iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Birch 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ @birchduck.bsky.social · 1h

Rock I loved until I hated it (over the course of a few days) or rock I've hated the entire month but if it wins I don't have to hear about it again? Hmm.

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Daniel M Ford @soundingline.bsky.social · 12h

I don't WANT personalized music! I want to hear something made by a PERSON that is trying to SAY something, trying to make me and others FEEL something. That doesn't come about through "personalization." Jesus Christ. The bloodless fucks have never loved anything in their lives except themselves.

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Birch 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ @birchduck.bsky.social · 13h

Just want things to go a little more smoothly? graphite is your mineral. Doesn't catch on fire the way *some* lubricants do #MinCup26

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Rebecca Wilcox @rebeccawilcox.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

As much as I will always love quartz, in this moment when generative AI companies are doing their best to make all my art valueless, I have to choose graphite. Give me a graphite stick and some paper, and I can make something wonderful that no one’s ever seen before.

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Birch 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ @birchduck.bsky.social · 13h

Who of us doesn't have some graphite in their body somewhere? As a memory of oops or violence or first attempt as body art? Give it a vote #minCup26

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Owen Missen @scimissionowen.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Famously versatile and flaky! Graphite's structure is in the high school chemistry curriculum. It conducts electricity and is very soft, leading to its uses in grey 'lead' pencils and as a solid lubricant. Carbon has 5 polymorphs: graphite, diamond, lonsdaleite, chaoite and tartarosite.

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OUGS Social Media @ougeolsoc.bsky.social · 20h

Two of my absolute favourites! Do I vote in this #MinCup26 semi for ubiquitous #quartz or slippery, shiny #graphite - so lovely for drawing pencils! And, with enough P and T, it is diamond!

Diamond/graphite/liquid triple point on a phase diagram

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Birch 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ @birchduck.bsky.social · 13h

iPhone directions here, Android in the comments

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Janelle Shane @janelleshane.com · 29/09/2026

It has to be #halite for #MinCup26 ! You can make a laser out of salt droplets - place them on a superhydrophobic surface and the droplets are round and stable, making good laser cavities. web.archive.org/web/20111018...

Fig. 1 of the linked paper, showing the experimental setup, along with the broad-spectrum glow of the droplet, and the narrow spike of the laser spectrum. In the experimental setup you'll note that it took two lasers (a green one and an infrared one) to get red laser light out of the salt droplet.

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Geology @geologytime.bsky.social · 03/06/2025

Halite CRAZY GEOMETRIC! Natural skeletal halite with great geometric shape! Rudna Mine, Lubin, Lower Silesia, Poland [video: SpiriferMinerals.com] #crystals #gems

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Vicky Veritas @vickyveritas.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

“The Zagros fold and thrust belt hosts the most unique outcrops of the Neoproterozoic-Cambrian (540 million yrs) salts which have travelled up to 11 kilometers through their sedimentary overburden and have produced versatile beautiful salt domes and salt glaciers.” #TeamSalty #StaySalty #MinCup26

share.google

Salt domes and glaciers of the Zagros Fold and Thrust Belt - IUGS

Ediacaran-Early Cambrian Hormuz salt extruded in the eroded core of a whale-back anticline of the Zagros mountain of southern Iran. The folded strata belong to Cretaceous to Pliocene sequence.

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Vicky Veritas @vickyveritas.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

I like big cubes and I cannot lie! Vote for the mineral that literally moves mountains. #StaySalty Vote #Halite! #MinCup26 ⚒️ sci-fi 🧪 🖖🏼 scifi Geosciences #WomenInSTEM geology #geosky #GIS 🍎 🪐 🔭 🌋 📚 🌿

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Ella Lio Hihsommet @ellahihsommet.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Let's keep the trend of this year's Cup, and vote for the "boring" mineral. Halite, because without salt, none of us would even be here.

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Saavik ‘Careful of the Ankle’ Ford @saavikford.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

#Halite crystals in meteorites can contain water inclusions from the protosolar nebula. Which you could lick. I’m just saying! #MinCup26

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Sarah ⚧ ✡︎ @sarahkorse.bsky.social · 02/10/2025

This includes BIRTH CONTROL, by the way. As well as a shitload of mood stabilizers. Do NOT eat "spooky" black foods and snacks. Just don't.

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Alex de Campi @alexdecampi.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

With alt text. I yelled

INTRODUCTION

The equities here could not be more one-sided. Defendants admit that they
provide a service without fully knowing how it works.

This is not just any service. It is one that Defendants themselves concede poses an existential risk to the continued
survival of humankind.

Defendants claim they cannot stop barreling forward with their potentially civilization-ending endeavors unless they are forced to do so by the
government. They have asked the government to tie them to the mast.

