Rachel Thomas @math_rachel Twitter profile

Pinned Tweet

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

4 years

Data Ethics course: Deep Learning course: Data Science blog: Diversity blog: NLP: Talks: Medicine, AI, & Bias:

33

991

3K

Last Seen Profiles

@YoonDa20

@Join_ZOE

@kelviin__zs

@EnnsZoneKicking

@DallasWarmack

@Andrea_P2679

@XboxMexico

@_nknk__12

@starfoxfreshman

@Sylvain2laporte

@gryndex

@MuArt242

@SarahPonczek

@Haebalagi_Gustt

@NorCalRiverRat

@MyataNyata

@MCTXSheriff

@_tim_brooks

@BukanYahya

@SEMG_ES

@FalloutVault13

@TheSafeAnnaAnon

@DaytonPolice

@OEXcommunity

@galleryofregina

@yarn22

@GOYUUCULT

@BBJHBears

@IQWrestler

@BlackrockRacing

@yyoulovelyss

@SnehaRajani

@team_dmn

@moonluvyz

@SacBIRMINGHAM

@MarinaDiamandis

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

“Covid zero is impossible with omicron, so what’s the point in even trying to reduce/slow transmission?” My answer: 🧵 1/

405

12K

29K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Before 2020, I never wore a mask during flu-season. This is NOT bc I had done an analysis and decided that preventable flu deaths were "acceptable". It is because I didn't know, and if I had known, I would have started wearing a mask during flu season ages ago...

241

1K

12K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Many seem to be assuming that covid provides lasting immunity, even though we already know it does not. Each covid infection raises the risk of creating a new "pre-existing condition" that will make subsequent infections more dangerous 5/

John Kennedy

@j_b_kennedy

2 years

Here’s the annoying thing. I was perfectly healthy when I caught covid last year. I now have a permanent heart condition because of it. Which means if I catch covid again and it kills me, people will say, ‘Oh yeah but he had an underlying condition!’ #LongCovid

224

5K

18K

45

2K

9K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Even if EVERYONE does get covid, delaying WHEN we do so has benefits. The longer we can wait, the greater the chance of new treatments being developed, more effective vaccines, better anti-virals, scaling production of paxlovid, etc. 7/

42

1K

9K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

(your regular reminder: "mild" covid can still involve damage to the vascular, immune, & central nervous systems) 4/

38

2K

9K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Not everyone is going to get omicron. And the difference between 80% vs 60% (both still very big) of a population catching it would be a huge difference in absolute numbers of people that wind up permanently disabled. 3/

34

1K

8K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Due to bad messaging, many people misunderstand: - Severity & prevalence of LongCOVID - Airborne spread Many may voluntarily choose to change their behavior if they better understood (particularly if given options: free N95s, work-from-home when possible, etc) 9/

26

1K

7K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Adults deserve to be told the truth. Too much public health messaging about covid has been infantilizing, patronizing, & flat-out inaccurate. 8/

Ryan Hisner

@LongDesertTrain

2 years

1/ Can't put it better than @micah_arsham does here. The CDC treats the public like 1st-graders. Their job is to inform & advise the public, warning of any imminent dangers, & they've utterly failed. People will be blind-sided, with grim consequences.

19

266

1K

26

908

7K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Not everyone's immune systems will be able to take the repeated hits. In a population, getting covid 1x (on average) over the next 2 years vs. 3x (on average) over next 2 years is likely to result in significant differences in how many end up permanently disabled. 6/

29

1K

7K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

False binaries are harmful, and don’t lead to good reasoning 2/

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Harmful false binaries: - covid cases either die OR recover - our only options are lockdowns OR no mitigations at all - covid zero OR there's no point reducing transmission - you think vaccines are *all* we need OR you are anti-vaccine

26

715

2K

35

885

7K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

It is ableist to ignore the many people (including some children) who are high health risk and more likely to die or experience extreme illness if they get covid. Again, any reduction in transmission can save lives. 11/

