Weekly Links & Thoughts #45
Here is a weekly selection of thoughtful opinion pieces, interesting analyses and significant yet under-reported information bits from the digital and technology world. Published and commented every Thursday, just in time so you have something good to read during the weekend.
======
If you want to make sure not to miss this link selection, sign up for the weekly newsletter. It is sent out each Thursday right after this post goes live.
======
- Why scientific paradigms keep changing
One of the biggest misunderstandings with science is that once something has been established as a consensus scientific fact, it won’t change anymore, ever. This piece explains why the opposite is the case. - Jeff Bezos got Darwinism all Wrong!
I am not a big fan of the Darwian work philosophy that some leading U.S. tech giants tend to follow. So it does not come as a surprise then that I enjoyed reading a text that describes why ruthless competition is a prescription for disaster. - Dear Geek
This text is already a couple of years old, but has not lost any of its relevance. An inspiring plea to all geeks of this world to contribute to solutions fixing the issues and evils of our times. - Why Self-Driving Cars Must Be Programmed to Kill
This and other similar ethical questions is what I consider to be the biggest obstacle on the way to mass adoption of self-driving cars. I am not fully convinced that we’ll get there in the near future, no matter whether the technology itself will be ready or not. - Sorry Elon, Tesla’s autopilot release was reckless
I fully see the point of this post, even though I am not sure yet what my position is. - The invisible device that powers everything you do
I won’t reveal here the subject of this article, but you probably can already guess. - Europe’s Other Crisis: A Digital Recession
The European Union’s single digital market initiative is supposed to fix that issue. There is a lot of work to be done. - The European Union’s New Net Neutrality ‘Protections’ Are A Joke
Unfortunately, the adoption of lousy net neutrality rules by the European Union might make matters even worse. It strengthens the big U.S. firms’ dominance as well as European telecommunication operators, but not the digital economy in general, which only has to deal with one additional layer of bureaucracy and complexity. From that point of view, the rules are typical European: complex. - Apple TV is a radical rethinking of your relationship with the hardware and games you own
Unlike what the headline suggests, this is actually a very comprehensive explainer for Apple’s new app thinning technology, which makes apps much smaller and puts a lot of the resources in the cloud, ready for on-demand access. It plays a big role on the new Apple TV, but is also supported by iOS 9. - Write Like You Talk
Most of Paul Graham’s blog posts are pure gold. This one is no exception. His advise to write like you talk sounds trivial at first, yet I would claim that few writers consider that concept. - Freedom House Report: Internet Freedom Declines
For the fifth year in a row. I am afraid this will be the common theme for the next years, if not decades. Governments all over the world realize the threat of a free, connected civil society to their power. So they take action to control and suppress it. - Why Hearables May Be The Next Big Thing In Tech
First time I hear the term “hearables”, which seem to become a thing. - Life is Strange is my favorite TV show of the year — except it’s a video game
I have the hypothesis that one day, movies/series and computer games will fully merge. This process is already happening. - Software Eats Healthcare, For Dummies
A comprehensive piece explaining how software will change and revolutionize healthcare. It takes a bit longer than in other areas, but the wait is worth it, since the benefits for society and patience could be huge. - Pandora Loses More Than A Third Of Its Value As It Battles Apple Music For Listeners
Times are tough for Pandora, the U.S.-based personalized radio service which once was a big innovator. But now on-demand streaming is luring away users from Pandora. - Startups and Cultural Optimism
Sometimes the cultural optimism that characterizes the startup scene can be annoying. But I agree with the sentiment that generally this is a great thing, because it is so rare in other parts of the economy (and life). - Why Malcolm Gladwell’s ideas are so interesting, whether or not they’re true
The concepts and ideas from Malcom Gladwell’s books have played an important role in understanding and explaining various phenomenon that characterize the digital age. He has made social science cool and popular. But how? This text investigates. - Could Messaging Apps Kill Music Streaming Services?
The idea that one day, streaming music might live directly inside of messaging apps, does not sound too far off. And allows for entertaining musings.
Recently on meshedsociety.com