iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

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Elsa @erli.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

I can't stop thinking how wrong the tech bros have understood creativity and creators. Or even just having hobbies. #erliart

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Aleeza Gerstein @acgerstein.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

Thanks for agreeing to review my "I'll be lucky to get anywhere near even half of the money I'm requesting" proposal :-D

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Aleeza Gerstein @acgerstein.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

A lot of things about writing grants is somewhat ridiculous. But is there anything that comes close to the NSERC Discovery Grant budget? #NSERC #CanCon #IYKYK

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Aleeza Gerstein @acgerstein.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

Tl;dr (in my opinion) CS faculty bring in much more grant money. That’s all it is.

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Janice Braden, Associate Member of EU @janicebraden.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

I’m not sure we would be happy to know how compromised the back end of the Canadian government’s digital footprint is housed and driven from the US. Cory Doctorow says it is substantial, esp since the AI push.

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Aleeza Gerstein @acgerstein.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

As seen in rural Manitoba. 🇨🇦❤️

A sign that says
Hot food
Cold drinks
Tackle
Cannabis!

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By Cory Doctorow (GPG 0xBF3D9110957E5F4C) @doctorow.pluralistic.net · 24/08/2026

By repealing Bill C-11 and legalizing reverse-engineering and modification of digital technology with consent of its users and in accordance with privacy, consumer and labour rights, Canada will gain a devastating counter to Trump's tariffs. 53/

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Aleeza Gerstein @acgerstein.bsky.social · 20/08/2026

This comment sub thread deserves more love.

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Canadian History Ehx @cdnhistoryehx.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

On Aug. 18, 1964, The Beatles landed on Canadian soil for the first time. They didn't land in Toronto, Montreal or Vancouver. It was Winnipeg. And their visit there was a massive event for locals. This is the story. 🧵 1/9

Four members of the Beatles—John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr—standing on an airplane staircase, dressed in suits and ties from the 1960s. John Lennon, on the left, wears sunglasses and raises his left hand in a wave, while Paul McCartney, second from the left, smiles and waves with his right hand. George Harrison, second from the right, makes a playful face with his mouth open and hand near his face, and Ringo Starr, on the right, holds his jacket and looks forward. The black-and-white photo captures them against a clear sky, with a metal railing visible in the foreground.

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Jess McLaughlin, PhD (they/them) @jfmclaughlin92.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

okay y'all, im losing my mind here so time to ask for help- can a German speaker who can decipher old cursive make sense of of the info about the parents on this birth record?

Three cells of an old birth record from Bohemia. I would transcribe what it says, but that is sort of the crux of the issue here

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Aleeza Gerstein @acgerstein.bsky.social · 15/08/2026

My brother and I stayed overnight in the town (in 2007) and the hostel/guest house played Indiana Jones every night 🤦‍♀️

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Didi is a trans immigrant 🏳️‍⚧️ @didichanoch.northsky.social · 08/08/2026

It's gonna be our first Saturday at the bookstore! On one hand, more people can visit due to not working. On the other hand, people here apparently have things called "cabins" where they go on summer weekends. So I guess we'll see how it goes!

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Aleeza Gerstein @acgerstein.bsky.social · 01/08/2026

This deserves to be ratio’d and I’m very disappointed that hasn’t happened. What f-ing myth are you speaking of in the year 2026? This isn’t the 1990s (where this was also proved as utter BS). #LillithFair @rollingstone.com - Do better.

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Witch Doctor @witchdoctor.bsky.social · 29/07/2026

Millennials don’t have houses because we’re eating genderfluid avocado toast 🧪

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Colin Duggan 🇨🇦 @bailefios.ca · 20/07/2026

Canadians are so good at forest management we have a national music video explaining how our woodsmen get the work done and still have time to dance and get laid… I’d like to see an American try to be that talented.

youtu.be

CANADA VIGNETTES: LOG DRIVER'S WALTZ | Full Animated Film | National Film Board of Canada

YouTube video by NFB

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Aleeza Gerstein @acgerstein.bsky.social · 19/07/2026

Incredible TV. I’ve also been recommending ad nauseum.