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Not everyone is going to get omicron. And the difference between 80% vs 60% (both still very big) of a population catching it would be a huge difference in absolute numbers of people that wind up permanently disabled. 3/

34

1K

8K

24

958

6K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

The intervention (vaccines) changed our goal. Vaccines are great at reducing hospitalization & death, but not at reducing transmission. But "mild" cases can still result in long-permanent disability, so reducing transmission remains crucial 10/

Jennifer Brea🦒

@jenbrea

2 years

@mattyglesias In fact, we aren’t even talking about transmission reduction anymore! Most of the focus is severe disease prevention, because that is what vaccines do. The intervention has shaped the goal. If vaccines did something different, then that would be the goal.

4

43

275

30

987

6K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

I don't want empty reassurances about how omicron is peaking, "it's almost over", just push through. This short-term thinking from leaders is exhausting & deadly. 1/

54

1K

6K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

3 years

The last 20 months has been such a FUCK YOU to those of us with chronic illnesses: - openly eugenic sentiments (eg death not a big deal if underlying conditions) - lack of concern for those having to delay medical care - refusal to accept death isn't only outcome to avoid 1/

30

1K

5K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Here are some ideas about additional things we could be doing to slow the spread of omicron 12/

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Things govt could do that are NOT individual restrictions: Mail everyone free KF94s & rapid tests Fund ventilation upgrades & air filters Set indoor air quality standards Paid support to isolate when sick Public education: #LongCovid is hell Public education: #COVIDisAirborne 2/

30

1K

3K

43

708

5K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Q: "We take risks every day. Isn't driving in a car riskier than covid if you're vaccinated?" A: No. I recently heard this from someone who sees herself as cautious. My longer answer:🧵1/

34

1K

4K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

I took a twitter break for a while, b/c I’d been repeating myself for 2+ years about masks, post-viral disability, etc. My family will be avoiding unmasked, in-person situations for a long time, and our lives are drastically different than 2019. 1/

39

363

4K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Focusing on vaccines ALONE: - Does not work (many countries tried & failed) - Hospitals can still collapse - Sig # of vaxxed get LongCOVID - Rooted in neoliberalism: individual responsibility as soln to collective problems We need: vaccines + N95s + ventilation + air filters 1/

60

978

3K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Things govt could do that are NOT individual restrictions: Mail everyone free KF94s & rapid tests Fund ventilation upgrades & air filters Set indoor air quality standards Paid support to isolate when sick Public education: #LongCovid is hell Public education: #COVIDisAirborne 2/

30

1K

3K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

8 years

15 min rule: when stuck, you HAVE to try on your own for 15 min; after 15 min, you HAVE to ask for help.- Brain AMA

30

2K

3K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

5 years

Deep Learning: NLP: Comp Linear Algebra: Bias, Ethics, & AI: Debunk Pipeline Myth: AI Needs You: 67 Questions:

19

811

3K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

I want a PLAN that accounts for: - the next wave - new variants & subvariants - mass reinfection - indoor air standards & improvements - research to treat long covid - how to avoid cancelling cancer surgeries next time - scale production & distribution of masks, tests, meds 2/

19

733

3K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Questions for reporters to ask: - what's the plan for those permanently disabled w/ LongCOVID? - how is fact #COVIDisAirborne being acted on? - how are high-risk people being protected? - what's the plan for next variant AFTER omicron? - workplaces w/ unsafe air: what recourse?

