jonathan zong

jonathan zong

@jonathanzong.com

information science prof at cu boulder

2.1K followers587 following99 posts

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jonathan zong
@jonathanzong.com

As agentic AI rapidly transforms internet infrastructure, how do we ensure disabled people's needs are not displaced? In a new article by me and @frank.computer, we argue that accessibility must not be treated as an incidental benefit of rapid AI expansion. Read below:

Tech Policy Press@techpolicypress.bsky.social

AI companies are now getting accommodations that disabled people spent decades fighting for. Jonathan Zong and Frank Elavsky argue this reflects a broader pattern, where accessibility gains become politically possible only once industry needs the same changes.

techpolicy.pressThe Web Is Being Made Accessible for AI, Not PeopleJonathan Zong and Frank Elavsky critique how AI-driven infrastructure changes obscure accessibility and reveal whose needs society chooses to prioritize.
jonathan zong
@jonathanzong.com

This suggests reframing visualization accessibility as effective bidirectional communication, not just individual access to data. Further, how might we design multimodal representations that distribute these communicative affordances equally across visual and non-visual modalities?

jonathan zong
@jonathanzong.com

To understand mixed-ability collaborative data analysis, I spent some time observing and talking with members of Bower Lab, an oceanography research lab at WHOI led by blind scientist Amy Bower.

jonathan zong
@jonathanzong.com

We found that data representations provide shared ways to refer to data and direct collaborators' attention. These linguistic and social affordances help scientists establish common ground (a shared understanding of the data they're analyzing).

jonathan zong reposted

Maria Antoniak
@mariaa.bsky.social

I'm recruiting 1-2 PhD students to join our lab in Fall 2027, through either Computer Science or Information Science at the University of Colorado Boulder! Looking for people with interests in NLP plus [healthcare | literary studies | narratives | social media | etc.]. Join us! 🏔️☀️

cls-lab.comCLS Lab — Culture, Language, & Systems | University of Colorado BoulderThe Culture, Language, & Systems Lab at CU Boulder studies the language systems that transmit and shape modern culture, from internet platforms to literary archives to language models.

jonathan zong reposted

jonathan zong
@jonathanzong.com

Interested in accessibility, visualization, or data ethics? I'm looking for Ph.D. students to join @data-and-design.org in Fall 2027. I've updated this post with additional information about this year's focus area. data-and-design.org/recruiting/phd

data-and-design.orgRecruiting Ph.D. Students for Fall 2027We are an interdisciplinary research group at the University of Colorado Boulder that uses design to understand and reimagine socio-technical systems.

jonathan zong reposted

Tom McCoy
@rtommccoy.bsky.social

Since many are starting grad school soon, let me re-share my One Big Tip™️ for research! Research involves many skills - collaborating, writing, presenting, etc. But many of these skills can be unified under a single overarching ability: theory of mind Blog post link in reply

jonathan zong reposted

Jessica Hullman
@jessicahullman.bsky.social

Nice post from @eytan.adar.prof on the cargo cult science of "AI-native" PhD students, who come in super productive because they perform all major parts of research with genAI. No one needs all these quick papers, and they can really hurt students down the road. eytanadar.medium.com/ai-native-ph...

eytanadar.medium.comAI-Native PhD StudentsIf you’re a student and just want the tl;dr, feel free to jump to the end.
Eytan Adar@eytan.adar.prof

I wrote a post about the emergence of AI-native students who do their research using GenAI tools. I think that there are some real risks to job prospects and the likely changes in their fields.

jonathan zong reposted

Carl T. Bergstrom
@carlbergstrom.com

1. The new Trump / Kratsios plan for US science appears explicitly designed to destroy US universities. Diverting money to tech donors is probably just a bonus. Gift link.

nytimes.comTrump’s Plan for Science: More Money for A.I., Less for Universities (Gift Article)Michael Kratsios, President Trump’s science adviser, proposed overhauling how the government funds research. Democrats said Mr. Trump’s actions had weakened science.
jonathan zong
@jonathanzong.com

Updates to Umwelt, an accessible editor for screen reader users to create multi-modal data representations that include visualization, text, and sonification! New documentation site with example gallery: umwelt-data.github.io/umwelt/ Full writeup: data-and-design.org/blog/2026/07...

