iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

TIL that LLMs are Buddhists (or, alternatively, that the authors of this article assume that all human belief systems are alike).

The same study found that LLMs judged setting traps to kill stray cats and traps to kill rats as equally unethical, whereas humans reliably distinguished between the two. Again, the models tracked the surface frame (“killing an animal”) rather than the morally relevant distinction that humans recognize.

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Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 9h

Another 50-50 Wordle 1,929 5/6 ⬜🟨🟨⬜⬜ ⬜⬜🟨⬜⬜ 🟩🟩⬜🟩⬜ 🟩🟩⬜🟩🟩 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

001

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 10h

When your search function is 8 lines of vibe code.

A post on X found with the search string "Mar-a-Lago". The letter "a" on its own is highlighted in the post, suggesting that the search has looked for each component of the search string as an individual word, including the indefinite article.

020

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 17h

I suppose it's no coincidence that the reaction of AI CEOs to their models fucking up is about the same as the reaction of the models themselves: "Oops, you got me, I'll try to do better. Would you like some help clearing up the radioactive fallout?"

010

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 29/09/2026

I wish I was still as enthusiastic about "This great new discovery has been published in Nature and is peer-reviewed" as I was 15 years ago. (But if true, this is indeed great news!)

1162

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 28/09/2026

When I was a kid, it seemed like every Saturday morning there was a story on the late morning radio news about a family dying in a house fire overnight. Back then it was drunk parents back from the pub lighting a cigarette. /

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Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 28/09/2026

There but for the doorbell ringing before we clicked Post go many of us...

static.klipy.com

A Few Moments Later

ALT: A Few Moments Later

010

Reposted by Nick Brown

Eiko Fried @eikofried.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Hey friends, trying to find a reviewer who could provide a review on an empirical EMA paper focused on emotion regulation. I've had 31 declines so getting a little desperate and feel really bad for the authors. Let me know here or per email (firstnamesecondname@gmail.com)

81115

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 27/09/2026

"Impressive"? I'll say! Wordle 1,927 3/6 ⬜🟩⬜⬜⬜ ⬜⬜⬜🟩🟨 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

010

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 27/09/2026

Today in "Regression to the mean"...

120

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 27/09/2026

Does anyone have a citeable reference — from scholarly literature or popular culture — for the idea of "The Kids" as the counterforce to "The Man"?

200

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 27/09/2026

LMFAO. This file is a 500-word transcript of a chat session with a help-desk agent.

Your file may violate Google Drive's Terms of Service
Based on internal checks and an automated review, Google determined that 'Booking.com Help Centre.pdf' contains content that may violate Google Drive's Malware and Similar Malicious Content policy. This file can no longer be copied, and can no longer be shared with or viewed by other users, and notifications to users will not be sent. File owners retain access, and files in shared drives can still be accessed by the shared drive's organisers. If you think that this is an error and would like the Trust & Safety team to review this file, request a review below.

130

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 27/09/2026

Laughs in Wero / Tikkie / Bizum / Swish... The UK's payment network is superb, so it's a real shame there's no contacts-based payment app layered on top of it, since the demise of Paym. www.bbc.com/news/article...

bbc.com

'We're all broke': Would you chase a friend for £5?

What's the smallest amount of money you would ask a friend to pay you back?

000

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 27/09/2026

All of this, but also: How can a TV channel have a "Drivetime" show?

000

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 27/09/2026

Reading the newspaper report, you kind of long for a time when fascists actually called themselves by that name, and so everyone else could say that too, instead of having to be constrained to euphemisms by style guides.

030

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 27/09/2026

FFS Wordle 1,926 6/6 ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜ 🟨🟨⬜⬜⬜ ⬜⬜🟩🟨🟨 🟩🟨🟩🟩⬜ 🟩⬜🟩🟩🟩 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

010

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 26/09/2026

This song seemed a bit over the top when I first listened to it in 1979. Now the lyrics (below the video) are basically the TV news. www.youtube.com/watch?v=gIrQ... (Also, it is just an amazingly good power-pop song!)

youtube.com

XTC - Real by Reel (remastered)

YouTube video by Ntinos Tzimas

000

Reposted by Nick Brown

Ermengarde Gersberms 🏳️‍🌈♠️ @hydrogenandtime.com · 26/09/2026

Once again begging all companies large and small to have a rapid response team of ninth graders vetting your design decisions

0643

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 26/09/2026

QTing myself because I have been surprised to hear otherwise non-clueless Americans, including academics, do this. Just don't, please.

