iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 21/08/2026

If you have resources you give your students who want to read more, please share! Is anyone curating a list like this?

Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 21/08/2026

It’s funny how universities are *not* rushing to give students a holistic perspective on CS nor beefing up disciplines that can help society grapple with the complexities.

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 21/08/2026

Maybe as a stopgap a short overview of the issues with a pointer on where to go to read more. And I front load each class I teach with this on day one.

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 21/08/2026

Still working on it. At a minimum we’d have a great class on AI ethics so students would at least have their eyes opened to the issues. Ethics is always under-resourced so maybe I will borrow a class from someone and do it myself.

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 21/08/2026

As a CS professor, the biggest moral quandary is that the industry is moving rapidly to AI-assisted and agent-based coding so it is incumbent on me to prepare students to use a tool that comes with many ethical problems.

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Evan Peck @peck.phd · 19/08/2026

📣 For folks entering the computing faculty job market cs-pui.github.io is a job board for faculty positions at undergrad institutions that highly value teaching, but also secure time + financial resources to remain engaged with research. It also provides resources & data about the process.

cs-pui.github.io

CS Jobs at Undergrad Institutions (PUIs)

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Jon Collins @jcollins.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

Legal documents released today show federal law enforcement officials extensively surveilled public meetings and activists during the ICE surge, and created dossiers on political enemies. I've been busy, but will post some takeaways on this thread soon: (1) www.mprnews.org/story/2026/0...

mprnews.org

Attorney: Homeland Security spied on Minnesotans who spoke out against ICE

Defense attorney Kevin Riach alleges that just four days after Alex Pretti was shot and killed by federal agents, that Homeland Security Investigations launched Operation Puppet Master. The agency cou...

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Emily M. Bender @emilymbender.bsky.social · 17/07/2026

This is the weirdest request for input that I've seen in a while. It's almost like the ACM is sitting at the table with the "change my mind" sign. So, let's do it. Short thread with the input I gave them:

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 27/06/2026

Couldn’t make it but I’m definitely going to read these papers!

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 08/06/2026

Can we please stop building surveillance tech?

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 23/05/2026

Gerrymandering can be used as a sophisticated form of discrimination, allowing politicians to hide behind supposedly race neutral partisan restricting. Therefore gerrymandering is unconstitutional and must go.

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Shobita Parthasarathy @shobitap.org · 23/04/2026

Well, they've finally struck home. #ICE has detained my former #umich student, Yousif Azizi, a PhD student in public policy at Virginia Tech w/a valid visa. He was arrested while taking his children to school in Maryland. After multiple transfers, he is in a detention center in Arizona.

yousofazizi.com

Free Yousof Azizi

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 17/04/2026

Went to her book signing earlier this week and it was wonderful

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Borja Sotomayor @borjasotomayor.bsky.social · 07/04/2026

If you're interested in pursing a teaching-focused academic career in computing, make sure to check out the (online) workshop series that @peck.phd and I will be running in May!

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 04/04/2026

Nice! I’ve used that but then switched to astro

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Nina Jankowicz @ninajankowicz.com · 02/04/2026

I wrote about what's *actually* gone on in Brazil the past few years. What angers Jordan, Musk et al isn't Brazil's laws, it's a system they can’t control—one that actively defends the democracy it was set up to protect. www.thewayfinder.net/p/brazil-bar...

thewayfinder.net

Brazil Bars Trump’s Coup Tourist

Ahead of Brazilian elections, institutions hold the line against MAGA meddling

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 23/03/2026

Maybe you should plan a workshop for SOUPS?

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 21/03/2026

Has any organization produced model legislation that we can talk to legislators about?

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 21/03/2026

This is really fascinating and a wonderful explanation of research in moral psychology

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Jared Moore @jaredlcm.bsky.social · 18/03/2026

Disturbing anecdotal reports of "AI psychosis" and negative psychological effects have been emerging in the news. But what actually happens during these lengthy delusional "spirals"? In our preprint, we analyze chat logs from 19 users who experienced severe psychological harm🧵👇

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 16/03/2026

I’m pretty sure I’ve seen this referred to as a fingerprint. But all the research I’m aware of has shown that people *can’t* recognize small changes in the ones that are in use.

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 13/03/2026

Based on reading submissions lately, AI is not your friend for academic writing. Using AI to edit or revise is going to leave you with a mess of jargon and disconnected fragments. At best you need to supervise and direct it, which means already being good at your craft.

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 03/03/2026

When are we going to make location data private and take it off the market as a commodity?

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 27/02/2026

And we have a direct counter-example in Republicans embracing MAGA extremists, sweeping into power, and then putting those loyalists in charge of everything.

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 17/02/2026

This is Lily, caught in an embarrassing moment

Lily, a Devon Rex with particularly fluffy grey and white hair, relaxes on a bed. One ear is flipped inside out.

