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Andrew D Thaler

@drandrewthaler.bsky.social

Deep-sea ecologist investigating how humans shape and reshape the sea floor. Conservation technologist developing open-source tools to understand our changing oceans. Ocean educator creating novel programs to help students interact with marine ecosystems.

40,071 Followers  |  3,113 Following  |  9,928 Posts  |  Joined: 02.05.2023
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Posts by Andrew D Thaler (@drandrewthaler.bsky.social)

It took 12,000 years for us to give wolves anxiety, so I see this as a testament to the unrivaled creative power of the human imagination.

06.03.2026 15:45 β€” πŸ‘ 7    πŸ” 2    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

The math rocks do not have anxiety and gambling websites are not sources for breaking news.

06.03.2026 15:40 β€” πŸ‘ 28    πŸ” 4    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

So, what you've done here is spent 100 years tricking rocks into doing math and then you've gone and given those math rocks anxiety.

06.03.2026 15:39 β€” πŸ‘ 19    πŸ” 6    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 1

Asking an LLM to provide step by step instructions on how to disable the LLM is one of only a few legitimate use cases.

06.03.2026 14:55 β€” πŸ‘ 46    πŸ” 9    πŸ’¬ 2    πŸ“Œ 0

I finally got Zoom's "AI Companion" to tell me how to disable it.

There's no option in the phone or desktop app, you have to go to your account on the Zoom website.

06.03.2026 14:55 β€” πŸ‘ 27    πŸ” 6    πŸ’¬ 3    πŸ“Œ 0

(I'm also running an ancient version of OctoPi on a Raspberry Pi 2).

06.03.2026 14:31 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Note, though, I am optimizing for speed and noise. Yeah, 100 mm/s is slower than the current generation, but this thing is also pretty much silent in my office.

06.03.2026 14:30 β€” πŸ‘ 3    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

We can go faster.

06.03.2026 14:26 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

Working on tuning up my 8-year-old, heavily modified Ender-3 pro to get up to a respectable speed. Added a dual y-axis and a direct drive extruder, plus stepper upgrades and new firmware. Running at a respectable 100 mm/s.

Gotta print a lot of whistles.

06.03.2026 14:25 β€” πŸ‘ 19    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

Big fan of the barrage of automated phone calls and text messages that ping constantly for my GAD appointments.

06.03.2026 14:20 β€” πŸ‘ 3    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
Two views of a wingΓ¨d creature with a long neck and a moon-shaped, owl-like face. It’s made from gold sculpey and isn’t perfect and doesn’t need to be.

Two views of a wingΓ¨d creature with a long neck and a moon-shaped, owl-like face. It’s made from gold sculpey and isn’t perfect and doesn’t need to be.

The Silly Little Guy is a keystone species of any social network.

06.03.2026 03:56 β€” πŸ‘ 10    πŸ” 1    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

silly quilt (there’s a printed panel with unicorns and fairies that is part of this)

06.03.2026 03:53 β€” πŸ‘ 6    πŸ” 1    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
Three Warhammer Gobbapalooza miniatures, painted for the tabletop.

Three Warhammer Gobbapalooza miniatures, painted for the tabletop.

I sincerely believe that in order to keep this here social network viable, we have to also share our silly little guys. 3/5 of the way through painting the Gobbapalooza.

What are you working on?

06.03.2026 03:50 β€” πŸ‘ 29    πŸ” 2    πŸ’¬ 4    πŸ“Œ 0

White Island. Tarvurvur. EyjafjallajΓΆkull.

Cotopaxi did not erupt.

06.03.2026 01:20 β€” πŸ‘ 5    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0
Preview
2019 Whakaari / White Island eruption - Wikipedia

What he didn’t mention is one of those includes me. We missed this eruption by days that killed 22 people en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2019_Wh...

06.03.2026 01:09 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 1    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

I am 3 for 4 in visiting volcanoes that immediately erupted after I left.

06.03.2026 00:26 β€” πŸ‘ 94    πŸ” 2    πŸ’¬ 10    πŸ“Œ 1

There's more skill checks overall, it changes the way surprise works to give you advantage/disadvantage on initiative rather than missing a turn, some fun rules for traveling.

05.03.2026 15:25 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Rolling a d4 - annoying to pick up, feels bad in the hand, barely tumbles when you roll it. Sad.

Spinning a Dreidel - Satisfying twirl. Turns the tabletop into a Beyblade arena. Lands with a good thud.

05.03.2026 15:20 β€” πŸ‘ 20    πŸ” 1    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

Replace all your d4s with Dreidels.

05.03.2026 15:17 β€” πŸ‘ 24    πŸ” 5    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

D&D 5e is a social roleplaying game with an extremely restrictive tactical combat mini-game built in.

The d20 + advantage/disadvantage system is great, actually, and 5.5e does it even better.

05.03.2026 15:14 β€” πŸ‘ 11    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 2    πŸ“Œ 0

CON saving throw (DC18). Take 12d6 acid damage + 4d4 force damage on a failed save and be pushed back 10 feet.

05.03.2026 13:27 β€” πŸ‘ 23    πŸ” 5    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

The single tiny grogger ties it all together.

05.03.2026 02:48 β€” πŸ‘ 9    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
Preview
A big-hearted iron snail is the first deep-sea species to be declared endangered due to seabed mining. [Note: this article originally appeared on the Deep-sea Mining Observer. It is republished here with permission.] In 2001, on an expedition to hydrothermal vent fields in the Indian Ocean, research…

Big-hearted Iron Snail that rusts when you bring it up from the deep: www.southernfriedscience.com/a-big-hearte...

