Alexander Schmidt-Lebuhn
@anschmidtlebuhn.bsky.social
Botanist, taxonomist, phylogeneticist.
Pinned
Phylogenomics and genetic admixture of the invasive fireweed complex (Senecio inaequidens–Senecio madagascariensis) at a global scale - Biological Invasions
The southern African Senecio inaequidens–S. madagascariensis complex, (‘fireweed complex’), contains several species that have established as weeds outside of their native ranges. Senecio madagascarie...
doi.org
We have expanded our target capture dataset of the Senecio inaequidens - S. madagascariensis complex to a global scale. More clarity on the areas of origin of invasive madagascariensis, but also raising new questions.
doi.org/10.1007/s105...
@biolinvasions.bsky.social
#asteraceae #compositae #weeds
doi.org/10.1007/s105...
@biolinvasions.bsky.social
#asteraceae #compositae #weeds
The efficient market hypothesis always suffered from its assumption that humans make rational decisions, but at least it was closer to the truth when there was less concentration of power and capital. Now, the pharaohs decide to spend or invest tens of billions of dollars, and nobody dares say 'no'.
“People with knowledge of the device, who declined to be named discussing the product, describe it as a ‘holdable’ rather than a wearable. That means it’s a small, dedicated device that people can pick up and talk to throughout the day.” 🙄
Meta Debuts a Dedicated, Palm-Sized ‘Charm’ Device to Use Muse On the Go
Meta Platforms Inc. unveiled a palm-sized, dedicated gadget for using Muse, the company’s popular new artificial intelligence assistant, pushing deeper into the AI devices market with a surprise annou...
www.bloomberg.com
September 24, 2026 at 1:42 AM
The efficient market hypothesis always suffered from its assumption that humans make rational decisions, but at least it was closer to the truth when there was less concentration of power and capital. Now, the pharaohs decide to spend or invest tens of billions of dollars, and nobody dares say 'no'.
Okay, so if you keep spamming me with review requests for individual genomes after I have repeatedly rejected them with "I am not qualified for this kind of manuscript", I will at some point just have to ignore them.
Huh, I wonder why editors say it is getting harder to find reviewers. Mysterious.
Huh, I wonder why editors say it is getting harder to find reviewers. Mysterious.
September 21, 2026 at 12:59 AM
Okay, so if you keep spamming me with review requests for individual genomes after I have repeatedly rejected them with "I am not qualified for this kind of manuscript", I will at some point just have to ignore them.
Huh, I wonder why editors say it is getting harder to find reviewers. Mysterious.
Huh, I wonder why editors say it is getting harder to find reviewers. Mysterious.
Continue to be puzzled by the concept of an erratum or corrigendum published in the same journal issue as the original paper. Why didn't you simply correct that problem while still in production editing for that issue? What are you trying to achieve here?
September 21, 2026 at 12:42 AM
Continue to be puzzled by the concept of an erratum or corrigendum published in the same journal issue as the original paper. Why didn't you simply correct that problem while still in production editing for that issue? What are you trying to achieve here?
Reposted by Alexander Schmidt-Lebuhn
“Would you like AI to summarize this for you?” The authors already did, it’s called an abstract
September 20, 2026 at 4:50 PM
“Would you like AI to summarize this for you?” The authors already did, it’s called an abstract
Reposted by Alexander Schmidt-Lebuhn
It’s weird how these companies try to one-up one another by confessing to crimes.
Gemini AI Hacked Three Companies in a Testing Breakout, Google Says (Gift Article)
A third-party test company inadvertently gave internet access to Google’s Gemini and other artificial intelligence models during cybersecurity testing.
www.nytimes.com
September 19, 2026 at 7:49 PM
It’s weird how these companies try to one-up one another by confessing to crimes.
Reposted by Alexander Schmidt-Lebuhn
I am a bit confused about what the point is of humans investing in exploration if there are no humans involved. Unless, of course, this headline is nonsensical hype, and in the end, humans will still obtain the information collected by these probes.
Lunar exploration, no humans required. www.iflscience.com/for-the-firs...
September 18, 2026 at 10:32 PM
I am a bit confused about what the point is of humans investing in exploration if there are no humans involved. Unless, of course, this headline is nonsensical hype, and in the end, humans will still obtain the information collected by these probes.
Reposted by Alexander Schmidt-Lebuhn
I quite like that illustrations of graptolites often look like they're done by someone slowly going mad, like the protagonist of an Edgar Allan Poe story.
December 17, 2025 at 10:31 AM
I quite like that illustrations of graptolites often look like they're done by someone slowly going mad, like the protagonist of an Edgar Allan Poe story.
This is an interesting perspective, but from my perspective as a scientist, the problem with vibe coding anything complex is that I need to understand exactly what is happening to my data, at every step. If the bot makes something too long/complex for me to understand line-by-line, I don't want it.
One of the things about vibe <coding, other stuff> is that the workflow is very different which I think creates a lot of confusion.
