🔊 ⛑️ 🔊 MetaFilter Events: Week 3 🔊 ⛑️ 🔊 December 6, 2022 1:23 AM   Subscribe

Week 3 of Metafilter Events is here! Following Week 2, we’re moving on to a week that probes themes and topics around social justice, government, policy and research. You’ll learn more about advocacy and activism - and how you can have your voice heard on issues that matter to you. Find out more about Big Tech content moderation policies and how this affects you, get some perspective on the situation in Iran, and learn about the environmental impact of manufacturing. For those in the U.S, get the lowdown on current developments in redistricting policy and affordable housing policy - and what this means for the future. Complete your weekend with a creative doodling workshop, and hear about the gamification of everyday life from Metafilter’s own Adrian Hon. Come inside to find out more.

🔊What's MetaFilter Events? For those that missed our first post and second post: As one of our closing initiatives under Metafilter’s Fundraising Drive, our online events series features sessions across a fascinating range of topics, themes and perspectives - from Mefites and friends-of-Mefites that have generously volunteered to speak and/or teach on these subjects. Tickets, bundled passes and gift cards are available now. You can also sign up for the chance to receive a randomly-sponsored ticket to an event of your choice, or sponsor fellow Mefites to attend paid events you choose.


🔊Remember: if you can’t make it for the event you want, recordings will be available to all ticketholders for most events. Register a ticket so you don’t miss out: we’ll send you access to the recording after the event.
(That said, it’s a LOT more fun attending these sessions live - if you can be there, join us!)

Also! If you missed a session and didn’t get a ticket for it, you can still get the recording by registering a ticket, even after the event has passed.


🔊 Week 2 Wrap-Up

Thank you to our amazing Week 2 speakers: yankeefog, Medieval Maven, cupcakeninja, Mo Nickels, Stephanie Moon, Trish Salerno, headspace, Samantha Bagood and Kyla Zhao!
Here’s what some participants had to say about Week 2’s sessions:

📗 How Picture Books Work
  • ““Wonderful speaker! Extremely interesting background, considerations, facets to picture books that I'd never known about - very informative, valuable, multidimensional and profound and presented in a way that was very engaging and easy to understand.”

  • “The presentation was well organized, appropriate for the time frame, and flowed really well. Great enthusiasm from the speaker. All of the information was interesting. …Well done, thank you!“


  • 🙊 Let's Ban a Book: How Technology Has Reshaped the Battle for the Book's Soul
  • "I loved the examples at different levels of the challenges authors are facing with banning. The emphasis on doing your part to stop book banners from serving on school boards, right up to the federal level where we have to be vigilant in electing book supporters at the federal level, it really was enlightening."


  • 👻 Author Reading: "The Haunted Object"
  • ”What a treat to be read to at home! Great reading of a great story.”


  • 🎭 Shakespeare Performance in the US
  • “I really enjoyed talking about the history of Shakespeare plays in reference to the common person”


  • ⚡ How to Write Books that Resonate AND Sell
  • "I loved that it was a small group and that Sam wanted to interact with us."


  • 👻 The Ghost in the Bookstore: The Rise, Fall, and Rise of U.S. Horror Fiction
  • “I enjoyed the overview of the US horror market of the past 50 years in particular. The relatively short length made it a nice break in my day.”

  • ”I enjoyed hearing about the history of the genre and the major publishers. I could have enjoyably sat through a longer discussion and I think the presenter could have easily done it!!! He was very comfortable and knowledgeable in the subject.”

  • ”I felt more comfortable commenting and asking questions than I usually do at similar online talks, maybe because of my long connection to the Metafilter community.”


  • 🍻 Bourbon 101: The History of Bourbon and a Guided Tasting
  • ”[I most liked] the interactive portions."


  • 😎 Writing Fast and Dirty: How I Wrote and Sold My Debut Novel to Penguin Random House as a College Student
  • "I thought her presentation was well organized and very relatable."

