Reposted by David MairThe_Lady_Red @theladyred.bsky.social · 24/05/2026A PhD student at Stanford noticed her classmates were asking Al to write their breakup texts. So she ran a study. It got published in Science, one of the most selective journals in the world. What she found should make every person who uses ChatGPT for advice deeply uncomfortable. 9889134353
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 30/09/2026An opportunity to share your ideas and join the debate with fellow citizens about democracy in the EU via the Commission's multi-lingual civic tech platform. @scienceinnovation.ec.europa.eu citizens.ec.europa.eu/protect-demo...citizens.ec.europa.euProtect democracy. Join the debate.Protect democracy. Join the debate. 011
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 26/09/2026AI seems to follow a pattern common to communication, science and policymaking. That intelligence is all about words, content, language/output legitimacy (logos), neglecting values, goals and identities (ethos) and emotions/relationships/process legitimacy (pathos). #logosfallacy 172
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 25/09/2026@fromtga.bsky.social calls for European policies but national politics and notes that many European languages don’t make the politics/policy distinction. 000
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 24/09/2026I would like to read a book called “Thinking like a State” exploring the main cognitive features of how governments make and implement policy. I think it will be difficult to understand how governments can use AI without a clearer meta-cognition of government. “Thinking like a Democracy” too. 030
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 19/09/2026“Ik wil geen slechte mensen meer in de wereld, en dat iedereen respect heeft voor elkaar. En dat er geen racisme meer is. Ik wil gewoon geen slechte dingen meer.” @bruzzbe.bsky.social www.bruzz.be/actua/jonger...bruzz.beKarateka Talya (11) wint trofeeën op de tatamiElke week toont een Brusselse tiener zijn of haar favoriete plek in de stad. Voor karateka Talya (11) is dat de dojo in Jette, waar ze twee keer per week traint. 030
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 13/09/2026“The most influential factors were whether respondents felt that scientists are "on the side of people like them" and whether they thought of scientists as open and transparent. Both outweighed perceptions of scientific expertise.” Imp for science for policy/evidence-informed policymaking. #scipol 075
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 13/09/2026Not even disinformation or distraction but the deliberate erosion of attention. The price of liberty is eternal vigilance. 020
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 10/09/2026Very good episode. I wonder how these philosophical debates would have been different with current knowledge of psychology and neuroscience on emotions and logical circuits. 020
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 09/09/2026Trust in scientists shaped by values and identity you say? knowledge4policy.ec.europa.eu/projects-act...knowledge4policy.ec.europa.euValues & Identities - a policymaker's guide - Knowledge4Policy (K4P) - European CommissionThe JRC has published a report that supports policymakers in understanding and interpreting value orientations and social identities that are relevant for policymaking. 120
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 09/09/2026Feeling ancient after explaining to a young colleague that a treasury tag was a fundamental knowledge management device when I started in HM Treasury in 1992. Even though we no longer have “the file” these habits still influence how knowledge is shared. #slavesofdefunctbureaucrats 000
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 08/09/2026“Our perceptions of reality are more tied to emotional reactions and identity than a careful study of the statistics. We are partly sending signals about what’s worrying us.” Brilliant work from @bobbyduffy.bsky.social 265
Reposted by David MairPhilipp Lorenz-Spreen @lorenzspreen.eurosky.social · 06/09/2026Horrible election results today. Again, we need to urgently understand how to repair things. I know there are many factors, but at least one is a fragmented, commercialised information system that favors populism and propaganda. No force of nature, but exploitative technology that can be changed. 0268
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 04/09/2026open.spotify.com/track/4PibHm...open.spotify.comBrussels Is HauntedEcho & the Bunnymen · Take Me By The Hand · Song · 2026 000
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 31/08/2026Excellent but not sure short form video is the symptom or the problem. Nothing inherently wrong in short videos, problem is the algorithm and the advertising model. The balance in the attention economy between the advertising/subscription/public models is off. 000
