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Sam Wang

@samwang.bsky.social
16K followers 1.7K following 7K posts

Recent candidate for New Jersey's 12th Congressional District. SamForNJ.org. Neurosciencer, democracy reform studier, plotter of data by hand as first step. At Princeton too. Long-form essays at samwang.substack.com.

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Reposted by Sam Wang
Sam Wang @samwang.bsky.social · 3h
Inundated with requests for donations? Vote Maximizer uses hard data to calculate which races are worth your canvassing time - and your donations. Here, an explanation of how it works. It's a resource to find key federal and state races. Over 3,000 ratings! samwang.substack.com/p/maximizing...
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Sam Wang @samwang.bsky.social · 3h
Inundated with requests for donations? Vote Maximizer uses hard data to calculate which races are worth your canvassing time - and your donations. Here, an explanation of how it works. It's a resource to find key federal and state races. Over 3,000 ratings! samwang.substack.com/p/maximizing...
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Reposted by Sam Wang
Sam Wang @samwang.bsky.social · 23h
This is the point. When early filmgoers saw a clip of a train approaching the screen, in the viewers' minds, a train was coming. They behaved accordingly. These technologies make us believe that they are something more than they are. LLMs just take it to a higher level. bsky.app/profile/tall...
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Randolph Potts @rpotts-sawubona.blacksky.app · 18h
Timnit Gebru, 2026 Right Livelihood Laureate & pioneering AI researcher challenges the concentration of power in the tech industry, argues that behind "autonomous" AI systems are humans deciding whose data is used, what resources consumed, who owns the technology-and are responsible when harm occurs
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Sam Wang @samwang.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Speaking for myself, it’s the one thing I want to hire for that gives me the most difficulty.
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Sam Wang @samwang.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Neuroscientist here. I have studied the brain for 40 years. I make serious use of machine learning and AI in my research. Sam Altman is full of shit. These machines are not conscious, any more than a movie of a train coming out of the screen is a train. AI does remarkable things but isn’t real.
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Sam Wang @samwang.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
This is a valuable tutorial on why LLMs run into a fundamental problem of not being useful to tell us true things. And it gives some great use cases on what they *are* good for. Great for users, students, and teachers. Read the whole series!
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Dan Ancona @danancona.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Massively important story. We’ll see how this goes, but Talarico isn’t within striking range because of some kind of heterodox move to the right. He’s making a strong, clear case for ideas that work better than plainly horrific Republican ones.
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PLOS Biology @plosbiology.org · 21/02/2025
PLOS has issued a statement on recent US Executive Orders and scientific integrity. We are determined to stand firmly behind our mission, our values and our principles, and against any attempt at censorship or undermining of the core principles of scientific inquiry. plos.io/3D4O8cH
plos.io
PLOS statement on recent US Executive Orders and scientific integrity - The Official PLOS Blog
Since its founding over twenty five years ago PLOS has been dedicated to advancing open science, ensuring that knowledge is accessible to…
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Sam Wang @samwang.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
static.klipy.com
Playing a Tiny Violin
ALT: Playing a Tiny Violin
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Kevin Elliott @kjephd.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
A small but essential improvement on federal impeachment is widely used in the states: if a lower house impeaches you, you are *suspended from office* until & unless the upper house acquits you. That's what happened w Paxton. It's the obvious way to handle credible allegations of official misconduct
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Sam Wang @samwang.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Impeach now. Whoever your representative is, Democratic or Republican, call & demand action. Hegseth is a threat to the security of the nation. U.S. Capitol: 202-224-3121. Give your zip code and get connected. Or use this to find their website & district office: ziplook.house.gov/htbin/findre...
ziplook.house.gov
| house.gov
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Sam Wang @samwang.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Political profile: Abdul El-Sayed Chances Of Winning: Still considered high despite months of bruising attacks from the Democratic Party theonion.com/political-pr...
theonion.com
Political Profile: Abdul El-Sayed
Abdul El-Sayed is the Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate in Michigan. The Onion shares everything you need to know about the progressive candidate. Ethnicity: Scary-American Personal Mission: Disp...
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Asheesh Kapur Siddique @asheeshks.org · 29/09/2026
It's remarkable (in a very good way) to see an elected member of the Democratic Party saying this. For decades, the Party has treated public higher education as a jobs training program, not a site for cultivating democratic habits of mind. I deeply hope that things are changing.
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Sam Wang @samwang.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Political profile: Abdul El-Sayed Chances Of Winning: Still considered high despite months of bruising attacks from the Democratic Party theonion.com/political-pr...
theonion.com
Political Profile: Abdul El-Sayed
Abdul El-Sayed is the Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate in Michigan. The Onion shares everything you need to know about the progressive candidate. Ethnicity: Scary-American Personal Mission: Disp...