  • "It was great to hear somebody being so honest and upfront about their process and the road to publication."


  • 📻 Language and Linguistics Smack Talk and Back Talk with Grant Barrett of "A Way with Words"
  • ”Fantastic session”...““Definitely worth the ticket price!!”... “…we got to pepper him with our language questions and get an immediate expert answer!”

  • “I loved that we got so much individual feedback from Grant. It was like we were all in a living room together.“

  • “Glad I attended. He's very good.”
  • If you missed Week 1 or 2’s sessions, you can still access Week 1 and Week 2 recordings by getting a ticket here. Week 1 recordings are now available, and Week 2 recordings will be available later this week.


    🔊 What's Happening - This Upcoming Week

    Week 3 (Dec 5 - Dec 11)
    This week, we'll dive into topics around social justice, government, policy and research.
    Start the week learning about the science of wellbeing with Duy Huynh, a first-generation refugee, researcher and filmmaker whose own connection to adversity inspired his quest to investigate mental health approaches for people experiencing struggle.

    Next, get up to speed on strategies and approaches to conducting research - including ways of diversifying your sources, and circumventing structural obstacles and biases.

    After that, learn how big tech content moderation policies impact us, understand affordable housing policy, and get an intimate perspective of the current situation in Iran. Learn about the environmental impact of manufacturing, pick up tips on social/political advocacy, hear from an international investigative journalist and get the latest update on a new legal challenge to redistricting in the USA.

    At the end of the week, de-stress yourself before the holidays with a creative doodling workshop and an interview on the gamification of everyday life with MetaFilter's own Adrian Hon.

    Session recordings for Week 3's events will be available to all ticketholders - so don't worry if you're unavailable for these session times or located in another timezone.
    How To Thrive: The Science of Happiness & Well-Being
    7 December 2022 | 5:00 PM - 5:45 PM EST
    Presented by Duy Huynh

    Is there a secret formula to happiness?

    Duy Huynh has been on a quest to undercover the science of happiness. The results of his findings culminate in a feature documentary called ‘How to Thrive’. Produced as a direct response to Australia‘s growing mental health crisis, it offers evidence-based approaches from the sciences of wellbeing and positive psychology.

    The film’s premise is; if we offer the science of happiness to people experiencing struggle; what difference would it make? Is happiness a learnable skill and if so, can we teach people skills to live happier, healthier and more meaningful lives?

    Recording will be available to all ticketholders. While the documentary will be referenced in this presentation, the full documentary will not be screened.

    About the Speaker
    Duy is a film-maker, culture & learning expert and creative director. As the writer, director and producer, Duy makes films & television about the science of human flourishing, transformation and good mental health. As a first generation refugee, Duy’s own connection to adversity and struggle has shaped his vision for a world where health, happiness and thriving are skills available to all of us. “How to Thrive” is Duy’s directorial debut and a culmination of a lifetime of investigation.
    Duy works with organisations to implement large scale change projects that help to shift hearts and minds as well as improving business and wellbeing outcomes.


    📜 Threads of History: Historical Research for the Writer and Reader
    7 December 2022 | 6:30 PM - 8:00 PM EST
    Presented by Celia Lake


    History is full of fascinating stories, tidbits, facts, and unexpected moments. In this presentation we'll talk about different kinds of historical research, and reader expectations around accuracy and plausibility, as well as resources and ideas for finding more obscure information.

    Recording will be available to all ticketholders.

    About the Speaker
    Celia Lake is a research librarian and author with 19 books out about the magical community of Great Britain set mostly in the 1920s. When not working, writing, or editing, she is likely reading vast amounts of historical trivia or playing a role-playing game, both while being sat on by her cat.


