Sign in

bfuhrman

@bfuhrman.bsky.social
216 followers 267 following 739 posts

Musician, composer, college prof, runner, coffee aficionado. Prone to extreme geeking out over music, TTRPGs, sci-fi, and tech stuff. I speak English and French. benfuhrman.com

PostsRepliesMedia
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 2h
Colleague just texted me that a bunch of my students are in the studios working on the immersive audio compositions due for their midterm on Monday. #HappyProf
000
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 6h
Prepping songs for the #Bluegrass jam this week. Since it’s October, let’s do some songs about death: “House Carpenter” and “The Long Black Veil” for sure, with “Pretty Polly” and “Banks of the Ohio” as alternates.
000
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 10/10/2026
It’s the “minimize body odor” part. Look at recent photos - dude is rocking an adult diaper…
050
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
For the record, my energy rates (only electric, not gas) have increased 17% this year due to the utility supplying more power to a data center just across the state lines in Wyoming, and lawyers are doing everything they can to keep anti-data center zoning initiatives off the November ballots.
000
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
At a party last night in a fairly red/rural area of Montana. Subject of AI came up and one person sincerely said we should call it “superior intelligence” and that “data centers don’t drive up rates.” They were ridiculed mercilessly and immediately by everyone else and left quickly after.
100
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Taught comp lessons, got all my errands done, practiced, all while a vegan mushroom bolognese has been slowly simmering in the slow cooker. Should be ready in two hours, just need to make pasta and pick out a good red wine.
031
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
Solo #mandolin #recital went great last night. Video is at www.youtube.com/live/pvnTp1g... Now it’s off to Ohio to perform at CLICKFest on Saturday. And then I can finally have a normal schedule for a while…
youtube.com
Faculty Recital: Dr. Ben Fuhrman, mandolin
YouTube video by Montana State University School of Music
010
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
Them: how were we supposed to know that Ed Sheeran is terrible??? Me: 10 seconds of his musical output is usually enough…
010
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Playing a solo #mandolin #recital tomorrow. Streaming at 7:30pm Mountain Time at www.youtube.com/@montanastat... Program includes Kioulaphides, J.S. Bach (Chaconne and C Major Fugue), Calace, and the world premier of my Sonata for Mandolin Solo.
youtube.com
Montana State University School of Music
Montana State University's digital concert hall.
000
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
My university lets all profs set their own #AI policy. Very interesting to see what the different depts. adopt: Humanities (nope), CompSci (lol, no), Bioengineering/Physics (enterprise only for sorting massive data sets, no to LLMs), me (Butlerian Jihad), Business (ZOMFG TEH AI IS TEH BESTEST!!1!!).
000
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
New building on the other side of campus means I get to see murals I hadn’t seen before.
Multistory mural of a bobcat, campers, canoeing down a river, mountain climbing, and mountain biking.
011
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
Well, after quadruple checking, my retention dossier is officially submitted. I don’t really foresee winning a major award before midnight, but I’ll revise once more if I get a sudden Pulitzer/MacArthur/Guggenheim/etc.
010
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Goodbye to Google and Apple Maps. Never used the latter, but they’ve made their choice.
000
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 30/08/2026
Get my running shoes on… and immediately thunder/lighthing/rain hits HARD.
010
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 22/08/2026
Well, unless something extremely cool happens that I need to update in my scholarship narrative before September 4, my retention dossier is complete and fully uploaded. #academia #ThankCthulhuItsDoneBeforeClassesStart
000
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
Last week before classes, so I’m trying new recipes while I have time. Made brioche, which smells absolutely amazing.
The dough.The bread.
000
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
This is my last week before class starts, so in between admin tasks, I’ve been prepping baked polenta and brioche to bake tomorrow. Yay, working from home (for a few more days).
010
Reposted by bfuhrman
Musa Okwonga @okwonga.bsky.social · 15/08/2026
Thank you for writing this, @polphilpod.bsky.social - thank you. “Living through a global resurgence of fascism, the greatest difficulty has proved to be not arguing against it, but convincing non-fascists that fascism’s adherents really mean it.“
019978
Reposted by bfuhrman
Montana Free Press @montanafreepress.org · 12/08/2026
New MSU study finds clear connection between low snowpack and human-caused climate change.
montanafreepress.org
Scientists link the West’s extreme snow drought to climate change
New MSU study finds clear connection between low snowpack and human-caused climate change.
34531
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 09/08/2026
Yeah, but no hat. And I absolutely draw the line at bolo ties. Still, the boots are comfy - they fit like my favorite dress shoes, but have ankle support.
000
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
Finally broke down and got the official Montana formal footwear. Damnit, they’re really comfortable…
Yup, I’m wearing black and tan Western boots with a ton of stitch work. They’re actually really comfortable…
100
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
Surprised there are no bullet holes in the horse…
