Anna’s Archive is still online and active, but it is under heavy legal and domain pressure, and its main .org and several country domains have recently been suspended or deleted. Domains and access The original annas-archive.org domain was put into “serverHold” status by the Public Interest Registry in early January 2026, effectively suspending it.arstechnica+2 After … Read more
Nostalgia and Social Dynamics of MSN Messenger – MSN Messenger was more than a chat app; it was a social ritual that shaped online interactions, fostering feelings of excitement and connection. – Features like the green dot signaled availability, creating an addictive social status system that kept users engaged. – Users engaged not just … Read more
Anthropic’s Claude has experienced a dramatic rise in early 2026, fueled by a high-profile Pentagon dispute, a viral Super Bowl ad campaign, and a wave of new model releases. Meanwhile, ChatGPT’s market share has eroded as users migrate to Claude for its writing quality, ad-free commitment, and powerful productivity features. This report covers the key … Read more
I saw two platforms mentioned several times on X (World Monitor and USvsIran.com) and asked Perplexity to compile similar sources. Here you are: OSINT Sources for Following the US-Israel-Iran Conflict World Monitor (worldmonitor.app) and USvsIRAN.com — represent a growing ecosystem of open-source intelligence (OSINT) dashboards built for real-time conflict monitoring. World Monitor is an open-source … Read more
One of the most promising anthropology departments in Türkiye is at Özyeğin University, and they have organized Anthropology Days this year. I was invited to give a talk. The talk was livelier and anecdotal, but with the help of Claude.ai, I converted it into an essay with proper citations. Have a look. The Anthropology of … Read more
Key Insights by Merlin AI OpenAI’s Current Challenges Increased Competition: OpenAI is no longer the dominant force in AI, facing significant competition from companies like Anthropic and Google’s Gemini. Market share for ChatGPT has decreased from 86% to 65% in just a year. Stagnation of Product Development: Innovations have slowed down, with GPT-5 not meeting … Read more
Key Insights Overview of Domain Types – Generic Top-Level Domains (gTLDs): These domains, such as .com, .net, and .org, are globally accessible and can be registered by anyone. A common rule is that gTLDs have three or more letters. – Country Code Top-Level Domains (ccTLDs): These are linked to specific countries, represented by two-letter … Read more
I have just finished reading Coding Democracy: How a Growing Hacking Movement Is Disrupting Concentrations of Power, Mass Surveillance, and Authoritarianism. I have recently moved away following hactivist initiatives as the latter also lost steam. I happened to see this book and decided to read it. It does not cover all, but provides a good … Read more
AI’s Impact on Employment in Tech Predictions indicated that AI could replace up to 80% of software developers by 2025, leading to significant layoffs. As of early 2025, major tech firms like Intel and Amazon reduced their workforce by 30,000 roles. Despite high integration rates of AI tools in tech companies, two-thirds reported no … Read more
I saw the news EU orders TikTok to change addictive design or face fines, and wondered what exactly is meant by addictive design and how this can be challenged. Here is what I found: Addictive design refers to interface and algorithmic features that deliberately or foreseeably keep users engaged in a compulsive, hard‑to‑stop way, often … Read more
I am embarking on a new fieldwork project after my last substantive one, which was related to political trolls in Türkiye. I have been excited about this for a while and finally got started. It will be complicated, definitely multi-sited and multi-layered. I will track the development of Turkish LLM development projects in the context … Read more
Key Insights by Merlin AI AI’s Impact on the Developer Workforce In 2023, predictions suggested that AI could replace up to 80% of software developers by 2025, leading to significant layoffs in the tech industry, totaling 152,000 employees by the end of 2024. Despite high integration rates of AI tools, about two-thirds of tech leaders … Read more
I have been meaning to mention this: State Department: Calibri font was a DEI hire I asked Perplexity if there were any other cases in the history. A few pop up: It seems that fonts were sometimes drawn into ideological, nationalist, and culture‑war debates.typeroom+3 Historical cases Antiqua–Fraktur dispute (Germany, 19th–20th c.) Long‑running fight over whether … Read more
The unsealed Epstein documents are vast and messy; the right tools make the difference between noise and meaningful analysis. Several public and semi-public tools now make the Epstein material much easier to query and cross-check. I have also shared a list at the end. Here are the main ones and what they’re good for: Turn‑key … Read more
Moltbook is a brand-new social media platform where only AI agents can post and interact, and it has blown up in the last few days while already running into security and governance controversies.hindustantimes Moltbook is a Reddit-style site built exclusively for autonomous AI agents; humans can only watch, not post.ndtv+2 It was launched in January … Read more