    📚 Hidden Authors, Bland Bibliographies, and Citational Justice
    7 December 2022 | 8:30 PM - 9:10 PM EST
    Presented by John Glover


    Have you gone looking for something to read... and found few books written by people who look like you? Ever wonder why so many lists of "important research" are populated by the privileged, year after year, despite academia claiming that it's trying to change? Want to find diverse scholars doing exciting new work? This presentation will offer tips and strategies to circumvent structural obstacles and biases.

    (CW: sexism, racism, and other prejudices in society, publishing, and academia.)

    Recording will be available to all ticketholders.

    About the Speaker
    John Glover is a research librarian specializing in the humanities at an urban, public research university. He regularly helps library users seeking diverse scholarship understand the overall research environment and methods for persevering in the face of institutional racism and other barriers. As a writer, he has studied diversity in publishing and worked to help expand access to works by and opportunities for writers from marginalized groups.


    🧩 Us and Them: The Gap in Thinking About Content Moderation
    8 December 2022 | 5:30 PM - 6:30 PM EST
    Presented by Chris Gray


    Big platforms think about content moderation differently than people who are more focused on big philosophical issues such as free speech vs potential harm. They have different asymmetric information, different objectives, and deal every day with the harsh realities of moderation at scale.
    In order to negotiate, in order to regulate effectively, we need to understand and account for these differences in perspective and knowledge. Building on his front-line experience as "the guy who pressed the button to (not) delete content”, policy activist Chris Gray proposes some first steps in closing the gap.

    Recording will be available to all ticketholders.

    About the Speaker
    Chris Gray is an author and activist, and advocates for policy-makers to better understand how moderation policy is formulated and implemented on the front lines, in order to make rules that are actually enforceable.
    His book The Moderator describes life as a content moderator, examines the business case for content moderation and the mechanisms employed, and investigates how the work can be done safely at global scale given the mental health risks from viewing large amounts of extreme content.
    He is the lead plaintiff in a group action lawsuit at the High Court in Ireland, seeking compensation and punitive damages from multiple big tech companies and their contractors, for potentially thousands of content moderators across the EU suffering from PTSD and other harms.


    🏠 “Housing Is a Supply and Demand Issue...” And Other Policy Myths
    8 December 2022 | 7:00 PM - 7:30 PM EST
    Presented by Annette Koh


    Housing as an investment has been weaponized against housing as home and shelter, especially for the poor and communities of color. What policies and politics can address decades of racial segregation, disinvestment in public housing, and hyperfinancialization of real estate, to name just a few of the crises? Housing production alone does not fix the fundamental mechanisms driving the lack of affordability. This talk offers a constructive critique on local, state and federal housing policies as well as ideas and resources for action.

    Recording will be available to all ticketholders.

    About the Speaker
    Annette Koh is a lecturer in the department of urban and regional planning at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona and teaches courses in housing, community planning and neighborhood development. Annie's work focuses on the politics of public participation and placemaking. Originally published at Progressive City, her essays "Placemaking When Black Lives Matter" and "Decolonial Planning in North America," have been published in the 2018 edited collection Transformative Planning: Radical Alternatives to Neoliberal Urbanism.


    🇮🇷 What's Going On in Iran: An Iranian-American's Perspective on the Current State of Iran
    8 December 2022 | 8:00 PM - 8:40 PM EST
    Presented by Travelingthyme


    Join Travelingthyme as they dive into the details of what’s happening in Iran, the meaning behind Women, Life, Freedom and what this moment means for so many people around the world! Resources will be shared and questions are welcome!

    Recording will be available to all ticketholders.

    About the Speaker
    Travelingthyme is one of MeFi's moderators! Thyme is a Queer millennial who immigrated to the US as a refugee, grew up talking politics with their father at the dinner table and hopes to one day become a confident writer, visual artist and occasional musician. They are a sewist, cat parent and fantasy-reader with a slight fixation on ~making things~.