34

841

3K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

5 years

An audit of a resume screening algorithm found that the two factors most indicative of job performance were being named Jared and playing high school lacrosse

62

1K

3K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

5 years

Deep Learning: NLP: Comp Linear Algebra: Bias, Ethics, & AI: Debunk Pipeline Myth: AI Needs You: Ethics Center:

18

743

3K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Covid is killing & disabling an order of magnitude more people than flu, so comparison does not work. However, many are arguing that previous level of flu deaths is some sort of baseline of acceptability, but many of us were just ignorant on the topic, not choosing to accept it

42

278

3K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

6 years

learn deep learning: computational linear algebra: data science career advice: myths about AI: biased AI: debunking the pipeline myth:

25

819

3K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Related: 🧵 on why vaccines alone are not enough & need for a multipronged approach

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Focusing on vaccines ALONE: - Does not work (many countries tried & failed) - Hospitals can still collapse - Sig # of vaxxed get LongCOVID - Rooted in neoliberalism: individual responsibility as soln to collective problems We need: vaccines + N95s + ventilation + air filters 1/

60

978

3K

9

415

3K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

I’m vaxxed & boosted, so why can’t I "move on" from concerns about covid, need for N95s/KF94s/P2s, etc? My answer 🧵 1/

62

787

3K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Related: 🧵 & essay about efforts to downplay the devastating impact of #LongCovid

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

3 years

- Millions of people are disabled with long covid (a horrific illness) - This is going to be VERY expensive - There are big financial incentives to downplay the severity & prevalence - Concerted efforts similar to the climate denial playbook 1/

22

457

1K

53

399

3K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

particularly in public places like medical providers, pharmacies, grocery stores, & public transit. Prior to covid, I had given little thought to masks or ventilation. I wrongly assumed that flu & colds were "inevitable" w/out knowing there were mitigation measures.

14

152

2K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

3 years

I made a playlist of 11 short videos (most are 7-13 mins long) on Ethics in Machine Learning This is from my 2 hrs ethics lecture in Practical Deep Learning for Coders v4. I thought these short videos would be easier to watch, share, or skip around

40

651

2K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

5 years

Excited to share our newest course: A Code-First Introduction to Natural Language Processing All code & videos are available for free online, please check it out!

fast.ai - fast.ai—Making neural nets uncool again

www.fast.ai

26

783

2K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

5 years

Reminder: algorithms can be biased on variables that are not a part of the dataset. Ex: Race is not an input variable to COMPAS recidivism algorithm, yet the results are racially biased. YouTube doesn't use extremism as a variable, but its results are biased towards extremism.

28

811

2K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Why masks are still important: - vaccines offer limited protection from long covid - unconstrained transmission → more variants evolve, faster - keep essential, public spaces accessible to high-risk ppl, babies, & immunocompromised - constant reinfections → mass absenteeism 1/

50

737

2K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

3 years

One depressing aspect of the pandemic is how countries refuse to learn from other countries. Within a country, states refuse to learn from other states. Many refuse to learn from history. Many believe in exceptionalism, that they won’t face what everyone else has. 1/

33

601

2K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Harmful false binaries: - covid cases either die OR recover - our only options are lockdowns OR no mitigations at all - covid zero OR there's no point reducing transmission - you think vaccines are *all* we need OR you are anti-vaccine

26

715

2K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Any "good news" about the current wave peaking (often, not even true) is always used for nothing more than to ensure we are utterly unprepared for the next wave. People are NOT developing lasting immunity. 4/

23

370

2K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

- global access for vaccines - improve options & quality of remote schooling - paid support for those isolating - keep immunocompromised & disabled people safe and do NOT force them to isolate forever - public education: airborne spread, long covid, reinfections 3/

10

372

2K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

3 years

I just remembered this gem from 2017

46

148

2K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

4 years

If the idea of tech not being neutral is new to you, or if you think of tech as just a tool (that is equally likely to be used for good or bad), I want to share some resources & examples in this thread. Please feel free to suggest/add additional resources! 1/

50

843

2K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

5 years

I'm going to start a thread of companies & execs not understanding that algorithms can still be biased on variables that are not inputs. Machine learning is great at finding latent variables.

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

5 years

@harini824 @random_walker Even if race & gender are not inputs to your algorithm, it can still be biased on these factors. Machine learning excels at finding latent variables. I regularly hear people wrongly say that not using race as an input will prevent racial bias.

