Emma Stamm

Founder, The Lenox Institute for Advanced Study; co-host, LEPHT HAND podcast. PhD in critical theory and STS. Writes music, fiction, and nonfiction. NYC.

main website: https://www.emmastamm.com
lenox institute for advanced study: https://lenoxinstitute.org/
writing: https://elftheory.substack.com/about
music: https://stamm.bandcamp.com

Public Key

npub1lgnvun2nxfkfpq5rxfvky7cj92ftn4mn8u7d44he568rnjd2gczqzts7m7

NIP-05 Address

emma_at_assemblag.es@momostr.pink

Profile Code

nprofile1qqs05fkwf4fnymyss2pnyktz0vfz4y4e6aen70x66mu6dr3eex4yvpqpz3mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuerpd46hxtnfduqs6amnwvaz7tmwdaejumr0ds377lqz

Publishing to

offchain.pub

relay.damus.io

nos.lol

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npub1lgnvun2nxfkfpq5rxfvky7cj92ftn4mn8u7d44he568rnjd2gczqzts7m7

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Last Notes

2026-05-03 18:09:41 UTC

serious question, #mastodon - which, if any, new forms of technology *that weren't designed to solve a problem* excite you the most? which non-solution innovations do you like?
#science #tech #technology

2026-04-14 15:28:57 UTC

Fantastic article schematizing the philosophical issues at the heart of the AI culture wars, from one of the most incisive contemporary philosophers I've come across to date.
"Geist in the Machine" at Aeon:
https://aeon.co/essays/if-we-hope-to-build-artificial-souls-where-should-we-start
#AI #LLM #epistemology #ethics #aesthetics #philosophy

2026-04-10 19:01:17 UTC

Coming this summer. Open to all.
#philosophy #anarchism #communism
https://cdn.hosted.spacebear.ee/sb-ab9b494dccbef43e454fccf9f07caa75/media_attachments/files/116/381/945/861/250/809/original/a9ed5f6cbaa02ebb.png

2026-04-07 20:09:46 UTC

New Acid Horizon / LEPHT HAND crossover episode. It's about how psychedelic researchers & therapists address the spiritual concerns surrounding death & mystical experiences in medical settings, touching on the clinical “death transcendence scale,” Huxley's heroic final dose, & whether the psychedelic "good death" pacifies the excess & irrationality that makes life worth affirming. Deleuze, Foucault, & Nietzsche show up.
https://lephthand.buzzsprout.com/2374135/episodes/18939631-deleuze-drugs-and-death-psychedelic-thanatology-at-the-end-of-life
#psychedelic #philosophy #ethics

2026-03-29 20:09:21 UTC

An autobiographical piece that discusses why academia can't help us think productively about technology (especially AI). Shots fired at the tower.
https://elftheory.substack.com/p/para-academic-techno-philosophy
#academia #AI #philosophy #highered

2026-03-17 18:41:12 UTC

Cool event alert: on April 30, I’ll be discussing Leif Weatherby‘s “Language Machines: Cultural AI and the End of Remainder Humanism” as part of a book talk at Teachers College, Columbia University. The event is free and Columbia affiliation is not required; you can RSVP here: https://lnkd.in/edycUxP7 or through the QR. Hope to see you there!
#AI #LLMs #philosophy #tech #NYC
https://cdn.hosted.spacebear.ee/sb-ab9b494dccbef43e454fccf9f07caa75/media_attachments/files/116/245/972/871/835/745/original/897b8efc67abe2a7.png

2026-03-08 14:12:29 UTC

New LEPHT HAND and I'm very excited about this one: Fabian Offert on the philosophy and politics of generative AI. I've been following his work for a long time and I was stoked when he accepted our interview request. I just finished reading his new book, it is very good.
https://lephthand.buzzsprout.com/2374135/episodes/18801345-can-machines-imagine-fabian-offert-on-ai-images-and-vector-media
#philosophy #AI #machinelearning

2026-03-04 19:07:30 UTC

Scholarship seats are now open for Acid Horizon Research Commons' course on Bataille.
Here's info about the course and the scholarship program, from Sereptie:
'Formless: Georges Bataille in the Three Ecologies' — is a four-week lecture series with Stuart Kendall, beginning March 11...
(1/n)
#bataille #philosophy

2026-03-02 13:44:43 UTC

Dear friends, acquaintances, mysterious strangers, I'm thinking about developing a new online course. Among the following, which would you be most excited to enroll in? Note that all of them would have a philosophical/theoretical bent.
Boosts appreciated, thanks! 🙏
#philosophy #ai #academia

2026-02-16 12:34:56 UTC

Heads up if you're into #philosophy or theoretical perspectives on #AI :
This Thursday at 10 am EST I'll be co-facilitating a panel on digital theory featuring M. Beatrice Fazi, Alexander R. Galloway, Matthew Handelman, & Leif Weatherby. They'll be discussing their new book. The panel is hosted by the Acid Horizon Research Commsons. It's free & open to the public. It'll be recorded & shared via the Acid Horizon podcast. Info & Zoom link here:
https://www.patreon.com/posts/free-public-of-150905344
Hope to see you there!

