents. 2/2.

JMMaok,
@JMMaok@mastodon.online avatar

@christianschwaegerl @washingtonpost

Consider backing away from the binary thinking (as my colleagues and I did when learning about these data not being collected in other countries). As one example, these data are central to many civil rights laws in the US. Yes, race does not hold up as a biological concept. But socially, US society absolutely racializes people and marginalizes them on those grounds. Without data policy is useless. 1/2

JMMaok,
@JMMaok@mastodon.online avatar

@christianschwaegerl

The breakdown of white into multiple European ancestries doesn’t seem particularly useful, so we agree somewhat there. The real, incremental policy question is how to move forward from the current confusing question format that starts by asking about Hispanic ethnicity. 2/2

JMMaok,
@JMMaok@mastodon.online avatar

@christianschwaegerl

Maybe bureaucratic, but not ignorant. Multiple books have been written about activism strategies alone of groups lobbying for representation. It gets tons of thought, debate.

I get that with your cultural lens this framing of German ancestry is wrong. The breaking out of white ethnicity seems like a sop to bad-faith lobbying. Your insight would land better pointed at that rather than the unrealistic, extreme, suggestion to have no such Census question.

stpaultim, to random
@stpaultim@fosstodon.org avatar

My sister is a 3rd grade teacher. I spent some time last week showing her how she might use ChatGPT in her job.

Here are some of the things we tried that produced quite impressive results were:

  1. Create a draft invitation to next weeks open house.
  2. Create a 3rd grade lesson plan to learn about the concept of hibernation.
  3. Generate some fun discussion questions about hibernation for 3rd graders.
JMMaok,
@JMMaok@mastodon.online avatar

@stpaultim

There are rafts of or just plain templates for these things that don’t require massive energy consumption, intellectual property theft, or introducing inscrutable biases.

Maybe there are worthwhile uses of these products but holy cow do I not think helping 3rd grade teachers outsource the creation of fun discussion questions is one of them. How long until those lesson plans just subtly omit connections to climate change and evolution?

Frances_Larina, to random
@Frances_Larina@sfba.social avatar

I think that for me the pinnacle of how bad offices could get was when companies were willing to pay $5,000 usd to $10,000 for "privacy / phone call / two person conference" pods rather than admit open floor plan was an absolute ergonomic failure.

JMMaok,
@JMMaok@mastodon.online avatar

@Frances_Larina

Sounds like a repeat of the toilet paper problem. People used to need it in the office. Now they need it at home. Putting a market in the middle is by turns logical, opportunistic, and ridiculous.

djvanness, to academicsunite
@djvanness@mastodon.social avatar

Does anyone in know of any good resources / reviews / analysis on the influences of consulting firms on university finance and governance? The more I look, the more it seems like the trend of universities running like businesses is being pushed through a coordinated effort. @academicchatter @academicsunite

JMMaok,
@JMMaok@mastodon.online avatar

@djvanness @academicchatter @academicsunite

Consultants may play a role, but for a coordinated effort in the US I would look at ALEC first: https://alec.org/issue/education/model-policy/

simon, to random
@simon@simonwillison.net avatar

I wonder how much people's opinions of LLMs are shaped by the first application of them that they encounter

If your first ever mental model of LLMs is that they're for plagiarism and cheating on homework, I can see how that would cloud your overall opinion compared to if you start out by using them to help debug a weird error message

I'd love to see more research around how people think about and understand these things

JMMaok,
@JMMaok@mastodon.online avatar

@simon

For so many of us, our first experience is with their output of almost-plausible garbage getting in the way of information we are trying to evaluate, whether that is internet search, scammy GitHub or other comments trying to build up an identity, or application materials.

I think a big divide is people whose jobs involve producing things, especially where others review their work and/or bear the risk, and people whose work mostly involves evaluation of various types.

design_law, to movies
@design_law@mastodon.social avatar

Request for recommendations: What are three that would be fun to watch together? It doesn't have to be a formal trilogy (though I'd be interested in suggestions for trilogies from outside the U.S.). Could be variations on a theme, best works of a favorite director/actor, etc. Thanks in advance!

