![\"Bluebonnets_FredericksburgTX](\"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/1000x/https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.micro.blog%2Fphotos%2F1000x%2Fhttps%253A%252F%252Fcosmosmalick.net%252Fuploads%252F2026%252Fbluebonnets-fredericksburgtx-scaled.jpg\")
TEXAS! (by Erin Newman-Mitchell)
\n\nThese photos are remarkable:
\n\n\n","summary":"","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/05/04/these-photos-are-remarkable-texas.html","date_published":"2026-05-04T19:00:00+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-05-04 19:00","date_timestamp":1777921200,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":false,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":false,"note":"","syndication":["https://edumasto.org/@nicbabarskis/116517851067832277","https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3ml2ecb7xql2u","https://www.threads.com/@thebigbabooski/post/DX7YCLqjyb0"]}},{"id":"89578854","content_html":"\n
TEXAS! (by Erin Newman-Mitchell)
\n\n
@cliff538 Remarkable!
\n","url":"https://micro.blog/thebigbabooski/89578854","date_published":"2026-05-04T16:44:05+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-05-04 16:44","date_timestamp":1777913045,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":true,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":true}},{"id":"89577753","content_html":"Nicholas Carr, reviewing a book by one of the world-wide-web’s earliest architects, encourages the reader to touch some grass:
\n\nnic.babarskis.blog","summary":"","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/05/04/nicholas-carr-reviewing-a-book.html","date_published":"2026-05-04T16:27:01+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-05-04 16:27","date_timestamp":1777912021,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":false,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":false,"note":"","syndication":["https://edumasto.org/@nicbabarskis/116517249390958882","https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3ml23qlzzu42o","https://www.threads.com/@thebigbabooski/post/DX7GhADlkMc"]}},{"id":"89539667","content_html":"\n","url":"https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3mkygsp7zzk2k","date_published":"2026-05-04T00:41:35+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-05-04 00:41","date_timestamp":1777855295,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":true,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":true}},{"id":"89284047","content_html":"Not all technologies improve people’s lives. Just as Berners-Lee’s now omnipresent web shapes industries and markets, it shapes its users’ thoughts, perceptions, and relationships. As we’re slowly coming to understand, human beings did not evolve to be virtual creatures in a computer-generated world. The internet operates at a scale and speed that conflict with the brain’s deliberate pace of thought, the intellect’s slow accumulation of knowledge, and the psyche’s limited...
\n
Tea Anemone by Tatsuya Tanaka at Miniature Calendar:
\n![\"A](\"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/1000x/https%3A%2F%2Fminiature-calendar.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2026%2F04%2F260427mon.jpg\")
Westenberg calls it “withdrawal” but you could also label it sabbath:
\n\n\n","summary":"","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/04/29/westenberg-calls-it-withdrawal-but.html","date_published":"2026-04-29T13:40:25+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-29 13:40","date_timestamp":1777470025,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":false,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":false,"note":"","syndication":["https://edumasto.org/@nicbabarskis/116488283607170263","https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3mkna4ld5hk2p","https://www.threads.com/@thebigbabooski/post/DXt7grXFJe0"]}},{"id":"89162971","content_html":"Any culture that systematically punishes withdrawal is going to lose its most concentrated thinkers to either burnout or invisibility. The modern knowledge economy, with its ambient pressure to post, ship, and stay in the conversation, is a machine for producing exactly that loss. The people we’ll wish we had in 15 years are, right now, being shamed into producing slop they don’t believe in, because the alternative is to drop out, and dropping out reads as failure.
\n
Here’s a nice little primer on the history and scope of the U.S. Forest Service.
\n","summary":"","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/04/28/heres-a-nice-little-primer.html","date_published":"2026-04-28T11:22:20+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-28 11:22","date_timestamp":1777375340,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":false,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":false,"note":"","syndication":["https://edumasto.org/@nicbabarskis/116482071736086430","https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3mkkhto26mn2o","https://www.threads.com/@thebigbabooski/post/DXrGtp6lIvN"]}},{"id":"89055788","content_html":"@cliff538 How?!! 🤯
\n","url":"https://micro.blog/thebigbabooski/89055788","date_published":"2026-04-26T19:07:36+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-26 19:07","date_timestamp":1777230456,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":true,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":true}},{"id":"89003611","content_html":"The eldest shares her mom and grandmothers' interest.