    ⚙️ Emergy Models: Evaluating the Environmental Impact of Manufacturing
    9 December 2022 | 7:00 PM - 7:50 PM EST
    Presented by Amanda Bligh


    Find out more about sustainability in manufacturing design. Join Amanda Bligh, Principal Scientist at Re:Build Manufacturing, as she investigates the concept of emergy: an energy shadow representing the amount of energy consumed to make a product, used as a metric to help evaluate the environmental impact of manufacturing.
    Amanda will present the content of her PhD defense evaluating the use, promise and potential of this metric in design engineering, and the resultant frameworks that can be developed and applied in prioritizing more sustainable engineering designs.

    Recording will be available to all ticketholders.

    About the Speaker
    Amanda Bligh has worked in the manufacturing software systems and costing space for over 15 years. In her current role as a Principal Scientist at Re:Build Manufacturing, she focuses on helping partner facilities connect data and model systems to support manufacturing related decision-making and quote creation.
    Amanda completed her BS at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in mechanical engineering and her MS and PhD at the University of Rhode Island in manufacturing and systems engineering, focusing her research on improving tools within the product development process and displaying sustainability metrics during the design process. She has taught Design for Manufacture both in professional settings and at the university level, and has a strong interest in engineering decision-making frameworks. From an early career stint at Hasbro, where she worked on its Nerf and SuperSoaker toy lines, Amanda received three patents on toy design. In her free time, Amanda enjoys mountain biking, drawing and reading.


    📨 All Politics is Local: Why You Should Care & How to Be Heard
    9 December 2022 | 8:30 PM - 9:45 PM EST
    Presented by Brooke Brod


    MetaFilter is no stranger to politics. From posts to questions people bring up lots of different issues. Politics can be messy, but it's a lot easier than you think to have your voice heard. And your voice matters! In this quick workshop you'll learn about different ways to connect with your local/state/provincial/council government and craft an effective letter/testimonial that you can give at an upcoming public meeting.

    Recording will be available to all ticketholders.

    About the Speaker
    Brooke has spent nearly 20 years working on political campaigns, non-profit advocacy work, and in local government. She's trained hundreds of people on community organizing skills, leadership development, advocacy, and electoral politics. She loves a good canvass and has considered public meetings legitimate "date nights" with her partner.


    ⚖️ Moore v. Harper – The Case That Could Upend U.S. Redistricting
    11 December 2022 | 12:00 PM - 12:30 PM EST
    Presented by Maurreen Skowran


    Checks and balances in the U.S. redistricting system are now being threatened by a novel legal theory. On Dec. 7, the Supreme Court hears oral arguments in Moore v. Harper, which features the independent state legislature theory. This theory argues that state legislatures have the sole state authority to determine federal election rules – without state court oversight.

    Join Maurreen Skowran, redistricting activist, in learning what this means for redistricting by the states, with additional insight on how to evaluate redistricting plans.

    Recording will be available to all ticketholders.

    About the Speaker
    Maurreen Skowran is a redistricting activist. She wrote a chapter on methods to evaluate redistricting plans, in the book Population Change and Public Policy. She served on the New Mexico First Redistricting Task Force in 2020 and 2022. Some of her ideas from that project were incorporated into law. Maurreen also co-founded Fair Albuquerque Redistricting. She has a degree in geography.


    🖍️ Let's Draw Together, MetaFilter!
    11 December 2022 | 2:30 PM - 4:00 PM EST
    Presented by Emily Weerts


    Gather with your fellow Mefites to doodle and sketch some comics - no experience or artistic skill required! Facilitator and creative dabbler Emily Weerts (she/her), will guide the group in creative exercises inspired by Lynda Barry, Ivan Brunetti, MetaFilter culture, and more. Bring something to draw on and something to draw with.

    Recording will be available to all ticketholders.

    About the Speaker
    Emily Weerts (she/hers) is a facilitator and community builder based in Austin, TX. During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, she started a weekly virtual hang-out to collaboratively complete all the activities in Lynda Barry's Making Comics. The group continues to meet regularly today. Among other things, Emily is a crafter & quilter, program coordinator, and gatherer of groups of interesting folks. She's okay at drawing.


