social justice
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Quickies
Quickies: Fighting Nazis with data, following the research on diversity trainings, and more…
It’s been a whole MONTH since I’ve posted here…. oops. If you know an educator, send them chocolate or beer or puppies or whatever makes them happy because this semester is ROUGH. Here are a few things that have grabbed my interest despite my life steeped in class prep, grading, and committee work. In my astronomy class, we’ve recently been…
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Activism
Quickies: Black Lives Still F***ing Matter
I’m not doing a usual Friday Quickies roundup today because I am still raging about the most recent spate of extrajudicial killings of Black people by police or just good ol’ boys here in the USA. Instead I’m going to share some ways we can all help the cause. Do something literally this minute. Sign any one of Color of…
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Meta Stuff
It’s the Sundaylies! Persistence, Silence, and Special Snowflakes
Sunday Funny: Alternative Facts. (via PHD Comics) Mad Art Lab Nevertheless, She Persisted Amy highlights the words of Coretta Scott King, which are more relevant than ever. Silence Supports the Oppressor A friendly reminder than silence protects nobody. For the Snowflakes Remember, snowflakes that stick together can crush anything. Featured image credit: Wikipedia
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Meta Stuff
It’s the Skepchick Sundaylies! Body Positivity, Special Snowflakes, the Hufflepuff Hero We Deserve, and more!
Sunday Funny: A full calendar. (via PHD Comics) Teen Skepchick Shower Thoughts on Body Positivity Alice thinks about the body positivity movement and wonders, Why do women have to be beautiful? Medical Monochromatic Fashion, an Evolution The sartorial choices of physicians though the years Mad Art Lab For the Snowflakes Amy makes art for all you special snowflakes out there.…
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Politics
This is What Threats to Free Speech Actually Look Like
Twitter’s recent permanent ban of professional troll Milo Yiannopoulos and his followers’ indignant cries of censorship are the most recent (and highest-profile) example of a phenomenon that has existed for years across countless blogs and internet communities. The pervasive–but entirely entirely incorrect–notion that anyone can say whatever vile garbage they want on any platform they choose without suffering any consequences is so common on…
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Feminism
Racist Algorithms, Crime, and the Ethical Use of Data Prediction
ProPublica came out with an excellent piece this week by Julia Angwin, Jeff Larson, Surya Mattu and Lauren Kircher looking at the algorithms used by the US justice system to predict the recidivism rate of people at different stages within the justice system. These predictive scores, called risk assessment scores, are then used to determine things like sentencing and bail amounts,…
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Featured
Your Phrase Is Problematic
I’ve got bad news for you. That celebrity whose style you adore? Said something super shitty. That politician whose quotes you will never not share on social media? Voted for some things you might not agree with. That show host you love is friends with this asshole. In fact, your friends are problematic too. So are your loved ones. You…
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Meta Stuff
Skepchick Sundaylies! with the NPR Masculinity Police, Parenting Kids of a Certain Age, and a Plea to Stop Exorcising Ted Cruz
Sunday Funny: Stargazing (via xkcd) Teen Skepchick Exorcisms and Agency Even Ted Cruz doesn’t deserve an exorcism. Mad Art Lab Why Are There NPR Music Reporters Who Need to Police Singers’ Masculinity? Ashley takes on a recent NPR story about men’s singing voices. Mad Art Cast: Space Innovation and Creativity with JPL Engineer Asad Aboobaker The Gang talks space innovation…
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