TWEAKS AND UPDATES

TechCrunch: Instagram Location Stories appear in Explore. Is Story Search Coming?. “It’s taking Instagram less and less time to copy Snapchat. Less than two months after Snapchat launched its Stories Search feature for seeing what’s going on at a location or related to a topic, Instagram is rolling out Location Stories to its Explore page.”

Recode: Facebook is delaying the launch of its original videos until the end of summer. “Facebook’s big push into original video is taking longer than expected. The social network’s plans to release a slate of made-for-Facebook original video shows has been pushed back and may not arrive until the end of summer, according to multiple sources.”

USEFUL STUFF

From GeneaPress: SCGS Genealogy Jamboree 2017 Announces Free Live Streaming Sessions. “Thanks to Jamboree 2017 Diamond Sponsor Ancestry, the Southern California Genealogical Society and Genealogy Jamboree are able to offer 14 hours of high-quality family history education to registrants absolutely free. Handouts will be provided with each session.”

Hackaday has an explanatory post about machine learning and neural networks. “If you’re familiar with my quantum theory articles, you’ll know that I like to take complicated subjects, strip away the complication the best I can and explain it in a way that anyone can understand. It is the goal of this article to apply a similar approach to this idea of Deep Learning. If neural networks make you cross-eyed and machine learning gives you nightmares, read on. You’ll see that ‘Deep Learning’ sounds like a daunting subject, but is really just a $20 term used to describe something whose underpinnings are relatively simple.”

AROUND THE SEARCH AND SOCIAL MEDIA WORLD

Wired: Medicine Is Going Digital. The FDA Is Racing to Catch Up. “Today, machine learning powers more and more medical device software. And because it is always learning and improving, it is constantly changing products on the fly. For most regulators, an ever-changing algorithm is their worst nightmare. But [Bakul] Patel is one of those rare Washington bureaucrats who’s also a fervently optimistic futurist. And he’s got big plans to get federal regulators off Washington time and up to Silicon Valley speeds.”

The Guardian: How social media filter bubbles and algorithms influence the election. “One of the most powerful players in the British election is also one of the most opaque. With just over two weeks to go until voters go to the polls, there are two things every election expert agrees on: what happens on social media, and Facebook in particular, will have an enormous effect on how the country votes; and no one has any clue how to measure what’s actually happening there.” I’m taking a little comfort in the idea that the rest of the world has learned from our dumpster fires.

Forbes: How China’s Social Media Giant Tencent Is Shaking Up Traditional Philanthropy. “The Wenchuan earthquake in Sichuan that killed 69,000 people in 2008 shook up China’s social media and online giant Tencent Holdings, located 1,000 kilometers away in Shenzhen. Social media was buzzing with users that wanted to lend a hand during one of China’s worst disasters in modern history. The company previously made scattered efforts involving philanthropy, such as donating PCs, but its leaders now had the same question as everyone else: What more could they do?”

SECURITY/LEGAL ISSUES

The Verge: An internal Google email shows how the company cracks down on leaks. “Google is facing a lawsuit in San Francisco Superior Court alleging that the company has fostered a culture of secrecy and fear. Leaks to the media are forbidden, and employees are encouraged to monitor their colleagues for leaks, according to the suit, which was filed in December by an anonymous ex-employee who claims they were unjustly fired.”

Reuters: EU to conclude Google antitrust cases in next few months. “EU antitrust regulators will rule in the ‘next few months’ whether Alphabet’s Google abused its dominance of internet searches and other areas, a senior European Commission official said on Monday, an outcome that could lead to a hefty fine.”

RESEARCH & OPINION

Phys.org: Snapchat leads augmented reality gains: researchers. “Augmented reality is seeing strong gains among Americans thanks to social networks like Snapchat, Instagram and Facebook, a market research firm said Monday. A new report by eMarketer said some 40 million Americans will engage with augmented reality monthly in 2017, up 30 percent over last year. Virtual reality is also growing, but at a slower pace, according to the researchers.” Good afternoon, Internet…

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