010

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 26/09/2026

Ah yes, the recurring UK government scheme to fight the fire of house prices by pouring copious amounts of gasoline on it. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

bbc.co.uk

Andy Burnham announces scheme to help first-time buyers

The prime minister says he wants people without support from the "bank of mum and dad" to receive help.

2448

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 26/09/2026

Hmm, why do so many Brits dislike American tourists, I wonder? #CharlesDickensVibe

Visiting family in The Hague early December. Any suggestions other than Christmas markets?
Also any specific areas of London for a Charles Dickens vibe? Thanks!

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Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 26/09/2026

Interesting to see how "helados a granel" (meaning, ice cream scooped from litre boxes, not individual wrapped popsicles) gets translated into multipel languages. The English version seems to have gone through "bulk" to get to "lot(s)", but ends up looking much more friendly than the others!

Aprovecha el 5% de descuento en Todo Incluido
Todo Incluido Limited
Desayuno, almuerzo y cena buffet
Buffet de snacks (11:00-18:00)
Helados a granel
Bebidas no alcohólicas disponibles en dispe...
Take advantage of the 5% discount on All Inclusive
All inclusive Limited
Buffet breakfast, lunch and dinner
Snack buffet (11:00-18:00)
Lots of ice cream
Non-alcoholic beverages available from dispensers....
Read more
Nutzen Sie den 5% Rabatt auf All Inclusive
All Inclusive Limited
Frühstücks-, Mittags- und Abend-Buffet
Snack-Buffet (11:00 bis 18:00 Uhr)
Speiseeis
Aus Automaten sind alkoholfreie Geträ...
Profitez de la réduction de 5% sur le Tout Co
Tout compris Limited
Petit-déjeuner, déjeuner et dîner au buffet
Buffet snack (de 11h à 18h)
Glaces au litre
Boissons non alcoolis...
Approfitta dello sconto del 5% su Tutto Inclu
Tutto compreso Limited
Colazione, pranzo e cena a buffet
Buffet di spuntini (dalle 11:00 alle 18:00)
Gelato sfuso
Bevande analcoliche disponibili dai distr...

000

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 26/09/2026

The best bit is the follow-up tweet after 90 minutes. 😄

Two texts from "Tommy Robinson"
9:57AM: ANOTHER THREAT TO MY LIFE!

Police turned up at my door at 2:50AM to tell me they have intelligence of a “real and immediate risk” to my life.

They say the threat is credible.
They won’t tell me who it’s from.
And they admit they cannot protect me 24/7.

Hours later, I’m due to speak publicly in London.

11:24AM: It’s lucky I’m hard as fuck

220

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 26/09/2026

Remember the first time you encountered the term "15 degree slop".

041

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 26/09/2026

Achievement unlocked: My first Booking dot com - based scam. I do indeed have a booking at that hotel on those dates, but it's not in Chesapeake (or anywhere else in the US), nor is it in the UK (cf. the +44 number). This means that someone has hacked Booking, or more likely, the hotel's account.

Hello Nicholas Brown,

This notice comes from XXXXXX Hotel.

Before your stay from 16.12.2026 to 19.12.2026, one standard confirmation step is still pending in our system. Please complete this step.

During the process, you may briefly see an automatic check — it will appear and then return automatically.

Access the review page using the link below:
https://booking.guest-arrival-upstays.com/p/454XXXXXX

If the confirmation is not completed within the next day, the arrangement may be released.

If you need any help, our support team is available to assist.

Kind regards

120

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 25/09/2026

Only greens 😎 Wordle 1,925 4/6 ⬜⬜🟩⬜⬜ ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜ ⬜🟩🟩⬜⬜ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

000

Reposted by Nick Brown

Jack Wilkinson @jdwilko.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

The integrity of evidence synthesis is threatened by problematic randomised controlled trials. These may be fraudulent, or subject to critical errors. INSPECT-SR is a tool to assess trustworthiness of RCTs - out today: www.bmj.com/content/394/...

bmj.com

INSPECT-SR tool for assessing trustworthiness of randomised controlled trials

The integrity of evidence synthesis is threatened by problematic randomised controlled trials, where there are serious concerns about the trustworthiness of the data or findings. Such concerns could b...

