Stream of Reading (Prepare to be Forwarded) – An Archive of What I'm Reading
Why are so many robots designed to resemble women? The question is becoming inescapable as more and more AIs, which do not need to have a gender, appear on the market with female voices and female faces, including Microsoft’s Cortana, Amazon’s Alexa and a new wave of uncannily lifelike sexbots marketed almost exclusively to men….
A wall of white and black hats. Terrifying darkness. A woman staggering through a medical facility with her guts ripped open. And always, in the background: the player piano ticking along according to its programming, playing modern-day ballads to the denizens of a future world. Welcome to Westworld, a slick new HBO production that promises…
President-elect Donald J. Trump said on Wednesday that he would separate himself from his businesses before he enters the White House. More details about the arrangement will be announced in mid-December, but it sounds as if he plans to step away from only the management of his business, which presumably will be turned over to his children,…
Trevor Noah: Let’s Not Be Divided. Divided People Are Easier to Rule. – NYTimes.com. Source: Let’s Not Be Divided. Divided People Are Easier to Rule. – NYTimes.com
Hide CM floating unit Now Is the Time to Talk About What We Are Actually Talking About In the wake of the election, we must resist the slightest extension in the boundaries of what is right and just. Credit PHOTOGRAPH BY LIVIO MANCINI / REDUX Barrier Status: ‘none’ America has always been aspirational to me….
A few years ago, the software start-up GitHub faced an uncomfortable truth: It could be a pretty unpleasant place. It was 2014 and the company was growing rapidly as a hub for programmers to collaborate on coding projects. But as its user base grew, so too did its problems. A GitHub developer, Julie Ann Horvath,…
black atheists matter FEATURE December 4, 2016 by Christopher Cameron Christianity has played a central role in African-American life from the late 18th century to the present. Black churches raised funds for fugitive slaves, served as schoolhouses, and provided space for political meetings and activities, among other functions. Leaders of black…
Here are some takeaways from the news about “fake news”: false stories propelled Donald Trump’s presidential victory, undermined the peace deal in Colombia, and contribute to ethnic violence in Myanmar. Facebook is to blame, with Twitter and Google distant abettors. Whatever you think of these conventional conclusions, fake news is causing us to close this…
Christiane Amanpour was honored with the Burton Benjamin Memorial Award for her extraordinary and sustained achievement in the cause of press freedom on November 22, 2016. The text of Amanpour’s acceptance speech, as prepared for delivery, is below. I never in a million years thought I would be up here on stage appealing for…
Are Americans racist and xenophobic? As usual, two package deals angrily competing for our attention. The first says: Americans are obviously racist and xenophobic. The second says: No, you’re just being paranoid. Neither package deal sees America clearly. For racism, Avenue Q has it right: while (almost) everyone’s a little bit racist, the key word…