\n![\"\"](\"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/1000x/https%3A%2F%2Fnic.babarskis.blog%2Fuploads%2F2026%2Fimg-2752.jpg\")
\n","summary":"","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/04/25/the-eldest-shares-her-mom.html","date_published":"2026-04-25T22:34:44+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-25 22:34","date_timestamp":1777156484,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":false,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":false,"note":"","syndication":["https://edumasto.org/@nicbabarskis/116467728208407386","https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3mke3z6ibti2u","https://www.threads.com/@thebigbabooski/post/DXklRvwlHar"]}},{"id":"89000924","content_html":"📸 Spring is sprung
\n![](\"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/1000x/https%3A%2F%2Fnic.babarskis.blog%2Fuploads%2F2026%2F9ff3d9e5dd454658a6b02e7cb6fd1eae.jpg\")
\n","summary":"","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/04/25/spring-is-sprung.html","date_published":"2026-04-25T21:01:29+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-25 21:01","date_timestamp":1777150889,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":false,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":false,"note":"","syndication":["https://edumasto.org/@nicbabarskis/116467361475338558","https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3mkdwserkln2h","https://www.threads.com/@thebigbabooski/post/DXkamhmD6-B"]}},{"id":"88893613","content_html":"There is a particular bus driver on Route 24 of Capital Area Transportation Authority that (density and time permitting) will\nIntentionally wait until embarkees sit down before driving onward. And it’s little stuff like that which makes me feel good about living in a Midwest town.
\n","summary":"","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/04/23/there-is-a-particular-bus.html","date_published":"2026-04-24T00:45:07+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-24 00:45","date_timestamp":1776991507,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":false,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":false,"note":"","syndication":["https://edumasto.org/@nicbabarskis/116456915781694288","https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3mk7cdyxrug24","https://www.threads.com/@thebigbabooski/post/DXfqkv9kVzT"]}},{"id":"88864854","content_html":"Philip Cohen, reflecting on the intersection of the perverse incentives of ‘publish or perish’ + low consequence editorial accountability + generative AI:
\n\nnic.babarskis.blog","summary":"","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/04/23/philip-cohen-reflecting-on-the.html","date_published":"2026-04-23T16:30:00+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-23 16:30","date_timestamp":1776961800,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":false,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":false,"note":"","syndication":["https://edumasto.org/@nicbabarskis/116454975867559994","https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3mk6grtte4d2p","https://www.threads.com/@thebigbabooski/post/DXeyHwiFuJc"]}},{"id":"88858739","content_html":"I assume you are appalled at the idea of journals publishing such fabricated results. However, there are a lot of people who would draw a different lesson from this example: Why spend an hour getting this real data, doing some recodes, running the model, and sharing the data and code — when ChatGPT already “knows” the answer? They see the small errors in the table above, and compare the time it took to produce them, and conclude that the ChatGPT...
\n
To the extent I pay attention to Home and Garden trends I always got the impression the platonic ideal for lawn maintenance was a golf course fairway.
\nMeanwhile I’m out here weedmaxxing
\n![](\"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/1000x/https%3A%2F%2Fnic.babarskis.blog%2Fuploads%2F2026%2F81bf593692d043b7b6cc96ca905dc7b4.jpg\")
![](\"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/1000x/https%3A%2F%2Fnic.babarskis.blog%2Fuploads%2F2026%2F0771af5994f941c68b14042684d0ab23.jpg\")
![](\"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/1000x/https%3A%2F%2Fnic.babarskis.blog%2Fuploads%2F2026%2F6080a94d8e5a4a27aacd53d7d0a2e52c.jpg\")
![](\"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/1000x/https%3A%2F%2Fnic.babarskis.blog%2Fuploads%2F2026%2F161bd99983e74d5c8f9f9facccb0d70b.jpg\")
\nWorld Press Photo’s 2026 photo of the year, Separated By ICE:
\n![\"Distraught](\"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/1000x/https%3A%2F%2Fnpr.brightspotcdn.com%2Fdims3%2Fdefault%2Fstrip%2Ffalse%2Fcrop%2F3000x1893%2B0%2B0%2Fresize%2F2600%2Fquality%2F85%2Fformat%2Fwebp%2F%3Furl%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%252F5f%252F18%252F1006dca24fad9792de3151294bb5%252F076-northandcentralamerica-sto-carol-guzy-zuma-press-iwitness-for-miami-herald.jpg\")
![](\"https://micro.blog/books/9780226738062/cover.jpg\")
\nCurrently reading: Permanent Crisis: The Humanities in a Disenchanted Age by Paul Reitter and Chad Wellmon 📚
\nOn the growing challenges early modern education reformers claimed (and overpromised) the humanities could address:
\n\nnic.babarskis.blog","summary":"","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/04/20/currently-reading-permanent-crisis-the.html","date_published":"2026-04-20T19:02:10+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-20 19:02","date_timestamp":1776711730,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":false,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":false,"note":"","syndication":["https://edumasto.org/@nicbabarskis/116438580992114451","https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3mjx5ux3pes2b","https://www.threads.com/@thebigbabooski/post/DXXVId1j6nU"]}},{"id":"88653974","content_html":"The humanities came to stand in for the contradictions and tensions that, as we have traced in this chapter, characterized nineteenth-century liberal education or allgemeine Bildung: tensions between method, research, and ways of knowing on the one hand and ethos, teaching, and questions of how to live on the other. The scholars who helped establish “the humanities” as a distinct...