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Katie Mack @astrokatie.com · 17/07/2026

Probably more helpful to think of them not so much as “Canadian wildfires” but rather “climate change wildfires currently consuming Canada”

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Richard Price 🇨🇦 @voscovery.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

For the Carney climate doubters the new PMOs CEO was his right hand person GFANZ. Her role is to align capital and drive net zero governance and data tracking into every aspect of Canada and harmonize with global carbon reduction initiatives. davidmclaughlin2025.substack.com/p/coo-for-pm...

davidmclaughlin2025.substack.com

COO for PMO Announced

Now do this for PCO and the public service as a whole.

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Aleeza Gerstein @acgerstein.bsky.social · 08/07/2026

I'm fairly sure I know what had to happen---more preliminary data, more proof that I can do the things I want to. But with a typical Faculty of Science load (40% research 1:1 + grad teaching) and a start-up that was about 1/3 of the med school, I don't really see what I could have done differently.

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Aleeza Gerstein @acgerstein.bsky.social · 08/07/2026

For transparency around rejection, add me to the list of Canadians who never had a grant that wasn't streamlined (triaged) at CIHR during the ECR period. I only bought three tickets, but was stuck in the 50-75% bin. Will do a big rewrite and resubmit to a different panel in the fall. 1/2

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Johnny “Euro Hoser” Renton @johnnyrenton.bsky.social · 05/07/2026

This petition, demanding that the Feds regulate AI data centres to the degree they should be (and the way most big tech should have been over the past 20 years), is worth signing. The grifters, criminals & bandits behind AI will steal our energy, public money and more if they aren’t held to account

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Aleeza Gerstein @acgerstein.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

How insane it would be if Canada won on the 4th of July. 🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦

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Aleeza Gerstein @acgerstein.bsky.social · 29/06/2026

This is a false equivalency. Disagree with the protesters, disagree with their signs, but I don't think there is anything to gain from false rhetoric like this. (I thought long and hard and overnight before posting this

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By Cory Doctorow (GPG 0xBF3D9110957E5F4C) @doctorow.pluralistic.net · 25/06/2026

It's not often that someone on a panel says something that makes my jaw drop, but that's what happened earlier this week when the moderator of a panel I was on in Toronto described jailbreaking an iPhone as "rampant theft of IP." 1/

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Brian Pincott @bpincott.bsky.social · 25/06/2026

The crisis continues. My partner had to administer nakoxone to someone unconscious & unresponsive on our front porch today. It was the 2nd person that had to be dosed this afternoon on our block. Yes, #wpgpoli, this is a community crisis. #winnipeg #manitoba #drugcrisis

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Aleeza Gerstein @acgerstein.bsky.social · 24/06/2026

I got referred to derm by my primary care doctor this summer. My appointment is in February 2027.

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Scott Billeck @scottbilleck.bsky.social · 12/06/2026

Wasted time. open.substack.com/pub/scottbil...

Aleeza Gerstein @acgerstein.bsky.social · 11/06/2026

I’ve been rereading Persepolis. If you never read it, do it now. If you read it before, I highly recommend the reread. It was a powerful read in the early 2000s, in 2026 even more so.

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Dave Jorgenson @davejorgenson.bsky.social · 23/05/2026

Colbert guest hosted a public access TV show in Monroe, Michigan a day after the Late Show ended. Guest star: Jeff Daniels Special appearance by: Eminem Musical director: Jack White Genius. youtu.be/jJTXB5uT_C4?...

youtu.be

Only In Monroe --- May 22, 2026

YouTube video by Stephen Colbert

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Aleeza Gerstein @acgerstein.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

Apparently, I have discovered how to age in reverse, and undergrad me is giving a keynote at CanFunNet this year! I'm biased in many ways, but this is a wonderful, trainee-centred, online (inclusive) meeting. Not just for Canadians or those in Canada ;-) Register today!

