Sign in

Alondra Nelson

@alondra.bsky.social
48K followers 2.3K following 1.8K posts

Scholar, author, policy advisor Science, Technology, and Social Values Lab www.ias.edu/stsv-lab Books: The Future of Science is Civic, Auditing AI, The Social Life of DNA, Genetics & the Unsettled Past, Body & Soul, Technicolor

PostsRepliesMedia
Pinned
Alondra Nelson @alondra.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Researchers across the country are turning to side hustles to fund their work. Behind the cuts sits a bigger shift: whether American science can still sustain durable research capacity. @lindseydcameron.bsky.social and I examine the stakes in a new piece @science.org: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
science.org
The wrong platform for science
Daniel Blumstein recently sat in a Colorado meadow waiting for yellow-bellied marmots to appear, as the ecologist and evolutionary biologist had done many times before, the New York Times reported. Bu...
5498265
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
Annette Zimmermann @drzimmermann.bsky.social · 6h
💯 another key reason why #AIexceptionalism is so misguided and dangerous. Let’s apply the lessons we can learn from *other* domains of policy-making—about risk, about political accountability, etc—here, without engaging in magical thinking. For more on this, check out my 📚 #democratizingAI #AIpolicy
082
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
J. Nathan Matias @natematias.bsky.social · 7h
I teach STAMP alongside other approaches in my class on documenting and addressing AI failures!
051
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
wombative.bsky.social @wombative.bsky.social · 9h
Not sure if you're looked at this in particular flavor of Safety, but Nancy Levenson at MIT has done some really good work of System Safety and Resilience. It's one of the frameworks that we use where I work (Akamai). If you google her name + STAMP there's a lot of stuff available.
121
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
Deborah McDowell @dem8z.bsky.social · 7h
Thanks for posting. Im taken by this passage: “So far, the AI industry has failed to teach machines to consistently act in the ways a wise and caring person would. Part of this problem is scientific—about how machines work—but another part is human, about how people care for one another.”
0223
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
logan koepke @jlkoepke.bsky.social · 7h
we have a report coming out in a few months on precisely this question: what can we learn from supervisory authority as operationalized in other regulatory domains? my view is it will be necessary for effective mitigation of the harms from AI systems + robust enforcement of current and future laws.
031
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
Kate Starbird @katestarbird.bsky.social · 8h
We've created an app — based on three cycles of research on the common "tropes" of election rumors — for you to create your own "Rigged Election" Bingo cards, fill them out, and share them with friends.
23411
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
whet moser @whetmoser.com · 8h
“Drawing on labyrinthine Internal Revenue Service records, the pair study a group of rich business owners that looks more like a suburban chamber of commerce than an oligarchy: car dealers, dentists... What they find is tremendous wealth and power.” www.nytimes.com/2026/10/02/b...
nytimes.com
The Rich People Democrats Aren’t Talking About (Gift Article)
As billionaires become a popular political target, a new book urges Washington not to lose sight of a much larger, and quieter, group of wealthy business owners.
214043
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
Erin J. Wamsley 🧠📈😴 @wamsleylab.bsky.social · 10h
The fiscal year is over. The dying Social, Behavioral, and Economic division of NSF ended up awarding 90 total grants this year, as opposed to ~700-800 in recent past years. Source: grantwitness.org/nsf/analyses...
The graph shows the cumulative number of awards made by month across this fiscal year, as compared to the last 6 fiscal years. The line for this year is total flat until June, but then finally gets up to 91 by October. In prior years the increase starts building earlier and ends on average in the 700-800 range (with variability, last year was only between 400-500).
7333234
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
Bård Lahn @bard.lahn.no · 8h
Key point: Safety in AI is not some magical new thing. It‘s putting the same kinds of requirements on these companies that we put on other potentially dangerous industries. It’s the companies doing this, not the technology by itself
01510
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
MrCheeze @mrcheeze.github.io · 10h
seems correct, although honestly these are skills we could use a lot more of in the software world even when the stakes aren't so high
1122
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
Tyler King @tyleraking.com · 9h
Meta has enabled Muse to build extensive and ever-growing profiles on the orbit of people in a user’s life. Based on user input but also “publicly available information.” Whether that means a web search, Facebook’s own extensive data, or buying data broker info…we don’t know? And we can’t opt out.
wired.com
Muse Creates Detailed Profiles of All Your Friends and Family
Millions have downloaded Meta’s AI agent Muse. But getting it to do your bidding comes with privacy costs.
34958576
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
ProPublica @propublica.org · 9h
The White House’s proposal to penalize nonprofits that help disabled people vote is just part of the Trump administration’s broader attempts to restrict voting access, especially among groups that have historically faced disenfranchisement.
propublica.org
This White House Plan Threatens Funding That Helps Disabled Americans Vote
A new rule from the Office of Management and Budget would prohibit anyone from using federal grant money for voter registration drives. It’s part of the Trump administration’s broader efforts to restr...