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 16/02/2026

What significant advantages do you see in going paperless, versus just using notebooks?

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Nina Jankowicz @ninajankowicz.com · 16/02/2026

I know everyone has a lot bigger problems on their minds, but four years after I took a government job in my area of expertise, I continue to face astronomical legal bills because people lied about me. If you can help at all, I'd appreciate it. Thanks 💙 www.gofundme.com/f/nina-janko...

Friends,

Safeguarding our shared reality continues to be a bleak financial proposition. While I’m working harder than ever to document this administration’s assault on free expression, it’s not bringing in much income, thanks to the chilling effect Trump 2.0 has had on the institutions that once invested in my field. The relentless enemies of truth, however, are profiting from their lies, and challenges to my family’s privacy and safety persist.

My stalker continues to make frivolous legal filings; now, he is retaliating against me for obtaining a protective order against him in 2023. This has led to yet another large legal bill, bringing the total of my legal expenses since 2022 above $100,000.

I know times are tough right now—believe me, I feel it too. This community is the reason I was able to pay my bills after I was villainized for choosing to serve my country. If you can spare a few dollars to help me pay this latest bill, I would be really grateful. Your support means so much.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/nina-jankowicz-legal-fund

With sincere thanks,

Nina

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 12/02/2026

SOUPS is a wonderful, welcoming community for human-centered security and privacy work. Please submit and please join us in Hannover, Germany this summer.

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 09/02/2026

How nice! If you ever want me to zoom in for a class, happy to do it

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 09/02/2026

Congrats! Seattle deserves a great win. I’m a Rams fan, so it feels like we just barely missed out. But hats off to the Seahawks

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 05/02/2026

This clearly warrants being fired for cause. I have zero tolerance for this.

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 02/02/2026

Can you help me understand your use of technofascism here? I’m familiar with labor and ethics issues, but I would like to understand your thoughts on how it relates to fascism, especially given our current administration.

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 31/01/2026

That doesn’t look like qualitative analysis. Two of those are measurements of time spent using manual annotation. The other two are questionable.

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Serge Egelman @v0max.bsky.social · 03/01/2026

Those in California can now go here to request that data brokers delete their data: privacy.ca.gov/drop/ This is a good thing, however, it’s far from a complete solution. 🧵 1/

privacy.ca.gov

Delete request and opt-out platform (DROP)

Protect your personal information. Data brokers collect, share, and sell your personal information. You can stop that from happening.

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 19/12/2025

Very disappointing loss for my team 😢

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Dr. Casey Fiesler @cfiesler.bsky.social · 16/12/2025

The ACM Digital Library, where a LOT of computing-related research is published (I'd say at least 75% of my own publications), is now not only providing (without consent of the authors and without opt-in by readers) AI-generated summaries of papers, but they appear as the *default* over abstracts.

Screenshot of a paper entry:
Fictional Failures and Real-World Lessons: Ethical Speculation Through Design Fiction on Emotional Support Conversational AI
Authors: Faye Kollig, Jessica Pater, Fayika Farhat Nova, Casey Fiesler
(There are tabs with "abstract" and "summary" and "summary" is selected.)

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 06/12/2025

I was struck by how white nationalism is woven throughout this document. It is the motivating ideology behind the strategy’s antipathy toward Europe and the desire to assert dominance in our hemisphere.

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 03/12/2025

I also wonder if there is a realistic way for them to document a research process so we can see that their own work led directly to the written words, though this seems onerous.

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 03/12/2025

I’m pondering a requirement that when they turn in a report, they also turn in a handwritten paragraph that copies out verbatim the AI policy for the class, with a signature attesting they followed it.

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 03/12/2025

I am sad that the tech industry took no thought or care for the havoc they would wreak before unleashing this tool, nor taken any steps to curb academic misconduct.

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 27/11/2025

I’m curious what you do with a turkey done that early?

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Qiaosi (Chelsea) Wang @qiaosiwang.bsky.social · 11/11/2025

🚀💫 I’m on the job market for academic (tenure-track) and industry research positions! 👋I am a Postdoc Fellow at @hcii.cmu.edu working at the intersection of human-AI interaction, cognitive science, responsible AI, design, and social computing. I earned my PhD from @gtresearch.bsky.social in 2024.

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Deb Raji @rajiinio.bsky.social · 29/10/2025

Started a thread in the other place and bringing it over here - I really think we should be more vocal about the opportunities that lay at the intersection of these two options! So I'm starting a live thread of new roles as I become aware of them - feel free to add / extend / share :

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 26/10/2025

Love to see this. I set up a recurring monthly donation to my food bank.

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Daniel Zappala @zappala.bsky.social · 13/10/2025

Coded with an LLM (this works for both systems and qualitative researchers)

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