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Daily Archives: September 22, 2020

MapLight Launches New Tools to Combat Misinformation Ahead of 2020 Election

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“The nonprofit MapLight launched new, free tools today aimed at combating the spread of false and deceptive election-related information ahead of the 2020 election, including a browser plug-in called the Election Deception Tracker as well as a Text-to-Report line for people to report misleading information. The new tools allow anyone to quickly and easily report deceptive or problematic election-related information to help protect the election and reduce the spread of false information online. The Election Deception Tracker, available for free as a browser extension on the Chrome and Firefox web browsers, allows users to capture and report content directly from their Facebook feeds. Reported information will be sent to a MapLight database, and a team of researchers and election protection advocates will analyze the content, publicize the existence of problematic information to pressure Facebook to improve its screening, and push for removal of organized efforts to spread false or misleading information by contacting executives at Facebook…

The Election Deception Tracker and Text-to-Report line are intended to help users capture organized, institutional efforts that intentionally mislead people about candidates or the election, misleading information about how to participate, fake accounts that misrepresent their affiliation, and attempts at voter suppression or intimidation. The Election Deception Tracker allows users to choose from five different tags to categorize content they report, including “voting,” “candidates,” “violent threat / hate speech,” “election results,” and “fake or misleading account.”…

You Can Now Explore 103 ‘Lost’ Hokusai Drawings Online

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Smithsonian – “Earlier this month, the British Museum announced its acquisition of a trove of newly rediscovered drawings by Japanese artist Katsushika Hokusai, who is best known for 19th-century masterpiece The Great Wave Off Kanagawa. Visitors can’t yet see the illustrations in person, but as the London institution notes in a statement, all 103 works… Continue Reading

Supreme Court Appointment Process: Consideration by the Senate Judiciary Committee

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CRS report via LC – Supreme Court Appointment Process: Consideration by the Senate Judiciary Committee, Updated September 22, 2020: “The appointment of a Supreme Court Justice is an event of major significance in American politics. Each appointment is of consequence because of the enormous judicial power the Supreme Court exercises as the highest appellate court… Continue Reading

Supreme Court Appointment Process: President’s Selection of a Nominee

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CRS report via LC Supreme Court Appointment Process: President’s Selection of a Nominee, Updated September 21, 2020: “The appointment of a Supreme Court Justice is an event of major significance in American politics. Each appointment is of consequence because of the enormous judicial power the Supreme Court exercises as the highest appellate court in the… Continue Reading

Cybercrime and the Law: Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and the 116th Congress

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CRS report via LC – Cybercrime and the Law: Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) and the 116th Congress, September 21, 2020: “…Since the original enactment of the CFAA in 1984, technology and the human relationship to it have continued to evolve. Although Congress has amended the CFAA on numerous occasions to respond to new… Continue Reading

Finland to deploy coronavirus-sniffing dogs at Helsinki Airport

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Washington Post – Very good dogs are being deployed to use their keen and accurate sensory acuity to identify illness and disease in humans. “…The voluntary canine tests will deliver results within 10 seconds and require less than a minute of travelers’ time, said Anna Hielm-Björkman, a researcher at the University of Helsinki who is… Continue Reading

How libraries are writing a new chapter during the pandemic

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National Geographic – Read about book bikes, bibliophile hotels, outdoor story times, and other ways libraries are reacting to COVID-19. “Americans’ love affair with libraries has only grown during the pandemic—and so has their book borrowing. According to OverDrive, which libraries use to loan out digital material, weekly e-book lending across the United States has… Continue Reading

The N95 shortage America can’t seem to fix

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Washington Post – Nurses and doctors depend on respirator masks to protect them from covid-19. So why are we still running low on an item that once cost around $1? “…Six months later, that shortage persists, leaving health-care workers exposed, patients at risk and public health experts flummoxed over a seemingly simple question: Why is… Continue Reading