\n
What are we doing? What’s going on?
\n\n\n","summary":"","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/04/20/what-are-we-doing-whats.html","date_published":"2026-04-20T18:57:26+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-20 18:57","date_timestamp":1776711446,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":false,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":false,"note":"","syndication":["https://edumasto.org/@nicbabarskis/116438568343981649","https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3mjx5n5ltbd2p","https://www.threads.com/@thebigbabooski/post/DXXUopFDy5J"]}},{"id":"88574121","content_html":"ghoulish
\n\n\n
A thesis for why the pathway to a permanent ceasefire with Iran remains elusive, through the framework of zero-sum logic:
\n\n\n","summary":"","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/04/19/a-thesis-for-why-the.html","date_published":"2026-04-19T13:51:43+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-19 13:51","date_timestamp":1776606703,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":false,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":false,"note":"","syndication":["https://edumasto.org/@nicbabarskis/116431704897188678","https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3mju43hjr3n24","https://www.threads.com/@thebigbabooski/post/DXUM2C7Fl51"]}},{"id":"88568542","content_html":"What follows is not necessarily continuous war, but recurrent escalation: blockade followed by countermeasures, interdiction followed by retaliation, each step justified by the last and narrowing the space for restraint. External actors may push for de-escalation, and markets may demand stability, but those pressures cannot override the underlying structure—the struggle over relative power
\n
@martynwendell.bsky.social FANTASTIC
\n","url":"https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3mjtub2ss5c2t","date_published":"2026-04-19T11:33:45+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-19 11:33","date_timestamp":1776598425,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":true,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":true}},{"id":"88539363","content_html":"@brooklynwalker.bsky.social Just tonight was at a Christian men’s group discussion where a new attendee explicitly stated they got re-enchanted with Christianity because of Charlie Kirk.
\n","url":"https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3mjqi35sytk2w","date_published":"2026-04-18T03:17:43+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-18 03:17","date_timestamp":1776482263,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":true,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":true}},{"id":"88539364","content_html":"\n","url":"https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3mjqhtrzxgk2w","date_published":"2026-04-18T03:13:35+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-18 03:13","date_timestamp":1776482015,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":true,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":true}},{"id":"88475405","content_html":"Our Minds Can’t Sit Still Anymore:
\n\n\n","summary":"","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/04/17/our-minds-cant-sit-still.html","date_published":"2026-04-17T20:31:52+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-17 20:31","date_timestamp":1776457912,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":false,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":false,"note":"","syndication":["https://edumasto.org/@nicbabarskis/116421955097914232","https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3mjprjqrjx22s","https://www.threads.com/@thebigbabooski/post/DXPxFfjD-dX"]}},{"id":"88469201","content_html":"\nWhen a user hears silence, they’re reminded for a split second that they’re a person staring at a phone.
\nIn other words, those gaps and spaces when our content isn’t stimulating our brain are precisely where we remember that we’re human beings.
\nAnd for this exact same reason, I’d argue that we literally need those moments. They teach us that we’re not just brains on a stick amusing, scrolling, and vegging ourselves to death. Silence—or just the lack of stimulation—reminds us that we’re embodied souls aching for something deeper than dopamine.
\n
![\"A](\"https://media.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPTc5MGI3NjExZzh0bm9wdjY5cmM2YzNucm90eHRzdXlxd2RkN2JtNTFscm80emZ2dCZlcD12MV9naWZzX3NlYXJjaCZjdD1n/EWzsQ2RHKlzCtWV7ft/giphy.gif\")
@martynwendell.bsky.social Me, a member of a mainline Baptist church every time I see one of these.