It’s a workshop for empiricists, and I think that looks kind of messy when we’re used to computers being a domain governed by formalism.
What does that mean?
It’s a workshop for empiricists, and I think that looks kind of messy when we’re used to computers being a domain governed by formalism.
What does that mean?
September 11, 2026 at 10:54 PM
This is an interesting perspective, but from my perspective as a scientist, the problem with vibe coding anything complex is that I need to understand exactly what is happening to my data, at every step. If the bot makes something too long/complex for me to understand line-by-line, I don't want it.
Seeing studies like this one and watching people around me, I unfortunately find it very difficult to credit those here on Bluesky who say that everybody hates LLMs and only uses them because they are forced to. No, there really are a lot of people who love using them, even where that is unethical.
OK, this was a really interesting read. The authors find that over half (!!) of recent astronomy papers use LLM assistance in the writing, and they do it by IDing distinctive words. I went back and looked at papers I've written, and by god, none of them use the words.
arxiv.org/abs/2609.10664
arxiv.org/abs/2609.10664
September 11, 2026 at 9:19 PM
Seeing studies like this one and watching people around me, I unfortunately find it very difficult to credit those here on Bluesky who say that everybody hates LLMs and only uses them because they are forced to. No, there really are a lot of people who love using them, even where that is unethical.
This doesn't excuse Facebook - they are still evil! But there is a deep divide between many of us who instinctively understand that we shouldn't post anything of and about young children to social media, and those who for some strange reason don't have that instinct.
NEW: A Utah mother posted what she felt was an innocuous family video to IG/FB. Later, she noticed a Meta AI prompt encouraging her to investigate her own family -- and watched as the AI drew on years of social media posts to compile intelligence about her and her kids.
futurism.com/artificial-i...
futurism.com/artificial-i...
Mother Horrified When Meta's AI Scours Instagram and Facebook for Invasive Information About Her Young Daughters
Kalie Robins shared a video of her and her daughter singing. Meta AI started prompting her to investigate information about her family.
futurism.com
September 10, 2026 at 10:24 PM
This doesn't excuse Facebook - they are still evil! But there is a deep divide between many of us who instinctively understand that we shouldn't post anything of and about young children to social media, and those who for some strange reason don't have that instinct.
Reposted by Alexander Schmidt-Lebuhn
If you made software not intended to kill everyone and now you think it might kill everyone that sounds like a product liability issue. You should go fix it and stop bothering me
September 10, 2026 at 8:17 PM
If you made software not intended to kill everyone and now you think it might kill everyone that sounds like a product liability issue. You should go fix it and stop bothering me
I am seeing this everywhere: very few seem to understand what issue teachers have with using Wikipedia, likely because they never actually listened to the teacher. The point isn't that Wikipedia is unreliable, it is that it isn't a primary source! You should cite research studies, not encyclopedias.
Feel like we've all memory-holed the era where blogging, podcasts, and wikipedia were considered the equivalent of slop
September 10, 2026 at 9:55 PM
I am seeing this everywhere: very few seem to understand what issue teachers have with using Wikipedia, likely because they never actually listened to the teacher. The point isn't that Wikipedia is unreliable, it is that it isn't a primary source! You should cite research studies, not encyclopedias.
I did not ask for any summary. Seeing this, on the one hand, I don't know how I could refute claims of a conspiracy to waste as much electricity as possible in order to hasten the demise of humanity. On the other hand, this is also simply another case of a software product not working reliably.
September 10, 2026 at 8:26 AM
I did not ask for any summary. Seeing this, on the one hand, I don't know how I could refute claims of a conspiracy to waste as much electricity as possible in order to hasten the demise of humanity. On the other hand, this is also simply another case of a software product not working reliably.
Really cannot use a Windows computer for five minutes without wanting to throw it out of the window. Most recent experience: trying to get Windows file paths to work with Python, and then wondering where copy, cut and paste are in the file explorer. Why did they change the way that works?
September 10, 2026 at 7:27 AM
Really cannot use a Windows computer for five minutes without wanting to throw it out of the window. Most recent experience: trying to get Windows file paths to work with Python, and then wondering where copy, cut and paste are in the file explorer. Why did they change the way that works?
Yes, all supermarkets have an entire shelf full of deodorant because they like how that looks. They don't actually ever sell any of them. It is purely for aesthetics. That is how the retail business works.
Do people still use deodorant/anti-perspirant? I feel like that’s a product that people straight up don’t use anymore.
September 10, 2026 at 2:02 AM
Yes, all supermarkets have an entire shelf full of deodorant because they like how that looks. They don't actually ever sell any of them. It is purely for aesthetics. That is how the retail business works.
