By Cory Doctorow (GPG 0xBF3D9110957E5F4C) @doctorow.pluralistic.net · 12/08/2026Songs repeat the words they use, but the words repeated in songs are getting more different. For Leek, this is the key to understanding the whole phenomenon and (more importantly) *doing something* about it. 49/ 1360
By Cory Doctorow (GPG 0xBF3D9110957E5F4C) @doctorow.pluralistic.net · 12/08/2026Music recommendation systems optimized for a singable hook, but did not optimize on any of the other variables in songs, so those dimensions acquired a broader range, even as the optmized variable got flatter and narrower. 50/ 2370
By Cory Doctorow (GPG 0xBF3D9110957E5F4C) @doctorow.pluralistic.net · 12/08/2026This means that the tendency of recommenders to "flatten the world" isn't a single blunt outcome: it depends on which dimension we choose to flatten through recommendation, and *who* chooses to flatten that dimension. 51/ 2521
Kip Williams sort of @kipwilliams.bsky.social · 13/08/2026It's easier with classical. No matter what you buy, their bot says "Oh, classical!" and recommends these recordings of the Nutcracker Suite and 1812 Overture to broaden your horizons. 010
