iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 2h

It's been years since I made music, and I'm finally getting back to it. I bought some new hardware to experiment with #EDM, and I'm having a blast. On top of that, I made an #opensource audio processing pipeline! Here's to making new bleeps and bloops into the ether! youtube.com/shorts/0uYYo...

youtube.com

Peaceful Sunrise | Short #ambient #meditation #relaxingmusic

YouTube video by From The Desk of Thomas Ott

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

Went out #foraging for some Hen of the Woods and came across this dense cluster of Puffball mushrooms. Also known as Apioperdon pyriforme, this is another edible and delicious mushroom when you find it young. What a lucky day! #mycology #hiking #mushrooms

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

It's that time again for my second favorite edible mushroom, Hen of the Woods! AKA Grifola frondosa, this tasty fungus comes out around September and loves to grow at the base of Red and White Oaks. #mycology #foraging #nature

Hen of the Woods mushroom, Grifola frondosa, at the base of a White Oak tree.

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

Another field recording I did of a bubbling brook over a small waterfall. Recorded on my H4 Essentials in Morris County, NJ #ASMR #Sleep youtu.be/yaOzEp-NvTw?...

youtu.be

Bubbling Brook & Small Waterfall Sounds to Help You Sleep | 1 Hour, No Talking

YouTube video by From The Desk of Thomas Ott

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

Today's #mushroom find is a small cluster of Golden Honey mushrooms from a #foraging #hike in a boggy area in the NJ Highlands. Also known as Armillaria mellea, they are edible but parasitic #fungi. #mycology #hiking

Golden Honey mushrooms. Also known as Armillaria mellea

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

When my wife and I go #hiking and looking for #mushrooms to forage and photograph, I also stop and do field #audio recordings. I record rain & thunderstorms, a day at the Jersey Shore, and more. Check it out if you like #ASMR stuff. www.youtube.com/playlist?lis...

youtube.com

Field beds | Rain, Thunder & Water Sounds to Help You Sleep - YouTube

Field takes from the desk: rain on pavement, thunder in the low end, a small brook, a quiet shore. Still frame. No talk. No music. These are not scored “slee...

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

Found this mature Amanita variety #mushroom on my walk this morning. I'm switching up my photo workflow, using my iPhone 17 in RAW mode instead of my Ricoh GRD. I believe this to be Amanita muscaria var. formosa, or Yellow Orange Fly Agaric. Follow me if you like #mycology!

Amanita muscaria var. formosa, or Yellow Orange Fly Agaric

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

I found my first Spotted Cort years ago, and now I see them almost everywhere this time of year. They're so cool. Also known as the Viscid Violet Cort (Cortinarius iodes). #mushroom #mycology #hiking

Viscid Violet Cort (Cortinarius iodes) mushroom

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

Another great find from a few weeks ago. This is believed to be a cluster of Yellow Honey mushrooms (Armillaria mellea). Found in Morris County, NJ. This year has been a banner year for #foraging and my #mycology hobby.

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

Here's a cluster of Mycena #Mushrooms on a wet, decaying log. Believed to be Mycena inclinata. Found in Morris County, NJ, a few weeks ago. #mycology.

A cluster of Mycena Inclinata, aka bonnets, on a wet, decaying log in Morris County, NJ

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

Whoa, I guess my #mushroom pic blew up yesterday. A bit of backstory to that. My wife and I do a lot of mushroom #foraging; it's kind of our fun hobby. She likes to collect the edible ones, and I like to photograph the cool-looking ones. #mycology

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

This has been a great year for #mushroom foraging and exploration. I found my very first Amanita species mushroom in the wild. This is believed to be Amanita flavoconia. Found in Passaic County, NJ #mycology

Amanita flavoconia mushroom in the wild. Passaic County, NJ

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 07/07/2026

I feel bad for Team USA losing to Belgium, but I'm happy that they coined the Trump Curse. Everything that guy touches turns to shit. Good, maybe we'll win the Midterms.

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 04/07/2026

I'm finally starting to "gel" with the Novation Circuit Tracks. Getting the scenes, patterns, and mixer figured out. #EDM

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 03/07/2026

VA became the first state to directly tax data center electricity use ($0.011/kWh), effective July 1. AI Data center construction is running 4x last year's pace nationally, and several states are now weighing moratoria over the power/water strain instead. www.datacenterknowledge.com/regulations/...

datacenterknowledge.com

Virginia Approves Data Center Power Tax

Virginia’s new electricity tax on data centers, including self-generated power, is projected to generate $600M annually.