8

144

310

25

826

2K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Personally, I am more concerned about LongCOVID than about dying. Important to understand that LongCOVID is not just "a little fatigue"; it is vascular, neurological, immune, & autonomic nervous system damage, and what many describe as "not livable" 6/

Gene Park

@GenePark

2 years

I admit: I dismissed the seriousness of long covid because the way health experts and journalists described it made it seem livable. “Fatigue” doesn’t cut it. This is not a livable situation. Not being able to lift my hands anytime i want is not a life I’m used to.

155

3K

10K

21

491

2K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Between 2017-2019, average of 37,000 Americans died per *year* in car accidents. 80,000 VACCINATED Americans have died of covid in first 5 *months* of 2022. And USA could have 9 MILLION new Long Covid cases this fall alone. (links for numbers below) 2/

16

451

2K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

4 years

I'm taking a break for a while, due to combination of ongoing health issues from my prev brain infection & brain surgeries, not having in-person childcare, and the many terrible challenges we are all facing right now. I know this is a rough time for everyone, sending💜💜💜

142

12

2K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

3 years

I have long admired @timnitGebru for her brilliance, moral courage, clear voice in speaking up for what is right, & influential scholarship. It is truly terrible that Google would do this. In this thread, I want to share some of Timnit's work I love

@[email protected] on Mastodon

@timnitGebru

3 years

I was fired by @JeffDean for my email to Brain women and Allies. My corp account has been cutoff. So I've been immediately fired :-)

392

1K

7K

19

596

2K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

I think about this article a lot. Improving indoor air would alleviate burden, disability, & death from all airborne illnesses (including flu, covid, future covid variants, future new pandemics). Instead, most western leaders have given up & normalized it

The Plan to Stop Every Respiratory Virus at Once

The benefits of ventilation reach far beyond the coronavirus. What if we stop taking colds and flus for granted, too?

www.theatlantic.com

15

586

2K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

3 years

Medicine, like all of science, is political: - which questions get asked - which projects get funded - how debates get framed - who the researchers are - context of data (what categories, what labels, which biases, what is left out) - whose suffering is counted 1/

20

546

2K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

3 years

- lack of concern that we may need a hospital that's not maxed out - people who were so publicly relieved that "only the elderly & vulnerable" were at risk (which wasn't even true) - how glib many healthy folks are about reality of long covid, chronic illness, & disability 2/

1

196

2K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

For a Chief Health Officer to say it is "necessary" for everyone to catch covid, discourage basic precautions (eg saying 1.5m indoor spacing = don't need a mask), & then blame the covid death of a child on their "inherited medical condition" is eugenics, right?

45

304

1K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

In the USA, 60,000 people died of covid in Jan 2022. Approx 25-35% of USA covid deaths are amongst vaccinated, which means ~ 15,000 vaxxed Americans died in 1 month Death rate is much higher for unvaxxed, but vaccines alone don’t let people "opt out" of the pandemic. 2/

22

316

1K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

3 years

- refusal to trust long covid patients about their experiences (mirrors distrust of disabled & ill in general) - doctors who are patronizing & misleading in the media (mirrors common medical experiences) - people who are unwilling to take basic measures to help 3/

10

194

1K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

5 years

I recently heard a conf speaker say that nobody in China minds pervasive surveillance. My thoughts: - We can assume the Uyghurs in interment camps are against it - the people of Hong Kong have been clear - we don't know how others feel if they are not free to express dissent

28

271

1K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

I've had brain surgery 2x and am high risk. However, I think the idea of a high-risk vs. low-risk dichotomy can be misleading, as many healthy people are greatly underestimating the risk & potential severity of long covid 2/

Hannah Davis

@ahandvanish

2 years

The summary: vaccination definitely seems to reduce the risk of #LongCovid , often by 40-50%. *But* solidly 9.5%-14% of breakthroughs still result in Long Covid. These figures make sense to me, given the estimated rate of LC in unvaccinated people (~10-30%). 2/