05.03.2026 01:42 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

I guess I need to call Oda.

youtu.be/O9M1UMj-vwE?...

05.03.2026 01:35 β€” πŸ‘ 9    πŸ” 1    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
Preview
Eiichiro Oda Reveals the One Piece Secret Is Hidden at Bottom of Sea For the first time, Eiichiro Oda has put to page the long-speculated secret of the One Piece, the treasure left behind by Gol D. Roger.

I picked a hell of a year to be writing a book about the Use and Misuse of the Deep Sea.

www.tokyoweekender.com/entertainmen...

05.03.2026 01:29 β€” πŸ‘ 9    πŸ” 2    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 1

🐟 Fish

🐠🐠 Fish

🐟🐠🐑 Fishes

πŸ¦‘πŸ¦€πŸ¦ͺ Also, somehow, Fish

🦈 Gristle Fish

🦫 Fish (Lent)

🐝 Fish (California)

04.03.2026 13:49 β€” πŸ‘ 179    πŸ” 50    πŸ’¬ 5    πŸ“Œ 6

I’m very proud of the Drawdown Explorer. In only six months, we have created the world’s go to resource for climate solutions.

And it’s only getting better! Check it out.

04.03.2026 22:10 β€” πŸ‘ 28    πŸ” 7    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
Letter: Navarro's fisheries claims just don't hold water
By Miriam Goldstein | March 2, 2026

Navarro’s fisheries claims just don’t hold water

To the Editor: As an ocean scientist and Manchester native, I read with interest Peter Navarro’s op-ed on Donald Trump’s fisheries policy (β€œFish ban lifted to lower cost,” Feb. 23). Unfortunately, his op-ed suffers from poor geography and worse economics β€” no doubt he would have been better off had he also attended Central High School.
First, Navarro seems unaware of where the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument actually is. Located 130 miles southeast of Cape Cod, the monument is so far offshore that it comprises less than 1% of historic fishing grounds. While it protects rare deep-sea corals and underwater canyons deeper than the Grand Canyon, data on vessel movements show the monument has had little to no economic impact on commercial fisheries β€” unlike Trump’s tariff policy, which cost the average U.S. household $1,000 last year.
Second, Navarro seems to have confused New Hampshire with New York. He addresses β€œNew York families” and localities such as Montauk and Fulton Fish Market. New Hampshire readers deserve better than warmed-over New York leavings, particularly because of New Hampshire’s proud tradition of stewardship. Indeed, a 2022 poll of 3,500 New Englanders found more than 80% favor permanently protected marine areas.
While Navarro touts his fishing bona fides, the administration he represents is moving to open over 1.27 billion acres of public waters to offshore oil and gas drilling, expanding deep-sea mining into key fishing grounds, and raising electricity prices at twice the rate of inflation. That isn’t just poor geography β€” it’s deliberate misdirection.

Dr. Miriam Goldstein is the Executive Director of the National Ocean Protection Coalition and a graduate of the Central High School class of 1999.

Letter: Navarro's fisheries claims just don't hold water By Miriam Goldstein | March 2, 2026 Navarro’s fisheries claims just don’t hold water To the Editor: As an ocean scientist and Manchester native, I read with interest Peter Navarro’s op-ed on Donald Trump’s fisheries policy (β€œFish ban lifted to lower cost,” Feb. 23). Unfortunately, his op-ed suffers from poor geography and worse economics β€” no doubt he would have been better off had he also attended Central High School. First, Navarro seems unaware of where the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument actually is. Located 130 miles southeast of Cape Cod, the monument is so far offshore that it comprises less than 1% of historic fishing grounds. While it protects rare deep-sea corals and underwater canyons deeper than the Grand Canyon, data on vessel movements show the monument has had little to no economic impact on commercial fisheries β€” unlike Trump’s tariff policy, which cost the average U.S. household $1,000 last year. Second, Navarro seems to have confused New Hampshire with New York. He addresses β€œNew York families” and localities such as Montauk and Fulton Fish Market. New Hampshire readers deserve better than warmed-over New York leavings, particularly because of New Hampshire’s proud tradition of stewardship. Indeed, a 2022 poll of 3,500 New Englanders found more than 80% favor permanently protected marine areas. While Navarro touts his fishing bona fides, the administration he represents is moving to open over 1.27 billion acres of public waters to offshore oil and gas drilling, expanding deep-sea mining into key fishing grounds, and raising electricity prices at twice the rate of inflation. That isn’t just poor geography β€” it’s deliberate misdirection. Dr. Miriam Goldstein is the Executive Director of the National Ocean Protection Coalition and a graduate of the Central High School class of 1999.

Peter Navarro tried to explain Trump's fisheries policy in my hometown newspaper, but it turns out his geography is worse than his economics policies. You know what the Granite State loves? Getting mixed up with New York!

Anyway, I fixed his homework for him. ⬇️
www.unionleader.com/opinion/lett...

04.03.2026 19:53 β€” πŸ‘ 18    πŸ” 6    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Language evolves. Boop the fish.

04.03.2026 21:15 β€” πŸ‘ 4    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Vibe Warmongering.

04.03.2026 19:40 β€” πŸ‘ 19    πŸ” 1    πŸ’¬ 2    πŸ“Œ 0