12516

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 25/09/2026

See also Crüwell et al. (2023) pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36730433/ (full disclosure: I am "last/senior" author on that paper!)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Checking your browser - reCAPTCHA

061

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 25/09/2026

La Repubblica (Italian broadsheet) interviewed me about problems in science for its magazine section. I'm glad to get the Kirk/Spock(*) metaphor out there to a wider audience, even if I didn't actually say the cheesy final sentence that is attributed to me! (*) Millennials and Gen-Z, ask your Dad

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Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 25/09/2026

Pro tip: If you're trying to look erudite by using clever words like "wont", do try to decide if you're using it as an adjective or a noun. www.bbc.com/news/article...

Former Australian government cybersecurity adviser Alastair MacGibbon told the BBC he'd heard whispers that several others have been notified of similar recent breaches by OpenAI agents.

"Some have chosen to not be public – that's every government's choice on how it wants to handle these things," he said. "The [Australian] government chose a time to release this to gain maximum publicity which is their wont to do."

340

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 25/09/2026

I'm reluctant to say this, but I really think AI might have done a better job on this horrendous graphic than the innumerate intern who presumably produced it. But if it was AI then maybe we're all safe for a while yet. #Dataviz #DatavizFail

000

Reposted by Nick Brown

samuel mehr @mehr.nz · 25/09/2026

A futuristic tale of an Kiwi magazine editor who never refrains from saying what he thinks. Russell Crowe stars in WORD CUNT: 2050

6518

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 24/09/2026

I love Google Maps artefacts www.google.com/maps/@39.351...

020

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 24/09/2026

Russell Brand reinventing himself, I see.

091

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 24/09/2026

This is bril-liant. No knowledge of Dutch required, apart from to get my little joke with the hyphen there.

031

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 24/09/2026

It's not surprising that people get phished, when genuine e-mails from your phone provider invite you to click on links like this.

A (genuine) e-mail from phone company Orange, inviting the reader to click on a link to validate their e-mail address. The link goes to https://track-mail-de2.transactional-mail-d.com/v1/red?t=eyJraWQiOiJ2MSIsInR5cCI6 (etc etc) rather than an Orange domain.

021

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 24/09/2026

In the Gino v Harvard case, Harvard is requesting the judge to dismiss the entire case out of hand because of Gino's alleged fabrication of evidence using a new laptop and a USB stick. Hollywood-level stuff. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us... [PDF]

III. Plaintiff’s Misconduct Warrants Case-Dispositive Sanctions or, in the Alternative, an
Adverse Inference Instruction.
Given Plaintiff’s extensive misconduct, the Court must impose sanctions “molded to serve
the prophylactic, punitive, and remedial rationales underlying the spoliation doctrine.” Sharp, 872
F.3d at 42 (1st Cir. 2017). A showing, by clear and convincing evidence, of intentional
concealment and repeated manipulation and destruction of evidence opens a litigant to the most
severe of sanctions, including imposition of a default judgment or an adverse inference instruction.
See Hull v. Mun. of San Juan, 356 F.3d 98, 100–01, 103–04 (1st Cir. 2004).
Default judgment as a sanction for spoliation is reserved for “extreme cases,” Sharp, 872
F.3d at 42, but is warranted where, as here, the spoliating party’s conduct is willful and the
resulting prejudice to the non-offending party is severe. See Collazo-Santiago, 149 F.3d at 29. No
sanction less than entering a default judgment on Plaintiff’s claims suffices to ameliorate their
prejudice described above. Plaintiff should not be allowed to maintain her claims against Harvard
because she manufactured evidence to support those claims and, in the process, publicly defamed
Harvard. She then concealed the 2023 Laptop, the device she used to manufacture this evidence,
through the pendency of discovery, failing even to identify its existence despite multiple Court

1223

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 24/09/2026

This is a terrible way to communicate a delta. (If it's going to be 1 degree warmer, you get "⬆️ 1°".) The eye immediately sees "It's going to be freezing". #Dataviz

A weather forecast app showing for temperature "Expect the same as yesterday 0°", when the temperature will in fact be in the high 20s.

031

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 23/09/2026

I prefer to believe that a topic has just come up which Rory and Ailbhe were discussing before the broadcast, and he is now daring her to repeat on camera what she said to him then.

011

Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 22/09/2026