iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

Interesting essay by @rbmyerson.bsky.social on reasons why political competition in the US has broken down, w/ implications & fixes.

Such strategic neglect and the resulting geographic polarization become dangerous when constitutional democracy itself is at risk. Neglected regions can become fertile ground for the divisive rhetoric of demagoguery. When large groups of voters believe that only one party is really paying attention to them, they may feel no real stake in our system of multiparty democratic competition, and so they may support their elected leader in shaking off democracy’s inconvenient constitutional constraints. With such mass support, an unprincipled president could subvert democracy while portraying his actions as democracy’s ultimate fulfillment.

Thus, the defense of democracy against an authoritarian challenge may require political priorities that are fundamentally different from the standard playbook for winning elections. When the goal is to defend democracy in America, it is vital to ensure that Americans everywhere can see the benefits of having two parties competing for their votes.

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 30/10/2025

Harris students are wicked awesome!!!

A selfie of a fantastic student dressed as the green-skinned Elphaba from Wicked and a his jubilant professor.

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 17/08/2025

Just how many bald people who are unaware they’re bald are there?

Walgreens sign that says, “National Hair Loss Awareness Month.”

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 13/08/2025

Great read on invasive plants in forests around Chicago. TL;DR: they're out of control. 77% of forests have been overrun (see: map) & require constant maintenance.

"Researchers with Purdue University and The Morton Arboretum used LiDAR to map where invasive shrubs are located in the Chicago Region."

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 01/07/2025

Hyde Park ended Pride Month w/ a flourish at dusk last night.

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 20/06/2025

If you work for a #nonprofit, let us help you make the world a better place w/ science! On September 17, match w/ researchers at the Science of Philanthropy Initiative Conference to tackle your charitable-giving questions: fs2.formsite.com/UChicagoEcon... #philanthropy #charity #econsky

Banner that says, "Science of Philanthropy Initiative Conference. Nonprofits and Philanthropies: Join Forces with Researchers to Put Science, Data, and Academic Expertise to Work on Issues You Care About. September 2025."

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 11/06/2025

Great picture from graduation w/ two fantastic students from the Harris Class of 2025, their son (Class of ~2050), & a stellar colleague!

Two proud professors, two happy students, and a sleepy baby in academic regalia at graduation.

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 04/06/2025

This part, in particular, does a nice job of clearly demonstrating the past & present benefits of researcher findings (w/ a UVA connection). Worth a read! We (in science) need to do more of this!

“They have created this anti-infectious disease, anti-vaccine sentiment that is very problematic for a department like mine,” said Garcia-Blanco, who studies autoimmune diseases.

More than a century ago, UVA played a foundational role in infectious disease research in America through Walter Reed (Col 1869), who graduated from medical school after earning his degree at age 17. Reed went on to pioneer research into the causes of typhoid and yellow fever. He debunked incorrect theories on their spread in military encampments, saving untold numbers of lives.

Today, infectious disease research at UVA is making discoveries such as finding links between herpes virus infection and higher rates of Alzheimer’s disease. Links like these underscore the false dichotomy between infectious disease and chronic disease.

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 14/04/2025

Took Boomer for a walk on the UChicago Quad tonight. He was living his best life.

A group of students stopped to pet my golden retriever, who loved every second of it.

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 13/03/2025

My @harrissocial.bsky.social students are the best! On the last day of class, one of my very talented Machine Learning students made a chocolate-banana cake to share w/ the class. It was fantastic!

A group of smiling students & their dashingly-handsome professor holding plates of chocolate-banana cake in the front of a classroom on the last day of class.

A group of students & their dashingly-handsome professor happily taking bites of chocolate-banana cake in the front of a classroom on the last day of class.

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 28/02/2025

One of my students gave me milk tea when she came to office hours. Another said my ML class is “definitely better than watching videos on the internet! 😉” I needed that! It’s been a rough day!!!

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 03/02/2025

Much needed “look for the helpers” vibes.

Mr. Rogers quote: “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, “Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.”

