Georg Picot

An obviously AI-generated figure with AI slop and fake text all over it, recently published in Scientific Reports.

Since AI slop is again all over Scientific Reports, a thread on the economics of grey-zone publishing.

Why does slop keep getting published? What does it mean for science? How can we stop this?

Background readings:
Understand the strain: tinyurl.com/2b6wxx5r
Stop the drain: tinyurl.com/3jfscscy

Per Trump la fine della guerra in Ucraina è una questione d'affari - Il Post Con la Russia: lo ricostruisce una lunga e documentata inchiesta del Wall Street Journal, di cui si sta parlando molto

According to a report by the WSJ, the Trump administration plans to sell out Ucraine for the financial gain of private investors.

At least according to the Italian summary, here:
www.ilpost.it/2025/12/01/p...

The original report is here, behind paywall:
www.wsj.com/world/russia...

Donate | Support Sudan's Emergency Response Rooms — SUDAN MUTUAL AID COALITION — SUDAN MUTUAL AID COALITION Mutual aid groups like Sudan’s Emergency Response Rooms (ERRs) prioritize delivering timely, community-driven aid. Donate to support locally led humanitarian aid.

The arguably most horrendous humanitarian crisis is currently happening in Sudan. Nevertheless, the country has a resilient network of local grassroots organizations providing help, such as the Emergency Response Rooms. This seems to be a good way to donate to them:
www.mutualaidsudan.org/donate

Politikpodcast : "Die Blutlachen sind aus dem All zu erkennen" Was sind die Hintergründe des Bürgerkriegs im Sudan? Und wer könnte den mutmaßlichen Völkermord stoppen? Unser Thema diese Woche im Podcast

Guter Podcast zu Bürgerkrieg und humanitärer Krise im Sudan.

www.zeit.de/politik/2025...

NEW! How should Labour respond to the two key issues to voters of the economy and immigration and what are the electoral stakes this week of the budget?

Read on for our answer...

@nprcoxford.bsky.social @jrf-uk.bsky.social

Another example of a growing phenomenon - wholesale replacement of the traditional two party competition ;Con vs Lab) by an entirely different 2 party competition (Ref vs Grn). We may see a lot of this kind of thing next May.

Picture of the cover of the Handbook of Comparative Political Economy

Picture of the first page of the chapter "Labour market policy in comparative political economy research"

New publication 🚨 Happy to have a chapter in the new Handbook of Comparative Political Economy, which offers a great overview of the state of the field, edited by Marino Regini.

doi.org/10.4337/9781...

@sampol.bsky.social

Takk, @jilltxt.bsky.social , for at du sier tydelig ifra!

Startseite - Amadeu Antonio Stiftung

Immer gut, an die Amadeu Antonio Stiftung zu spenden:
www.amadeu-antonio-stiftung.de
Die lokalen Projekte, die von ihr unterstützt werden, können vor Ort wirklich einen Unterschied machen, gerade in Ostdeutschland und in ländlichen Regionen - gegen Rechtsextremismus, Rassismus und Antisemitismus.

Spende für den NoAfD Fonds! NoAfD Fonds: Zur Landtagswahl in Sachsen-Anhalt und Mecklenburg-Vorpommern jeden AfD-Euro kontern. Jetzt spenden.

Scheint mir ne sinnvolle Kampagne:
aktion.campact.de/rechtsextrem...

Amazing! Congrats! ...and nice title ;-)

Opinion | A.I. Threatens Our Ability to Understand the World Artificial intelligence threatens students’ most basic skills. If they lose their ability to understand what they read, will they lose their ability to think?

A.I. could deprive students of “indispensable opportunities to develop their linguistic mastery, and with it their most elementary powers of thought,” Anastasia Berg writes. “This means they will lack the means to understand the world they live in or navigate it effectively.”

Opinion | Why Even Basic A.I. Use Is So Bad for Students

I love to see stuff like this because it helps explain to people trapped in tech-sponsored information bubbles the actually obvious fact that universities teach people to know & think things, and AI is a way to produce the effect of knowing & thinking things w/o actually knowing & thinking them.

Thank you so much! (And sorry for the late reply - not often on social media.)

Any chance that anyone can post a gift link to the article here?

The far right is corrupt to the core #Reform

"Évidemment"

LOL

Self-described "populist" repeatedly censured for using offshore accounts to enrich herself declares herself "obviously" opposed to a wealth tax.

Won't someone get my smelling salts before I faint from shock?

For mange jøder markerer 7. oktober et tidsskille i opplevelsen av å høre til i det norske samfunnet Antisemittismens mange ansikter – Norge to år etter 7. oktober.

Mange jøder i Norge tør ikke vise sin jødiske identitet. "Foreldre går flere runder med seg selv om hvorvidt det er trygt å la sin ivrige tredjeklassing fortelle om en jødisk høytid i klassen." 🙁

www.aftenposten.no/meninger/kro...

@dpzollinger.bsky.social and I are thrilled "Cleavage Politics in Western Democracies" is out as an SI at @wepsocial.bsky.social!

Its papers explore the foundations of the cleavage pitting new left against radical right parties, and how it compares to the classic cleavages of Lipset & Rokkan:

🧵⬇️

On this day, 7th October, I honour those who keep hope alive, who continue to seek dialogue and peaceful coexistence in Israel and Palestine - the peace activists in Israel such as @standing-together.bsky.social and @peacenowisrael.bsky.social as well as the Gazans protesting against Hamas.

Crazy polls in the UK 😯 Reform UK biggest party and high level of fragmentation. Having a first-past-the-post electoral system with this distribution of party preferences is madness.

The discussion in this episode is quite specific to the US. But in general terms it's an extremely important discussion to have in an era of rising fascism: when to draw a line and when to reach out to the people we disagree with.

The Hertie School community mourns the passing of Professor Claus Offe Offe was a distinguished political sociologist and a founding member of the Hertie School.

Rest in peace, Claus Offe! Great, critical, inspiring scholar.

www.hertie-school.org/en/news/deta...

Ausbau der Forschung zu Ungleichheit und Konflikten Soziologe Steffen Mau an das Max-Planck-Institut zur Erforschung multireligiöser und multiethnischer Gesellschaften in Göttingen berufen. Neuausrichtung des Instituts startet

Herzlich willkommen, Steffen Mau! 👏 Der Soziologe wird als Direktor am Max-Planck-Institut zur Erforschung multireligiöser und multiethnischer Gesellschaften in Göttingen und unsere Forschung zu #Ungleichheit und Konflikten ausbauen. @steffenmau.bsky.social @mpimmg.bsky.social

Now out in @cpsjournal.bsky.social. In our new article, @denis-cohen.bsky.social @thmskrr.bsky.social and I show that where local rent prices increase more, residents with lower incomes become more likely to support the radical right AfD.

journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

Forschst Du (u.a.) zum Begriff der Arbeit?

Om man vil ha hjelp av KI til å sortere mellom partiene, er det to ting man må vite Les Inga Strümkes kommentar.

Bra kommentar av Inga Strümke om KI, politikk og faren for kollektiv kognitiv svekkelse:
www.aftenposten.no/meninger/kom...

If you're interested in the article but lack access, send me a message!

4/4

Norway introduced the possibility of extensions in 1993, but adopted the first extensions only in 2004 in the face of rising labour immigration due to Eastern Enlargement of EU/EEA. We argue that corporatism was instrumental in facilitating the introduction of statutory extensions in Norway.

3/4

This is an important policy in many European countries to improve coverage of collective agreements. However, in Scandinavia it is less common. Sweden and Denmark don't use extensions at all, mostly because their union density is even higher than in Norway.

2/4