    🔮 Also to come:
    - A session with an international investigative journalist - a Gen Z-er uncovering less-publicized institutional negligence and civil rights violations that impact their generation (9 December 2022, 6:00 PM EST)
    - An interview on the gamification of everyday life with Metafilter’s own Adrian Hon(11 December 2022, 1:00 PM EST)

    🔊 More Upcoming Events

    Here’s a preview of the next week:

    Week 4 (Dec 12 - Dec 18)
    It's MetaFilter Week! Meet the Steering Committee and the Global BIPOC Advisory Board, get to know jessamyn and the admin, discover the secret sauce in MetaFilter's approach to moderation, and participate in Metafilter Trivia Night! Along the way, learn more about internet communities and content moderation - and how technology is shaping the way we communicate and act collectively.

    13 December (Tuesday)
    7:30 PM EST - “Meet Jessamyn - MetaFilter’s New Owner”
    9:00 PM EST - “Meet the Steering Committee”

    14 December (Wednesday)
    8:30 PM EST - "MetaFilter Trivia Night: Everything I Know I Learned on MetaFilter"

    15 December (Thursday)
    6:00 PM - A session on community building through content moderation approaches
    7:30 PM - A session by loup and restless_nomad about what MetaFilter mods do

    16 December (Friday)
    2:00 PM - A presentation on tech-enabled community and social mobilization in conflict zones
    9:00 PM - A session about the process of making a musical/dramatic work using MetaFilter as a sounding board and resource

    (Schedule still subject to change; more to be added.)

    More details on speakers and presentation titles will be released as soon as possible.


    🔊 For FAQs and more information on how the events work - read our first post about Metafilter Events.

    If you have more questions about MetaFilter Events, you can also get in touch with us at metafilter.events@gmail.com
    (We also have an Instagram now.)

    To stay updated on ticket deals and MetaFilter Events that interest you, sign up for our mailing list! (we promise not to spam - and you can unsubscribe at any time).

    If you’re keen on presenting or sharing interesting topics or skills - whether this year or in 2023, let us know! It’s not too late to drop us a note, and we’d love to bring your perspective and insight to our online events.
    posted by aielen to MetaFilter-Related at 1:23 AM (19 comments total) 8 users marked this as a favorite

    Us and Them: The Gap in Thinking About Content Moderation

    Looking forward to this one.
    posted by jessamyn (staff) at 9:26 AM on December 6, 2022 [2 favorites]


    Booking system won't take my money!
    posted by biffa at 3:56 AM on December 8, 2022


    Hey! My mom signed up and is looking for a link to the recording of the session on historical research yesterday -- is that something that will be sent directly to her or is there a link somewhere, it seems non-obvious.
    posted by jpziller at 10:18 AM on December 8, 2022 [1 favorite]


    jpziller from what I understand the recordings are available through your EventBrite account but someone else may be able to better explain.
    posted by Medieval Maven at 1:44 PM on December 8, 2022 [1 favorite]


    biffa - could you get in touch with us through metafilter.events@gmail.com (or you can MeMail me) so we could troubleshoot the booking issue with you?

    jpziller - the recording will be available about one week after the session, through the same Eventbrite area that has/had the Zoom link. Your mom should get an email notifying her when the recording becomes available.

    I hope that helps!
    posted by aielen at 2:48 PM on December 8, 2022


    My wife and I have enjoyed all the presentations we have been able to make it to.

    Especially the “Housing Is a Supply and Demand Issue...” And Other Policy Myths with Ann Koh yesterday.
    posted by Rabarberofficer at 10:34 AM on December 9, 2022 [4 favorites]


    Oh, just seeing now that there was a Housing talk. Would have loved to attend! Is Annette Koh a Metafilter member?