\n","url":"https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3mjpjcrjqws2m","date_published":"2026-04-17T18:07:12+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-17 18:07","date_timestamp":1776449232,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":true,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":true}},{"id":"88382071","content_html":"📸 : The grid.
\n![\"\"](\"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/1000x/https%3A%2F%2Fnic.babarskis.blog%2Fuploads%2F2026%2Fimg-2628.jpg\")
\n","summary":"","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/04/16/the-grid.html","date_published":"2026-04-16T15:30:00+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-16 15:30","date_timestamp":1776353400,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":false,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":false,"note":"","syndication":["https://edumasto.org/@nicbabarskis/116415103074251910","https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3mjmut5gq2a22","https://www.threads.com/@thebigbabooski/post/DXMpw2GlqYS"]}},{"id":"88339110","content_html":"Spring Progress 📸 2026.04.08 The maple awakens #SP26.3
\n![\"Auto-generated](\"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/1000x/https%3A%2F%2Fnic.babarskis.blog%2Fuploads%2F2026%2Fimg-2691.jpg\")
I generally believe that the fewer tech devices in a classroom the better (except a raggedy desktop in the corner…preferably next to an old transparency projector, and a TV strapped to a wheeled stand)–but its notable that there is NO GENERATIVE AI in this promo.
\n","summary":"","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/04/15/i-generally-believe-that-the.html","date_published":"2026-04-15T20:13:44+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-15 20:13","date_timestamp":1776284024,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":false,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":false,"note":"","syndication":[]}},{"id":"88306502","content_html":"Public Domain Review highlighting works that feature Notre Dame today:
\n\n\n","summary":"","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/04/15/public-domain-review-highlighting-works.html","date_published":"2026-04-15T14:34:38+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-15 14:34","date_timestamp":1776263678,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":false,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":false,"note":"","syndication":["https://edumasto.org/@nicbabarskis/116409225648243250","https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3mjk4niefzj2s"]}},{"id":"88306221","content_html":"\n","url":"https://micro.blog/thebigbabooski/88306221","date_published":"2026-04-15T14:32:36+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-15 14:32","date_timestamp":1776263556,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":true,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":true}},{"id":"88275301","content_html":"\nHighlights from the many centuries of artworks to feature the Notre-Dame de Paris — which caught fire 5 years ago #onthisday — from its illuminated punctuation of medieval skylines to grainy detailed studies at the birth of photography: https://publicdomainreview.org/collection/the-notre-dame-cathedral-in-art-1460-1921
\n\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https://media0.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPTc5MGI3NjExaHVuMjA2ZW1lOWN4YjJzZXozcmRvMmRiNndzeW9xYmtmdTZ2dG5rMiZlcD12MV9pbnRlcm5hbF9naWZfYnlfaWQmY3Q9Zw/R0TrhAtNeUC0E/giphy.gif\")
![](\"https://micro.blog/books/9781107027268/cover.jpg\")
\nCurrently reading: Science, democracy, and the American university : from the Civil War to the Cold War by Andrew Jewett 📚
\nOn the argument that the middle 1800s scientific democrats (a Jewett definition for educational reformers) viewed science as a type of ‘theory-to-practice’ for Christian doctrine:
\n\n\n","summary":"","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/04/14/currently-reading-science-democracy-and.html","date_published":"2026-04-14T19:02:44+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-14 19:02","date_timestamp":1776193364,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":false,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":false,"note":"","syndication":["https://edumasto.org/@nicbabarskis/116404655790950070","https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3mji3ozx6g22b","https://www.threads.com/@thebigbabooski/post/DXH6t7dFBKK"]}},{"id":"88203946","content_html":"the first generation of scientific democrats in the universities identified ethics, rather than God’s handiwork in nature, as the point of contact between science and Christianity. They portrayed science as the highest expression of a mode of interpersonal behavior prescribed by God. (p. 34)
\n
‘How to Eat French Fries’ by Tatsuya Tanaka at Miniature Calendar:
\n![\"A](\"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/1000x/https%3A%2F%2Fminiature-calendar.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2026%2F04%2F260410fri.jpg\")
@adamkeiper.com Doordash Grandma?