2026-02-07 14:59:57 UTC

New LEPHT HAND out! Postmortem on the acid communism course, plus:
"We explore animal consciousness, interdisciplinary research, & the 'closet' of weird scholarship, asking how encounters that rupture established methods can open new forms of knowledge. The conversation turns toward meta-politics, examining non-communication, collective retreat, & para-academic practices as forms of resistance amid digital exhaustion & institutional collapse."
https://www.patreon.com/posts/from-weird-to-149952858
#philosophy #academia

2026-01-10 22:15:30 UTC

Is Qobuz worth it? I know I need to get off Spotify asap but I don't have the budget to play around with lots of alternatives. I need to just find one and stick with it.
#qobuz #music #spotify

2026-01-09 17:09:57 UTC

- reply

The silence around edtech procurement bothered me tremendously when I was in academia. I always just attributed it to the fact that people who really understand why it's such an issue have few incentives to explain it to those who don't, so it might seem niche and not particularly consequential to those outside of higher ed. Fwiw, I've repeatedly tried and failed to successfully pitch a general-audience article about how the "instructional design" paradigm relates to this.

2025-12-22 12:49:51 UTC

"How to do philosophy: a bit of advice." Distilling years as a student and professor into one post:
https://elftheory.substack.com/p/how-to-do-philosophy
#philosophy #academia #study #writing

2025-12-15 12:39:56 UTC

Here's information about the new course on Mark Fisher / acid communism. Note that it's fully online and open to all, but registration is capped.
The first link has a video where I explain a few details; the second link goes directly to Acid Horizon Research Commons, where you can register. Happy to answer questions. Boosts appreciated! 🙏
https://elftheory.substack.com/p/the-acid-communism-course
https://www.acidhorizonpodcast.com/2026-classes/p/qny873rafa9ibhcyj2t2x1cwsuvtln
#philosophy #ai #aesthetic #markfisher #theory #socialism

2025-12-12 13:13:18 UTC

I am teaching a course on acid communism! Drawing links btwn 2020s digital culture / AI and Mark Fisher's thought. Fully online; anypne can enroll; starts early January and includes four sessions. It's part of the new Acid Horizon Research Commons platform, which is offering a lot of really cool courses in 2026.
I'll be posting more info here - really excited about this...
#philosophy #MarkFisher #goth #psychedelic #AI
https://cdn.hosted.spacebear.ee/sb-ab9b494dccbef43e454fccf9f07caa75/media_attachments/files/115/706/741/690/733/940/original/7fbf380145c7d0d0.jpg

2025-10-26 14:27:10 UTC

New Elf Theory post. This one adds commentary to the Acid Horizon episode & has links to a very cool event in #NYC next month (cool enough for me to make the trip from Queens to Brooklyn 2 days in a row...)
https://elftheory.substack.com/p/elf-theory-x-acid-horizon
#philosophy #psychology

2025-10-13 14:05:33 UTC

"Death is not the point: on psychedelics & techno-annihilation." Equal parts meditation on the nature of selfhood and science/tech criticism:
https://elftheory.substack.com/p/death-is-not-the-point
#philosophy #AI #psychedelic

2025-09-28 13:19:31 UTC

Make nonbelief interesting again
https://elftheory.substack.com/p/kindness-to-atheists
#atheism #religion #philosophy

2025-09-26 11:34:26 UTC

Not the most uplifting thing I've ever written. It's about similarities between Weimar-era German nationalists and Bay Area thought leaders — specifically, the rhetorical approach they take in their descriptions of science, tech, and philosophy..
https://elftheory.substack.com/p/engineers-as-ideologues
#AI #philosophy #fascism #SiliconValley #history

2025-09-24 13:12:31 UTC

In a few weeks my Acid Horizon episode on Mark Fisher, James Hillman, depression, and mania will be out.
If you're interested in continental, critical, or aesthetic philosophy, Acid Horizon is fantastic. Here's their latest dispatch w/info about upcoming episodes and events, including something really cool IRL in #NYC:
https://www.patreon.com/posts/durations-and-139628659?utm_campaign=patron_engagement&utm_source=post_link&post_id=139628659&utm_id=eb66fe99-9eec-4320-b417-7ffe994369c8&utm_medium=email
#philosophy #psychology

2025-09-21 15:33:15 UTC

Where are they...
https://elftheory.substack.com/p/where-are-the-women-philosophers
#philosophy

2025-09-12 21:45:03 UTC

I've joked about teaching a one-off workshop called "How To Ground Yourself in Your Body" tailored for #philosophy scholars and people who tend towards abstract thinking. Maybe not a completely silly idea?