    Second question - if I buy the season pass, is there a way to auto-populate my calendar with the events?
    posted by rebent at 11:07 AM on December 10, 2022


    rebent -

    1) Yes, Annette Koh is very much a Metafilter member! The majority of speakers have been Mefites for quite some time, but some choose to separate their IRL/professional names from their Mefite names - so it's up to each of them whether they'd like to make that connection in these MeTas and during their events/sessions.

    2) Right now I don't think there's an easy way to auto-populate calendars with the events but this is a suggestion/idea that has been on the radar and in the works. All ticketholders do receive email reminders a few days before + a few hours before the sessions take place, so there is that.
    posted by aielen at 4:34 AM on December 11, 2022 [1 favorite]


    Serious question...Shouldn't the big yellow button-like REGISTER NOW on each of the entries on the Eventbrite page be actual, live buttons that take you to the ticket/registration page?

    I kept tapping and tapping on them, but nothing happened. So, thinking it might be an issue with my old iPad, I went to my computer and clicked on them and still nothing happened.
    posted by Thorzdad at 10:30 AM on December 11, 2022 [2 favorites]


    Is there a setting somewhere where I can choose to get updates about events as a digest? I looked but didn't see anything I thought would lessen the deluge. Because getting a separate e-mail for each event, including multiple reminders, not only makes it so I have no idea what events are coming up or if I'm interested in them at all, it's negatively impacting my serenity.
    posted by ob1quixote at 10:48 AM on December 11, 2022


    Thorzdad:
    You are right - those graphics were made for use on other platforms which would be able to enable links but unfortunately when displayed on Eventbrite they can't be linked.
    Will alter the graphics to make the "Register" less button-like.

    ob1quixote:
    I am so sorry for the Eventbrite deluge. I think we can set different update frequencies for passholders vs single-ticket holders, and will try to implement that asap. I'm not sure if this would help you specifically depending on the kinds of tickets/passes you have but I will update here when this is done.
    posted by aielen at 11:31 AM on December 11, 2022 [2 favorites]


    Additional note re emails: Eventbrite does offer an option (in account settings) to turn off all reminder emails from organizers - but that turns off all reminder emails, not selectively.
    posted by aielen at 11:41 AM on December 11, 2022


    Is that banner permanently dismissible? And it’s a bit of a pain to get rid of on an iPad (the X is too close to the edge).
    posted by JustSayNoDawg at 11:52 AM on December 11, 2022 [1 favorite]


    JustSayNoDawg:
    The SC has limited control /access to these details/functions of the banner but I will relay your questions to the admin/coding group about this.
    posted by aielen at 12:39 PM on December 11, 2022 [1 favorite]


    Come meet me on Tuesday evening (EST) and crab about the banner! Free! Or Donate!

    (and yes we are sorry about the banner situation - it's oddly vexing to fix for Reasons)
    posted by jessamyn (staff) at 3:45 PM on December 11, 2022 [1 favorite]


    I bought a ticket for the Dec. 4th Kyla Zhao event which I was unable to attend. How do I access the recording?
    posted by wintersonata9 at 8:24 AM on December 12, 2022


    wintersonata9:
    The recording for the Dec 4th Kyla Zhao event has not yet been released. It is likely to become available within the next few days - I apologize for the delay.
    You will receive an email notification when the recording is available.
    posted by aielen at 4:40 PM on December 12, 2022 [1 favorite]


    Just to add: there was another event included right at the end of Week 3: "How MetaFilter Helped Me Build a Non-Profit to Reduce Police Profiling of Drivers". While we didn't have live attendees due to the last minute inclusion, I'd encourage people to check out the recording when it becomes available (in about a week from now). This was/is a free event, and you can still register for the recording (for free) on Eventbrite.
    posted by aielen at 12:38 PM on December 14, 2022 [2 favorites]


    I can confirm the W3 recordings are available, although there was no email notification (or it ended up in spam). Thank you everyone who worked on these events!
    posted by gakiko at 2:04 PM on December 26, 2022


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