16

868

3K

4

128

1K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Recent estimates are that 40% of people dying in USA of covid are vaccinated (vaccines reduce your risk of death, but the issue is that SO MANY people are catching covid because we gave up on masks, ventilation, & other protections). 3/

Covid deaths no longer overwhelmingly among the unvaccinated as toll on elderly grows

The pandemic’s toll is no longer falling almost exclusively on those who chose not to get shots, according to a Post analysis, as the elderly and immunocompromised have a harder time dodging increa...

www.washingtonpost.com

14

280

1K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

6 years

Five types of harms caused by bias in ML, applied to several well known examples @katecrawford #NIPS2017

24

753

1K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

3 years

Sadly, many folks love the idea of little girls coding, but don’t want to work with the adult women software engineers already at their company. There are similar dynamics around race. 5/

5

227

1K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

More things govt could do that are NOT individual restrictions: Public education: KF94/N95 >>> cloth/surgical mask CO2 monitors for all indoor spaces, results displayed clearly for all occupants to see Replace all the "fight covid w/ hand-washing signs" 3/

14

278

1K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

5 years

Deep Learning from the Foundations course is here!!! 15 hours of videos, Jupyter notebooks, all free. Covers foundations of deep learning, state of the art research, & software engineering best practices. All new material!

8

387

1K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

3 years

People who consider themselves: against racism, but hold Black women to different standards/processes against sexism, but happen to have issues w/ every woman they work with against discrimination, but are always critical of the tone or tactics of marginalized ppl

8

211

1K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

7 years

I'm thrilled to release fast.ai’s newest FREE course, Computational Linear Algebra! (Please RT)

20

617

1K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Even if leaders persist w/ false fatalism, at least be honest: "Everyone is going to get Omicron BECAUSE we are failing to act. Covid is airborne. You breathe unsafe air at work, your kids breathe unsafe air at school. Many of you will be permanently & painfully disabled by it" 6

12

306

1K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

6 years

Question: If you've learned Python in the last few years, what online resource/website/course was #1 most helpful to you? I'm not looking for lists of lots of resources to learn Python (I know there are a ton!), just your #1 favorite.

452

236

1K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Long Covid can involve damage to your vascular, neurological, & immune systems. Even young & healthy are at risk. If USA has 100 million covid cases this fall as predicted, could end up with 9 MILLION new people with Long Covid. 4/

Coronavirus wave this fall could infect 100 million, administration warns

The projections for fall and winter are part of a pitch for additional funding for vaccines, treatments and tests.

www.washingtonpost.com

7

250

1K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

"But why don't I know more people with Long Covid if this is the case?" As this thread explains, many keep health struggles private (particularly if they are new, scary, or hard to understand) 6/

charlos

@loscharlos

2 years

People with #LongCovid don’t “tell people” they have a new health issue. They’re confused - and they’re just hoping the symptoms will go away next week or next month. They often don’t know Long Covid is even a term, because nobody warned them about that outcome.

44

732

4K

11

194

1K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Australia has a vaccination rate > 90% amongst 16+, yet close to 3,000 people have died of covid in the first 2 MONTHS of 2022. In contrast, ~1,200 people die in car accidents PER YEAR in Australia. Covid is NOT "under control." 4/

5

188

1K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

3 years

Interested in improving diversity in AI, or in tech in general? I have done a bunch of research on this and have some advice 1/

Nando de Freitas 🏳️‍🌈

@NandoDF

3 years

Please tweet what you think we could do to improve diversity, inclusion and equity in AI. We need more solutions!!!! 4/

10

7

30

22

437

1K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

3 years

- Millions of people are disabled with long covid (a horrific illness) - This is going to be VERY expensive - There are big financial incentives to downplay the severity & prevalence - Concerted efforts similar to the climate denial playbook 1/

22

457

1K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

3 years

Big news: @jeremyphoward & I have moved to his home country of Australia (he is not a USA citizen & has been wanting to return for years). I’m excited about the move, although it is bittersweet 1/

66

31

1K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

3 years

This idea that you can't highlight problems without offering a solution is pervasive, harmful, and false. Efforts to accurately identify, analyze, & understand risks & harms are valuable. And most difficult problems are not going to be solved in a single paper.

