@almonds@mastodon.mit.edu

Maddie @almonds@mastodon.mit.edu · Jul 30, 2026

Replying to @almonds@mastodon.mit.edu

@Tutanota@mastodon.social Today, most large organizations either seem on the nose proudly in support genocide or seem fearful of being too divisive (bystander effect). I support orgs that are clearly against LLMs. A "neutral" stance drives away users who care, and supports the status quo of widespread harm and renting of knowledge. A negative stance might receive backlash from those with time on their hands, yet it normalizes a healthy discussion of the issues so we can address them. 2/2

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Maddie @almonds@mastodon.mit.edu · Jul 30, 2026

Replying to @Tutanota@mastodon.social

@Tutanota@mastodon.social Re: LLMs ("AI"), I really can't say how I feel in one or two toots... As an educator, I feel we ought to build our own knowledge & skills and not rent it out, particularly never to corporations/people who continually lobby for hate and cannot be trusted. As an engineer, I feel it's our collective responsibility to guarantee safety before we adopt a technology that is being used so extensively for harm. Other users here can point to plenty of specific examples. 1/2

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Maddie @almonds@mastodon.mit.edu · Jul 19, 2026

Replying to @VeeRat@zeroes.ca

@VeeRat@zeroes.ca Some people do seem more open to masks, for allergies, for dust during rockclimbing or cleaning or woodworking, and recently for wildfire smoke. Half of them accept a spare KN95 when offered. 1/2

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Maddie @almonds@mastodon.mit.edu · Jun 21, 2026

lil fluffy baby, can't fly back to the nest, but that's ok

#BlueJays

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Maddie @almonds@mastodon.mit.edu · Jun 20, 2026

Anyone have ridiculous #InternetOfShit examples you're really fond of?

Toasters, coffee machines, or microwaves that don't work without Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. Vacuum, TV, or toothbrush botnets. Preferably something you have a picture of, from first hand experience.

I teach an #EmbeddedSystems class, and it's good to show examples of what *not* to do, in case they pursue the industry. (Boost for reach appreciated)

#InternetOfThings #IOT

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Maddie @almonds@mastodon.mit.edu · Jun 18, 2026

I like when signs that ask people not to do something seem to encourage people to do the thing

They prepare the space for almost inevitable jokes

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Maddie @almonds@mastodon.mit.edu · Jun 15, 2026

You can just time travel if you want to... no one will be going to have had been stopping you

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Maddie @almonds@mastodon.mit.edu · May 15, 2026

Replying to @zak@infosec.exchange

@zak@infosec.exchange Did the firmware update do something special? I like my Snowsky Echo Mini a lot, except it can't do scanning, and I wonder, if a firmware update would fix that, it'd be perfect

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Maddie @almonds@mastodon.mit.edu · May 11, 2026

Replying to @morrigan@girlcock.club

@morrigan@girlcock.club @RoseThorndyke@cathode.church @little_foxtoy@bark.lgbt Communication is the way to go. Starting with communicating goals and making a plan, and then maybe regular check-ins, like end of day. And yeah, ritualizing it with a meaningful trigger would probably help

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Maddie @almonds@mastodon.mit.edu · Apr 25, 2026

Replying to @almonds@mastodon.mit.edu

This is how a parent feels replacing the kid's pet goldfish and telling them it's the same fish

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Maddie @almonds@mastodon.mit.edu · Apr 25, 2026

The pupper's battery died in the middle of `apt upgrade` and won't boot anymore 😔

Remember to make #backups

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Maddie @almonds@mastodon.mit.edu · Apr 25, 2026

Are there smaller, local cloud providers? ("local" = US, New England)

A friend is interested in starting a website, and I realized I only know about big companies (e.g. Hetzner) or universities, but maybe there are local options?

Because I get hints on Fedi that there are cool people who maintain real hardware for others, but maybe the scopes for that are smaller than I think.