JMMaok,
@JMMaok@mastodon.online avatar

@design_law

Antz, A Bug’s Life, Microcosmos

Suddenly Last Summer, The Birds, Winged Migration

GossiTheDog, to random
@GossiTheDog@cyberplace.social avatar

deleted_by_author

    •
    JMMaok,
    @JMMaok@mastodon.online avatar

    @dacresni @GossiTheDog

    As I understand it, verification now mostly means something bad — willing to pay for an account there.

    ben, to ai
    @ben@werd.social avatar

    White supremacist rhetoric is endemic in AI research. An interesting (and complex) point is also made here about preprint journal sites and how they allow companies to whitewash embarrassing mistakes. https://medium.com/

    JMMaok,
    @JMMaok@mastodon.online avatar

    @ben

    A good case for consideration by folks in

    ben, to technology
    @ben@werd.social avatar

    I no longer think the kids are alright. https://www.thecut.com/article/why-teenagers-love-linkedin.html?utm_source=werd.io&utm_campaign=mastodon&utm_channel=mastodon

    JMMaok,
    @JMMaok@mastodon.online avatar

    @ben

    Mixed feelings. At that age, it probably is better than the alternatives. A factual correction, though, there are anonymous/ pseudonymous/ open trolls on LinkedIn. This was especially obvious after the repeal of Roe, when women posted about their lived experience and replies were full of hostility.

    Coordinated in/authentic activity on LinkedIn is all the more insidious because of the veneer of legitimacy and the authentic presence of the targets.

    axbom, to random
    @axbom@axbom.me avatar

    Moving very fast in the wrong direction is not progress.

    Trying to catch up and hold on to something that is moving very fast in the wrong direction doesn't make you "ahead of the game".

    Best is to wave gently and wish them good luck. Make yourself comfortable, read a good book. Sooner or later they will come back around and ask how you can be so far ahead. 😁❤️

    JMMaok,
    @JMMaok@mastodon.online avatar

    @axbom

    Is this about in-person conferences?

    ben, to random
    @ben@werd.social avatar

    Thinking about why people avoid the news, in the context of my own disengagement around international topics. I’m not following the ins and outs of the conflict in Ukraine, for example, and I feel guilty about it, because we’re all connected to it in deep ways - and what an American stereotype to only be preoccupied with what’s happening internally.

    But I also feel utterly powerless. It will happen how it’s going to happen regardless of what I do or think. How to break out of that?

    JMMaok,
    @JMMaok@mastodon.online avatar

    @ben

    In terms of international news, I also feel the strain and less engaged than before. I try to keep in mind that it is the worst part of US society that wants us not to care about the rest of the world. Not to see that we share the same struggles. Not to share that they are running the same playbook around the world.

    ben, to random
    @ben@werd.social avatar

    Parenting in the age of the internet brings a whole new set of responsibilities and worries. I want my son to be a creator, not a consumer. How can I achieve this when our devices are designed to be addiction machines? https://werd.io/2023/parenting-in-the-age-of-the-internet

    JMMaok,
    @JMMaok@mastodon.online avatar

    @ben

    One thing I noticed in teaching: it is possible to consume using only a phone. On the other hand, people who are using computers to create typically have multiple screens, ergonomic workstations, and printers. Don't fall prey to "technically you can do that on your phone." Look at how people do work that stands up to scrutiny.

    Your son may be a little young for that, and the specific technologies may change, but I offer this for consideration.

    NatureMC, (edited ) to LearnJapanese
    @NatureMC@mastodon.online avatar

    deleted_by_author

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    JMMaok,
    @JMMaok@mastodon.online avatar

    @NatureMC

    You might like this example https://www.stevenbe.com/shop/Yarn/Yarn-By-Brand/Yarn-Snob-Yarns.htm

    Lainey, to random

    “The plain fact is that the planet does not need more successful people.

    But it does desperately need more peacemakers, healers, restorers, storytellers, and lovers of every kind.

    It needs people who live well in their places. It needs people of moral courage willing to join the fight to make the world habitable and humane.

    And these qualities have little to do with success as we have defined it.”

    – David W. Orr, Ecological Literacy: Educating Our Children for a Sustainable World

    JMMaok,
    @JMMaok@mastodon.online avatar

    @mike @Lainey

    Elaine didn’t forget them, David did. She’s sharing a quotation.

    upol, (edited ) to mastodon
    @upol@hci.social avatar

    UPDATE: WE GOT PAXLOVID! Your inputs worked. Thank you!!

    friends, I need urgent help:

    wife tested positive for covid. It's bad. Online Doc refused to prescribe citing she's <50yrs. Said LongCovid isn't real and pretty much gaslit the thing.