MMitchell

@mmitchell_ai

3 years

"Highlighting risks without pointing out methods for researchers and developers to understand and mitigate those risks misses the mark on helping with these problems. " I'm glad @JeffDean actually knows the right answer for how to develop ethical AI!

9

132

20

214

1K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

5 years

I'm so excited to announce this: we are starting a Center for Applied Data Ethics (CADE) at @DataInstituteSF to help address issues of bias, disinformation, surveillance, predictive policing, & more. My new role is director of CADE. Please read more here:

46

211

1K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

3 years

As a mother, I can't wait until my 6 year old can be vaccinated against covid. My #1 reason is that I hope to reduce her chances of getting long covid or suffering any long-term effects. I want to share some of my personal thoughts here. 1/

57

199

1K

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

3 years

What @timnitGebru wrote is true of so much internal diversity & inclusion work in tech: - focus on "mentorship" rather than ending toxic environments - high personal cost - no accountability - no incentive - your life gets worse when you advocate for underrepresented groups

8

250

999

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Anyway, I'm still here, in my N95, mostly avoiding indoors. Fortunately, my family and I are finding many ways to enjoy ourselves outdoors, in masks, and online. 6/

15

35

979

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

6 years

Learning is not a race. The 1st time I tried to take Real Analysis (required course for math majors), I couldn't understand anything, hated it, & dropped the class. A year later, I tried again with a different prof, and I loved it, got an A, & then focused on it in my PhD.

24

200

972

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Society (in USA, Australia, & many others) has failed to keep essential locations safe. Many people face unsafe workplaces & unsafe schools daily, beyond their control. Most doctors & dentists offices are unsafe, and I dread the next time my family needs medical or dental care 5/

6

80

934

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

6 years

Behaviors to avoid in code reviews: - stating opinion as fact - avalanche of comments - asking devs to fix problems they didn’t cause - judgemental questions - sarcasm @sandyaaaas #AlterConf

12

417

933

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Societies need to collectively reduce transmission of covid. This will require, at minimum, ventilation upgrades, high-quality masks in indoor public spaces, air filters, and paid support to isolate. 12/

5

152

918

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

4 years

new free online course: Practical Data Ethics, from fast ai & @DataInstituteSF covering disinformation, bias, ethical foundations, privacy & surveillance, silicon valley ecosystem, and algorithmic colonialism cc: @craignewmark

Practical Data Ethics

Free, online course from fast.ai and USF Data Institute covering disinformation, bias & fairness, ethical foundations, practical tools, privacy & surveillance, the silicon valley ecosystem, and...

ethics.fast.ai

6

367

923

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

6 years

Our new, updated Practical Deep Learning for Coders is here! It’s free (no ads), based on PyTorch, accessible to beginners, even faster & more accurate than before.

16

323

911

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

6 years

I’m quoted in this. I think software used to make decisions such as hiring, firing, parole, prison sentences, etc. should be required to be open source.

Is your software racist?

There's a fly in the ointment of "smart government": The emerging problem of biased algorithms. Politicians are struggling to catch up.

www.politico.com

18

317

904

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

There is not some fixed number of people who will die and then everyone else has lasting immunity and the pandemic is over. Immunity wanes, new variants develop, more disease begets more disease… 5/

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Many seem to be assuming that covid provides lasting immunity, even though we already know it does not. Each covid infection raises the risk of creating a new "pre-existing condition" that will make subsequent infections more dangerous 5/

45

2K

9K

3

147

905

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

3 years

Dr. Mitchell and Dr. Gebru built THE most diverse team in Google AI, and their team's research wins awards & is published at top peer-reviewed confs Dr. Mitchell is being fired the same day Jeff Dean announces Google is *supposedly* going to focus more on D&I and retention

MMitchell

@mmitchell_ai

3 years

I'm fired.

