Gene therapy is looking promising, though it’s very early days.
Originally shared by Singularity Hub
Gene Therapy Had a Breakthrough 2017—2018 May Be Even Better http://suhub.co/2Dd8Aom
Evidence that lowering taxes on the rich will lead to automatic job growth: zero.
Evidence that raising the minimum wage will lead to automatic job loss: also zero.
If anything, the evidence points to the opposite of both of these.
Originally shared by Keith Wilson
We have been raising the minimum wage for 78 years, and as a new study clearly reveals, 78 years of minimum-wage hikes have produced zero evidence of the “job-killing” consequences these headline writers want us to fear.
Unless you’re an extreme idealogue, you’re probably open to the idea that government creates value in a way that’s different from business, but still has some things to learn from business. That’s what this consultancy is working on.
Originally shared by Singularity Hub
Business Design Is a Powerful Tool for Breaking Down Bureaucracy http://suhub.co/2mfCgcy
The cartoonist was, of course, investigated by the FBI, and accumulated a thick file there. This inspired her to increase the political content of her cartoons.
Originally shared by Self-Rescuing Princess Society
“Ormes’ panel [Patty-Jo ‘n’ Ginger], far from being merely frivolous jokes told by a precocious young girl, contained biting commentary and scathing indictments on issues related to oppression and subjugation through racist policies, government witch hunts, military industrialization, or other means. Through Patty-Jo, Ormes highlights the ways that, as Whaley notes, ‘a young, middle-class, educated Black child in the throes of the civil rights era would express herself.'”
Ryan Toxopeus, I’d be interested in your opinion on this one.
Originally shared by Singularity Hub
The World Needs More Scientists: How We Can Train Millions in Virtual Labs http://suhub.co/2qHsKnF
Following on from the article I posted yesterday about how social media is toxic and broken, here are a few thoughts about how that could possibly be fixed.
tl;dr: An open content creation system and an open content consumption system, allowing anyone to write an app for either, linked together by an updated version of RSS.
This is sobering. And I’m aware of the irony of what I’m doing with it.
Originally shared by David Brin
An important article by Roger McNamee – an early Facebook investor-insider – explores how the algorithm-led strategies of Google and Facebook made them inherently vulnerable to foreign hack-meddling aimed at wrecking our civilization:
“It reads like the plot of a sci-fi novel: a technology celebrated for bringing people together is exploited by a hostile power to drive people apart, undermine democracy, and create misery. This is precisely what happened in the United States during the 2016 election. We had constructed a modern Maginot Line—half the world’s defense spending and cyber-hardened financial centers, all built to ward off attacks from abroad—never imagining that an enemy could infect the minds of our citizens through inventions of our own making, at minimal cost. Not only was the attack an overwhelming success, but it was also a persistent one, as the political party that benefited refuses to acknowledge reality. The attacks continue every day, posing an existential threat to our democratic processes and independence.”
Remember: whether or not the Mueller investigation proves knowing “collusion” isn’t the point! (Does Donald Trump ever actually “know” anything?”) What matters is that hostile foreign powers wanted a U.S. political outcome, strove to achieve it, and got what they wanted. And they are still at it.
“Facebook, Google, Twitter, and other platforms were manipulated to shift outcomes in Brexit and the U.S. presidential election, and unless major changes are made, they will be manipulated again.”
The author, once a friend and mentor to the CEOs of these brash companies, now has burned his bridges in calling for a national response based on veritable survival. Let me add that the core problem of insularity and echo-chambers (‘Nuremberg Rallies’) that can be manipulated by cynical savanarolas is one that I predicted, long ago, in my novel EARTH (1989)
I was depressed a lot through my teens and 20s. I never sought treatment for it – it was mostly mild – but it was pretty obvious to me that it was connected to my lack of success with relationships.
It’s largely gone away since I got married.
This article suggests my experience is probably typical rather than exceptional.
Originally shared by Shannon Turlington
Originally shared by Roy Hembree
VR while driving
Renault and Ubisoft have created a demo VR experience to help sell level 4 self-driving cars. The idea is that since the car does the driving the person in the driver’s seat can do something else with their time, like spend it in virtual reality. It’s currently unusual to see people in public spaces wearing VR headsets; it would be really weird to see someone driving like this.
“The virtual reality experience is just an example of something you can do in a self-driving car that you can’t do in a standard vehicle or even at home. The experience uses data from the car’s sensors to show you a virtual representation of the road and the objects near you, while giving reality a makeover to turn a boring road into something fantastical.”
So much for roadside attractions.
The pass rate on these tests varies from zero to roughly half.
Originally shared by David Brin
I don’t care for political-correctness litmus tests, but I do admit they can be effective and important temporary measures that alter thinking and help to change bad habits. One is the “Bechdel test” — which asks two simple questions of a movie: ‘Does it have at least two named female characters? And do those characters have at least one conversation that is not about a man?’
I’ve seen a better and more stringent version that asks: “And do those characters have at least one conversation that is not about relationships?” Notice that the latter version goes more to the heart of stereotyping in women’s movie roles.
Well, these columnists at FiveThirtyEight have asked, “What does the next Bechdel Test look like? The time is ripe for a successor. Is there a short, punchy test we can apply?” They asked a dozen women in Hollywood, and the answers ranged from on-target and helpful all the way to a couple that seem downright thought-police vicious. But sure, let the discussion ensue!
https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/next-bechdel/
Only note whicy film scores best according to the largest number of these tests? The Independence Day sequel! Another that did well? Passengers. Science fiction leads the way! Hint: judging by the standards and context of its time, SF has always had a branch or several wings that were more advanced and eager for justice. Dissing that past science fiction was sexist provokes the question “compared to what?” In the sense of provocatively doing its job and poking at the ground ahead, SF was always ahead of its time.