Aaron Swartz sez, "Bold legislators in New Jersey and Idaho have introduced bills
stopping the new porno-scanners, but that's not enough — we need to
pass these bills in every state! So I set up a thing to make it
super-easy to contact your state legislator about it. Just add your
name and zip code to our petition and we'll automatically email your
state rep."
This 1997 pitch for Rockwell Automation's Retroencabulator makes me feel like an idiot for not already owning one. The technology improves upon a 1944 machine called the turboencabulator: The original machine had a base plate of prefabulated amulite, surmounted by a malleable logarithmic casing in such a way that the two main spurving bearings were… READ THE REST
Lou Ottens, who in 1963 invented the cassette tape while an engineer at Philips, has died. He was 94. I'm glad that he lived to see the cassette resurgence of recent years. From NPR: The cassette tape was Ottens' answer to the large reel-to-reel tapes that provided high-quality sound but were seen as too clunky… READ THE REST
A scoop from Buzzfeed News: "Parler wanted Donald Trump on its site. Trump's company wanted an ownership stake. Here's the exclusive story of their negotiation." Parler is the chat app founded in 2018 by former college roommates John Matze and Jared Thomson, and Rebekah Mercer, the right-wing political donor and daughter of hedge fund magnate… READ THE REST
High school Spanish class is permanently embroidered into most of our brains. Vocabulary quizzes. Verb conjugation drills. Language lab. It's all tattooed on our souls like it happened yesterday, right? Estudiantes. Escuchen. Language learning doesn't have to be like that. Instead of being trapped in endless repetitions and dry academic book learning, Jumpspeak wants to… READ THE REST
Leadership is a magic quality that few truly possess. Oh sure, many people have to lead as part of their job description, but few actually have the inherent ability to make others better, cultivate trust, focus on problem-solving, and give team members confidence. Of course, not everybody has to be born with the ability to… READ THE REST
For any companies or individuals who fear being hacked by malevolent cybercriminals, there's some good news… and some bad news. According to an annual M-Trends report on cyber attacks, companies are spotting intrusions on their networks a lot faster than in the past. Last year, it took an average of 56 days from a first incursion… READ THE REST