\n","url":"https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3mjfh5g75vk2i","date_published":"2026-04-13T18:01:48+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-13 18:01","date_timestamp":1776103308,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":true,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":true}},{"id":"88171162","content_html":"\nCurrently reading: Permanent Crisis: The Humanities in a Disenchanted Age by Paul Reitter and Chad Wellmon 📚
\nOn a central problem identified by German university reformers in the 1830s:
\n\nnic.babarskis.blog","summary":"","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/04/13/currently-reading-permanent-crisis-the.html","date_published":"2026-04-13T16:04:11+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-13 16:04","date_timestamp":1776096251,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":false,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":false,"note":"","syndication":["https://edumasto.org/@nicbabarskis/116398257429005007","https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3mjfarfyjlb2n"]}},{"id":"88137844","content_html":"This is what the student experience of “academic freedom” has come to: freedom from all authority, guidance, information. Universities are no longer sacred communities held together through the shared sources of authority and common purpose. They have become modern institutions in which individuals pursue their own purposes, largely unaware of and so uninterested in the desires of others much less those of a...
\n
Per my last post, the Castlevania 2 ‘Bloody Tears’ theme goes harder than it has a right too.
\n\n\n","summary":"","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/04/12/per-my-last-post-the.html","date_published":"2026-04-13T03:11:18+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-13 03:11","date_timestamp":1776049878,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":false,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":false,"note":"","syndication":["https://edumasto.org/@nicbabarskis/116395212952036330","https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3mjdviskech2g","https://www.threads.com/@thebigbabooski/post/DXDmyNrEapD"]}},{"id":"88137701","content_html":"Somehow was able to get classic video game soundtracks into the 5-year-olds music rotation (its a delicate inception, but worth the respite from the usual playlists) and every time Dire Dire Docks comes on I think of the Northernlion commentary.
\n\n
Somehow was able to get classic video game soundtracks into the 5-year-olds music rotation (its a delicate inception, but worth the respite from the usual playlists) and every time Dire Dire Docks comes on I think of the Northernlion commentary.
\n","summary":"","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/04/12/somehow-was-able-to-get.html","date_published":"2026-04-13T03:07:12+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-13 03:07","date_timestamp":1776049632,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":false,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":false,"note":"","syndication":["https://edumasto.org/@nicbabarskis/116395195333694449","https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3mjdvasbrbg2n","https://www.threads.com/@thebigbabooski/post/DXDmRa9lrD4"]}},{"id":"88136244","content_html":"Every couple of years Crowbcat comes out of his cave to remind us of the creative decay wasting away the AAA gaming industry.
\n","summary":"","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/04/12/every-couple-of-years-crowbcat.html","date_published":"2026-04-13T02:39:14+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-13 02:39","date_timestamp":1776047954,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":false,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":false,"note":"","syndication":["https://edumasto.org/@nicbabarskis/116395081401807092","https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3mjdtmyhcyr2n","https://www.threads.com/@thebigbabooski/post/DXDi9O5kbwc"]}},{"id":"88016035","content_html":"@mineinmono the open web’s very own JD Salinger figure
\n![\"Ghost](\"https://media.tenor.com/DRmHbi8gNyoAAAAj/laughingman-gits.gif\")
@mwerickson those last 10 or so minutes 😭 😭 😭
\n","url":"https://micro.blog/thebigbabooski/87947557","date_published":"2026-04-09T23:57:03+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-09 23:57","date_timestamp":1775779023,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":true,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":true}},{"id":"87852920","content_html":"@jaheppler Fantastic
\n","url":"https://micro.blog/thebigbabooski/87852920","date_published":"2026-04-08T17:56:48+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-08 17:56","date_timestamp":1775671008,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":true,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":true}},{"id":"87600789","content_html":"@mineinmono I think the discourse is about two separate but related dynamics: 1) depending how you slice the metrics there appear to be dropping # of active/engaged users. 2) The baseline for a growing or “healthy” microblogging site is Twitter circa 2015 until the Musk era.
\n","url":"https://micro.blog/thebigbabooski/87600789","date_published":"2026-04-04T17:50:52+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-04 17:50","date_timestamp":1775325052,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":true,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":true}},{"id":"87585576","content_html":"@canneddragons maybe a palette cleanser after a tough read? Read any of Andy Weir’s stuff? Artemis was a short but pleasant read.
\n","url":"https://micro.blog/thebigbabooski/87585576","date_published":"2026-04-04T11:48:30+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-04 11:48","date_timestamp":1775303310,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":true,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":true}},{"id":"87584905","content_html":"@scalzi.com RSS FTW!