This thread should be required reading by anybody who is impressed by the AI corporations "solving math problems" or who uses their services with their own research data:
neuromatch.social/@jonny/11723...
neuromatch.social/@jonny/11723...
jonny (nonvenomous) (@[email protected])
> The route to the Clay problem through a smooth force, options c and d in Fefferman’s statement of the problem, is the route Luis and Diego opened and the one Levent and I had quietly chosen to attac...
neuromatch.social
September 9, 2026 at 9:35 PM
This thread should be required reading by anybody who is impressed by the AI corporations "solving math problems" or who uses their services with their own research data:
neuromatch.social/@jonny/11723...
neuromatch.social/@jonny/11723...
I hadn't realised that MDPI provides the option to unsubscribe from their incessant spam. Let's see if that works, or how long it will take before I get the next invitation to lead a special issue on some topic outside of my area of expertise.
September 8, 2026 at 3:37 AM
I hadn't realised that MDPI provides the option to unsubscribe from their incessant spam. Let's see if that works, or how long it will take before I get the next invitation to lead a special issue on some topic outside of my area of expertise.
Reposted by Alexander Schmidt-Lebuhn
so far these are the big real uses of AI
1. Analyzing huge data sets better than we could before
2. Automate hacking and malware to an unprecedented degree
3. Supercharge fraud beyond all prior precedent
4. Flood the internet with slop / disinfo
Where's the change in our very nature?
1. Analyzing huge data sets better than we could before
2. Automate hacking and malware to an unprecedented degree
3. Supercharge fraud beyond all prior precedent
4. Flood the internet with slop / disinfo
Where's the change in our very nature?
September 7, 2026 at 6:53 PM
so far these are the big real uses of AI
1. Analyzing huge data sets better than we could before
2. Automate hacking and malware to an unprecedented degree
3. Supercharge fraud beyond all prior precedent
4. Flood the internet with slop / disinfo
Where's the change in our very nature?
1. Analyzing huge data sets better than we could before
2. Automate hacking and malware to an unprecedented degree
3. Supercharge fraud beyond all prior precedent
4. Flood the internet with slop / disinfo
Where's the change in our very nature?
Reposted by Alexander Schmidt-Lebuhn
Jensen Huang just claimed the Singularity hit and we have achieved AGI.
So two years from now, when we don't have fusion power and intergalactic travel etc because The Singularity is a fantasy, I assume everyone will admit they've been had.
So two years from now, when we don't have fusion power and intergalactic travel etc because The Singularity is a fantasy, I assume everyone will admit they've been had.
September 7, 2026 at 6:57 PM
Jensen Huang just claimed the Singularity hit and we have achieved AGI.
So two years from now, when we don't have fusion power and intergalactic travel etc because The Singularity is a fantasy, I assume everyone will admit they've been had.
So two years from now, when we don't have fusion power and intergalactic travel etc because The Singularity is a fantasy, I assume everyone will admit they've been had.
Colleagues have three approaches to transferring to a new phone:
Be glad that the new phone starts with empty file storage.
Use clone a phone to ensure that the new phone starts as out of storage as the previous one was.
Use cloud sync to ensure that all your devices are equally out of storage.
Be glad that the new phone starts with empty file storage.
Use clone a phone to ensure that the new phone starts as out of storage as the previous one was.
Use cloud sync to ensure that all your devices are equally out of storage.
September 7, 2026 at 1:33 AM
Colleagues have three approaches to transferring to a new phone:
Be glad that the new phone starts with empty file storage.
Use clone a phone to ensure that the new phone starts as out of storage as the previous one was.
Use cloud sync to ensure that all your devices are equally out of storage.
Be glad that the new phone starts with empty file storage.
Use clone a phone to ensure that the new phone starts as out of storage as the previous one was.
Use cloud sync to ensure that all your devices are equally out of storage.
I feel seen
Just another classic by Niels.
www.facebook.com/CouldBeWorse...
www.facebook.com/CouldBeWorse...
September 6, 2026 at 12:58 AM
I feel seen
Reposted by Alexander Schmidt-Lebuhn
The only task for those "ask the AI how to solve the climate catastrophe" project is to distract us from doing the steps we know need to happen. By promising that a stochastic token extruder will say something magic that means we won't have to change our way of life.
September 5, 2026 at 11:04 PM
The only task for those "ask the AI how to solve the climate catastrophe" project is to distract us from doing the steps we know need to happen. By promising that a stochastic token extruder will say something magic that means we won't have to change our way of life.
Colleagues in our insect collection educating the rest of us.
September 5, 2026 at 11:31 PM
Colleagues in our insect collection educating the rest of us.
For some time I have been wondering if AI-generated food menus are really a thing or if they are rage bait. Yesterday I saw one myself in real life. So bizarre. Mate, I can see you making food. Just take some photos of it! They will look better, and as a side bonus, you don't do false advertising.
September 5, 2026 at 10:26 PM
For some time I have been wondering if AI-generated food menus are really a thing or if they are rage bait. Yesterday I saw one myself in real life. So bizarre. Mate, I can see you making food. Just take some photos of it! They will look better, and as a side bonus, you don't do false advertising.