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 12/01/2025

My feed is inadvertently [chef's kiss] right now. Well done, @aaronsojourner.org & @dynarski.bsky.social.

Top image: a post by @aaronsojourner.org about Mark Zuckerberg bemoaning "feminine energy." Bottom image: a picture of @dynarski.bsky.social‬ exuding big feminine energy with a handle of liquor & a cigar.

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 09/12/2024

If Zillow sunset its ZTRAX data and required users to destroy the data by 9/2023, how was a new working paper based on ZTRAX data released today?

Screenshot of https://www.zillow.com/research/ztrax/ indicating that users must have destroyed ZTRAX data by September 30th, 2023.

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 09/12/2024

Hope everyone’s Monday is going as well as this squirrel’s is.

Squirrel eating a bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich.

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 12/11/2024

Finally got confirmation that my vote was counted! The vote-by-mail website kept saying the Post Office hadn’t delivered it. I know it won’t affect anything, but I am irrationally relieved.

Screenshot of an email from the Chicago Board of Elections confirming my ballot was counted.

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 08/11/2024

Absolutely savage, but tremendously informative, ending to a JEL book review by Mark Bellemare!

Examples of conventional wisdom about food and agriculture that are unsupported.

Book review bottom line: I would not recommend this book to my students.

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 06/11/2024

The floor at daycare captures how I’m feeling today.

Angry, sad, and sick faces drawn on paper and taped to the floor to help young children learn emotions.

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 01/10/2024

I must be getting old. I have zero recollection of 2025-2027…. Happy Fall Quarter & welcome to the UChicago class of 2028!

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 01/10/2024

Happy Spooky Season from the UChicago Lab School! 🦇

A bat sleeping on the wall outside of a school entrance.

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 28/09/2024

Wish I could have made it to Wrigley for The Professor’s probably (but hopefully not!) start as a Cub. But Boomer’s making the couch seem not so bad!

Adorable Golden Retriever snoozing on his person’s leg.

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 26/09/2024

Well, this is refreshing (& exciting for UChicago)!

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 20/08/2024

Love the roof deck at the Keller Center! I’ve had worse views while refereeing a paper.

A view of the UChicago Chapel from the Harris Public Policy roof, complete with green roof and solar panels.

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 16/07/2024

Hyde Park is a great example. Aided by UChicago divesting their rental holdings to two firms who then essentially merged, the rental market is dominated by a single corporate landlord. They provide abysmal customer service & regularly raise rents by 20+%. Address the antitrust issues instead!

"The measure would only apply to landlords who own more than 50 units, which represents roughly half of all rental properties...."

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 24/05/2024

Tremendous (& uplifting) data vis from the @ucsusa.bsky.social via the rff.org newsletter! blog.ucsusa.org/wp-content/u...

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 23/05/2024

Have I got the paper for you (shameless plug alert)! I use a paper I wrote on the BP oil spill to transition from the 2x2 DD to a "sharp" 2xT DD when teaching. Check out Figure 7. One caveat: it's a DDD estimator. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 09/05/2024

This is heartbreaking! It's galling that we STILL haven't reunited so many children w their families. The Biden administration needs to send additional resources (people, money, etc.) to the task force immediately.

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 26/04/2024

Had a short Zoom w/ my wife to fill out a survey for our son's school together. I got an AI generated "Meeting Summary" from Zoom. It's unnecessary, inaccurate, & generally terrifying, but also pretty funny.

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 04/04/2024

Congratulations, @ethanbdm.bsky.social! This is great news for Harris & well deserved.

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 24/03/2024

The second-to-last paragraph of this book review is fantastic writing: insightful, poignant, & funny at the same time.

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 24/10/2023

From my son’s pre-school teacher… what’s that adage about how “those who can’t, teach?” 🤣

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Chris Clapp @chrisclapp.bsky.social · 12/10/2023

BOOOOOOOOOOOO! I never would have made it through grad school w/out bringing my dog to the office some days.

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