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Sam Wang @samwang.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Impeach now. Whoever your representative is, Democratic or Republican, call & demand action. Hegseth is a threat to the security of the nation. U.S. Capitol: 202-224-3121. Give your zip code and get connected. Or use this to find their website & district office: ziplook.house.gov/htbin/findre...
ziplook.house.gov
| house.gov
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Twirling towards Freedom @twirlingtofreedom.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
“Jackson highlighted the Court’s shadow docket orders allowing Trump to slash the Dept of Ed’s workforce, cancel hundreds of millions of dollars in government grants, and, as she put it, authorize “roving ICE patrols to conduct race-based searches and seizures of Latino residents in Los Angeles.””
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Mohamad Bazzi @mbazzi.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
“Show This to Anyone Denying Genocide” — front page of @scotnational.bsky.social
“Show This to Anyone Denying Genocide” — front page headline of The National, Scotland
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Sam Wang @samwang.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
This is a valuable tutorial on why LLMs run into a fundamental problem of not being useful to tell us true things. And it gives some great use cases on what they *are* good for. Great for users, students, and teachers. Read the whole series!
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Anjali Dayal @anjalikdayal.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
If I could add to this: in my experience, both of New York's current senators have become almost pathologically unresponsive to their constituents, and she has a real talent for outreach, explanation, and transparency.
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Anjali Dayal @anjalikdayal.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
💯, especially since a 2028 candidate is likely to be pushed to the center on some questions of policy. In that context, a more center-left Democrat committed to reconstruction and reform will need progressive strength and expertise in Congress, maybe more than ever before
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Sam Wang @samwang.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
It’s decorative race-baiting season, motherfcukers!
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Starfire’s Deranged Neocon Foreign Policy Podcast @irhottakes.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
You ever think about how between the end of USAID, the Iran War, and whatever horrid plague RFK Jr. unleashes, the backlash to Me Too will probably kill more people than the backlash against the actual literal act of war on 9/11?
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Mark Histed @markhisted.org · 26/09/2026
The need to rebuild admin law is not just about NIH and science. From yesterday: “Congress established the FCC so that no party can grab total control over the nation’s communications infrastructure.” That’s the big picture of the government principles that are now being shredded
bloomberg.com
Senator Questions Whether FCC Can Operate With Only Republicans
Oregon Senator Ron Wyden asked the lone Democrat on the Federal Communications Commission, Anna Gomez, whether the agency can legally conduct business, including merger reviews, if it only comprises R...
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Vaughn Cooper @vscooper.micropopbio.org · 25/09/2026
FYI to everyone submitting this October NIH cycle You need to re-certify your ScienCV AFTER Sept 26 (tomorrow) for your application or it may not be accepted. Great timing!
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Linda Barlow @bizzarlow.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
This is important!!
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Michael Li (李之樸) @mcpli.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Here’s the Supreme Court’s per curiam opinion. No noted dissents. www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/25p...
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Michael Li (李之樸) @mcpli.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
The Supreme Court has once again stepped in (for a third time) and restored Missouri’s 2022 congressional map in lieu of the gerrymandered 2025 map. www.supremecourt.gov/search.aspx?...
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Carolyn Fiddler @cfidd.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Nick Lutsko operates on a level all his own. His spooky season music is essential this time of year: open.spotify.com/playlist/08u...
open.spotify.com
Yup, It’s Spooky Time
The spookiest tunes in Nick Lutsko’s repertoire. New song added every Friday in October!
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Carolyn Fiddler @cfidd.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Everything is terrible so you deserve 7 minutes of joy courtesy of @nicklutsko.bsky.social: Behold, @realinfowars.bsky.social The Album open.spotify.com/album/30PBeQ...
open.spotify.com
InfoWars: The Album - Album by Nick Lutsko | Spotify
Nick Lutsko · album · 2026 · 8 songs
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Omri Marian @omrimarian.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
The thing about ICE is that eventually it WILL be abolished. I don't know if it will be in 5 years or 50 years but it will happen. With certainty. And when it does, it will be remembered along the securitate, Stasi, etc, and so will the people who served there.
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Sam Wang @samwang.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Greetings from Matt’s Bar in Minneapolis, home of the Juicy Lucy! This baby is filled with molten cheese
Sam sitting in a booth at Matt‘s bar in Minneapolis, with an innocuous looking burger and a big order of fries. The burger is a juicy Lucy, filled with molten cheese
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Radley Balko @radleybalko.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Raskin made a holy shit observation on MS Now this afternoon: Since taking office, Trump has made a million dollars per hour for himself. Every hour, he has made more than twice the president’s annual salary.
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Sam Wang @samwang.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Welcome to Minneapolis!
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Sam Wang @samwang.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
I'm in Minneapolis for the Westminster Town Hall Forum. It's an honor to kick off their We The People series. I'll propose what we can do to preserve our democracy in 2027 - and build anew in 2029. westminsterforum.org And as a reminder of what's under threat, I visited the Alex Pretti memorial.
