JSTOR Daily – “Puzzles, or “dissected maps,” were invented in Georgian-era England, probably by a mapmaker named John Spilsbury in the early 1760s. Jigsaw puzzles have made a major comeback in 2020. In the spring, when the first shelter-in-place orders were issued in many regions of the country due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, there was a surge in demand for puzzles. Puzzle makers saw sales go up by 300 to 400%, and, due to the pandemic-related pause in production, quickly sold out of popular items. As this seemingly endless year has dragged on—with record-breaking numbers of COVID-19 cases in the U.S.—sheltering in place isn’t ending anytime soon…”
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Daily Archives: December 20, 2020
How Russian hackers infiltrated the US government for months without being spotted
MIT Technology Review – And why it could take months more to discover how many other governments and companies have been breached – “To carry out the breach, the hackers first broke into the systems of SolarWinds, an American software company. There, they inserted a back door into Orion, one of the company’s products, which… Continue Reading
These Are the States Where People Are Buying the Most Guns
24/7 Wall St: “The Federal Bureau of Investigation tracks gun sales and publishes a list of how many are handled as part of its National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). Each month, the figures are reported by state. Nearly everyone put through this system qualifies as a buyer. People who are excluded usually have… Continue Reading
The Antitrust Case Against Big Tech, Shaped by Tech Industry Exiles
The New York Times – “Regulators are relying on insiders like Dina Srinivasan, who left her digital ad job after concluding that “Facebook and Google were going to win and everybody else is going to lose…With no background in academia but an insider’s understanding of the digital ad world and a stack of economics books,… Continue Reading
Schools and the Path to Zero
Brown School of Public Health – Pandemics Explained – “Translating the latest evidence into clear recommendations, a multi-disciplinary group of experts delivers guidance on how schools and districts can reduce in-school Covid-19 risks for both children and adults to near zero. The key to opening schools safely? High quality infection control. During this year of… Continue Reading
Nature’s 10: ten people who helped shape science in 2020
Nature – “A COVID vaccine developer, an Arctic voyager and a prime minister are some of the people behind the year’s big research stories…The Nature’s 10 list explores key developments in science this year and some of the people who played important parts in these milestones. Along with their colleagues, these individuals helped to make… Continue Reading
The 89 Best Book Covers of 2020
LitHub – Emily Temple: “…So for the fifth year in a row, I surveyed a group of professional book cover designers (this year it was 29 of them) about their favorite covers of the year. They came back with an astounding 89 different book covers that impressed, delighted, and inspired them, representing work by 54… Continue Reading
‘I’m Haunted by What I Did’ as a Lawyer in the Trump Justice Department
The New York Times Opinion by Erica Newland, counsel at Protect Democracy – she worked in the Office of Legal Counsel at the Justice Department from 2016-18. “I was an attorney at the Justice Department when Donald Trump was elected president. I worked in the Office of Legal Counsel, which is where presidents turn for… Continue Reading
The SolarWinds cyberattack: The hack, the victims, and what we know
Bleeping Computer: “Since the SolarWinds supply chain attack was disclosed last Sunday, there has been a whirlwind of news, technical details, and analysis released about the hack. Because the amount of information that was released in such a short time is definitely overwhelming, we have published this as a roundup of this week’s SolarWinds news.… Continue Reading
Google Faces Two Additional Antitrust Suits
EPIC – [week of December 14, 2020]: “Two antitrust lawsuits were filed against Google by state Attorneys General. On Wednesday, Texas and eight other states filed a suit alleging anticompetitive conduct, exclusionary practices and deceptive misrepresentations in connection with Google’s role in advertising technology. “Google’s entire business model is to collect comprehensive data about every… Continue Reading
What to Do Before You Die: A Tech Checklist
WSJ [paywall] – What happens to your Facebook and Google accounts—and other digital stuff—when you die? “Nothing if you don’t make a plan. Earlier this year, I recorded my mother talking about her life. A few weeks later, after a complication with a routine medical procedure, she was in an intensive care unit, fighting for… Continue Reading
