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Theodore Kim

@theodore-kim.bsky.social
149 followers 101 following 114 posts

Professor of Computer Science, American Studies, and Ethnicity, Race & Migration @ Yale (Also two Oscars) www.tkim.graphics

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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Tried watching the latest JACKASS movie yesterday. Turned it off after 15 minutes. They were all standing in a circle, laughing hysterically at each other’s pain and humiliation. It was a cold, violent laughter. You could see in their eyes that nobody was having fun, or found anything funny.
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Now Jeffrey Katzenberg's saying it. Again, if the suits love a technology but the artists (and audience!) hate it, then something is very very wrong. variety.com/2026/biz/new...
variety.com
Jeffrey Katzenberg Says Hollywood Must Accept AI as a Tool: It ‘Is Not Going Away’
Jeffrey Katzenberg, the legendary Hollywood producer, thinks Hollywood needs to accept AI if it wants to remain at the forefront of the future.
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
I’m seeing more and more people argue that AI in movies is “just like when CGI was introduced.” This is obviously wrong for one glaring reason: When CGI was introduced, moviegoers LOVED it. I was one of them. It's why I got into film to begin with. A 🧵
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Multiple students reported to me today that their high schools counted programming as a “foreign language” class. WTF. Putting Python and Java on equal footing with the rich cultural history of any spoken language is horrific. Might as well count Microsoft Excel as a "foreign language" too.
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
As always, @tressiemcphd.bsky.social ’s analysis of the “AIs gone rogue” bullshit is spot on. “Why do the powerful leaders of A.I. want us to panic? Because panic sells the idea that A.I. is ungovernable.” They show their unseriousness when “[n]one of them are enthusiastic about accountability."
nytimes.com
Opinion | A.I. Is a Threat, but Not in the Way You Think (Gift Article)
The threats from A.I. are real — and they’re ones we know how to deal with.
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Curse you past me, why would you write down the Hessian but not the gradient? I'm sure future me is cursing present me for something else at this very moment.
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
Assigned “Sexism is a Feature Not a Bug” by @histoftech.bsky.social for our "Topics in Critical Computing" class reading today. direct.mit.edu/books/edited... 1/3
direct.mit.edu
Sexism Is a Feature, Not a Bug
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
The following is a test question I gave to CS students after a class screening of Terminator 2 and SOME OF THEM GOT IT WRONG.
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Gregg Gonsalves @gregggonsalves.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
We've got 40+ alums coming to campus for the teach-in on democratizing Yale on Tuesday 1 September at 1:30PM. If you get there early enough, you'll get a zine by Greg Pak (Class of 1990) and a t-shirt, though we're really saving them for the students. 1/
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Yale AAUP @aaupyale.org · 31/08/2026
Democratize Yale! Join students, faculty, alumni, and community members for a teach-in on academic freedom, shared governance, free expression, and Yale’s autonomy from unlawful federal coercion. 📍 Yale Cross Campus 🗓 TOMORROW: Sept. 1 🕜 1:30 PM #AcademicFreedom #DemocracyAtYale #YaleIsNotForSale
Dark blue event poster with a light-blue collage featuring a large lipstick, flowers, Yale architecture, and archival-style images of student and worker demonstrations. Large white text reads “DEMOCRATIZE YALE,” followed by “a faculty & student teach-in.” At the bottom: “SEP. 1, 1:30PM · CROSS CAMPUS.”Dark blue event poster reading, “FOR DIVERSITY, FREE EXPRESSION, SHARED GOVERNANCE, AND ACADEMIC FREEDOM.” Featured speakers are David W. Blight, Sterling Professor of History and Black Studies and 2019 Pulitzer Prize winner for History; Daniel Martinez HoSang, Professor of American Studies and Yale AAUP President; Gregg Gonsalves ’11 ’17 Ph.D., Professor of Epidemiology (Microbial Diseases) and 2018 MacArthur Fellow; Susan Choi ’90, 2019 National Book Award winner; Alex W. Chen ’28, President of the Yale College Council; Isabel Matos ’28, Endowment Justice Collective organizer; and Marah Rigaud ’28, President of the Black Student Alliance at Yale, plus more. The poster also notes an appearance by Sam Waterston ’62, Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winning actor. Bottom text reads: “SEP. 1, 1:30PM · CROSS CAMPUS.”
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
SLOP MIDWIVES
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
This is like how the Stuxnet worm “escaped containment” back in 2010. OMG! This proves that Stuxnet was conscious! The bugs were signs of super-intelligence! Everybody throw billions of dollars at Stuxnet worm to usher in a new Renaissance! SO STUPID.
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 30/07/2026
I'm going to start referring to them as "shatbots". Person: "Did you mean chatbots" Me: "I said what I said"
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
Really getting the sense that the current "age of ai" is some rich people discovering that a very small, very squalid corner of non-linear optimization happens to yield to tons of money.