838

2K

9K

12

316

898

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Trust has been eroded through confusing messaging & contradictory/nonsensical restrictions (closing outdoor beach & parks, hygiene theater, obsession with hand-washing, etc) 4/

4

118

893

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

1 year

Friends with no previous interest in AI ethics have been asking me about it recently, so I want to share several underlying concepts about AI & power that are important to understand. 🧵 1/

17

297

899

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

7 years

Biased word embeddings in action: a rating system ranked Mexican restaurants worse, bc Mexican had neg connotations

20

834

884

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

4 years

- The folks who can't take covid seriously until someone they know dies - The CEOs who don't care about workplace sexism until they have a daughter - The politicians who don't support marriage equality until their son comes out This pattern never ceases to depress me 1/

16

145

892

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Returning to the car analogy, we wear seatbelts, put our kids in safety seats, don't drive drunk, have speed limits, advocate for safer bike lanes & more public transit, to address the impact of car accidents, so those smaller numbers are not something that we just "accept" 9/

4

89

883

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

It seems like this political battle has been lost in the USA, Australia, UK, and much of Europe. Ever higher amounts of deaths are being normalized, and mass disability is being swept under the rug. I don’t know what the answer is. 13/

12

126

858

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

This is an expert round-up of 8 research studies, suggesting 9-15% of vaccinated people get Long Covid 5/

Hannah Davis

@ahandvanish

2 years

How does being vaccinated impact the risk of #LongCovid ? A thread on 8 studies (I'll add to it as I find more): 1/

71

2K

7K

5

153

850

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Even though ongoing policy failures may make covid inevitable, it’s still worth it to try to reduce the number of times you get reinfected. Particularly with new variants, people are not developing lasting immunity 4/

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

“Covid zero is impossible with omicron, so what’s the point in even trying to reduce/slow transmission?” My answer: 🧵 1/

405

12K

29K

1

86

844

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

6 years

lessons on AI research from an MIT grad student: - Code a simple baseline - Invest in visualization skills (good visualizations often make bugs apparent) - 8 hrs sleeping & 4 hrs working is immensely more productive than 4 hrs sleeping & 8 hrs working

6

248

845

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

This article is an important & relevant read on tackling airborne illness:

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

I think about this article a lot. Improving indoor air would alleviate burden, disability, & death from all airborne illnesses (including flu, covid, future covid variants, future new pandemics). Instead, most western leaders have given up & normalized it

15

586

2K

6

90

812

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Many leaders say people are fed up w/ restrictions, so we can’t try to do anything about Omicron: - Premise questionable, as several polls show majority want mask mandates - There is a TON government could do (but isn’t) that does NOT involve individual restrictions 1/

8

243

810

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

6 years

My surgery went smoothly last week and I am recovering even better than I'd expected (although it will still be a while before I'm fully recovered). Thanks so much for all the support 😊

33

9

817

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

It would increase legitimacy & trust for leaders to acknowledge that poor-fitting cloth or surgical masks are not enough against Delta or Omicron. Cloth masks were supposed to be a stop gap measure at start of pandemic. (article from Jan 2021) 5/

Why Aren’t We Wearing Better Masks?

Cloth masks are better than nothing, but they were supposed to be a stopgap measure.

www.theatlantic.com

7

170

793

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

This is from a blog post I wrote in 2019. Even before covid, many people were not open about their health struggles or invisible disabilities, because they are understandably afraid of discrimination 7/

1

77

789

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

Studies show that vaccinated people are still getting LongCOVID 7/

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

"Vaccines reduce risk of Long COVID by lowering chances of contracting COVID in the first place. But for those who do get a breakthrough infection, studies suggest that vaccination might only halve the risk of Long COVID — or have no effect on it at all"

3

66

196

4

115

776

Rachel Thomas

@math_rachel

2 years

High-risk people have been completely abandoned 11/

The Millions of People Stuck in Pandemic Limbo

What does society owe immunocompromised people?

www.theatlantic.com

3

107

781