#InfrastructureAsAService #Cloud #SelfHosting

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Maddie @almonds@mastodon.mit.edu · Apr 25, 2026

Replying to @jwdt@mastodon.social

@jwdt @ocean Looks like that one isn't registered, but as an experiment, I just searched it up in GoDaddy, I'll check in a few days

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Maddie @almonds@mastodon.mit.edu · Apr 25, 2026

Replying to @ocean@raru.re

@ocean I think they do this to themselves with Punycode domain names. A while ago I got one 2 emojis long, and ever since, they've sent me emails telling me to act fast for "similar" names. They all start with x and have several random letters and aren't even proper Punycode. I'll see if I can find an example... Edit: added screenshot

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Maddie @almonds@mastodon.mit.edu · Apr 18, 2026

Replying to @almonds@mastodon.mit.edu

I wear a KN95 when out. It's not obstructive. When people ask me about it, and I tell them about long covid, they're disinterested. In the first class of courses, I explain to students how long covid affected me, talk about community responsibility, and then offer masks every class, and no one takes any. When rock climbing and someone asks, sometimes I just say it's to block chalk, and they're amazed, like, "wow, I should try that." I don't understand.

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Maddie @almonds@mastodon.mit.edu · Apr 18, 2026

I'll mention again that I got covid in 2022 despite masking, and it hecked up my body for the next full year before I started getting a little better. Too many symptoms to write about in 500 characters.

The longest lasting symptoms are lethargy, and until mid last year, I was getting sick every six or so weeks, usually a cough and sore throat. Fortunately I haven't been getting sick recently.

From: @thatkatharine@ohai.social
@thatkatharine@ohai.social

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Maddie @almonds@mastodon.mit.edu · Apr 18, 2026

I'm reminded of this SAT question of the day

#meow

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Maddie @almonds@mastodon.mit.edu · Apr 15, 2026

Replying to @Alice@beige.party

@Alice An admin in my graduate program asked us for ideas on "how to prepare everyone for AI", particularly for careers in industry and implying inevitable universal adoption. Fortunately some of us had a lot to say against AI, and how the best way to "prepare" us is to help us be the ones whom organizations hire because they're smart enough *not* to cling to AI. I would hope I'll be hired in a "We Fix $3 Haircuts" way like that, rather than cleaning up slop...

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Maddie @almonds@mastodon.mit.edu · Jan 28, 2026

Replying to @eruonna@chaosfem.tw

@eruonna @auriblackcat I've come across "median" for describing intermediate experiences, maybe this resonates? Multiple fluid facets that may be activated in different situations and interconnect in ways beyond what is suggested by "singlet". Diagram is from https://www.astraeasweb.net/plural/mediantalk.html

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Maddie @almonds@mastodon.mit.edu · Jan 17, 2026

Replying to @FediTips@social.growyourown.services

@FediTips@social.growyourown.services I gave Bluesky so many chances, I was hopeful communities like Blacksky would flourish and push decentralization, but damn, it continually feels like a leftist honeypot there, just the successor of Twitter. Stuff like this, I worry Fedi is next for enshittifcation if servers like mastodon.social keep growing unchecked.

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Maddie @almonds@mastodon.mit.edu · Dec 12, 2025

Replying to @almonds@mastodon.mit.edu

And while new users definitely shouldn't feel stuck for weeks, some friction when joining a new platform is healthy. Meanwhile, I feel that admin tools are a more critical priority? Like, it would be smart to support admins with better tools, *before* facilitating larger user bases via starter packs. (If such tools are being worked on, then awesome, I just haven't heard much about it)

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Maddie @almonds@mastodon.mit.edu · Dec 12, 2025

Replying to @MastodonEngineering@mastodon.social

@MastodonEngineering@mastodon.social There's no anonymous open response... When I search for posts/hashtags, or when friends boost posts, that invites me to explore new accounts. These lighter alternatives to starter packs feel natural and suit my goals. But a core reason I prefer Fedi over e.g. Bluesky is that it feels uniquely small world, decentralized. Although I trust most current Fedizens to use starter packs responsibly, I'd expect it to steer Fedi toward greater clustering over time.

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