David Petersen
@calcdave.bsky.social
A fisher of minds in central Ohio
Reposted by David Petersen
My feelings about A.I. and math
July 1, 2026 at 2:27 PM
My feelings about A.I. and math
@ologies.bsky.social Thank Pete that the NSF doesn't accept audio grant applications or else @pgirguis.bsky.social would get all the funding! Really personable interview and great voice. I also learned a lot! Thanks for sharing!
September 2, 2026 at 2:50 PM
@ologies.bsky.social Thank Pete that the NSF doesn't accept audio grant applications or else @pgirguis.bsky.social would get all the funding! Really personable interview and great voice. I also learned a lot! Thanks for sharing!
Reposted by David Petersen
I’m in Denmark, trying to figure out why everything seems to run so much smoother here, and this is a bit part of it.
The society is built on social trust, and even as a tourist (!) I’m pretty sure that I’m not being scammed around every single corner. Constant vigilance is exhausting.
The society is built on social trust, and even as a tourist (!) I’m pretty sure that I’m not being scammed around every single corner. Constant vigilance is exhausting.
I feel like an issue that would connect well with voters would be doing anything at all to slow the current progression toward "absolutely everything now is a scam"
August 13, 2026 at 6:31 PM
I’m in Denmark, trying to figure out why everything seems to run so much smoother here, and this is a bit part of it.
The society is built on social trust, and even as a tourist (!) I’m pretty sure that I’m not being scammed around every single corner. Constant vigilance is exhausting.
The society is built on social trust, and even as a tourist (!) I’m pretty sure that I’m not being scammed around every single corner. Constant vigilance is exhausting.
Reposted by David Petersen
When Shel Silverstein predicted AI
August 10, 2026 at 7:56 PM
When Shel Silverstein predicted AI
@ifycomedy.com I really enjoyed this week’s @gamechanger.dropout.tv episode and your performance was a major part of that. Thanks for the fun!
July 14, 2026 at 2:36 AM
@ifycomedy.com I really enjoyed this week’s @gamechanger.dropout.tv episode and your performance was a major part of that. Thanks for the fun!
Reposted by David Petersen
xkcd comics published about statistics correlates with The number of concierges in Ohio (r=0.921)
July 8, 2026 at 1:33 PM
xkcd comics published about statistics correlates with The number of concierges in Ohio (r=0.921)
Reposted by David Petersen
why does the “you can’t fight it” rhetoric around AI feel so familiar?? 🤔
May 23, 2026 at 11:32 PM
why does the “you can’t fight it” rhetoric around AI feel so familiar?? 🤔
Me to 7yo: What's half of 56?
7yo: I dunno. 23?
Me: No, that'd be half of 46.
7yo: Oh, then it's 28.
7yo: I dunno. 23?
Me: No, that'd be half of 46.
7yo: Oh, then it's 28.
May 3, 2026 at 3:20 PM
Me to 7yo: What's half of 56?
7yo: I dunno. 23?
Me: No, that'd be half of 46.
7yo: Oh, then it's 28.
7yo: I dunno. 23?
Me: No, that'd be half of 46.
7yo: Oh, then it's 28.
Reposted by David Petersen
Reminder to those who can't seem to grasp distinction between median and average. US average income in 2024 was $76,000. US median income was $44,000. The difference is vast inequality. And $44,000 is not a good living.
April 29, 2026 at 6:09 PM
Reminder to those who can't seem to grasp distinction between median and average. US average income in 2024 was $76,000. US median income was $44,000. The difference is vast inequality. And $44,000 is not a good living.
Reposted by David Petersen
Are we meant to forgive SpaceX's destruction of LEO, astronomy, and the night sky for this?
600 rocket landings! SpaceX notches another milestone during Sunday Starlink launch www.space.com/space-explor...
600 rocket landings! SpaceX notches another milestone during Sunday Starlink launch
The milestone mission lifted off from California on Sunday (April 19).
www.space.com
April 20, 2026 at 10:34 PM
Are we meant to forgive SpaceX's destruction of LEO, astronomy, and the night sky for this?
Reposted by David Petersen
Reposted by David Petersen
The next Murderbot is out on May 5 www.barnesandnoble.com/w/platform-d...
www.barnesandnoble.com
April 8, 2026 at 1:53 AM
The next Murderbot is out on May 5 www.barnesandnoble.com/w/platform-d...
Ancient dice found in North America showing that Indigenous Americans may have used them to play with other groups they meet.
www.thisiscolossal.com/2026/04/ice-...
www.thisiscolossal.com/2026/04/ice-...
12,000 Years Ago, Native Americans Were Playing Games of Chance with Handmade Dice
New research suggests that games of chance developed much earlier—to the tune of 6,000 years—than originally thought.
www.thisiscolossal.com
April 6, 2026 at 7:09 PM
Ancient dice found in North America showing that Indigenous Americans may have used them to play with other groups they meet.
www.thisiscolossal.com/2026/04/ice-...
www.thisiscolossal.com/2026/04/ice-...
Reposted by David Petersen
The #1 problem with AI:
"...the tool requires expertise to validate, but its use diminishes expertise and stunts its growth."
taggart-tech.com/reckoning/
"...the tool requires expertise to validate, but its use diminishes expertise and stunts its growth."
taggart-tech.com/reckoning/
I used AI. It worked. I hated it.