000
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
Found this guy building a web on my balcony this morning.
A gigantic spider suspended in midair. The web is just barely visible against the hazy background.
020
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 01/08/2026
I already am…
Carrot weather showing 100°F and the caption “You are about to sweat in places you forgot existed.”
010
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 01/08/2026
But please, tell me how climate change isn’t real t real because you saw a snowflake in February…
001
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 01/08/2026
It’s August 1st, 2026. Here in Montana, halfway to the arctic circle, it will be over 100°F with 9% humidity. I’m surrounded on all sides of the valley by wildfire smoke, and there are both extreme heat and red flag warnings since Tuesday.
111
Reposted by bfuhrman
monicatranel.bsky.social @monicatranel.bsky.social · 30/07/2026
Who pays for what is not a fight between the city mouse and the country mouse. The problem is the fat cat that flies in on a corporate jet, lands at a private landing pad, bringing in their personal chef for a gourmet meal from ingredients that not grown in Montana. open.substack.com/pub/monicatr...
open.substack.com
Seeley Lake Secession
Stop Fighting Over Scraps: The Real Villain in Montana’s Tax Crisis
032
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 18/07/2026
Just got the notification that "Melting Voices" (harmonica/computer) is on the CMS International program next June in Reykjavik, Iceland. soundcloud.com/bfuhrman/mel...
soundcloud.com
Melting Voices
I’ve been thinking a lot about the echo chamber of social media and group think recently. It seems as if society is becoming more and more polarized as we stop talking to each other, and instead for i
020
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 12/07/2026
Final day in Rome: just walking around town (the house was designed by and belonged to M.C. Escher).
010
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
There’s a marble cutter at Via Margutta 53 in Rome. Picked up a sign for my office there, not sure if it’s more for me or my students…
010
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
Day trip to Florence: the Uffizi, Ponte Vecchio, and some dude without clothes…
000
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
On the train from Florence to Rome. Can't believe they let people just stand around without pants on, even in 100° weather...
010
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
Rome Day 5: St. John Lateran, the Maxxi Gallery, and the Spanish Steps.
020
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
Rome Day 4: Forum and Palantine Hill, WEGIL museum, Fontana dell’Acqua Paola, and the Pyramid.
020
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 07/07/2026
Rome Day 3: Galleria Borghese and the Colosseum. Bonus - random three Caravaggios in a church, and a seagull photobomb…
010
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
Rome Day 2: the Pantheon and the Vatican.
010
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
It’s a little hot on the roof of the Basilica today…
000
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 05/07/2026
And some pics from my first day in Rome.
020
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 05/07/2026
Pics from my last week in Burgundy at CRANE lab.
010
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 01/07/2026
Waiting for a connecting train in Paris, and the level of road/sidewalk work going on in the city really reminds me of home. It’s everywhere…
010
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 29/06/2026
Sure seems like the Supreme Court wants to make America a monarchy before July 4th…
000
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 27/06/2026
Thanks, but this is highly specific academic material, and as it includes student work samples, I can't share it.
010
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
Hiked the Shafthouse trail today. 9 miles, 8500 feet elevation, 4 hours in the dot.
Bucks in a field of sagebrush. Me, standing on top of a ridge. Snow capped mountains in the background.Field at the start of the hike. Mountains in the distance. Mountains of the North Bridger Range. Still some snow even in late June.
020
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 20/06/2026
Just finished the first draft of my retention dossier, a week ahead of schedule. I really don’t want to look at anything #academia related for the next couple of days…
140
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 20/06/2026
Back from a gig. First time ever playing harmonica in a Celtic gig, and the first time I’ve played harmonica publicly in probably 10 years.
000
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 14/06/2026
JFK had Marilyn Monroe signing “Happy Birthday Mr. President,” Trump will have two sweaty guys groping each other on the lawn. #progress
010
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 12/06/2026
Spent every day this week working on drafting the narratives for my retention dossier. Tons of work here!
010
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 08/06/2026
Had my parents in town over the weekend, so we went exploring around the Gallatin Valley and Helena.
000
Reposted by bfuhrman
NY Times Pitchbot @nytpitchbot.bsky.social · 03/06/2026
“I’m Kid Rock.” “I’m Naomi Wolf.” “I’m Kanye West.” “I’m Matt Taibbi.” “I’m Catturd. Those stories, plus Rob Schneider, tonight on 60 Minutes.”
18486431804
bfuhrman @bfuhrman.bsky.social · 31/05/2026
Yet another reason to avoid AI. www.amnesty.org/en/documents...
amnesty.org
Unlawful by design: Exposing the human rights costs of generative AI - Amnesty International
This briefing examines how standalone generative AI systems, based on unlawful web scraping, are in conflict with international human rights law (IHRL) and standards through their design, development ...
000