Plaintiff brings good news to the Defendants: The Florida Attorney General is answering your
cry for help with a motion to enjoin you from harming Floridians with your reckless, unacceptably risky product.

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Peoria50501 @peoriail50501.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

NO KINGS: VOTE EARLY RALLY in PEORIA! Join Peoria 50501 & community allies for a peaceful rally, as we urge passersby with signs, banners, & voices to register, VOTE EARLY, & save our democracy. Sat 10/17/2026, from 11AM-to-1PM at Main St and University in Peoria. www.mobilize.us/nokings/even...

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Mineral Cup & Ore Cup @mineralcup.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

#MinCup26 SEMI-FINALS!!! It's showdown of the soft and cubical as coppery #Cuprite and salty #Halite compete for a spot in the finals! Both are worthy, but only one can have your vote. VOTE: www.mineralcup.org/2026/vote-re... RESULTS: www.mineralcup.org/2026/vote-re...

Split photo of a translucent deep red cube of cuprite within swooping matte blue-green crystal blades and a scattering of translucent white halite cubes in a nest of golden yellow spiky crystals.

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Seraphgrim @seraphgrim.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Huge props to the players for speaking up and putting themselves at risk to make something happen here. But hoooooooly shit the cowardice and incompetence on ASU's part here to force them to do this to get some movement is incredible.

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Iron Spike @ironspike.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

I have literally seen dudes tailspin because of a super-casual "Pretty rapey/racist/weird/etc., dude." from a friend. Fuck some girl/brown person and their dumb opinions, they don't care about us. But they are 100% not prepared to hear it coming from you.

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PWHL @thepwhl.com · 28/09/2026

12 teams. 2 days. ONE massive Opening Weekend 🔥 Which game are you circling on your calendar? Find more details ➡️ thepwhl.com/en/schedule/opening-weekend-2026-27

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Buy Mass Effect The Board Game! @ithayla.bsky.social · 27/08/2025

i keep thinking back to how cancer researchers were using machine learning models to help identify cancers (still are actually) and learn more about how to defeat them and then i think about the trillions of dollars thrown down the drain on chatbots that kill you.

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stonegecko.bsky.social @stonegecko.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

#MinCup26 Quarterfinal 4: Pyromorphite for all the reasons previously cited, plus graphite and I usually have a falling out when I promise not to smudge but they make me do it anyway.😧

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Sqril @sqril.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

This one is going to be a difficult choice too! Environmental remediation and not lickable vs What would we be writing with and who hasn’t somehow licked their pencil graphite? Wait, did we use to write with lead? Why, no! www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/20...

todayifoundout.com

Why Pencil "Lead" is Called "Lead"

Karen asks: Why is pencil lead called lead when it doesn’t contain any? In the 16th century, a large deposit of pure, solid graphite was discovered in Borrowdale, England. This was the first time in ...

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Gawen Jenkin @gawenjenkin.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Classi pyromorphite Roughten Gill Cumbria www.mindat.org/locentry-919...

Resinous green crystals slightly pointed and fanning in form

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Mika McKinnon @mikamckinnon.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

That joyful little dance is the bots getting filtered before they even made it into the charts this time. We talked to the culprit. They’re embarrassed to be caught & say they’ll knock it off, so… here’s hoping in the redemption power of shame!

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Gawen Jenkin @gawenjenkin.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Vote for beauty - and my never-found local sample bsky.app/profile/gawe...

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Birch 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ @birchduck.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Ok folks, this is from the #MinCup26 voting page and honestly, gotta vote Pyromorphite, because lead remediation using bird poop is the coolest thing ever Plus it can be green

Polymorphite’s insoluablility and stability makes it far more valuable as a way of locking up toxic lead. The fungus Paecilomyces javanicus, particularly in combination with phosphate-rich bird poop, can clean up lead-contaminated soils by locking up metallic lead as pyromorphite. Researchers continue to investigate how inducing the formation of pyromorphite can help in soil remediation and mine-waste stabilization.

White person with a yellow smiley face in a vividly bright green shirt and a dopy wide brimmed hat in front of tall grass prairie that is starting to yellow at the top but is still pretty green

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Aliette de Bodard @aliettedebodard.com · 28/09/2026

Any time we hear "AI did this and this", it's not proof programs are becoming sentient, but that the humans deploying said AI did this (which is generally failing to deploy proper sandboxing measures to prevent an AI from going against security) It's not the AI that's rogue, it's the company

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Birch 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ @birchduck.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

They put in the nice bumpy sidewalk cutout things on my street. They're trying to kill anybody with imperfect vision or attention who dares to walk

Gap between sidewalk and road, with size 10.5 us men's shoe for scale

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Birch 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ @birchduck.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Hey artist peeps, I know vector files are the standard, should I be worried about a "high quality PNG" as the deliverable for something I want to be able to send to professional print shops?