Reposted by David MairRikki Dean @rikkidean.bsky.social · 24/08/2026A nice surprise today. My book is now out! One week ahead of schedule! Thanks to the European Research Council you can even download it for free. Here's what the critics are saying... bristoluniversitypress.co.uk/democracy-pa...bristoluniversitypress.co.ukDemocracy, Participation and Public AdministrationDemocracy, Participation and Public Administration - A Systems Approach; A novel democratic systems theory that puts public administration at the heart of democracy. The new approach is applied to the... 22810
Reposted by David MairRachel Maddow @maddow.bsky.social · 23/08/2026“Local media has been dying all over America, which means there’s essentially no way to hold local governments accountable— they can do whatever they want,” he told the white nationalists meeting. “You should be fantasizing about this. This is a good thing.” www.confrontthehate.com/p/white-nati...confrontthehate.comAs Local News Dies, White Nationalists See an OpeningAt an invitation-only gathering in Italy, far-right leaders mapped out strategies to target rural America while local press coverage vanishes. 771804954
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 23/08/2026Belgium - poor result for the so-called cycling heartland. @ecf.com @polbegov.skyfleet.blue @demorgen.be 002
Reposted by David MairSustainable Farming @sustainablefarming.bsky.social · 22/08/2026Vegetable harvests are collapsing. Not slightly. Not just by double digits. In many locations by more than half. Broccoli harvests across Europe have collapsed very fast. 14528284
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 22/08/2026Must-read if you care about how AI will impact Democracy, Science etc. 011
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 19/08/2026"Most of us get our false beliefs from the same places we get our true ones.” "if most of our beliefs are handed to us by the society in which we live, it is vital that our society itself values truth and truth-telling." 001
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 19/08/2026Cycling is the answer to so many public policy issues. 011
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 18/08/2026France's Democratic Malaise: Stop Blaming Citizens, Start Reforming Institutions www.socialeurope.eu/frances-demo...socialeurope.euFrance’s Democratic Malaise: Stop Blaming Citizens, Start Reforming InstitutionsWhen eight in ten French citizens feel unrepresented, the problem lies not with democratic fatigue but with a political system that has forgotten how to listen. 000
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 18/08/2026“Funding science means supporting the truth that lies at the heart of every democracy, preserving cultural history and the arts, the ability to make good collective decisions, and the ability to understand and care for one another without prejudice.” 173
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 17/08/2026“Citizens cannot tell the truth if they do not know the truth. Those who believe in free, open, and responsive institutions must recognize how critically linked science is to democracy itself and defend its integrity with every tool at their disposal.” 030
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 17/08/2026"A number of researchers suggest we are being held back by “pluralistic ignorance” about how others feel, because we become less willing to discuss climate change when we think, incorrectly, that we are in a minority ... giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/... 111
Reposted by David MairFrans Fierens @fransfie.bsky.social · 16/08/2026Spectaculaire fijnstofkaart (PM2.5, uurgemiddelde) op dit moment 13u). #natuurbrand Hoge Venen 5139
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 15/08/2026Should “journalism/journalists” be reserved for news reporting and some other term used for comment&opinion pieces and their authors? The news/comment distinction seems worth defending by using different terms. 320
Reposted by David MairGarvan Walshe @garvanwalshe.org · 14/08/2026🚨New Substack Series 🚨 I'm starting a new series of articles on liberalism and two-way globalisation, called "Survival & Success" Read the first one here, that focuses in on the crisis in Ceuta.open.substack.comSurvival & Success #1: Escape the Ceuta TrapTough rhetoric on immigration plays into populists' hands. We need to make migration work instead. 2177
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 12/08/2026Have joined W Social. Anyone else here over there? wsocial.eu/profile/davi...wsocial.euW — Trust your feedWe believe in the need for a global, trusted social media platform owned, run, and hosted in Europe. W is built on verified human users, transparency, privacy, and free speech. 000
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 12/08/2026A great introduction to intellectual humility, a superpower of the modern age of AI-based confidence and certainty. The bedrock of critical thinking and meta-cognition. Thanks @davidmcraney.bsky.social and Prof Porter. youarenotsosmart.com/2025/11/24/y...youarenotsosmart.comYANSS 322 – How the humbling science behind our general lack of intellectual humility can make us better humansCan intellectual humility be measured? What influences it and affects it, limits it and enhances it? What even is it, scientifically speaking? We explore all of this and then play an episode of How… 010
