BC INTERNET
Saved by @CodyyyGardner

Facebook is a newstand. But no one can see which news Facebook is pushing to the top.

So we built an app for that called #CitizenBrowser. Our first finding: the sharp impact of Facebook’s political ad ban reversal in the Georgia Senate elections.
https://t.co/GZNdwZOlHW /1

 This is the first report from our #CitizenBrowser project. There will be many more to come. But first, I want to tell you a bit about how we did it because it’s the most ambitious thing we’ve ever done @themarkup – and we do a lot of ambitious projects. /2
#CitizenBrowser grew out of conversations @suryamattu and I had about how to audit Facebook. We had both worked on browser extensions to collect data from Facebook, but FB always threatened to shut those down, just like their recent threats against the NYU AdObservatory. /3
But the bigger problem is that browser extensions don’t capture most FB activity. Most people use FB on mobile and browser extensions only work on desktop or laptop computers.

So one night, late at the WeWork, @suryamattu said to me: “We’ll have to build our own browser.” /4
“No way,” I said. “That’s insane.” But slowly, I came around. Here’s why: browsers are good at running in the background. Users could log into FB once through the browser and never use it again.

Then we wouldn’t be monitoring users. We would only be monitoring their feed. /5
So we built a browser. Ok, not quite. We built an Electron app that automates data collection using the Chrome web browser. Then we built tools that remove personal identifiers from that data, such as users’ names and their friends’ names, and discard them. /6
Then we hired a survey research provider to invite a nationally representative sample of U.S. adults to install the app. Panelists are paid to participate and yes, they understand the privacy issues—here is the Privacy FAQ we provide for panelists.

https://t.co/nExS6efQtc /7
Our panel consists of around 1,000 paid participants from 48 states. It's reasonably representative although we could use more Latinos and Trump voters and our crew is older and more educated than the U.S. population, which reflects desktop computer usage. /8
The panel gave us our first peek inside the black box of Facebook’s algorithms. In the past month we saw how news feeds in Georgia changed dramatically when Facebook flipped the switch to turn on political ads. https://t.co/GZNdwZOlHW /9
And we have much more to share with you in the coming weeks. Sign up for our #CitizenBrowser newsletter to follow along as we try to understand the social media algorithms that shape our lives. https://t.co/vFHrOjCNUm /10
As always, we show our work. For more details on how we built our app and assembled our panel, read our methodology. https://t.co/HQVkAH9s6d /11
I couldn’t be prouder our insanely dedicated team who made this happen: @suryamattu @leonyin @corintxt @angiewaller @jonkeegan @sammorrisdesign @mynameisfiber @magiccia @cortesi @jeffcrouse @iaaaan @rinapalta @simplysecureorg /end
P.S. If you want a TL;DR version of the #CitizenBrowser project, today's newsletter is a good place to start. https://t.co/7dmFtMCKDt

More from Internet

Elky
Elky
@Elky_Style
Company
Permanent suspension of @realDonaldTrump
By Twitter Inc.
Friday, 8 January 2021
After close review of recent Tweets from the @realDonaldTrump account and the context around them — specifically how they are being received and interpreted on and off Twitter —


we have permanently suspended the account due to the risk of further incitement of violence. 

In the context of horrific events this week, we made it clear on Wednesday that additional violations of the Twitter Rules would potentially result in this very course of action.

Our public interest framework exists to enable the public to hear from elected officials and world leaders directly. It is built on a principle that the people have a right to hold power to account in the open. 

However, we made it clear going back years that these accounts are

not above our rules entirely and cannot use Twitter to incite violence, among other things. We will continue to be transparent around our policies and their enforcement. 

The below is a comprehensive analysis of our policy enforcement approach in this case.

Overview

On January 8, 2021, President Donald J. Trump Tweeted:

“The 75,000,000 great American Patriots who voted for me, AMERICA FIRST, and MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN, will have a GIANT VOICE long into the future. They will not be disrespected or treated unfairly in any way, shape or form
INTERNET
Dave Anderson
Dave Anderson
@dave_universetf
In my quest to write a fast IPv4+6 parser, I have written a slow-but-I-think-correct parser, to use as a base of comparison.