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 02/07/2026
I got elected to the Academy. If "I Love Boosters" doesn't make the Best Picture noms this year, you can count on me to be the anonymous member complaining to Variety.
Invitation email to join AMPAS, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 23/06/2026
Me: Now if you steal a car you can't just sell it, you have to take it to a chop shop. Now a chop shop is -- Kid: I know what a chop shop is. Me: How do you know what a chop shop is?! From me talking about Grand Theft Auto? Kid: Yes.
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
Wow this paper's good. Kudos to @paytoncroskey.bsky.social, @ruha9.bsky.social and Jennifer Jacobs for writing it! dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/...
dl.acm.org
The Augmented Undercommons: A Framework for Liberatory HCI Research within Ethically Compromised Institutions | Proceedings of the 2026 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems
You will be notified whenever a record that you have chosen has been cited.
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 16/06/2026
BEST. MUSEUM DISPLAY. EVER.
Far Side showing the classic Thagomizer comic, with museum text underneath saying that this is where the official term came from.
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 08/06/2026
For the first time in over 20 years, I was asked for ID before entering an R-rated movie. Ticket taker said "they have to check everybody" because the number of teens trying to sneak in to see OBSESSION "has been ridiculous". Who says the movies are dead? 1/2
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Ellis Monk @ellismonk.bsky.social · 06/06/2026
This is mind-blowing... Amazing work :)
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 02/06/2026
Things newly broken in Gmail: 1. Freezes if GCal (in a separate browser tab!) brings up an alert. 2. Outlook invites no longer get converted to GCal automatically, or the conversion gets all fucked up. Handing coding over to chatbots is going great!
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
The new Boots Riley movie opens today! Featuring: 1. U.S.-China / Black-Asian class solidarity and worker uprising 2. Bonkers sci-fi teleportation devices 3. Bonkers claymation fight scenes If any of this sounds good to you, I highly recommend. Best movie I've seen since Mad Max: Fury Road.
Poster for new Boots Riley movie I LOVE BOOSTERS
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 21/05/2026
SIGGRAPH goes to #FAccT2026! Congrats to my co-authors @posada.website, @avmenon.bsky.social and @bsky.alexaschor.com We analyzed every SIGGRAPH, ToG, and SIGGRAPH Asia paper from 1974-2024 to see how race is imagined in graphics research. The results were not good. arxiv.org/abs/2605.14835 1/
arxiv.org
The Racial Character of Computer Graphics Research
Computer graphics algorithms for generating photorealistic imagery are widely perceived to be universal, and capable of conjuring anything that a filmmaker or game designer can imagine. However, recen...
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Karen Hao @karenhao.bsky.social · 20/05/2026
On the one-year anniversary of EMPIRE OF AI, I am so, so excited to announce The AI Resist List, a new project that documents examples of resistance to the AI empires around the world 😍 airesistlist.org
The gorgeous AI Resist List homepage
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Alex Hanna @alexhanna.bsky.social · 20/05/2026
We are also releasing a new research primer, "Myths about Generative AI, Productivity, and Labor Displacement", which discusses five common myths around generative AI at work. This primer will be the first of many. labor.dair-institute.org/primers
Screenshot of the primer: “Myths about Generative AI, Productivity, and Labor Displacement". Alex Hanna, Tina M. Park, Sophie Song. May 2026. Logos for the Luddite Lab and DAIR.
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Lisa Messeri @lmesseri.bsky.social · 19/05/2026
Is the purpose of science and 🧪 training to churn out papers or to create a healthy knowledge community? In a @nature.com comment, @mjcrockett.bsky.social and I check in on how AI helps with the former while jeopardizing the latter 1/
nature.com
The uncritical adoption of AI in science is alarming — we urgently need guard rails | Nature
Artificial intelligence is rapidly accelerating scientific output, but risks narrowing inquiry, weakening judgement and undermining how scientists are trained. Artificial intelligence is rapidly accelerating scientific output, but risks narrowing inquiry, weakening judgement and undermining how scientists are trained.
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kalindi vora @kalindivora.bsky.social · 15/05/2026
Intersectional Feminist STS postdoc at Yale - please circulate! postdocs.yale.edu/posts/2026-0...
postdocs.yale.edu
Postdoctoral Associate in Intersectional Feminist STS at Yale University
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Emily M. Bender @emilymbender.bsky.social · 13/05/2026
"Predictably, the huge spike in productivity that these companies claim their own AI products have enabled hasn’t resulted in more or better products, shorter work weeks, or better consumer experiences." www.404media.co/software-dev...
404media.co
Software Developers Say AI Is Rotting Their Brains
“It's making me dumber for sure.”