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Coach Finstock @coachfinstock.bsky.social · 18/11/2024

Lmao the first two defenders down have the same FIFA animation

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Sarah Andersen @sarahseeandersen.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

The image is of a four panel comic.
The first panel shows Sarah, the protagonist, working at a desk. A brain next to her says, "We need to take breaks!"
The second panel zooms in on Sarah's face. She is annoyed. She says, "What if I don't listen to you?"
The third panel shows the brain smiling.
The fourth panel shows the brain reaching towards a lever. The brain says, "I'LL MAKE YOU."

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Birch 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ @birchduck.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

I'm a pretty recent (and sporadic) fan and I recognized all but 3 names, so yeah, legendary.

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Ketamine and Old Lace @corgiseveryhour.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

#Julienite is a gorgeous newcomer and deserves this win. Sorry, my doctor says i need less #halite #mincup26

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Birch 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ @birchduck.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

I have a chunk of salt r rock from that area (the gifter only ever got me legal rocks), but I'm still leaning julianite (sp?) #minCup26

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Birch 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ @birchduck.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Kid played a decent amount in her game today! First time on this team getting good ice time. She's a lot faster than last year. Who'da thunk it. She even crunched a guy! I wonder if I'll ever get used to deep male voices on the ice with her 🤣

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Gillian Brockell @gillianbrockell.com · 26/09/2026

I hope all the middle-aged women whose lives have been vastly improved by an ADHD diagnosis understand that we’re on the list after trans and autistic people. RFK Jr thinks we should be sent to camps instead of taking a daily medication to bring our dopamine pathways up to a normal level.

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Cindy Phan @cindyphanauthor.com · 26/09/2026

Me, a human woman in the ER: I’m in a lot of pain. Them: No. You’re not.

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Get To Know Nature @gettoknownature.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

Two minutes of busy birds in the yard! Hawks yelling, songbirds yelling about the hawks and warblers just trying to fill up for their long journey #birds 🌿 🐡 🧪

m.youtube.com

Hawks, Warblers and Butterflies, Oh My!

YouTube video by Get To Know Nature

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Mika McKinnon @mikamckinnon.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

Just as a FYI: The vast majority of #MinCup26 cheating is by one person shoving hundreds of votes per match. A second person occasionally shoves dozens of votes as a triggered counter-campaign. That’s it. Neither are on Bluesky. Any “cheating” here is reload errors from stumbling on captchas.

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Mark Copelovitch @mcopelov.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

The Man Who Saved The World. May his memory be a blessing.

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Nathan Kalman-Lamb @nkalamb.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

ICE has abducted Senegalese WBB player Aminata Seck and won't release her. DHS 'policy' is to provide medical care to prisoners at intake, yet they admit to denying her care for an ACL injury for 1.5 months. The NCAA is letting it happen, despite its predatory recruitment of ICAs. We explain.

theguardian.com

ICE has abducted a college athlete. What are the NCAA and universities going to do about it?

Aminata Seck’s detention shows the bargain facing international college athletes: universities eagerly recruit them, but support can disappear when their immigration status becomes precarious.

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Mark Shore @markshore.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

a tough call, both are very interesting minerals from a structural point of view, but I'm going to go with the underdog skutterudite this time

a photo of quartz and skutterudite samples on metric (1 cm square) graph paper for scale

on the right is skutterudite (CoAs3) with cm-size shiny metallic silver octahedral crystals, from the classic Bou Azzer, Morocco location

on the left are a couple of dozen 3 to 8 mm size quartz crystals, perfectly clear and with well-formed undamaged doubly terminated crystal forms. This is the variety known as "Herkimer diamonds" after the type occurrence in Herkimer County, upstate New York (these are actually from Ontario, Canada near the New York border)

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Mississippi Free Press @mississippifreepress.org · 26/09/2026

“A lot of people have the misconception that expungements are only needed for felony convictions,” Mississippi Center for Justice Economic Justice Campaign Director Charity Bruce Sweet said. “However, I will always emphasize that expungements are just needed for your arrest record in general. “

buff.ly

Free Expungement Clinic Offers Mississippians Chance to Clear Records and Move Forward

About 40 people attended a free expungement clinic in Jackson, Mississippi, to help them expunge prior convictions from their records.

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Birch 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ @birchduck.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

This is a very upsetting picture of a rock and I love everything about it Vote skutterudite #MinCup26 commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sk...

A rock that looks like a section of jaws with super narrow green teeth. Caption " Teticulated and complexly intergrown skutterudite from Germany. Credit: Robert Lavinsky"

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Craig Jorgensen @bowtiediene.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

#MinCup26 Come on #skutterudite - discovered in Norway and loaded with arsenic. Not normally on team poison, but let's go team poison!

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