Ian G. Williams

Weird situation. AI adoption in the work world is stagnating, while higher-ed institutions are rushing to embrace it so that students will be prepared for…the work world?

Logo for NYC Open Data Week 2026

Proposals for the 10th NYC Open Data Week & NYC School of Data in March 2026 are accepted through 12/15/25. This is an excellent example of public scholarship & civic data literacy. @thegraduatecenter.bsky.social @cunygcdi.bsky.social @cunygcps2.bsky.social @cunypitlab.bsky.social

opendataweek.nyc

I am increasingly aware that beneath the rage & disgust that fuels scrolling through X... there is a kind of boredom, & an emptiness. Much of the what the tech right & its affiliates value & fixate on is honestly quite... vapid & meaningless. Yet such worldviews have immense purchase right now.

Who's going to #ECSWR2026, in Aberdeen, this April?

www.ecswr2026.org

Then I just saw the latest on Fobazi's account here after this last post, and the call to support to her road to recovery. Sharing the GoFundMe link here: www.gofundme.com/f/support-fo...

'Vocational awe' came up in a discussion last night about social work (particularly around labor practices & self-worth). I was curious and ended up listening to this really good podcast with @fobettarh.bsky.social, which connected the idea to higher education theprofessorisin.com/podcast/ep-2...

‘High agency’: what the science says about the latest tech buzzword So-called ‘high agency’ people are more able to do what they want – but research shows our sense of control depends on a lot of factors beyond individual choices.

Feeling bored by the endless uncritical use of the terms "high agency" and "low agency" on that other microblogging cesspool (X). This was a good, quick read looking at this techworld/SF buzzword, and what research actually shows about some of its core assumptions theconversation.com/high-agency-...

This is a rather fascinating map of billionaire migration patterns. Here's the Github repo: github.com/wstubenbord/...

In 2010-2011 I was an Americorps*VISTA in VT working closely w/ Somali Bantu & other immigrant communities. A chance to come home & contribute to long time & new residents, I found it incredibly meaningful & educational to be a helper & bridge-builder. I was proud to serve my country in this role.

A flyer for the PhD Program in Social Welfare newsletter, "In The Loop", Volume 5, Issue 3, December 2025.

🖨️ Out now 🖨️ The December 2025 (Vol 5, Issue 3) edition of "In The Loop," the official newsletter of the PhD Program in Social Welfare at @thegraduatecenter.bsky.social, with news, student accomplishments, & photos from #CSWE2025, #10EMESConf, & #ARNOVA2025. Read it at socialwelfare.common...

I learned much about the vital work of IMLS (like many other often invisible pieces of Federal infrastructure) through seeing its attempted dismantling, while also diving into literature on digital literacy programming and policies. It's quite essential. Glad to see these funds restored.

Congratulations!

it's my birthday today, and so I'll repost this into your timeline one more time just to say that writing this essay already felt like a tremendous gift, and I've been really moved by and grateful for the many powerful responses to it -- thank you

call for paper for the general issue of the Journal of Interactive Technology and Pedagogy

📢 Call for Papers – Now Open!

I’m thrilled to share that Shawna Brandle, @lauriehurson.bsky.social & I are serving as editors for the upcoming general issue of the @jitp.bsky.social!

We welcome innovative work at the intersection of tech & teaching.
Submit & share!
shorturl.at/xgVMF

There are net societal benefits when wealth isn’t hoarded by individuals and resources are instead shared for the public good

Airlines Will Shut Down Program That Sold Your Flights Records to Government The move comes after intense pressure from lawmakers and 404 Media’s months-long reporting about the airline industry's data selling practices.

One thing we're vvv proud of: 404 Media independent + journalist-owned. Here's a rundown of some of our recent work:

After months of 404 Media reporting and pressure from lawmakers, US airlines will shut down a program that sold millions of YOUR flight records to the government.

A White House website with a dedicated Lügenpresse tab marks a pretty bleak moment in US history.

Digital flyer for an online class titled “Discovering NYC Open Data,” presented by NYC Open Data Ambassadors. Large navy headline text sits above details: “Join us for an online workshop and learn how to use NYC Open Data! Wednesday, December 3, 2025, 6:00–7:30 PM ET.” A bulleted list says participants will learn how to find specific datasets, filter and visualize data, see what others are doing, and stay involved. A purple button-style banner reads “RSVP at nyc.gov/discoveropendata.” At the bottom, text notes the class is free and open to the public with no prior experience necessary, alongside the NYC OpenData and BetaNYC logos and an illustration of two people holding large data charts.

Open Data is full of stories waiting to be uncovered. Want to learn how to search, filter, and make sense of it? 🌟 🔎

This free beginner-friendly workshop will walk you through NYC Open Data and show how communities turn numbers into action.

📅 Weds, Dec 3 at 6 pm
🔗 RSVP: www.beta.nyc/event/e251203

Close up photo of a turkey's feathers. Some are dark brown and off-white striped, and some are brown/black with a green and orange iridescent sheen.

Close up photo of dark feathers with white fringes at the tips, showing deep green and orange iridescence.

This Thanksgiving we are so grateful that we get to know turkeys in ways that most people don't. Here are ten awesome things we love about turkeys! 🦃

1. Their gorgeous plumage. Most people think turkeys are just "brown" but their feathers have beautiful patterns, colors, and iridescence!

OpenAI says they aren't liable for the suicide of a user their chat bot urged to kill himself because suicide is a violation of the TOS

US states sue to block Trump administration from restricting homelessness funding A group of U.S. states filed a lawsuit on Tuesday seeking to block President Donald Trump's administration from placing new restrictions on more than $3 billion in grant funding used to provide permanent housing and other services to homeless people.

US states sue to block Trump administration from restricting homelessness funding reut.rs/4impN21

It feels uniquely American to see organizations representing one's field defending it's status a profession to push back against the government imposing student loan limits, with no mention of the out of control costs of higher education & institutionalized practice of required unpaid internships.

Some good popular sociology here on another important revelation of the Epstein files: elite networks and their mechanics of exchange. The article describes "capital conversion" and laundering across forms-money, prestige, research, access and intel. Echoes of C. Wright Mills, Bourdieu, Shamus Khan.

Last week I gave a guest lecture on policy entrepreneurship & the work that led up to The Digital Equity Act for a friend's class in another state. Was fun looking up local city council issues & meeting records, plus using the various state Digital Equity Roadmap tools, while preparing. #swtech

📣 Social Workers—we need to hear from you!
How is AI showing up in your practice? Share your experience in our short survey.
⏱️ 10–20 mins
🔒 Confidential
🎁 Option to enter a drawing for an incentive
👉 Take the survey now: tinyurl.com/73dv6n86

DOGE was created for data theft and infrastructure dismantling and it wildly succeeded on both counts within the first few weeks of its existence. It will take a generation to rebuild what it destroyed and the breach of data is unprecedented.

Ooooooh, these look interesting.

Apps are open for our spring session of the Cross-Reference Coalition! We're exploring Search & Discovery! "Our journey will encompass the history of exploration + cartography, legacies of inquiry, tools of discovery, theories of curiosity, and counter-algorithmic means of 'finding things out.'"

I used to handle interlibrary loans for a public library. ILL is a magnificent expression of the idea that readers deserve books, and books deserve readers. It’s libraries everywhere pooling their resources for the benefit of everyone.

Killing IMLS could have killed ILL.

This is great news. 📚

How many times exactly does Trump have to hand billions to rich people or destroy the safety net before the media stops calling him a populist?