David Lidsky's Blog, page 3249
June 2, 2014
The Cartography Of Geopolitical Chaos
Countries use maps to make their case for territorial sovereignty, but cultural differences in cartography complicate the process.
Every map in some way reflects the biases of how its cartographer sees the world--enforcing the arbitrary notion that north should be at the top of the map, or skewing our perception of how big Africa really is. Sometimes, these cartographical biases even shape political borders.
May 30, 2014
Why We Must Teach Ethics Along With Programming
Coders shape the modern world we live in. Here's why they need to start acting like it.
This story contains interviews and quotes from Sam Gregory of Witness.org, filmmaker Brian Knappenberger, and members of The Guardian Project.
Facebook CEO Pledges $120 Million To Support Bay Area Public Schools
Mark Zuckerberg and wife Priscilla Chan are leaving philanthropy in Newark behind to focus on schools in their own backyard.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and wife Priscilla Chan are bringing their education philanthropy closer to home, today announcing a $120 million commitment to underserved Bay Area schools through their Startup: Education fund. The gift comes on the heels of community backlash against the fallout of their $100 million commitment to Newark public schools, announced four years ago with great fanfare (though no coach-jumping) on "Oprah." Goodwill toward the funding evaporated when parents and teachers began to believe that the small army of white-shoe consultants calling the shots were moving too quickly and deaf to community concerns.
To Build or Buy A Piece Of Software? Here's How To Decide
Given limited design and dev resources, what's the secret to deciding whether to roll your own? Ask your customers.
This story contains an interview with Matt Trush, VP of product for Meetup.
Watch Kara Walker (And Team) Construct The Massive "Sugar Baby" Sculpture
Here's how artist Kara Walker created her gargantuan, sphinx-like sculpture in the abandoned Brooklyn factory.
New York artist Kara Walker's latest piece, located in and inspired by the disused Domino Sugar plant in Brooklyn, New York, is a pretty incredible spectacle. Consisting of a giant sugar-coated sphinx and several life-sized candy figures, the work's full title is "A Subtlety, or the Marvelous Sugar Baby, an Homage to the unpaid and overworked Artisans who have refined our Sweet tastes from the cane fields to the Kitchens of the New World on the Occasion of the demolition of the Domino Sugar Refining Plant." And a new video from Art21 shows exactly how it was made.
Snarkitecture-Designed Beats Headphones Hint At What The Apple Era Could Look Like
It's hard to look at that all-white design and not immediately think: Apple.
Snarkitecture, a collaborative art/design studio that mostly works with slightly skewed, broken-looking furniture and apparel, teamed up with Beats by Dre to create a special, limited-edition pair of Beats headphones. And not only do they look cool, they are all the more relevant now that Apple has purchased Beats.
MIT's Old-Age-Imitating Suit Shows You Why You Should Put Down That Cheeseburger, Youngster
As a people, we're living longer than ever. Don't screw it up.
One out of every four 65-year-olds in the United States today will live past 90 years old. One out of 10 will get past 95.
Google And The Big Problem With "The Right To Be Forgotten"
Google revealed a new website on Friday designed specifically to handle requests for data to be deleted. Now comes the hard part.
Europe's highest court recently ordered Google to delete search results if requested by its users, under the auspices of a "the right to be forgotten." On Friday, Google revealed a new website designed, specifically, to handle the tidal wave of takedown requests it will be receiving.
Hot News: Uber Helps Quirky Deliver Smart Air Conditioners On Demand In An Ice Cream Truck
Banking on Aros's success, Quirky has been pouring marketing dollars into the smart AC unit, including TV campaigns and a partnership with Uber.
To help New Yorkers stay cool this summer, Quirky has partnered with Uber to deliver its smart air conditioner to customers' doors--yes, even to your sixth-floor walkup.
Apple's WWDC 2014: What To Expect On Monday
Healthbook? New MacBook Airs? Here are a few things to look out for on Monday.
Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference kicks off on Monday, and if history is any indication there will be several executives in untucked shirts (and also software and possibly hardware updates). A year ago, CEO Tim Cook was promising investors "exciting new product categories" in 2014. And earlier this week iTunes chief Eddy Cue said the company has got "the best product pipeline that I've seen in my 25 years at Apple." With no major unveilings thus far, and since Apple's fiscal year ends in September, productivity in the United States is expected to drop considerably during the keynote presentation in anticipation of a new product unveiling. Then again, it's just as likely that we'll get nothing but software updates and have to wait until the fall for any consumer hardware news. There's only one way to find out.
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