www.biorxiv.org/content/…/2026.11.06.764567v1

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Decentralized social media for environmental research

A. Chai-allah, A. Ghermandi, N. Fox, D. Van Berkel bioRxiv · 10.64898/2026.11.06.764567v1 · ecology · submitted 2026-11-12

Abstract

Social media data are reshaping environmental research. However, recent ownership and policy changes on centralized platforms like Twitter/X have motivated many users to seek new alternatives while simultaneously accelerating data restrictions for scientists. Decentralized social media, particularly Bluesky and Mastodon, are emerging as alternatives for users seeking greater control over their data and as a more stable and sustainable source of data for researchers. This rise may be instrumental in revitalizing the role of social media in environmental research. This study aims to provide a first-of-its-kind analysis of the potential of these new sources for environmental research, demonstrating their potential usefulness through the examples of climate change discourses and people’s appreciation of wildlife. We find an increased adoption of Mastodon and Bluesky, with high linguistic diversity, even if dominated by English. Wildlife image content reveals broad taxonomic diversity, with plants, birds, and insects dominating the records. We find this pattern broadly consistent with that observed on the popular citizen science platform iNaturalist. Climate change discourse is found to broadly reflect the scientific consensus on both platforms, with contrarian claims remaining uncommon. This suggests that researchers may benefit from less polarized opinions and misinformation, arising from interactions that are less driven by engagement maximizing algorithms implemented in other platforms. Our study illustrates the promise of decentralized social media as a new data source for environmental scientists and paves the way for their broader use in environmental research.

the ultimate universal question

@futurebird The models of the Oxbridge College may be more suitable, and similar to those of a military mess and other purposeful groups.

@onan Wow, how incredible cool!

Fretless Bass, Theremin, Drum Machine harmonized with a 5 dollar plastic megaphone voice changer all recorded in the lowest possible fidelity you ever wouldn't want to hear.

SpaceX has incredibly impressive engineering! ...That they are putting towards destroying the upper atmosphere with pollution from launches and reentries, dropping potentially lethal garbage on everyone from orbit, stopping the entire field of observational astronomy, and soon ending our ability to use Low Earth Orbit for anything, while making shitloads of money for the richest dude in the world.

Time to go pat goats.

@dustin oh i blocked out the whole getting out of bed thing. I meant arbitrary list making.

https://youtu.be/CZl3VQoyOOE

poor guy can't catch a break from simd exposure

@srol Oh. Gracious.

Do you have to pull on a physical slot machine to determine which one bothers to talk to you?

Whoa! It’s my Fediversary today. The first (and I think, second) Mastodon-hosted Johannabs appeared 9 years ago today. What a wild ride.

"pete the cat" is short for "peter the catherine"

BONG, BONG, BONG, BONG, BONG, BONG, BONG, BONG, BONG, BONG, BONG

Microsoft's 1987 employee price list: Windows for $10, Flight Simulator for $10, Excel for Mac for $20

https://lockergnome.com/microsoft-1987-employee-price-list-windows-10-dollars-flight-simulator-excel-for-mac/

#Microsoft #Windows #FlightSimulator #tech #GenerativeAI

These revolutionaries, bare-necked politickers, have preserved with the imprint of the collar, the moral stain of servitude, the stiff neck of despotism.
-- Joseph Dejacque

#anarchism #quote #bot

#haiku

@theaardvark
Blistering blueballed billionaires

Do tropical countries have a version of "I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here" where they get sent to a campsite in Northern Europe in the winter and have challenges involving venomous xenophobic locals going silent as they walk into the local watering hole drenched and having to eat something sold by the local equivalent of C.M.O.T. Dibbler?

@mcc

This order advises the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) acquisition workforce that telecommunication companies are discontinuing Time Division Multiplexing (TDM) telecommunications services. This order provides guidance on the FAA's plans to standardize the use of Ethernet interfaces and the Internet Protocol (IP) for ground-to-ground, air-to-ground, intra- and inter-facility communications, for both voice and data.

https://aviationweek.com/air-transport/safety-ops-regulation/l3harris-advances-faa-telecom-modernization

https://www.faa.gov/regulations_policies/orders_notices/index.cfm/go/document.information/documentID/1036329