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 02/07/2026

Grok isn't a chatbot anymore. Chat, voice, real-time X/web search, image + video gen, docs — one app, one shared weekly usage pool as of June. Reported US daily-user share: 1.6%→15.2% in a year, while ChatGPT's mobile share slid 69%→45%. The superapp bet is on. #AI #Grok biggo.com/news/2026020...

biggo.com

ChatGPT's Market Share Plummets as Google's Gemini and Musk's Grok Gain Ground - BigGo News

The generative AI landscape, once dominated by OpenAI's ChatGPT, is undergoing a significant shift. New data reveals that competitors like Google's Gemini and Elon Musk's Grok are rapidly closing the ...

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 01/07/2026

I believe our civilization peaked somewhere in the 90s, somewhere right before smartphones took over. #culture #life

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

The Roman groma let engineers lay out dead-straight roads and perfect grid cities using nothing but a staff, a rotating cross, and four plumb bobs. It’s the only Roman surveying tool with physical examples still surviving today. #Engineering #AncientRome #Surveying en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Groma_(...

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

"One day your heart will take you to your Lover. One day your soul will carry you to the Beloved. Don't get lost in your pain, know that one day your pain will become your cure." - Rumi #Poetry #Quote

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

This is why I love the World Cup. Nations coming together in the spirit of competition and then can feel compassion for the losing team. Japan and German are out, tough breaks but we can raise a toast to you.

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 29/06/2026

I remember when the #RenFaire in my area was a place for the "weirdos," of whom I was proud to be one. It was cheap, fun, and I got to see people like me. NOW? That place is commercialized, expensive, and just overrun with "normies."

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 29/06/2026

Imagine that, a glut of free electricity from solar. The trick is to store that glut and sell it off (or give it away for free).

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 29/06/2026

This might be helpful for me. Let me be the lesson, make sure to wear hearing protection in your youth, it comes back to bite you in your latter years if you don’t.

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 29/06/2026

My full-time gig is in #AI and data centers are what makes it happen. Still, as #civilengineer, I used to work on EIS reports that reviewed endangered species, water & noise quality, and host of other factors before building massive projects. I'm always wondering, where are the EIS reports here?

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 29/06/2026

El Niño is going force some hard conversations across the USA. We're going to have to face the reality of #climatechange head on if we want to survive. We can solve this problem, if and only if we trust the science and make policies around it.

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 29/06/2026

Earlier this year I read about about the snowpack for the Rockies was pretty much non-existent this winter. This means everything connected to the Colorado River basin is going to suffer hard this year, and it's already starting. Apple Valley, UT is/has run dry. www.stgeorgeutah.com/news/apple-v...

stgeorgeutah.com

Apple Valley mayor urges immediate water conservation amid concerns over aquifer depletion

Apple Valley officials are urging residents to immediately conserve water after what town leaders believe may be a significant disruption to the local aquifer.

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 29/06/2026

Deloitte projects a 2M+ skilled craft worker shortage by 2028, not because there's no work, but because AI data centers and semiconductor fabs are outbidding public infrastructure for the same workers. Public projects won't lose on funding, they'll lose on labor. www.deloitte.com/us/en/insigh...

deloitte.com

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 29/06/2026

I've always like Robert, ever since he was the Secretary of Labor under Clinton. His book "Work of Nations" was a good one.

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 29/06/2026

All STEM related folks, who trust the data and do the science, need to keep fighting. Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math are the only things that can help us (and the world) live without fear and make meaningful, positive change, in the world. #STEM

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 29/06/2026

I used to make #zines back in the 90s as a creative outlet. I used a typewriter, cut and pasted blocks of text and photos, then xeroxed them at 7-11. After the arrest and sentencing of the Tx woman for having "Antfi" zines I come to learn about printer tracking dots. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Printer...

en.wikipedia.org

Printer tracking dots - Wikipedia

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 28/06/2026

I'm trying to reimagine a car degrowth world where we remove pavement and replant native species to help recharge ground water and bring back insect life. There are many naysayers but it can be done. #Reimagine #Environment.

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 28/06/2026

Saw images of solar panels placed over drainage channels as an idea to reduce evaporation and generate clean energy. I think the better idea is to place solar arrays over all the surface parking lots. You get energy, shade for your car, EV charging areas and less ugly lots. #solar #climatechange

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 26/06/2026

Every architect I talk to calls it "Architorture." The design life is hard, but it's also rewarding. I raise a toast to all fellow #engineers and #architects out there making a better world!