I used Claude Code to build a tool I needed. It worked great, but I was miserable. I need to reckon with what it means.
taggart-tech.com
April 2, 2026 at 7:54 PM
The #1 problem with AI:
"...the tool requires expertise to validate, but its use diminishes expertise and stunts its growth."
taggart-tech.com/reckoning/
"...the tool requires expertise to validate, but its use diminishes expertise and stunts its growth."
taggart-tech.com/reckoning/
Reposted by David Petersen
For the first time, a person who is not a white, American man will see the Moon close-up* with their own eyes. I'm eager to see with their vision. Will it be the same or different? Which cultural influences will be uppermost? #ArtemisII
*From 8, 000 km 🧪
*From 8, 000 km 🧪
March 30, 2026 at 9:51 PM
For the first time, a person who is not a white, American man will see the Moon close-up* with their own eyes. I'm eager to see with their vision. Will it be the same or different? Which cultural influences will be uppermost? #ArtemisII
*From 8, 000 km 🧪
*From 8, 000 km 🧪
Reposted by David Petersen
The world does not need more undergraduate history essays but does need more people who can write good ones.
I keep having to tell students that the true "product" on a homework, essay, or test is not the completed assignment, it's the brain that has gone through the thinking required to complete the assignment.
March 21, 2026 at 12:33 PM
The world does not need more undergraduate history essays but does need more people who can write good ones.
Reposted by David Petersen
"Math is not true because we tell kids it is true; math is true because they can find that truth for themselves. We can find these truths together."
February 19, 2026 at 6:02 PM
"Math is not true because we tell kids it is true; math is true because they can find that truth for themselves. We can find these truths together."
Reposted by David Petersen
Interesting stat from the article
February 3, 2026 at 7:25 PM
Interesting stat from the article
Reposted by David Petersen
PPS: I'm not sure how my tone comes across in these posts, because I worry my tech friends will think I'm being pessimistic and my arts friends the opposite. Personally, I feel like someone whose house is being eaten by nanobots, but who is really interested in nanobots.
January 30, 2026 at 5:59 PM
PPS: I'm not sure how my tone comes across in these posts, because I worry my tech friends will think I'm being pessimistic and my arts friends the opposite. Personally, I feel like someone whose house is being eaten by nanobots, but who is really interested in nanobots.
Reposted by David Petersen
"they don't deserve our fear" is a profound thing to say imo & I'm grateful for it
distrust yes caution yes. fear God maybe (proverbs 9:10 though I have long-winded thoughts about the fear of God). these men terrorizing citizens may be a lot of things but they don't know the first thing about God
distrust yes caution yes. fear God maybe (proverbs 9:10 though I have long-winded thoughts about the fear of God). these men terrorizing citizens may be a lot of things but they don't know the first thing about God
because they don’t deserve our fear
🤔
January 26, 2026 at 1:20 AM
"they don't deserve our fear" is a profound thing to say imo & I'm grateful for it
distrust yes caution yes. fear God maybe (proverbs 9:10 though I have long-winded thoughts about the fear of God). these men terrorizing citizens may be a lot of things but they don't know the first thing about God
distrust yes caution yes. fear God maybe (proverbs 9:10 though I have long-winded thoughts about the fear of God). these men terrorizing citizens may be a lot of things but they don't know the first thing about God
Reposted by David Petersen
Feeling this so hard this past several weeks
December 24, 2025 at 10:18 PM
Feeling this so hard this past several weeks
@ryannorth.ca TBF, I do think of you as many things before I think of you as the guy who was stuck in a hole. But, when I think of someone stuck in a hole, I think of you first.
www.reddit.com/r/interestin...
(I know you had your puppers with you, so this method wasn't on the table)
www.reddit.com/r/interestin...
(I know you had your puppers with you, so this method wasn't on the table)
December 17, 2025 at 3:48 PM
@ryannorth.ca TBF, I do think of you as many things before I think of you as the guy who was stuck in a hole. But, when I think of someone stuck in a hole, I think of you first.
www.reddit.com/r/interestin...
(I know you had your puppers with you, so this method wasn't on the table)
www.reddit.com/r/interestin...
(I know you had your puppers with you, so this method wasn't on the table)
@k8nowak.bsky.social asked if I would be interested in helping a new company write curriculum while I moved states
November 22, 2025 at 9:24 PM
@k8nowak.bsky.social asked if I would be interested in helping a new company write curriculum while I moved states
Reposted by David Petersen
Why am I so against generative AI in games?
Because I simply do not want my initial reaction to art to be one of suspicion and scrutiny, AI slop is fundamentally damaging my relationship to art and artistry, and I am deeply resentful that it is forcing me to be guarded when I should be wowed.
Because I simply do not want my initial reaction to art to be one of suspicion and scrutiny, AI slop is fundamentally damaging my relationship to art and artistry, and I am deeply resentful that it is forcing me to be guarded when I should be wowed.
November 17, 2025 at 6:54 PM
Why am I so against generative AI in games?
Because I simply do not want my initial reaction to art to be one of suspicion and scrutiny, AI slop is fundamentally damaging my relationship to art and artistry, and I am deeply resentful that it is forcing me to be guarded when I should be wowed.
Because I simply do not want my initial reaction to art to be one of suspicion and scrutiny, AI slop is fundamentally damaging my relationship to art and artistry, and I am deeply resentful that it is forcing me to be guarded when I should be wowed.