    PCP offices are closed.

    CVS w/o prescription requires labwork that we don't have handy.

    The blockers in the US are systemic.

    In GA, how might we get Paxlovid? Any ideas?

    JMMaok,
    @JMMaok@mastodon.online avatar

    @upol

    Urgent care or a clinic in a drug store (Minute Clinic). US healthcare is bad in two flavors, underprescribing and overprescribing. If you can, ask your local contacts if they know a clinic that leans toward the overprescribing. Hope she gets the care she needs and feels better soon.

    mhoye, to random
    @mhoye@mastodon.social avatar

    I momentarily though that the biggest reason video tutorials are going outcompete text for at least the next few years is that it's currently much more difficult for AI models to turn video into plausible semantic mulch than text, but then my brain said "oh, that's not a problem, you mulch the transcript text, use a text-to-speech generator and throw in some random screengrabs from existing videos", and I realize that any knowledge without a chain of custody will be drowned out by noise soon.

    JMMaok,
    @JMMaok@mastodon.online avatar

    @mhoye

    Not sure if you followed the saga of the Peppa Pig videos, but was more or less exactly what you describe--"semantic mulch"--but perhaps even more disturbing:

    https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2018/jun/17/peppa-pig-youtube-weird-algorithms-automated-content

    ben, to random
    @ben@werd.social avatar

    Reading a book about how to help your baby learn to read. It’s good, but really boils down to “talk to your baby a lot, and explain the world around them.” What parent doesn’t engage their tiny child in conversation? Isn’t that a huge amount of the joy of it?!

    JMMaok,
    @JMMaok@mastodon.online avatar

    @ben

    Parents who have difficulty just getting themselves through their own days (poverty, illness). Parents who weren’t encouraged to be curious about the world, or confident in their understanding of it. Parents who didn’t have that modeled in their own families. Also, forced parents who see it as a duty rather than a joy. Often, a lot of overlap.

    I’m glad you and your kid are in a good place. This is an opportunity to recognize privilege and good fortune.

    josh, (edited ) to academicchatter
    @josh@fediscience.org avatar

    My syllabus statement on AI generative text. Feel free to reuse CC0 and/or critique here with responses. Responses also welcome if you’re gonna use it (I might put a tally in the annual report)

    @academicchatter

    JMMaok,
    @JMMaok@mastodon.online avatar

    @josh

    Some thoughts. What if the text is blatant plagiarism of a real author? Like, ‘I had no idea that paragraph was Malcolm Gladwell / Jordan Peterson / Taylor Swift, the computer just said …’

    Also, do you have any assignments, like an in class final, where this wouldn’t be an option? If so, you might want to clarify that AND point out that the purpose of the assignments is to learn, so even if the homeworks get passing grades, there may be major gaps in learning.

    ben, to random
    @ben@werd.social avatar

    Just noticed today that SHRM, the HR organization, provides sample LLM chatbot usage policies for its members to adopt. I'm not a member so I can't access, but I'm curious about what it says. https://www.shrm.org/ResourcesAndTools/tools-and-samples/policies/Pages/default.aspx

    JMMaok,
    @JMMaok@mastodon.online avatar

    @ben

    Insert CatBert joke here.

    ben, (edited ) to random
    @ben@werd.social avatar

    People should be able to make money from building on the fediverse.

    JMMaok,
    @JMMaok@mastodon.online avatar

    @ben

    Yes, but we don’t owe them a culture that facilitates their business model.

    evan, (edited ) to random
    @evan@cosocial.ca avatar

    deleted_by_author

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    JMMaok,
    @JMMaok@mastodon.online avatar

    @evan

    I think if the folks who do this repeatedly, often in an agenda-driven way, were dealt with, recipients would recover enough to better manage/ ignore the occasional thoughtless reply. This should not be about treating women as delicate flowers who can’t be contradicted. For the non-trolls, this should be about recognizing women may be experts who you look ridiculous naively contradicting. (QTs were good for this.) Yeet the trolls, though.

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