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 11/08/2026“the pendulum of the mind oscillates between sense and nonsense, not between right and wrong" Great insight from Jung that captures why the current information environment is more about distraction than disinformation. 000
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 10/08/2026"Tribal loyalties run deeper than is good for most institutions, including the government." 000
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 17/07/2026“the hard part was understanding the question. The humanities are here to help us make sense of the questions of our time.” Answers relatively easy, questions, not so much. 040
Reposted by David MairFinancial Times @financialtimes.com · 16/07/2026 We need humanities more than ever in the age of AI ft.trib.al/SDdQK9q | opinionft.trib.alWe need humanities more than ever in the age of AISubjects like literature, languages and history are vital to a thoughtful and prosperous society 79734
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 15/07/2026“Researchers have somehow come to be seen as enemies of the state.” 001
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 14/07/2026“When the ability to construct persuasive arguments is unevenly distributed, an agreement to settle decisions by argument can end up ceding power to those who are better at arguing.” 062
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 08/07/2026Thoughts on AI and human cognition. www.linkedin.com/posts/david-...linkedin.com#jrc | David MairIf we want to understand how humans and AI could work together, we need to understand how we think - our metacognition. A lot of individual human thinking is less logical reasoning and more rational... 020
Reposted by David MairGernot Wagner @gwagner.com · 06/07/2026Global warming accelerating. Extreme temperatures accelerating. Sea-level rise accelerating. Heat wave worst ever. Not good, when scientists are surprised. @eroston.bsky.social with a roundup that, yes, ends in renewables prices falling faster than expected: www.bloomberg.com/graphics/202... 35418
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 02/07/2026"Scientists must distinguish between empirical judgements about evidence and political judgements that are rooted in values." Yes. Also politicians should equally clearly distinguish between their judgements about the science and values trade-offs. This is hard. www.nature.com/articles/d41...nature.comScientists should recognize their own political biases to build public trustPublic trust in science can’t be sustained by the support of narrow constituencies at one end of an ideological spectrum. 010
Reposted by David MairHelen Pearson @helenpearson.bsky.social · 01/07/2026NEW: Is there a 'crisis' of public trust in science? It can feel that way — with attacks on research in the US and growing rejection of vaccines. I investigated for @nature.com - and found some surprises. My feature article is out today and a short🧵here www.nature.com/articles/d41...nature.comHave people stopped trusting science? The data tell a surprising storySome say there’s a global crisis of trust — but research reveals where the real problems lie. 28864
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 29/06/2026Lots of interest in new citizen engagement tools (assemblies, panels, participatory budgeting etc.) across Europe but not so much evidence about impact on policies, policymakers and democracy. Until now from @scienceinnovation.ec.europa.eu #JRC knowledge4policy.ec.europa.eu/major-report...knowledge4policy.ec.europa.euCitizen Engagement Impact: Making a difference to policy, institutions and society - Knowledge for policy - European CommissionCitizen engagement processes can be transformative, especially for participating citizens. However, what impacts do they have on policymaking, democratic systems and the broader public? This report ma... 030
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 26/06/2026"Interventions should therefore aim to support productive conflict and civil disagreement in a pluralistic space — one that can yield greater mutual understanding, improved democratic deliberation, and more equitable collective decisions." Amen. 010
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 26/06/2026If not scientific evidence, what other information weighs heavily with policymakers? Was Keynes right that "Practical men, who believe themselves to be quite exempt from any intellectual influence, are usually the slaves of some defunct economist."? #1 110
David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 24/06/2026To what extent is the failure to address the climate crisis a driver in a loss of trust in democracy and democratic institutions? Are other major unsolved societal challenges driving disillusion and distrust more? 252
Reposted by David MairExtreme Temperatures Around the World @extremetemps.bsky.social · 22/06/2026EXTRAORDINARY DAY 45 DEGREES MOST EXTREME DAY IN EUROPEAN HISTORY THOUSANDS OF RECORDS are being smashed allover Europe with Temperatures near 45C in France and Spain. Over HUNDRED stations in France broke their ALL TIME RECORD , tbc-Updates later 15122