2025-09-10 11:15:48 UTC

I wrote about why effective altruism is really bad
https://elftheory.substack.com/p/only-you-can-stop-ea-psychosis
#effectivealtruism #philosophy #ethics #AI

2025-08-18 13:52:53 UTC

With that said, if you like #philosophy / #AI / #aesthetics , sharing cool objects from your home, and/or interesting conversation with strangers... please join me for “The Vanished Flower: How Personal Taste Models the Infinite." Promise I'll answer the implicit question. 😉
It's online in the Weirdosphere platform, which is associated with Weird Studies, my favorite podcast by a long shot. September 4th 8 PM ET; info & registration here:
https://weirdosphere.mn.co/plans/1893599?bundle_token=033c841095cfe18451b4ffa29e012527&utm_source=manual
boosts appreciated! 🙏

2025-08-08 14:27:30 UTC

Some years ago ... I raised a few eyebrows for looking at psychedelics in the context of AI & vice versa, like
https://spheres-journal.org/contribution/the-electric-kool-aid-turing-test-psychedelics-phenomenology-and-automated-intelligence/
but in the age of machines that can bring any vision to life, we have to assume that the weirdest stuff will happen, like
https://www.wired.com/story/people-are-using-ai-chatbots-to-guide-their-psychedelic-trips/
#AI #LLMs #machinelearning #psychedelics #ChatGPT #philosophy

2025-08-06 17:40:51 UTC

As a workaholic I don't like the slow days of summer! I have been up to a lot of stuff — collaborative projects in philosophy, tech, and the arts — it's not yet the time to make any announcements, but I will be really happy when I can. And I'll figure out a less cryptic bio too, lol
#philosophy #tech #art

2025-07-07 16:08:27 UTC

I think there's a subset of ppl who are interested in astrology not because they believe in it literally, but for social-rhetorical reasons. It signals comfort w/ epistemological ambiguity + an irreverent attitude towards the dominant epistemological paradigm of our time (which is upstream of not caring about looking smart). Would explain why ppl who are generally on board with science will tell you they're a Virgo etc. (ofc a lot of people just believe in it literally)
#philosophy #astrology

2025-07-07 15:57:10 UTC

ISO opinions:
In order for a body of knowledge to count as properly pseudoscientific (I get that "properly pseudoscientific" might be a contradiction in terms, but humor me), does it have to have an obvious place in what social convention designates as the mystical/metaphysical?
For example, if one says yes, astrology is definitely pseudoscientific and chiropractic medicine isn't.
#philosophy #epistemology #science #astrology

2025-06-18 21:42:01 UTC

More #AI philosophical writing — on GPUs, parallelization, narrative meaning, and the passage of time
https://elftheory.substack.com/p/is-meaning-a-function-of-time
#philosophy

2025-06-15 14:06:18 UTC

ISO people familiar with reversible computing — specifically, I'm interested in understanding skepticism towards it (either in terms of theory or implementation)
thanks for boosting 🙏 🙏
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reversible_computing
#physics #engineering #computerscience

2025-05-28 13:18:55 UTC

#NYC - I'm hosting another #philosophy salon next week.
The title is "Ecstasies, Elves, and the Color of Time: On the ‘Realness’ of Psychedelic Effects." Thurs 6/5 7-9 pm @ the Downtown Art Theater (LES)
This is not a 2 hr lecture! There's a lot of (voluntary) interactivity built in. & speaking as a habitual solo-event-goer, if you show up by yourself, please come talk to me... I make friends that way...
Description & registration info:
https://lu.ma/1dhnt6yy
boosts appreciated thanks!

2025-05-16 19:45:16 UTC

Writing about the meaning of fictionality and why AI threatens it, plus an announcement about an event I'm hosting in NYC in early June
https://elftheory.substack.com/p/event-in-nyc-big-fiction-mood
#AI #fiction #philosophy #NYC

2025-05-12 20:26:40 UTC

AI alights on metaphysical philosophy, case study n-thousand: https://arxiv.org/abs/2412.16325
#ai #philosophy

2024-11-20 19:46:19 UTC

giving this talk @ the Machine Intelligence and Normative Theory Lab at Australian National University today
—
https://mintresearch.org/ourwork/emma-stamm-on-transformer-architectures-and-theoretical-knowledge
#AI #machinelearning #philosophy #llm

2024-09-15 20:51:11 UTC

https://gofund.me/3cb600a9
Please consider supporting this. If you can't support, please boost. The Pope family has now lost 2 of their members way too young. The most recent tragedy is especially cruel: Jesse had three kids & a wife with limited capacity to work due to disability; now their financial future is imperiled.
I've known them since 2010, the same year I took this picture... (1/2)
#mutualaid #support
https://sb-assemblagees.b-cdn.net/media_attachments/files/113/143/534/044/782/276/original/d5a932320300ae90.jpg