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Jan 26 round-up
Blimey, it’s hard to remember when it wasn’t January 2026 isn’t it? We’ve had two people murdered by the state on the streets of the US, Venezuela invaded, Greenland almost invaded, history’s most infantile message from one country’s leader to another (the Trump one to the Norwegian Prime Minister in case you’d forgotten that), insults about Nato troops, a rambling incoherent delivery at Davos, tariffs on, tariffs off, and military build up in Iran. Even then I’m probably forgetting 8-10 world shattering events. Christopher Hitchens had a nice line once in a book review – “Chile is one of those which – to its glory and its misery – has…
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Death by Broetry
I’ve been noticing a style of writing used in social media posts that uses lots of short, staccato declarative sentences and tries to sound insightful. It has a very AI generated feel and drips with cliche. I figured there must be a term for it, and found out it’s been labelled “LinkedIn Broetry“. Here are two examples I’ve chosen at random because they came up in my FB feed today: “The air drained from the studio. No shouting. No comeback. Just silence—the kind that lands heavier than applause. Leavitt’s smirk vanished. Her posture shifted. For the first time that night, she had no words. The audience froze. Cameras kept rolling.”…
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2026 – the year that could
Well, it’s been quite the dystopian start to the year hasn’t it? Even before all this started, my feeling was that 2026 was the year when we would slide into the abyss or scrabble our way back over the lip. I simply can’t imagine that we’ll get to next Christmas and Trump will still be doing crazy shot every week and we’ll all be running around trying to stamp out teh fires. His own chaotic vortex requires more, and so it will either suck us all in, or there will be some other outcome. Ill health, a loss in the mid-terms (if they take place), enough republicans finally turning away…
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What would AI regulation look like?
Last year I gave a keynote where I considered environmental metaphors for the impact of AI on the information ecosytem. By considering the harm caused by chemicals such as DDT or interventions such as the introduction of rabbits to Australia, we can reflect on how the unregulated introduction of an invasive species or agent with long lasting consequences can negatively affect our information ecosystem. A year on and we’re seeing some of that damage – much of social media is unusable now, flooded with AI slop, the environmental damage required to power huge data centres is considerable, and the impact on a society where we can no longer easily differentiate…
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French toast in a riot – 2025 review
Maren has done a reflective look back over the year, so I thought I’d chip in with one too. In my last post listing my favourite albums of the year, I riffed off the title of folk-punk artist Sunny War’s album (Armageddon in a Sunny Dress) to say it was like eating french toast in a riot. That can stand as a summary of my personal year – it’s been a freaking nightmare politically, socially and environmentally. I mean, when future historians (if there are any left) look back, they’ll be going “what the hell happened in 2025??”. But personally it’s been a very positive year. I feel slightly guilty…
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Vinyl of the year 2025
I’ve just finished my top 20 records of the year over on my Instagram account, but if it’s your bag, I’ll list them here too. They have to be a) albums I’ve actually purchased and b) released this year. I’ve pinched the quirky use of Recommended if You Like (RIYL) from Pitchfork again. So, pop pickers here they are: 20) Utopia – Gwenno. RIYL: a gin and tonic bigger than your face; reading romance in a cottage in Pembrokeshire 19) Armageddon in a Summer Dress – Sunny War. RIYL: listening to Tracy chapman on speed; eating French toast during a riot 18) Always Been – Craig Finn. RIYL: a catholic…
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30+ Years of Ed Tech: 2025 – AI Ennui
I wasn’t going to do my annual 25/30 years of ed tech post this year, partly because I’m no longer in that field as much, but also because AI is still the only game in town, and I’m just bored of it. But then I thought that I wasn’t the only one, and that sense of being tired and wary of AI is now much more prevalent. So that is the the theme for this year. Last year it was AI slop and 2022 was AI itself. So this year sees the logical further development in that trend. After all the hype and the ‘meh’ content being spewed out, people…
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Welcome to the Overwhelm
As I’ve mentioned on occasion, I suffer a bit from depression. It’s generally ok, and certainly not as debilitating as many people I know who suffer from it (not that it’s a competition of course). In general, my personal life is good, but that is in contrast to living through seemingly the dumbest period in human history. Jeff Tweedy, of Wilco, said that when he was making his new album Twilight Override, he had been suffering from despair and ennui at the state of Trump’s America which he described as “a bottomless basket of rock bottom” I recognise this, and every now and then one of the daily stories of…
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Nov 25 round-up
My novel has been out for a month now, and sales are in double figures! I will hold off buying that yacht for a while. But it has been gratifying to get some Goodreads, BookSirens and Amazon reviews, like a real author. One reviewer called it pretentious. Moi? But they’ve been largely positive and not all by me under a pseudonym. This month I was the external examiner for Igor Lesko’s PhD, which he completed with the OU Netherlands. It was an honor to be part of such a well researched thesis on OER policy. Igor gave an excellent defence and was awarded the doctorate. I have a fondness for…
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To be Uncontacted
One of the charities I give to monthly is Survival International, who “exist to prevent the annihilation of Indigenous peoples and secure their land rights.” I came across them when I was doing research for my novel, around the people of the Nicobar Islands, and while I didn’t include uncontacted people in the end, the Shompen and Sentinelese do get a mention. There is something fascinating I think for those of us in a highly connected world about people who have chosen to remain uncontacted. Unfortunately this fascination often results in people thinking they should be the ones to contact them. Survival have published a new report titled Uncontacted People:…
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link: The Ed Techie – Martin Weller’s blog on open education, digital scholarship & over-stretched metaphors
The Ed Techie
Martin Weller’s blog on open education, digital scholarship & over-stretched metaphors
