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Mike Kaspari

@mikekaspari.bsky.social
3.5K followers 285 following 1.8K posts

I’m a college professor immersed in #teaching and #ecology. I visit lots of ecosystems, combine observations and simple experiments, and look for generalities. I #garden, #cook, play #music and #read to round things out.

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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 1h
George Saunders is my hero. In response to an interviewer called “Model Behavior” he had this, and plenty more to say about using AI in your writing. The number of his answers that began with “No, …” :-)
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 4h
Chris Rock delivers in another great NYT interview by Marchese. Here’s just a taste. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/03/m...
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Colette Delawalla, PhD @cdelawalla.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
This is slightly out of my normal lane, and I could charge six (hell maybe seven) figure to deliver this message as a consultant, but I’m gonna do it for free. Because I’m ✨enraged✨ People in the think tank/policy/inside the beltway DC world have ABSOLUTELY NO CLUE how mad people are abt Cornell. 🧵
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
The National Mall in Washington DC is full of secular cathedrals. This is my favorite.
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Kimberly Prather PhD @kprather.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
1/6 Update four weeks after my total knee replacement surgery: zero regrets. I was terrified going in. The photos and horror stories almost made me bail. But I had major instability and bone-on-bone wear bowing my legs, and it was only going to get worse. A thread on what helped. 🧵
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Good news! The US National Gallery loans out special glasses for the color blind. No super improvement in my case (medium red green cb) but boy howdy can you scare the young’uns with these things!
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
We’re in Washington DC for a few days for the food, people, and museums. D is also on a mission to document some of the damage to the Mall. But first, the magnificent memorial building at Gallaudet University, a green oasis next to the Union Market.
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Cameron Cloutier @cameroncloutier.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Couldn't resist making this. #KatieBritt #StanleyKubrick #BarryLyndon #Congress
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Read this, and it will help.
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Christine Nangle @nanglish.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
This is amazing. I especially love how excited the bros behind him look to bring out the board… then their faces at the end. Good on Klobochur here.
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
WSJ headline on AI agents: “The more data you hand over, the more this talented personal assistant can do for you”. If “my work is really important” is indeed a good predictor of nervous breakdowns howabout the obsession to eliminate every quotidian task because your time is so important?
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Brian J. Enquist @bjenquist.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Please pass along: I’m recruiting PhD students to join our Macroecology Lab. We study physical ecology, macroecology, and biodiversity — spanning scaling, trait-based ecology, theory, comparative biology & ecoinformatics. Several avenues for funding. Please reach out if interested 🧪🌐🌾
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Michael Warburton @michaelwarburton.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
AL PACINO with a terrific story about his first time at the Oscars.
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Carl Zimmer @carlzimmer.com · 27/09/2026
Four days ago, a scientist was surprised by the news that Anthropic discovered new virus genes for making DNA. He says he’s been studying them for years—and feeding his data to Anthropic’s AI as part of his own research. Coincidence? Here’s my story. nyti.ms/3VSWayc
nyti.ms
Did Anthropic’s A.I. Really Make a Scientific Discovery on Its Own? (Gift Article)
An expert at the University of Copenhagen said his team had been sharing its research with the company’s A.I. model, Claude, and that its new finding matched their work.
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
A good look at the consequences of using AI to generate art, and insights as to how humans actually do it. www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
nytimes.com
Opinion | A.I. Shortcuts Are Ruining How We Think (Gift Article)
Anything worth remembering came from a person who did not know where she or he was going until arriving.
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
“My mind is clearer now.” My favorite album opening lyric, ever.
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Covid shots in US now available. We got flu/covid vax at the local cvs in 10m. A lot better than 4 achey days on the couch.
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
The GOP has long perfected the legislative poison suppository.
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UFF-UF @uffuf.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
The newest issue of the Faculty Voice is live! DM us or stop by our office (Yon Hall 308) to get your copy, and make sure all your coworkers stay in the know too.
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
After 2016, MAGA governors accumulated in state houses across the country. In a lot of red states, gov’s appoint the Board of Regents. In this way, MAGA trickled down to state universities, large and small.
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Aaron Reichlin-Melnick @reichlinmelnick.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Incredible. First Secretary Mullin claimed that DHS had identified 15,903 noncitizens on Nevada’s voter roll. Then DHS officials told a skeptical Nevada, no no no, that’s just people we flagged. Here are the names of 185 people we KNOW aren’t citizens. All 185 were citizens. DHS got 100% wrong.
When the Department of Homeland Security sent Nevada a list of 185 names last month that it claimed identified noncitizens who had been improperly allowed to register to vote, state election officials got to work.
On Tuesday, the state sent a strongly worded rebuke to the federal government: Every single person on the list was a lawful citizen.
"As for the 185 individuals, our records indicate that they were citizens," Greg D. Ott, a deputy attorney general in Nevada, wrote, according to a copy of a letter sent to Department of Homeland Security officials obtained through open records requests.
"You have provided nothing of substance to suggest otherwise."Following the meeting, Ms. Vogt sent a clarifying email to Nevada officials. "I also wanted to be sure I clarified that we did not reduce the 15,903 to 185," she wrote. "We've manually reviewed some of the 15,903 and confirmed 185 are not U.S. Citizens."
Now, Nevada officials are saying even that 185 number is wrong. They also took issue with a letter D.H.S. sent them in early September, in which the agency reiterated its initial claims about nearly 16,000 noncitizens on the rolls and pressured state officials to review each case in a letter to Nevada officials in early September.
