As a counter of sorts to dejection about the scary state of social media, have an article on how the first novel caused widespread moral panic because of the even more widespread craze it started.

We’ve survived Pamelamania and Beatlemania. I suppose we can survive social media algorithms.

https://daily.jstor.org/why-the-first-novel-created-such-a-stir/

Feb 08

This is deeply disturbing.

Posted on February 8, 2018 by Mike Reeves-McMillan

This is deeply disturbing. Turns out that giving people more of what they like does not lead to a high-quality outcome.

And in line with my commitment not to merely amplify helpless outrage: this makes me more mindful of my choices online. I need to bear in mind that I’m training algorithms all the time.

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2018/feb/02/how-youtubes-algorithm-distorts-truth?CMP=share_btn_gp

Feb 08

Your capabilities will be added to our own.

Posted on February 8, 2018 by Mike Reeves-McMillan

Your capabilities will be added to our own.

Originally shared by Singularity Hub

How Swarm Intelligence Is Making Simple Tech Much Smarter http://suhub.co/2FX4QYm

Feb 08

You may or may not remember my post the other day about fixing the structure of social media.

Posted on February 8, 2018 by Mike Reeves-McMillan

You may or may not remember my post the other day about fixing the structure of social media. That was more or less an intellectual exercise; there’s nothing, really, that you or I can do to achieve the large-scale changes I was speculating about there.

What we can do, though, is examine our own social media behaviour with a view to improving the overall environment. So that’s what this post is about; a commitment to a wiser, kinder, more thoughtful and more hopeful social media practice, that I hope will spread beyond me and my immediate circles.

(That’s an invitation to share this as widely as you like.)

http://csidemedia.com/gryphonclerks/2018/02/08/fixing-social-media-part-2-what-you-and-i-can-do/

Feb 08

I’ve just made a post on the five most common errors I see in books I review (both indie and trad-pub).

Posted on February 8, 2018 by Mike Reeves-McMillan

I’ve just made a post on the five most common errors I see in books I review (both indie and trad-pub). A good 70% of the books that are appealing enough for me to actually pick up make at least one of these errors, presumably because the authors don’t know that they’re errors.

Are you making one or more of them in your work?

http://csidemedia.com/wellpresentedms/the-five-most-common-errors/