Solving All the Wrong Problems
Allison Arieff in The New York Times: We are overloaded daily with new discoveries, patents and inventions all promising a better life, but that better life has not been forthcoming for most. In fact, the bulk of the above list targets a very specific (and tiny!) slice of the population. As one colleague in tech […]
Good riddance, Twitter
Thomas Fuchs: Fuck you Jack Dorsey. Fuck you, all you douchebros and douchesisters running Twitter. You’re abusers. You ceaselessly optimize Twitter for the most possible abuse of its users to drive “engagement” and keep those eyes on the timelines with a never ending barrage of abusive crap. I feel this more and more every day. […]
Scientists Warn the UN of Capitalism’s Imminent Demise
Motherboard: Rather, these crises are part of the same fundamental transition to a new era characterized by inefficient fossil fuel production and the escalating costs of climate change. Conventional capitalist economic thinking can no longer explain, predict, or solve the workings of the global economy in this new age, the paper says.
Plastic straw ban? Cigarette butts are the single greatest source of ocean trash
NBC News: The vast majority of the 5.6 trillion cigarettes manufactured worldwide each year come with filters made of cellulose acetate, a form of plastic that can take a decade or more to decompose. As many as two-thirds of those filters are dumped irresponsibly each year, according to Novotny, who founded the Cigarette Butt Pollution […]
Tech Industry Pursues a Federal Privacy Law, on Its Own Terms
The New York Times: “The idea that the companies that violated our privacy for more than a decade will suddenly have a self-regulatory blueprint is ridiculous,” said Jim Steyer, president of Common Sense Media, a privacy and children’s advocacy group that supported the California law. Exactly.
Who needs democracy when you have data?
Christina Larson voor Technology Review: How do you effectively govern a country that’s home to one in five people on the planet, with an increasingly complex economy and society, if you don’t allow public debate, civil activism, and electoral feedback? How do you gather enough information to actually make decisions? And how does a government […]
Why Sitting May Be Bad for Your Brain
The New York Times: Taking a walk every 30 minutes can restore blood flow to the brain when you’re sitting for hours. Hoera voor de pomodoro-techniek! Ik gebruik daar trouwens de app ‘Be Focused’ voor op Mac en iOS.
Facebook Fueled Anti-Refugee Attacks in Germany, New Research Suggests
The New York Times: Whenever internet access went down in an area with high Facebook use, attacks on refugees dropped significantly. The drop did not occur in areas with high internet usage but average Facebook usage, suggesting it is specific to social media.
‘Vier vijfde werken moet uitgroeien tot het nieuwe voltijds’
Oliver Pintelon in Knack: De mismatch tussen onze huidige werkweek en de tweeverdienersrealiteit is een voedingsbodem voor heel wat maatschappelijke kwalen, van de man-vrouwloonkloof tot de burn-outpiek bij dertigers en veertigers. Als klap op de vuurpijl dreigt het probleem in omvang toe te nemen. Informele zorg verdwijnt gestaag uit onze samenleving. Opa en oma rijden […]
Apple’s secret charm offensive: How an invite-only meeting at Apple’s luxury loft in New York helped transform how software is sold on the iPhone
This Is Insider: The message was clear: successful apps now focus on getting regular engagement from their users, not one-time sales. For developers, that meant embracing the subscription model.