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 26/06/2026

Finishing up a drainage improvement #design that will help alleviate backyard flooding. The initial research I did before we dug a test pit showed groundwater at 3', luckily, we found no water at all, down to 9'! It goes to show you, site investigation is "king" for design! #water #hydrology

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 26/06/2026

My first drawings as a working #engineer were atrocious. No one told me how to make the drawings clear, legible, and "snappy." It wasn't until someone took me under their wing and showed me how to do it that my drawings started to look professional. #design #life

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 25/06/2026

For #music lovers everywhere, the #waltz time signature is such a classic movement of nobility and regalness that it makes Enya's Caribbean Blue an instant classic. Enjoy this #ThursdayThrowBack and immerse yourself in this bit of musical joy. www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jl8i...

youtube.com

Enya - Caribbean Blue (Official 4K Music Video)

YouTube video by enyatv

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 25/06/2026

Every #engineer I know has cobbled together dozens of detail blocks over the course of their design life. Those CAD blocks are from different projects and use different CAD standards, and that's a problem. Nothing looks the same unless you spend time updating all those blocks. #design #CADD

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 25/06/2026

Now that I have incorporated my #engineering company, I have to do one more step to allow me to operate as said company. I have to file for my certificate of authorization. Of course, the trick now is to get more work and grow the company.

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 25/06/2026

At this rate, India will become uninhabitable during the summer months. Where will the 1 billion people go? Most of whom are poor. www.bbc.com/news/article...

bbc.com

Heatwave in Banda: A day in the hottest place in India

What a day in India's hottest district reveals about life on the frontline of extreme heat.

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 25/06/2026

And the computer language that refuses to die...Visual Basic! No thanks to all the Excel spreadsheets out there, my guess! www.tiobe.com/tiobe-index/

tiobe.com

TIOBE Index - TIOBE

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 25/06/2026

When I was in Barcelona a few years ago, I got to visit the gorgeous Sagrada Família and see Gaudí's hanging chain models. It's a marvel of catenary arch design from a structural standpoint. Gaudí used the simple to build a masterpiece. #Architecture #Art #Catalonia dataphys.org/list/gaudis-...

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 25/06/2026

What has me giddy is the fact that we’re going to see the completion of the Sagrada Família in the next few years. It’s considered structurally complete as of Feb 20, 2026, and is expected to be completed between 2030 and 2032. #Architecture #Art en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sagrada...

en.wikipedia.org

Sagrada Família - Wikipedia

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 25/06/2026

I can't speak for all of Europe but I know that the majority of German houses have no air conditioning when I grew up there, maybe it's different now. This heat wave and the coming ones - forecast because of #climatechange - will kill 1,000s of people.

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 25/06/2026

Ever since I was a "greenhorn" engineer working out in #NewMexico, I have been interested in alternative construction methods for building houses (e.g. straw-bale and rammed-earth construction). Did you know those methods can be carbon neutral? #climatechange #housing substack.com/@thomasott/n...

substack.com

Thomas Ott, PE (@thomasott)

Want to build a house that’s carbon negative? Think rammed earth and strawbale construction. Did you know that two of the most talked-about sustainable building materials of the 21st century share an ...

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 24/06/2026

Victorian builders cracked mass ornament with cast iron — design once, pour hundreds. It was 19th-century parametric design; the algorithm was molten metal. Today CNC machining does the same thing from a laptop in hours. #architecture #history #design www.nps.gov/orgs/1739/up...

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 24/06/2026

Just imagine if we reduced greenhouse gases instead. This problem would go away. Of course, the indoor heat problem wouldn't go away overnight, but we can put the foundation in place to stop being roasted alive.

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 24/06/2026

Some thoughts on how we could reimagine #LBI in #NewJersey by deprioritizing cars in favor of light rail on the island. Of course, people would scream about the cost, but there are too many cars on the island and not enough public transport. substack.com/profile/5882...

substack.com

Thomas Ott, PE (@thomasott)

My time on Long Beach Island is coming to an end. After doing a bit of research into the history of this community and seeing it grow over the last few decades, I’ve come to the conclusion that there ...

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Thomas Ott @thomasottio.bsky.social · 23/06/2026

Nowhere will be safe from the effects of rising temperatures, nowhere. There's so much to do, and starting feels daunting, but start small. Get involved locally, fight against urban sprawl and "heat islands", fight for public transport and urban infilling, and fight for environmental protections.

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