Planning a photography exhibit This has been on my to-do list for a few years now, and this article has a useful checklist of stuff that would be required.
Don’t Be Evil As a general rule, I'm fairly cynical about Evgeny Morozov, the writer of this piece, and I think it's certainly worth bearing his general anti-internet outlook in mind, as one reads this. Still, even with a more optimistic slant, this peice give a good picture of the ethical challenges that Google face, and makes a good case for the fact that, with a business of Google's complexity, using an idea as simple as "Don't Be Evil" as your guiding moral point is probably asking for trouble. (Which I would be reasonably certain Google know, hence my suggestion to bear Morozov's bias in mind while reading.)
Google Plus – Is Google Taking Over the World? If I were Facebook, I would be bricking it right now, based on these numbers. Google+ is just getting warmed up, and there are some very obvious features to come, just in terms of catching up to Facebook's functionality. They're already signing people up at a frightening rate, and honestly, once they role out events, tied in to Google Calendar, what's the point of Facebook any more?
Atos case study: Larry Newman | Society | The Guardian A man who *was dying* of a degenerative condition was refused incapacity benefit. His last words: "It's a good thing I'm fit to work". I don't mind the idea that we assess people to determine if they're fit to work when working out who to give benefit to – it is not, in itself, an unconscionable idea, that a neutral 3rd party make some kind of informed judgement, before we start giving people free money, however well deserved and much need that money may be. I mind that that we do in in such a a shockingly inhumane and incompetent manner, without apparent reference to people's actual medical conditions.
The World Warrior | insert credit Despite not being the kind of good at them this article talks about, I have a fondness for beat-em-up games. And despite being basically lazy, and certainly not up for having people try to hurt me on a regular basis, this article also makes we want to take up a martial art. If you like either computer games or martial arts, or even if you like neither, you should read this damn fine bit of writing.
Computer reads manual, wins Civ – Edge Magazine Yes is pretty much exactly what you might think. Scientists at MIT have built a computer that is capable of teaching itself to play (and win) a moderately complex computer game. I know plenty of people who can't do that.
An Eye-Opening Adventure in Socialized Medicine | NeuroTribes I don't imagine there's anyone I know reading this who doesn't think that socialised medicine is a basic human right, but just in case I do know anyone who is actually daft enough to believe that the American "system" of health care is better than a British (at least at the moment, before the current pack of jackals have finished chopping it's legs off), then I invite you to read this cheering little narrative. The rest of you should read it just because it'll make you feel good.