\n","url":"https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3min5j35pak2v","date_published":"2026-04-04T02:05:27+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-04-04 02:05","date_timestamp":1775268327,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":true,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":true}},{"id":"87339172","content_html":"\n","url":"https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3mierzfi7dk2k","date_published":"2026-03-31T18:18:32+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-03-31 18:18","date_timestamp":1774981112,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":true,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":true}},{"id":"86776760","content_html":"@ayjay I hope this topical series extends to DS9 where you’ll get to discuss Root Beer and Section 31 😋😋
\n","url":"https://micro.blog/thebigbabooski/86776760","date_published":"2026-03-23T11:03:19+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-03-23 11:03","date_timestamp":1774263799,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":true,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":true}},{"id":"86407639","content_html":"@tylerhuckabee.bsky.social Is it Dune or Jim Henson Presents the Book of Joshua?
\n","url":"https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3mhbn7ah7fc2d","date_published":"2026-03-17T18:49:09+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-03-17 18:49","date_timestamp":1773773349,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":true,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":true}},{"id":"86391306","content_html":"@mineinmono I’m curious to know how many of the 42 employees at Bsky were using the internet actively during the “golden age” of blogging (which I define as the period in which Google RSS and Blogger, the start of Wordpress all happened–early 2000s). Toni seems shaped by that era.
\n","url":"https://micro.blog/thebigbabooski/86391306","date_published":"2026-03-17T15:43:11+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-03-17 15:43","date_timestamp":1773762191,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":true,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":true}},{"id":"86088437","content_html":"@wearenew_public OG Tumblr was a good time. Great site customization options too.
\n","url":"https://micro.blog/thebigbabooski/86088437","date_published":"2026-03-12T23:56:46+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-03-12 23:56","date_timestamp":1773359806,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":true,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":true}},{"id":"86088184","content_html":"@tg I too have seen rendering issues with kill-the-newsletter feeds!
\n","url":"https://micro.blog/thebigbabooski/86088184","date_published":"2026-03-12T23:51:32+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-03-12 23:51","date_timestamp":1773359492,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":true,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":true}},{"id":"85922882","content_html":"@danny.hellmo.space Card carrying CATO libertarians:
\n","url":"https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3mgqagvf4tk2g","date_published":"2026-03-10T20:45:31+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-03-10 20:45","date_timestamp":1773175531,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":true,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":true}},{"id":"85077932","content_html":"\n","url":"https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jrovzn5n65uakj2waamtw6qj/post/3mfrkayl6a22k","date_published":"2026-02-26T15:48:39+00:00","author":{"name":"Nic Babarskis","url":"https://nic.babarskis.blog","avatar":"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/96/https%3A%2F%2Favatars.micro.blog%2Favatars%2F2024%2F47%2F1685639.jpg","_microblog":{"username":"thebigbabooski"}},"_microblog":{"date_relative":"2026-02-26 15:48","date_timestamp":1772120919,"is_favorite":false,"is_bookmark":false,"is_deletable":false,"is_conversation":true,"is_linkpost":false,"is_mention":true}}]}![\"A](\"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/1000x/https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.micro.blog%2Fphotos%2F1000x%2Fhttps%253A%252F%252Fmedia.hachyderm.io%252Fmedia_attachments%252Ffiles%252F116%252F437%252F815%252F022%252F691%252F817%252Foriginal%252Fa93db09dd09301cd.png\")
![\"\"](\"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/1000x/https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.micro.blog%2Fphotos%2F1000x%2Fhttps%253A%252F%252Ffiles.mastodon.social%252Fmedia_attachments%252Ffiles%252F116%252F408%252F559%252F710%252F148%252F524%252Foriginal%252Ffd7bca5f92a03e23.jpg\")
![\"\"](\"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/1000x/https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.micro.blog%2Fphotos%2F1000x%2Fhttps%253A%252F%252Ffiles.mastodon.social%252Fmedia_attachments%252Ffiles%252F116%252F408%252F559%252F756%252F300%252F787%252Foriginal%252F9de0ad951cb7d57d.jpg\")
![\"\"](\"https://cdn.micro.blog/photos/1000x/https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.micro.blog%2Fphotos%2F1000x%2Fhttps%253A%252F%252Ffiles.mastodon.social%252Fmedia_attachments%252Ffiles%252F116%252F408%252F559%252F818%252F519%252F886%252Foriginal%252Fd2fb74f15cfc6793.jpg\")