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
After November, we can begin to Warren/Mamdani the s**t out of this.
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David Simon @audacityofdespair.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Between 29 and 35 percent of the American citizenry is too fucking ignorant to operate a republic. As Churchill noted, democracy is the worst form of government there is -- until you consider every alternative. It's hard, quotidian labor to self-govern, so the worst of us are exploring alternatives.
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Hollywood is flooded with money and good actors. But as William Goldman said, "In Hollywood's golden age, 30 writers were responsible for all the good movies. Now today... 30 writers are responsible for all the good movies." It's still the script. And writers don't grow on trees.
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
++ Claims of an end to theory—since if you have all the data you’ve completely described the system—is as antiquated as Mathematica. We induce theory from data; we deduce theory from…somewhere ineffable. Either way, you’re looking for the best explanations that match the data. That’s science.
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Jim Elser @drlimnology.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Along these lines, we @sustainablep.bsky.social and @steps-stc.bsky.social are working to call attention to the role of phosphorus-driven eutrophication in amplifying methane release from lakes. Laying the foundation for carbon-trading schemes that can help finance improved P management.
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Kurt Andersen @kurtandersen.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
I’m spending the week in Omaha, my now-Democratic hometown in red Nebraska. In 2024 their genius election yard sign was the elegant blue dot. This time in yard after yard it’s the blue dot with a wave.
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
When great writers die, it is an ineffable good that they live on in our mind’s corridors, nudging you this way and that. Sam Anderson on the oh-so great Annie Dillard. May her memory be a blessing. www.nytimes.com/2026/09/20/m...
nytimes.com
One of Our Greatest Writers Has Died. But Not for Me. (Gift Article)
Annie Dillard died this week. But her voice — wild and holy and hilarious — continues to live in my head, my soul and, somehow, my dog.
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Fish flavored eggplant to the dulcet tones of D on the banjo. The tune is “Arab Bounce” by Vernon Derrick of Arab Alabama.
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Jon Collins @jcollins.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Gift link: "[T]he bullet, which was lodged near his spine, was not removed at the hospital where he was taken because a doctor said that agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement were in a hurry to transport him." www.nytimes.com/2026/09/21/u...
nytimes.com
Man Shot by ICE Agent Says His Car Was Struck Twice Before He Was Shot (Gift Article)
A Venezuelan immigrant, Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, was shot in Austin, Texas, on Sunday after a traffic stop. The shooting prompted calls from local officials for a transparent investigation.
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Student newspapers have been a breath of fresh air in these times of stifled media. You can bet that every newspaper—and a whole helluva lotta journalism school assignments—will be taking on the AI Slop of university administrators.
static.klipy.com
Oh Boy, Is This Great!
ALT: Oh Boy, Is This Great!
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Remember that movie Apollo 13? How all those scientists worked 24/7 devising ingenious solutions to save the crew? Imagine half those folks got the pink slip the week before.
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
A creative life: 1) Gathering quality data/ideas 2) Combining them in novel ways 3) Choosing a handful of the most promising/rewarding to work on 4) Doggedly, and nimbly, pursuing them. All require judgement and craft. Don’t mistake tools for judgement and craft.
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Rant o’ the day.
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
Nine Mile Prairie, west of Lincoln Nebraska, August 2024
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
PSA going into the crazy season
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
A cup of Greek yogurt contains~ 142 calories, and a typical serving of granola (1/2 cup) can add ~200 calories, totaling approximately 342 calories. Since 12 Nacho Cheese Doritos have about 150 calories, you would need about 27 Doritos to match the caloric content of the yogurt and granola combined.
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
Tiffany’s (Carolina) Parakeets and Goldfish Bowl -Boston Museum of Fine Arts
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
Saturday Gallo Pinto Philip Glass
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
How do you randomly locate the beginning of your transect? Our lab spent plenty of time and energy, but we found the near perfect solution.
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
I’m slow to getting on this 2016 show’s bandwagon, but “Atlanta” is some of this century’s greatest storytelling. Donald Glover is a straight up genius.
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
If you are wondering why your paper is taking a lot more time to get published…
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Perfect, both artwork and caption.
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Tales From The Keane Compound @thekeanecompound.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Tales From The Keane Compound #975
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Five most common last three words, 1) I love you. 2) Not your fault. 3) Not my fault. 4) No, not now. 5) My, that’s ironic.
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Nicolas Hénin @nicolashenin.net · 17/09/2026
Nice campaign by the Norwegian Consumer Council about the declining lifespan of products. Enjoy!
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
And a small team of psychiatrists to do follow-up.
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Andrew Lawrence @ndrew.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
i have said it before and ill say it again every single financial institution would benefit from paying a pink hair communist with a septum piercing to walk around the office all day saying “how fucking stupid are you people that you actually believe this shit?”
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Annie Dillard and Peter Max on the same day. I am ever so grateful for what they have given us, but jeez. May there memories be a blessing.
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Mike Kaspari @mikekaspari.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Pilgrim was one of 3 books I carried in my back pocket during high school. Her evocation of bloody cat paw prints like roses on her chest, and the tree with the lights in it, are as integral to who I am as anything I have ever read. Thank you Annie. May your memory be a blessing.
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