In doing so, I have discovered more cursed IP address representations that I was previously unaware of.

A thread!

We start out simple, with IPv4 and IPv6 in what I'll call their "canonical form":

192.168.0.1
1:2:3:4:5:6:7:8

Various specs call these "dotted quad", dot-separated fields each representing 1 byte; and "colon-hex", colon-separated fields each representing 2 bytes.

The first bits of complexity come from IPv6. In canonical form, common addresses would end up with long runs of zeros in the middle. So, "::" allows you to elide 1 or more 16-bit blocks of zeros:

1:2::3:4 means 1:2:0:0:0:0:3:4

Next up, for cursed historical reasons, IPv6 permits you to write the final 32 bits of the address in dotted quad form. Effectively, you can splat an IPv4 address onto the end of IPv6 addresses!

1:2:3:4:5:6:77.77.88.88 means 1:2:3:4:5:6:7777:8888

And of course, you can combine the two!

fe80::1.2.3.4 means fe80:0:0:0:0:0:102:304
INTERNET
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foone
foone
@Foone
I was hacking a game and accidentally invented a word for when you think someone is trans and you're proud of them for coming out but then you find out they aren't


someone is excited to watch bill nye in science class


This happens because one of the ways I figure out which memory location needs to be modified is by memory-searching for all occurrences and changing the first letter of them

so like if I know the next line of dialog is "Die"
I change it to "Aie" "Bie" "Cie" "Eie" "Fie"

then I see which one shows up in the game
INTERNET
Amarnath Amarasingam
Amarnath Amarasingam
@AmarAmarasingam
1. (THREAD) So, it seems like the deplatforming debate is once again kicking off, so I thought I would introduce some of the earlier work that was done in this area back when ISIS was buck wild on social media. What have we learned over the last six years might be useful today:

2. One of the earliest studies that discussed the impact of suspensions of ISIS accounts was @intelwire and Morgan's piece: The ISIS Twitter Consensus.

They found that suspensions did have an impact on replies and retweets and overall dissemination.

3. After suspensions, the die-hard supporters dedicated themselves to creating new accounts, but others whittled away: “it appears the pace of account creation has lagged behind the pace of suspensions”

4. On the specific question of how suspensions impact the Twitter network, see this piece by @intelwire and @IntelGirl111, which explores how suspensions impact these groups, including major disruptions to dissemination and decline in follower count:

5. Another study by @Aud_Alexander similarly found that ISIS supporters were finding it hard to “gain traction” after Twitter took a harder stance on the group.
INTERNET , ALL
\xf828
ø28
@AndrewMurphie
Here's why Twitter/Facebook/other platforms are publishers. Neither electricity nor phone companies actively curate content, that, is, choose what content will go where and why (like a newspaper, that is, a publisher). Just cause algorithms are involved not really a difference.

Neither do electricity nor phone companies (usually) deliver advertising based on the curation of content and vice versa. Neither do they as companies foster discussion. Etc etc.

In fact, this goes back to a basic confusion. Not even the web is the same as the internet, and social media is certainly not the internet. Neither are apps or platforms. The utility, if there is one, is the internet, the rest is increasingly some equivalent to publishers.

this is before you get to 1 the over-fetishization of content/representations and 2 the out of date characterisation of both media in general and the divisions within it on all sides, based on a media "age" that's now perhaps passing

per McLuhan but also Whitehead, Langer maybe, a lot of media ecology, Lovelace, Deleuze, Hopper, Virilio, Harney, and many many more.
INTERNET

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Egypedia
Egypedia
@Egypediax
Ancient Egypt was the most advanced civilization in the ancient world. Why was Egypt so special?

There are so many firsts in Egypt that we all know about, and that makes Egypt unique. For example, the Sumerians did not build the pyramids of Egypt.


Save as history
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Jaya_Upadhyaya
Jaya_Upadhyaya
@Jayalko1
SRI MOOKAMBIKA DEVI, KOLLUR (KAR)

There was an Asura, Kaumasura, who was doing penance to please Shiva and get a boon. To prevent him from asking for a boon, Devi Saraswati made him dumb (hence called Mookasur)
Later, Adi Parashakti slayed him and came to be called Mookambika.