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Jacquelyn Gill @jacquelyngill.bsky.social · 15/05/2026

Today, the University of Maine's Vice Chancellor for Finance and Strategic AI Integration (who made $243,000 last year) sent UMaine campuses an announcement that we have partnered with OpenAI with a contract for ChatGPT Edu. I sent him the following questions:

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Amelia McNamara @amelia.mn · 15/05/2026

Today I'm at Data Tech from MinneAnalytics, hosted by Best Buy. datatech2026.sched.com Starting the morning attending a panel about the data science and AI job market. #DataTech2026

datatech2026.sched.com

Data Tech 2026 Schedule

Check out the schedule for Data Tech 2026

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Aleeza Gerstein @acgerstein.bsky.social · 01/05/2026

One more #SCEECSEE20 grad memory, from Banff, 2011. We were staying in a much fancier hotel than most of us grad students were used to. We knew it was fancy because we were given robes. So one night we did the obvious thing and had a raucous robe party. A much delayed sorry to whoever was next door.

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Aleeza Gerstein @acgerstein.bsky.social · 30/04/2026

A most memorable CSEE moment for me was when Graham gave the presidential address in Vancouver. It started like "I'm not quite sure what is expected for this address. All I know is that I was meant to wear a suit jacket and tie and if anyone else in the room was in a suit I was in the wrong place".

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Aleeza Gerstein @acgerstein.bsky.social · 30/04/2026

A career highlight was the Winnipeg meeting, in my hometown. So fun to be with old friends, see folks discover how pretty great Winnipeg is, and present in the same session as some of my favourite scientists. Best of all was how wonderful it was seeing my own students present their work! 2/2

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Aleeza Gerstein @acgerstein.bsky.social · 30/04/2026

I secretly snuck into the first #SCEECSEE20 meeting! I had just come back from six months of backpacking and landed in Toronto a couple of days beforehand. @ariannealbert.bsky.social I subsequently attended and paid for (well, @sarperotto.bsky.social grants paid for) many more in grad school. 1/2

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Aleeza Gerstein @acgerstein.bsky.social · 28/04/2026

Same as others - just saw this now, would happily kick in something in the future to whatever/whomever you’ve vetted.

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Aleeza Gerstein @acgerstein.bsky.social · 27/04/2026

Bottom left is my desktop. It’s what I see when I waken my laptop. It still makes me gape in wonder every time.

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Aleeza Gerstein @acgerstein.bsky.social · 17/04/2026

In the words of my grumpy first born during the walk to school: winter and spring are fighting and winter is winning.

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Aleeza Gerstein @acgerstein.bsky.social · 14/04/2026

Yeah the wording was poor. I agree with you.

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Aleeza Gerstein @acgerstein.bsky.social · 14/04/2026

It is depressing to live in a province purportedly governed by the NDP and a country by the Liberals and yet to be continually subjected to a near full slate of fiscal conservative policies at both jurisdictional levels. #mbpoli #canpoli

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Jess Calarco @jessicacalarco.com · 13/04/2026

Same goes for every "genius" academic or scholar.

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Aleeza Gerstein @acgerstein.bsky.social · 13/04/2026

everything I want to do on my computer seems to be getting harder and Microsoft autoupdate somehow got turned back on and I don’t want to use AI to summarize any goddamn thing in a PDF and is there a name for post moon joy depression that enshittification is real and it doesn’t have to be this way?

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Guy Gavriel Kay @guygavrielkay.bsky.social · 09/04/2026

So, @mcnallyrobinson.com in Winnipeg are one of my true ‘home bookstores’ and they now offer free shipping anywhere in Canada for orders of $50 and up. I just placed another order and thought I’d alert others they can do this. They’re great. I sign there with every book release. Happy reading.

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