30796450
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
tove lovesitwhen @meghanclare.bsky.social · 9h
“This is new a special category and not just regular capitalism ” was the magical spell held over us by social media companies we should have learned something
061
Alondra Nelson @alondra.bsky.social · 10h
In the Biden administration, l led the team that developed what was arguably the first White House “AI safety” framework, the AI Bill of Rights. David Robinson, author of this forthright and sobering essay about risk culture at OpenAI and in Silicon Valley was on that team.
9370167
Alondra Nelson @alondra.bsky.social · 21h
“The transcript of a Nov. 14 interview she gave also contained more definitive language that the police omitted from her statement: ‘I can say with 100 percent confidence I was raped.’” This is enraging and unacceptable.
27520
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
Andrew Guthrie Ferguson @profferguson.bsky.social · 22h
Flock search of travel data ruled unconstitutional. www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2...
washingtonpost.com
A police search using Flock was a form of ‘mass surveillance,’ judge rules
A federal judge said that police conducted an “unconstitutional warrantless search” by using Flock cameras to reconstruct a woman’s travels without probable cause.
0369
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
Drew Harwell @drewharwell.com · 22h
Federal judge: "Freedom from persistent, dragnet-style surveillance while in public is not a foreign concept in our society & it is a reasonable expectation that society already accepts ... Why is it the govt's business where everyone goes all the time?" www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2...
washingtonpost.com
A police search using Flock was a form of ‘mass surveillance,’ judge rules
A federal judge said that police conducted an “unconstitutional warrantless search” by using Flock cameras to reconstruct a woman’s travels without probable cause.
413853
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
Lisa Margonelli @lisamargonelli.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
And, as the first Nurse in Congress and influential member (and chair) of the House Science Committee, Johnson was tremendously consequential. Here’s an interview with @issuesinst.bsky.social. issues.org/eddie-bernic...
issues.org
“The More Inclusion We Have in Science, the Better Outcomes We’ll Get.”
The congresswoman discusses the 15 minutes that determined her career, how the semiconductor chip transformed Dallas, and the future of science.
0305
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
Lisa Margonelli @lisamargonelli.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
The protest connected Eddie Berenice Johnson and Marcus and began Johnson’s career. wacohistory.org/items/show/199
wacohistory.org
Eddie Bernice Johnson
Eddie Bernice Johnson is a champion of minority and women’s rights representing Texas in the United States House of Representatives. Not only that, she fights to support the sciences and women in STEM...
1288
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
derek guy @dieworkwear.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
The manager was right — some longtime shoppers closed their accounts in protest — but Marcus stuck with his decision. At the time of the flagship's closure, the Main Street store had been open for 112 years.
172067154
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
derek guy @dieworkwear.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
These victories were achieved through the efforts of Civil Rights activists, along with support from Neiman Marcus president Stanley Marcus, who was an early advocate for desegregation. The Neiman Marcus Dallas store manager purportedly warned Marcus that he would destroy his business this way.
A Black man protesting in front of a department store in San Diego, California. He's wearing a suit and holding a sign that says "We March Protesting the Indignity and Humility of Jim Crow." There are some people behind him. Stanley Marcus smoking a pipe. He's wearing a striped suit.
52078206
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
derek guy @dieworkwear.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
The downtown Neiman Marcus flagship was one of the first major Dallas businesses that broke with these practices. In 1961, the company desegregated its Zodiac Room, a swanky lunch spot frequented by Dallas elites. Later, they welcomed Black shoppers to come and buy clothes without restrictions.
The Zodiac Room restaurant on the sixth floor of Neiman Marcus in Dallas. The photo shows a bunch of tables covered in white tablecloth and leather covered seats.
71863207
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
derek guy @dieworkwear.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Neiman Marcus closed its downtown Dallas flagship on Wednesday. The store played a notable role in the history of desegregation in Dallas. Previously, Black shoppers across the US could enter department stores, but they weren't allowed to try on clothes without adhering to certain conditions. 🧵
A notice about the Neiman Marcus store opening in downtown Dallas.An old photo of the Dallas flagship.
10357771620
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
Dominique Baker @bakerdphd.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Writing something where I will be liberally citing @lilymasonphd.bsky.social's latest and realizing that I can't cite every single thing I would like to because then I'm just reprinting her work. So, I've gotta thread about it instead. muse.jhu.edu/pub/1/articl...
Screenshot of the article website. Title is: Polarization Is Not the Problem. Author is Lilliana Mason. Journal is the Journal of Democracy, Volume 37, Number 4, October 2026. From Johns Hopkins University Press.