It is said that Adi Shankaracharya had a vision in which Devi agreed to follow him provided he did not look back. He kept walking and was assured of her presence due to the sound of anklets. When he reached here in Kollur, he turned back as the sound of anklets had stopped.


So Devi stayed here and merged with the lingam. The place came to be called Mookambika Kshetram.
The linga has integrated on it’s left side MahaKali, Maha Lakshmi and Maha Saraswathi and on the right side- Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva.


A swarna rekha (gold line) divides this linga into left and right portion. Adi Shakthi in this Udhbhavlinga form appears only here.
Devi sits in padmasana and has 4 hands.
Adi Shankaracharya installed the Sri Chakra in front of Devi and also composed the Soundarya Lahiri here.
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Melissa (she/her)
Melissa (she/her)
@LiteraryMouse
In regards to the #CapitolCoup, I’m in a unique position. I monitored forums ahead of time and then was present for the coup itself.

These are my observations based on what I saw and the evidence that’s been collected so far. I reserve the right to adjust my analysis as needed.

Let’s talk about the organization of the coup first. Seeing some people insist that the coup must have been highly planned and coordinated.

Yes and no. This was a #StochasticCoup. We’ll see little evidence of direct communication between Trump and the insurrectionists.

Within the insurrectionists, there was not one group that executed the storming of the Capitol.

Rather, there were a number of smaller groups working independently towards the same goal. I expect you’ll see little evidence that these various groups communicated with each other.

What you will see is detailed planning and coordination within these small groups.

Then there were the joyriders, those Trump supporters who weren’t directly involved in any plotting but who were more than happy to go along for the ride once the coup was in motion.

After four years, the insurrectionists were carefully attuned to Trump’s messaging.

Every tweet and statement of his was treated as marching orders and carefully dissected for meaning.

It’s why shutting down Trump’s Twitter account was so important.
POLITICS , INSURRECTIONISTS
Vibhu Vashisth
Vibhu Vashisth
@VIBHU_Tweet
RANI NAIKI DEVI AND THE BATTLE OF KASAHRADA

Mohammad Ghori, the young Ghurid Prince conquered Ghaznavids in Afghanistan in the year 1173 CE. He conducted some successful raids into the Indian territory, which even Mahmud Ghazni & the Persians couldn't do.


First&foremost,Ghori invaded states of Multan &Uch in India.After this he turned to southern states of Gujarat &Rajputana.Everybody knows this about Ghori,but what most pple r unaware of is the defeat he suffered at hands of Chalukyan Queen Naiki Devi in 1178 Battle of Kasahrada.


When he marched southwards, his first target was the prosperous fortified town of Anhilwara Patan.
It was the capital of Chalukyas(also known as Solankis of Gujarat) which was established by Vanraj of Chapotkata Dynasty in 8th century.


American historian Tertius Chandler states that it was the 10th largest city in the world at that time. The history of Chalukyas has been written by many historians, but the valour of the Great Queen Naiki Devi remains unsung.


Born to the Kadamba King Paramardin of Goa,Naiki Devi was well trained in sword fighting, horse riding, strategy & every other subject of Statesmanship. She was married to King Ajaypala of Gujarat who sat on throne in 1171CE. Unfortunately,the King died within 4 yrs of his rule.
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Jim O'Shaughnessy
Jim O'Shaughnessy
@jposhaughnessy
I’m torn on how to approach the idea of luck. I’m the first to admit that I am one of the luckiest people on the planet. To be born into a prosperous American family in 1960 with smart parents is to start life on third base. The odds against my very existence are astronomical.


I’ve always felt that the luckiest people I know had a talent for recognizing circumstances, not of their own making, that were conducive to a favorable outcome and their ability to quickly take advantage of them.

In other words, dumb luck was just that, it required no awareness on the person’s part, whereas “smart” luck involved awareness followed by action before the circumstances changed.

So, was I “lucky” to be born when I was—nothing I had any control over—and that I came of age just as huge databases and computers were advancing to the point where I could use those tools to write “What Works on Wall Street?” Absolutely.

Was I lucky to start my stock market investments near the peak of interest rates which allowed me to spend the majority of my adult life in a falling rate environment? Yup.
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