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ceej @ceej.online · 24/09/2026
impeach them all. fuck em. why should they get to fly around on our dime and hurt people? “they’ll never actually removed from office” who gives a shit? I want them miserable every day for the rest of the term. I hope they have nightmares. air their dirty laundry. make em sweat
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Thor Benson @thorbenson.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
The AP Stylebook:
IBM manual from 1979:
A COMPUTER CAN NEVER BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE
THEREFORE A COMPUTER MUST NEVER MAKE A MANAGEMENT DECISION
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Ari Berman @ariberman.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
By destroying Voting Rights Act and gutting 14th & 15th amendments the Roberts Court is recycling legal arguments once used by Confederates and white supremacists to destroy Reconstruction Please read my deep dive w/ @pemalevy.bsky.social in @motherjones.com www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
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arr @arr.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
This makes me hopeful. This number is aspirational but nowhere near out of reach: a working professional could realistically cash out their 401k and buy off a public official. Owning a senator is more attainable for most Americans than home ownership.
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josephwolf1.bsky.social @josephwolf1.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Gift link www.nytimes.com/2026/09/22/u...
nytimes.com
F.B.I. Shut Down Inquiry Into Top Ally of Senator Susan Collins (Gift Article)
The inquiry was closed last year because senior bureau officials questioned the veracity of a campaign donor’s account, according to current and former officials.
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jamelle @jamellebouie.net · 22/09/2026
huh, this piece nailed the AI bros like a decade ago
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Ben McAdams (The Resurrection Arc) @purrtah.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Like seriously a Dem Lt Gov of Texas even facing a hostile Legislature and a GOP Gov would have the ability to do some shenanigans allowable under the Texas Constitution
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OneThousandBooksLater @1000bookslater.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Funny you should mention railroads. Richard White's "Railroaded" FTW on this topic. The analogy is starkly obvious. Massive corruption & graft, unneeded development, propaganda PR, environmental & social & financial disasters
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jamelle @jamellebouie.net · 21/09/2026
one thing that is worth remember apropos this useful piece is that novel technologies do not necessarily require novel political solutions. americans have had to deal with fast-moving, disruptive technological change in the past, and they did so through collective, democratic action.
nytimes.com
Opinion | Bernie Sanders, Steve Case and Others on What Washington Should Do Now on A.I.
How can the government reel in the technology? Here are six ideas.
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David M. Perry @lollardfish.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Treat enemies like enemies. Crypto is an enemy.
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G Elliott Morris @gelliottmorris.com · 21/09/2026
From my personal experience people don't want to pay you to tell them they can't do anything about, eg, the very likely anti-Dem. midterm backlash in 2030 (or, gulp, 34). But it's true. So consultants make up stuff like "Kamala Harris would have won if she ran anti-trans ads"
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Kevin Elliott @kjephd.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Impeaching Trump's cronies among the cabinet is a viable strategy of accountability, particularly ones like Vought, Blanche, & Hegseth whose time is spent eviscerating the US constitutional order and for whom an impeachment inquiry would at minimum distract from that.
ms.now
Democrats have stumbled onto a new impeachment strategy
Democrats have plenty of experience in impeaching President Donald Trump. But there’s a different approach that’s already picking up steam thanks to one of Trump’s most persistent GOP critics.
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Dissent Magazine @dissentmag.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Data centers have become a flash point in U.S. politics: Americans are sick of them, and organizers are attempting to block their construction, while a cadre of developers, financiers, tech companies, and energy producers push the deals forward, eager to reap the rewards.
dissentmagazine.org
After the Data Centers - Dissent Magazine
Data center opponents have assembled a potent political force. But without a more expansive vision, there is a risk that this techlash could be co-opted and fizzle out.
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Colin Carlson @colincarlson.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Why do white men become white nationalists? Interesting new empirical results in Nature: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
ere we show with three national surveys of non-Hispanic white adults (conducted from 2021 to 2025) that support for white nationalism is (1) higher among white people encountering personal hardship and local social distress, consistent with strain theories3,16; (2) unrelated to local racial composition or recent demographic change, complicating status threat accounts4,17,18; and (3) elevated among white people with close friendships primarily online, consistent with theories of extremism driven by online mobilization7,10,19.
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Bolts @boltsmag.org · 21/09/2026
Many GOP-run states have restricted ballot initiatives in recent years. Democracy advocates are going on the offensive in Missouri and Montana this fall with a new approach to protecting the initiative.
boltsmag.org
To Protect Direct Democracy, Two States Mull a New Approach: Name It As a Right - Bolts
Ballot measures in Missouri and Montana would strengthen citizen-led initiatives. Democracy advocates in each state are going on the offense after facing years of attack.
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