8855274
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
Dustin A. Chacón @lingdustin.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
I've heard people make claims that AI would lead to a new Renaissance, but I didn't imagine it'd happen like this:
Screenshot of a Tweet from Pope Leo XIV. It reads: 

"In this era of artificial intelligence, it is becoming urgen to distinguish human art from what machines produce. There is an ontological difference, even before an aesthetic one, between art and what a machine can generate through statistical calculation based on millions of images created by others. Algorithms lack the spark of humanity. For this reason, the Church wishes to renew an alliance with artists and cultural institutions to safeguard our humanity."
253180804767
Alondra Nelson @alondra.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Thank you to @schmidtsciences.bsky.social for naming me an AI2050 Senior Fellow. The program asks: "AI has turned out to be hugely beneficial to society. What happened?" Answering it requires beginning to understand the cumulative effects of AI use; that is my project. www.ias.edu/news/alondra...
ias.edu
Alondra Nelson Receives AI2050 Senior Fellowship from Schmidt Sciences
Alondra Nelson, Harold F. Linder Professor in the School of Social Science, has been named by Schmidt Sciences as a 2026 AI2050 Senior Fellow. Nelson is one of six senior researchers to receive this $...
3517
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
Simon Willison @simonwillison.net · 02/10/2026
If you have not yet been to see the scale model of NYC built by Joe Macken out of cardboard and balsa wood over a period of 21 years you only have until the 12th of October to see it! It's at the Museum of the City of New York, by the north east end of Central Park
1223826
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
The Innocence Project @innocenceproject.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
WATCH NOW: bit.ly/3W4lVvx For #WrongfulConvictionDay, join us for a day-long symposium on race and wrongful conviction in America. ⁠
086
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
Brett Bobley @brettbobley.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Big congrats to the amazing @alondra.bsky.social for winning an AI2050 Senior Fellowship from @schmidtsciences.bsky.social. ai2050.schmidtsciences.org/fellow/alond...
ai2050.schmidtsciences.org
Alondra Nelson - AI2050
Alondra Nelson studies how people build, marshal, and live through new scientific and technological developments, and traces what that work makes possible or forecloses for life chances and democratic...
27111
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
The Associated Press @apnews.com · 02/10/2026
BREAKING: New York Gov. Kathy Hochul appoints Letitia James as special prosecutor to oversee an investigation of Cornell gang rape allegations.
bit.ly
New York's governor says state's AG will oversee Cornell rape investigation, removing case from DA
New York’s governor has appointed a special prosecutor to oversee an investigation into a woman’s allegations that she was gang raped at a Cornell University fraternity house, saying she had lost faith in the local district attorney’s ability to handle the case.
1544491
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
Dan Hirschman @asociologist.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Cornell PR: "A continuation of the false narrative that there were minimal consequences in this case is irresponsible, will make victims feel less safe and supported, and will perpetuate the underreporting of sexual assault." PR Pro: "It is hard for so many problems to exist in one sentence."
prdaily.com
Cornell, the DA and the communication choices that deepened a crisis - PR Daily
Communications is shaping -- and worsening -- the alleged gang rape at Cornell University.
25312
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
Alison Gopnik @alisongopnik.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
This is an excellent article by Leif Wetherby - why AI is a cultural technology not a collection of human-like agents (citing our work on this). And why the anthropomorphism is a distraction from the very real risks and dangers and the way to deal with them. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/01/o...
nytimes.com
Opinion | Stop Talking About A.I. Like a Human (Gift Article)
If we want to figure out the proper way to control A.I. models, we need to recognize what they really are.
620390
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
Tech Policy Press @techpolicypress.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
The Privacy Center at Georgetown Law and Tech Policy Press are launching "The Edge Dialogues" on Oct. 22, featuring special guest Dr. Alondra Nelson. No "AI governance" buzzwords. Just urgent conversations about power, labor, war, justice, privacy, art, community and human consciousness. Join us!
luma.com
Save the Date: The Edge Dialogues · Zoom · Luma
This is not your normal tech policy conversation. The Privacy Center at Georgetown Law and Tech Policy Press are launching "The Edge Dialogues" on October…
11111
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
Dan Garisto @dangaristo.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
OMB's focus on NIH and NSF, which has confused a lot of folks, pretty much boils down to stopping money going to universities.
1225139
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
Cole Donovan @colesci.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
So if I'm going to seriously ask the question if the government is using its R&D resources wisely, it makes sense to spend a lot of time focusing on business and federal internal expenditures, as opposed to relentlessly focusing on less than a quarter of the overall pie.
1277
Alondra Nelson @alondra.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
“A plurality of federal R&D funding goes to businesses, followed by internal R&D expenditure, followed by higher education.”