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Kath Barbadoro @kathbarbadoro.bsky.social · 27/03/2026
reading about they thought they were free reminds me of that harper's "who goes nazi" piece, in that the best distillation of the fascist mindset is probably someone who is willing to do whatever it takes to never feel humiliation again
welcometohellworld.com
The little actions of little men
Rax King on reading They Thought They Were Free in the age of ICE
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Gregg Gonsalves @gregggonsalves.bsky.social · 01/05/2026
"Too many scientists are willing to collaborate with Trumpism in the mistaken assumption that obedience will save their own necks." www.thenation.com/article/soci...
thenation.com
The Rise of the Vichy Scientists
Too many scientists are willing to collaborate with Trumpism in the mistaken assumption that obedience will save their own necks.
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 20/04/2026
Did you know you can subscribe to the paper edition of @theonion.com to help support their takeover of InfoWars? Hell Yes. Worth every penny. membership.theonion.com?campaign=701...
membership.theonion.com
Join The Onion
Don’t just read the news. Feel it. Be among the first to feel the news.
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Victor Ray @victorerikray.bsky.social · 12/04/2026
Making tenure count, for MSNOW I wrote about my employer, The University of Iowa, creating a center for intellectual freedom. It's a reactionary project built on decades of conservative propaganda about higher ed.
ms.now
Opinion | Beware conservatives promoting “intellectual freedom”
Victor Ray: This conservative lie about schools like mine is furthering authoritarianism
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 07/04/2026
Saw a preview of I LOVE BOOSTERS yesterday and it was *AMAZING*. Wildly imaginative, bonkers sci-fi in the present-day East Bay, in that one-of-a-kind @bootsriley.bsky.social way. It was *SO GOOD*. I don’t think I’ll see anything better this year. Opens nationwide May 22nd.
I LOVE BOOSTERS poster, opens nationwide on May 22nd.
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Matt Seybold @mattseybold.bsky.social · 04/04/2026
Reflections on the Claude Code source code leak from @techtrenches.dev “The leak isn’t the story. The code is the story.”
techtrenches.dev
Claude Code's Source: 3,167-Line Function, Regex Sentiment
Anthropic claimed 100% of Claude Code is AI-written. A source leak exposed a 3,167-line function, regex sentiment analysis, and 250K wasted API calls daily
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 02/04/2026
UPDATE: Most students in the class hadn't heard of ILM! They knew of Lucasfilm, but just as the place that makes Star Wars, not as a VFX studio. Next year I'll probably instead assign Chapter 2: "Perfect Imperfection: ILM's Effects Aesthetics", about how ILM aesthetics now pervade everything.
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 17/03/2026
Wow this is good.
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sina nabizadeh @sinabiz.bsky.social · 15/03/2026
📢 New England Symposium on Graphics 2026 returns April 12 at @mit.edu! Featuring talks by Profs Frédo Durand (MIT), @adrianaschulz.bsky.social (Brown), @theodore-kim.bsky.social (Yale), junior talks, posters, and networking. Free to attend!! Register: forms.gle/g5fWyLVqCfm8... Details: nesg.graphics
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 12/03/2026
Hard to imagine now, but IRON MAN (2008) was about a weapons manufacturer who had a moral awakening after seeing the human toll of his products. He finally springs into action when he see news footage of refugee families being torn apart. At the time, people thought he was modeled after Elon Musk.
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 18/02/2026
Remember that time Jesse Jackson showed up at a 2014 Google shareholder meeting demanding that the company publicly disclose their shitty diversity numbers? www.vox.com/2014/5/15/11...
vox.com
What Happens at the Google Annual Shareholder Meeting Circus
An appearance by Reverend Jesse Jackson, a disinterest in paying more taxes, and thanks for the help at Costco.
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 11/02/2026
(Slow exhale ...) yaledailynews.com/articles/gel...
yaledailynews.com
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 09/02/2026
I’m struck by how many people (even in CS) are unfamiliar with the term “AI Winter”, and are treating the current hype as a once-in-human-civilization-level event. Nope. It’s a regular cycle of over-promising hucksters crashing the markets every few decades. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AI_winter
en.wikipedia.org
AI winter - Wikipedia
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 20/01/2026
Reading “Hitler’s American Model.” It’s striking that the Nazis passed the anti-semitic 1935 Nuremberg Laws against a backdrop of nationwide “radical street violence” against Jews. They were legalizing what was already happening in the streets. 1/2 press.princeton.edu/books/hardco...
press.princeton.edu
Hitler's American Model
How American race law provided a blueprint for Nazi Germany
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 12/01/2026
I am teaching a Computer Graphics class this semester where I am going to pair technical readings with STS-type readings. The students are evaluated on both.
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Theodore Kim @theodore-kim.bsky.social · 12/01/2026
Hello. I'm back on the socials after writing a book for the last year and a half.
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