Here's a turn-up for the books: AT&T, Google, the Electronic Frontier Foundation and many others have formed a pro-privacy coalition that's asked Congress for updates to wiretapping laws to close loopholes that make it easy to listen in on "Web 2.0" without a warrant: "the current electronic privacy laws are woefully outdated and must be updated to provide clear privacy protections that reflect the always-on, location-enabled, Web 2.0 world of the 21st century." (EFF is suing AT&T over its complicity in the Bush-era illegal NSA wiretapping, and has filed an objection to Google's Book Search settlement on privacy grounds — it says something that all three organizations agree on the need for this update to privacy law)
EFF, AT&T and Google all on the same side of this privacy fight
Documentary series on the downfall of American Apparel
With a marketing message that combined sex with sweatshop-free manufacturing, American Apparel seemed like an unstoppable brand. But then a series of bad business decisions followed by multiple sexual harassment lawsuits against founder Dov Charney (like masturbating during meetings), saw the T-shirt empire unravel. In 9 episodes, Big Rad Wolf, streaming on Quibi, tells the… READ THE REST
Hacked hospital chain Universal Health Services says all 250 U.S. facilities hobbled by attack
Earlier this week, we reported that a "Suspected ransomware attack" took down the Universal Health Services hospital network, and that doctors and nurses were using paper records because the entire computer system was offline. New reporting by AP shows that all 250 of the network's hospital facilities were "hobbled in last weekend's malware attack and… READ THE REST
MEAT CAKES: Subway sandwiches too sugary to legally be considered bread in Ireland
The bread that Subway uses for sandwiches contains so much sugar that they may not be described as bread in Ireland. The country's supreme court ruled that a franchise there selling the suspiciously sweet sandwiches cannot pay the lower taxes that apply to 'staple foods'. However, the five-judge court ruled that the sandwiches must attract… READ THE REST
For under $40, you can learn all about Python, machine learning and artificial intelligence
This week in thinking machines news, a Harvard professor and his students have now raised $14 million to create artificial intelligence so smart that even hackers can't crack it. Meanwhile, reports from the White House suggest the federal government is close to issuing their directives on how agencies should regulate AI going forward. And if… READ THE REST
This laptop cooling pad can save your computer and your legs
Back when you used to split time between home and the office, it really wasn't usually a big deal. But now that you spend hour after hour tapping away at that one laptop all day and all night long, you should probably start paying attention to just how freakin' hot that thing is getting. In… READ THE REST
Memrise has a unique take on teaching you a foreign language
When you decide to sign on to learning a new language, you're not doing it so you can learn how to conjugate verbs in Spanish. You're learning it so if you go to Mexico or run into a Spanish speaker, you'll be able to converse and understand what's happening around. Dull classroom recitations and boring… READ THE REST