0199
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
Cole Donovan @colesci.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
One of the key failures of the system has been its relentless focus on extramural granting institutions like NIH and NSF, comparing them with defense institutions like DARPA. DARPA deserves its praise, but it also exists in a world where its failures can't be evaluated thanks to classification/CUI.
1184
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
Cole Donovan @colesci.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
... as the scientific systems that they hope to improve, are absolutely being exploited by an administration that stands to benefit from a community turning against itself.
1143
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
Cole Donovan @colesci.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Fairly late on posting this, but this is pretty important reporting for those tracking science policy/reform. To be clear, I think most in the metascience community are well-meaning and intend to do good work. But the community's findings--which have not endured the same rigorous scrutiny...
sciencebusiness.net
Is metascience being co-opted?
In July, the White House released a report that argued academia is deeply dysfunctional and in need of radical reform.
13411
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
sorelle @friedler.net · 01/10/2026
I was on the radio yesterday! Fun to get to go to the local NPR (WHYY) studio in person for this. And it turns out 1 hour is not so long - so much more to say on these topics than we got to here! whyy.org/episodes/big...
whyy.org
BIG FIX: How to ensure AI benefits humanity - WHYY
How can we ensure AI works for us, not against us. We debate ideas for averting doomsday, holding tech companies accountable, and protecting kids in the classrooms.
151
Alondra Nelson @alondra.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Proud of my IAS colleagues for doing this important work, which at base calls for respect for collective goods and shared knowledge. Doubtful any of this guidance will be taken up by the AI companies.
1151
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
Chanda Prescod-Weinstein 🌌 @chanda.blacksky.app · 01/10/2026
“We strongly recommend that AI labs refrain from treating the release of mathematical results as marketing vehicles to promote their models, ignoring the substantial negative externalities that this practice inflicts on the mathematical community.”
47515
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
Chanda Prescod-Weinstein 🌌 @chanda.blacksky.app · 01/10/2026
Interesting effort to provide guidance on LLM use in mathematics: agmai.org/general-sep29/
agmai.org
general-sep29
Responsible Release of AI-Generated Mathematics September 29, 2026 Back to main page Download PDF At present, some frontier AI labs are testing advanced mathematical problems on proprietary models …
24611
Alondra Nelson @alondra.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Congratulations @timnitgebru.blacksky.app !
04511
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
Randolph Potts @rpotts-sawubona.blacksky.app · 01/10/2026
Timnit Gebru, 2026 Right Livelihood Laureate & pioneering AI researcher challenges the concentration of power in the tech industry, argues that behind "autonomous" AI systems are humans deciding whose data is used, what resources consumed, who owns the technology-and are responsible when harm occurs
15123
Alondra Nelson @alondra.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
The best merch 😂
0515
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
Governor Gavin Newsom @governor.ca.gov · 01/10/2026
We're now requiring human review before AI-driven firings, transparency when AI leads to layoffs, and new protections against workplace surveillance. California is putting people at the center of this conversation.
gov.ca.gov
California’s nation-leading AI framework just got stronger, Governor Newsom signs more first-in-the-nation worker protections and more | Governor of California
617126
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
Zack Whittaker @zackwhittaker.com · 30/09/2026
As data breaches go, this is pretty sizable, significant, and also bafflingly bad in terms of time it took to discover and that the stolen data was unencrypted. News of this breach comes weeks after a huge theft of FBI agents' personal data. Bypass for ad-blockers: web.archive.org/web/20260930...
techcrunch.com
Hackers stole millions of US military personnel records during months-long data breach | TechCrunch
The Department of Defense notified millions of current and former U.S. military personnel that their personal information had been stolen in a months-long breach.
26702295
Reposted by Alondra Nelson
Zack Whittaker @zackwhittaker.com · 30/09/2026
The Pentagon is notifying millions of current and former U.S. military servicemembers and staff that hackers stole their *unencrypted* personal information during a months-long data breach. The agency that had the breach also handles ID and login/credential access to U.S. military systems and bases.
techcrunch.com
Hackers stole millions of US military personnel records during months-long data breach | TechCrunch
The Department of Defense notified millions of current and former U.S. military personnel that their personal information had been stolen in a months-long breach.
30825231393
Alondra Nelson @alondra.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
“bars California employers from relying solely on AI systems, known as automated decision-making systems…to fire or discipline workers. It also mandates human oversight and verification when employers use ADS to assist in termination and disciplinary decisions” sd05.senate.ca.gov/news/newsom-...
sd05.senate.ca.gov
Newsom Signs McNerney’s No Robo Bosses Act of 2026 Requiring Human Oversight of AI in the Workplace
Official website of Senator Jerry McNerney, representing California Senate District Proudly Representing California Senate District 5.
04215