Vox – A YouTuber’s deep dive on plagiarism tries to make viewers care when creators steal content: “Copying has always been a part of internet culture. Sometimes it’s ethical, sometimes not. It’s almost always incentivized: Once social media began reshaping online life, copying became a go-to tactic for getting views. When copying crosses an ethical… Continue Reading
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Author Archives: Sabrina I. Pacifici
How to speed up your web browser
PopSci- Don’t be dawdling when you’re online: “Many of us spend hours each day interacting with a web browser like Google Chrome or Apple Safari. Those long sessions mean even small impacts on performance can end up making a big difference in terms of day-to-day productivity. Waiting just an extra half-second for each webpage to… Continue Reading
Apple admits to secretly giving governments push notification data
Ars Technica: “Governments have been secretly tracking the app activity of an unknown number of people using Apple and Google smartphones, US Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) revealed today. In a letter demanding that the Department of Justice update or repeal policies prohibiting companies from informing the public about these covert government requests, Wyden warned that… Continue Reading
Gender-Based Violence as a Weapon of War during the October 7 Hamas Attack
Physicians for Human Rights Israel (PHRI) – preliminary report, November 26, 2023. “As time goes on, a fuller picture of what transpired during Hamas’ October 7, 2023, assault on the communities of the Gaza Envelope is beginning to emerge. It is becoming more apparent that the violence perpetrated against women, men, and children also included… Continue Reading
Kia Hyundai theft data
Vice/Motherboard: What It’s Like To Own the Cars That Became a Viral Sensation To Steal; U.S. Cities Have a Staggering Problem of Kia and Hyundai Thefts. This Data Shows It. Thefts of easy-to-steal Kias and Hyundais are a scourge on American cities. Detailed data from 68 cities obtained by Motherboard tells part of the story.… Continue Reading
The Nuclear Weapon Systems Project
Via Jeremy Singer Vine – Data is Plural: “The Council on Strategic Risks’s Nuclear Weapon Systems Project aims “to document every type of nuclear weapon system ever deployed” by China, France, Russia, the UK, and the US — the five “nuclear weapon states” per the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. The project’s core dataset, launched last week,… Continue Reading
A Bold New Plan for Preserving Online Privacy and Security
IEEE Spectrum: “…We’re all hoping that companies will keep us safe, but it’s increasingly clear that they don’t, can’t, and won’t. We should stop expecting them to.” To ensure that cloud services do not learn more than they should, and that a breach of one does not pose a fundamental threat to our data, we… Continue Reading
Your car is probably harvesting your data. Here’s how you can wipe it
The Record: “It is so easy to vacuum up private data from vehicles that Andrea Amico taught his daughter how to extract text messages from her mom’s car when she was only eight years old. Blue-haired and an engineer by training, Amico has a hacker’s mentality, which has manifested in giving drivers a way to… Continue Reading
Writing Documentation for Your House
Luke Hsiao: “Have you considered writing technical documentation for your house? As a first time homeowner, there have been numerous times where I wish I had some documentation to reference for a whole slew of scenarios. As an engineer, I write documentation all the time to answer these questions and build up a knowledge base… Continue Reading
Harvard Gutted Initial Team Examining Facebook Files Following $500M Donation
Whistleblower Aid: “Harvard Gutted Initial Team Examining Facebook Files Following $500 Million Donation from Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, Whistleblower Aid Client Reveals. University’s Former Disinformation – Expert Joan Donovan Calls for Investigation. Harvard University dismantled its prestigious team of online disinformation experts after a foundation run by Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan donated… Continue Reading
News literacy in the age of AI
News Literary Project: “Chatbots like ChatGPT that are built on generative artificial intelligence technologies — a set of algorithms that can “generate” content based on a large dataset — have captured the world’s imagination. Reactions to this great leap forward have ranged from enthusiastic to alarmed. This technology is evolving rapidly and to keep up… Continue Reading
Digitized records from wildlife centers show the most common ways that humans harm wild animals
The Conversation: “At hundreds of wildlife rehabilitation centers across the U.S., people can learn about wild animals and birds at close range. These sites, which may be run by nonprofits or universities, often feature engaging exhibits, including “ambassador” animals that can’t be released – an owl with a damaged wing, for example, or a fox… Continue Reading
