Atlas Obscura: From “unabridged” to “slanguage,” Madeline Kripke’s library is a logophile’s heaven (or hell). “Madeline Kripke’s first dictionary was a copy of Webster’s Collegiate that her parents gave her when she was a fifth grader in Omaha in the early 1950s. By the time of her death in 2020, at age 76, she had… Continue Reading
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Monthly Archives: December 2023
Readers want publishers to label AI-generated articles but trust outlets less when they do
Nieman Lab: “An overwhelming majority of readers would like news publishers to tell them when AI has shaped the news coverage they’re seeing. But, new research finds, news outlets pay a price when they disclose using generative AI. That’s the conundrum at the heart of new research from University of Minnesota’s Benjamin Toff and Oxford… Continue Reading
Pete Recommends – Weekly highlights on cyber security issues, December 23, 2023
Via LLRX – Pete Recommends – Weekly highlights on cyber security issues, December 23, 2023 – Privacy and cybersecurity issues impact every aspect of our lives – home, work, travel, education, finance, health and medical records – to name but a few. On a weekly basis Pete Weiss highlights articles and information that focus on the… Continue Reading
For 50 Years Endangered Species Act Has an Almost Perfect Record
The Messenger – How the groundbreaking law became a critical bulwark against a growing extinction crisis: “In the half-century since, more than 2,300 species from bald eagles to tiny river snails have been listed, and the ESA has helped keep 99% of those from extinction — including the Kirtland’s warbler. Though it has its flaws… Continue Reading
Access to Government Information: An Overview
CRS – Access to Government Information: An Overview Updated December 18, 2023: “Congress has long recognized the people’s right to know about the operations and actions of the federal government. A series of modern statutes provides a framework for ways the public may access government information. Built up over the past 60 years, these key… Continue Reading
ODNI Releases Intelligence Community Assessment of Foreign Threats to the 2022 U.S. Elections
“The Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) today released the declassified Intelligence Community Assessment of Foreign Threats to the 2022 U.S. Elections [redacted] Coordinated across the Intelligence Community (IC), the assessment addresses the intentions and efforts of foreign actors to influence or interfere with the 2022 U.S. elections. Within 45 days of the… Continue Reading
DOJ Launches National Law Enforcement Accountability Database
DOJ Press Release: “In Executive Order 14074, Advancing Effective, Accountable Policing and Criminal Justice Practices to Enhance Public Trust and Public Safety, the President declared a policy to “make policing safer and more effective by strengthening trust between law enforcement officers and the communities they serve.” As explained by the Executive Order, one of the… Continue Reading
How Strangers Got My Email Address From ChatGPT’s Model
The New York Times. Jeremy White [read free]- “Last month, I received an alarming email from someone I did not know: Rui Zhu, a Ph.D. candidate at Indiana University Bloomington. Mr. Zhu had my email address, he explained, because GPT-3.5 Turbo, one of the latest and most robust large language models (L.L.M.) from OpenAI, had… Continue Reading
Think Twice Before Giving Surveillance for the Holidays
EFF – Consider taking some time before the new year and review these suggestions to disable surveillance on all the gadgets and gizmos you gave and received for Christmas: “…it’s easy to default to giving the tech gifts that retailers tend to push on us this time of year: smart speakers, video doorbells, bluetooth trackers,… Continue Reading
Why AI is a disaster for the climate
The Guardian: “What to do when surrounded by people who are losing their minds about the Newest New Thing? Answer: reach for the Gartner Hype Cycle, an ingenious diagram that maps the progress of an emerging technology through five phases: the “technology trigger”, which is followed by a rapid rise to the “peak of inflated… Continue Reading
These Are the Jobs That Keep Older Americans Working
Bloomberg – Read Free “Occupations with the highest share of workers older than 65 have changed little, data from the past seven decades show. Americans may dream about being able to go off the clock when they reach retirement age, but a good number simply can’t or won’t. We compiled data on the occupations with… Continue Reading
Supreme Connections
Pro Publica: Supreme Connections – “Every year, the Supreme Court’s nine justices fill out a form that discloses their financial connections to companies and people. Using our new database, you can now search for organizations and people that have paid the justices, reimbursed them for travel, given them gifts and more. by Sergio Hernandez, Alex… Continue Reading
