Martin Ruskov @mapto@qoto.org

THE CAPEX TRAP: WHY AI’S REAL RISK IS FINANCIAL, NOT EXISTENTIAL https://jalleninsights.substack.com/p/the-capex-trap-why-ais-real-risk

RT by @ERC_Research: The European Union’s push to attract foreign scientific talent has taken a step forward, with applications opening for a new supergrant aimed at “outstanding researchers” from around the world.

The current European Research Council president, @mleptin, spoke with @ScienceInsider about the new grant program and the agency’s future. https://scim.ag/4ugkB45
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https://nitter.net/NewsfromScience/status/2063070878758261074#m

Social media’s impact on society and citizens clearly shows the need for change. Europe has a strong ecosystem of social companies and a deep well of expertise in designing and operating social protocols. We are building on this to move away from large monopolistic platforms with their authoritarian governance and editorial positions, and are joining forces to establish a diverse and resilient information infrastructure in Europe. Together, we will protect people and institutions from interference by these platforms. What’s more, we will bring thousands of jobs and billions of euros that social media generates to our continent, to circulate that revenue in our own thriving business ecosystem.

From this perspective, open European platforms and protocols such as the Fediverse (Mastodon, PeerTube, or Mobilizon), the Atmosphere (Eurosky, Flashes, Tangled, or Web Tiles) and Private Messaging systems (like Matrix or XMPP) are complementary solutions for Europe, with shared common goals.

#BoardGames create a universal language, a vehicle for cultural & social transmission across centuries.

Researchers reconstructed the rules of a Roman tabletop game, using #AI with implications extending beyond antiquity.

Image ©Walter Crist
#InternationalTabletopDay 🧵 👇️
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https://nitter.net/ERC_Research/status/2063236970030268882#m

📢 FUTURE? NO THANKS!
DEMO OUT NOW

You can now play 30 minutes of the almost-full experience.

On Steam for PC and Mac

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3861870/Future_No_Thanks/

Fragments: Dodgy metrics for AI usage, history of tech removing jobs, benchmarking closed and open models, LLMs multiply existing cruft, AI slop driving us crazy, I am the Global Interpreter Lock for agents

https://martinfowler.com/fragments/2026-06-02.html

“The European Commission’s explicit recognition of ‘Public Money? Public Code!’ in this strategy, nine years after the FSFE launched the initiative, could become a major step forward for software freedom in Europe. However, the Commission still falls short on concrete goals, milestones, and secure funding for Free Software. The procurement reform will be a test: ‘Public Money? Public Code!’ must become a mandatory requirement for public tendering. Redirecting even half of Europe’s €264 billion in public IT spending from proprietary lock-in to Free Software would boost European tech sovereignty”,

says Johannes Näder, FSFE Senior Policy Project Manager.

Your phone screen can't reproduce the full range of colors the human eye can see, and AI-generated images may widen that gap even further.

A design and media arts scholar with deuteranomaly, a form of color blindness that remaps rather than removes color distinctions, dives into the complications.

https://theconversation.com/your-phone-screen-doesnt-have-the-same-color-range-as-the-human-eye-and-ai-widens-the-gap-between-digital-images-and-the-real-thing-283252

I signed this declaration about AI in mathematics, and you might also want to:

https://leidendeclaration.ai/

I had a comment about this passage:

"Technologies which affect the way in which mathematics is practiced may disturb the current system of incentives. The use of artificial intelligence — and thus also the sort of problems which it can address — may become incentivized for its own sake, disrupting our mechanisms for hiring, funding, and recognition."

Though I'm sure it wasn't meant to, this comes across as a bit complacent. Our current system of incentives is seriously flawed, so we should be working to improve it, not merely defending the status quo. We don't want AI companies to be twisting the incentives in mathematics - but university administrators, big journal oligopolies, and the military have been doing this for a long time, and that's no good either.

How can open source AI support public administrations while staying transparent, reusable, interoperable and aligned with public values?

Before you say: 'It can't', join OSOR workshop 'Driving public value through open source artificial intelligence'.

We’ll explore:
🔹 open source AI in the public sector
🔹 real use cases for public services
🔹 barriers to adoption and scaling
🔹 practical ways forward for governments

📅 30 June 2026, 10:00–12:00 CEST

Register here 👉 https://interoperable-europe.ec.europa.eu/form/driving-public-value-through-ope

In Iran war’s shadow, Israel’s renewed Lebanon campaign risks repeating failed lessons – and occupations – of the past
https://theconversation.com/in-iran-wars-shadow-israels-renewed-lebanon-campaign-risks-repeating-failed-lessons-and-occupations-of-the-past-284052

Your phone screen doesn’t have the same color range as the human eye – and AI widens the gap between digital images and the real thing
https://theconversation.com/your-phone-screen-doesnt-have-the-same-color-range-as-the-human-eye-and-ai-widens-the-gap-between-digital-images-and-the-real-thing-283252

Bat in the house? 🦇

A bat biologist walks through the steps for persuading a bat to leave your home, and what to do when a whole family decides to roost in your attic.
https://theconversation.com/bat-in-the-house-heres-how-to-remove-it-safely-283456

Tyrannosaurus Rex and Other Terrifying Predatory Dinosaurs Had Itty-Bitty Arms. Scientists May Have Finally Figured Out Why
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/tyrannosaurus-rex-and-other-terrifying-predatory-dinosaurs-had-itty-bitty-arms-scientists-may-have-finally-figured-out-why-180988803/?utm_source=flipboard&utm_medium=activitypub

Posted into Smartnews @smartnews-Smithsonianmag

Scientists Used A.I. to Redesign a Microbe’s Machinery to Function Without a Key Ingredient of Life
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/scientists-used-ai-to-redesign-a-microbes-machinery-to-function-without-a-key-ingredient-of-life-180988802/?utm_source=flipboard&utm_medium=activitypub

Posted into Smartnews @smartnews-Smithsonianmag