data-and-design.orgUmwelt Updates: Example Gallery, Sonification Improvements, Editable Text StructuresUmwelt is an open-source editor for creating accessible, multimodal data representations. From a single specification, Umwelt produces three coordinated views of a dataset: a visualization, a sonifica...
jonathan zong
@jonathanzong.com

i just signed an open letter in support of workers at Scientific American after the staff recently voted to form a union, Springer Nature sold the company with no warning, laid off union leaders, and cut salaries—3 days before the union election was ratified by NLRB join me? wgaea.st/sciam-letter

wgaea.stAn Open Letter In Support of Scientific AmericanWe are looking for your support by signing the letter below. It calls on Springer Nature to ensure that as part of the sale, LabX Media will rehire laid off union workers, restore staff salaries to pr...

jonathan zong reposted

Max Kozlov
@maxkozlov.bsky.social

NIH grants have been under political scrutiny since early 2025. But what does the screening process actually look like? What is being flagged? I spent a month digging into leaked docs and emails. We've published the 235-word list that are being flagged by an internal AI tool. And so much more. 🧵

nature.comInside the new political screening that’s stalling NIH grantsMandatory reviews by top health officials and checks for 235 disfavoured terms have left hundreds of vetted grant applications in administrative limbo.

jonathan zong reposted

J. Nathan Matias
@natematias.bsky.social

@jonathanzong.com I'm still thinking about your article on how tech companies exploit accessibility design in ways that make environments less accessible. Another example is this case of self-driving cars that veer into bike lanes in order to do pickups and drop-offs. futurism.com/future-socie...

futurism.comWaymo Has a Bike Lane ProblemWaymo has reportedly told traffic safety advocates that avoiding driving in bike lanes is "too high a bar" to pass.
jonathan zong
@jonathanzong.com

We're over halfway to our funding goal. Yay! But we have more to go before the match deadline on June 30. If you haven’t had a chance to give yet, now is a great time—your gift still counts for 2x. Funds support undergrads facing financial difficulty, senior capstone projects, and student travel.

jonathan zong@jonathanzong.com

I’m helping the CU Information Science department launch a crowdfunding campaign to support undergraduate students through emergency financial assistance, senior capstone projects, conference travel, and visiting speakers. Every dollar matched through June 30! giveto.colorado.edu/double-your-...

giveto.colorado.eduDouble Your Impact: Information Science Student Opportunity FundSupport CU Boulder Info Science students — every dollar matched through June 30! 🎓
jonathan zong
@jonathanzong.com

I’m helping the CU Information Science department launch a crowdfunding campaign to support undergraduate students through emergency financial assistance, senior capstone projects, conference travel, and visiting speakers. Every dollar matched through June 30! giveto.colorado.edu/double-your-...

giveto.colorado.eduDouble Your Impact: Information Science Student Opportunity FundSupport CU Boulder Info Science students — every dollar matched through June 30! 🎓
jonathan zong
@jonathanzong.com

Information Science is a fast-growing program, but as a newer department we don’t yet have the large alumni base or endowment that more established programs rely on. Community support can make a real difference for our students.

jonathan zong
@jonathanzong.com

If you’re interested, I’d reaaaally appreciate you taking a look, donating if you’re able, or sharing with others who may want to help. I’m also happy to answer questions about the campaign (and what it's like being an academic experimenting with unconventional funding during unprecedented times 🙃)

jonathan zong reposted

Frank Elavsky (he/him) ⌁
@frank.computer

New piece out with @jonathanzong.com where we look at how accessible infrastructure has been continually coopted by technological advancements, and both people with disabilities and everyone else now must compete for use of these spaces.

Tech Policy Press@techpolicypress.bsky.social

AI companies are now getting accommodations that disabled people spent decades fighting for. Jonathan Zong and Frank Elavsky argue this reflects a broader pattern, where accessibility gains become politically possible only once industry needs the same changes.

techpolicy.pressThe Web Is Being Made Accessible for AI, Not PeopleJonathan Zong and Frank Elavsky critique how AI-driven infrastructure changes obscure accessibility and reveal whose needs society chooses to prioritize.