NEW RESOURCES

Google Blog: A digital exhibit to elevate Indigenous art. “In March 2020, the 22nd Biennale of Sydney opened to wide acclaim—only to close after 10 days because of COVID-19. The Biennale has since physically reopened to limited audiences, but now, through a virtual exhibit on Google Arts & Culture, people all over the world can experience it. This year’s Biennale is led by First Nations artists, and showcases work from marginalized communities around the world, under the artistic direction of the Indigenous Australian artist, Brook Andrew. It’s titled NIRIN—meaning “edge”—a word of Brook’s mother’s Nation, the Wiradjuri people of western New South Wales.”

TWEAKS AND UPDATES

CNET: YouTube Kids launches ‘Summer of Movies’ to help keep your little ones entertained. “YouTube Kids said its summer collection will include content from cartoon characters like Pocoyo, Oggy, Franklin the turtle, Winx Club and more. The collection is also said to feature educational videos, animated short films and content from Disney, Nickelodeon, BBC Studios and The Wiggles, among others.”

Middle East Monitor: Egypt releases social media influencer jailed for ‘immoral videos’. “TikTok influencer Manar Samy has been released from Egyptian jail on a bail of 20,000 Egyptian pounds ($1,253) after being arrested earlier this month for posting ‘immoral videos’. Samy was sentenced to three years imprisonment earlier this month on charges of “inciting debauchery, immorality and stirring up instincts” through her online videos, according to a prosecution statement.”

USEFUL STUFF

How-To Geek: How to Use the iPhone Camera App: The Ultimate Guide. “According to Flickr, the iPhone is the most popular camera in the world. Every year, Apple tweaks and improves it, which is one of the most compelling reasons to upgrade to the latest model. To take the best pictures with your iPhone, though, you’ll have to master some basics.”

MakeUseOf: 5 Ways to Build Good Habits and Break Bad Habits With Technology . “Self-improvement is a difficult path and you can use all the help you get. These free tools are here to help you break a bad habit or build a good habit, as easily as possible. Productivity experts have several theories on how we form a habit. Some people believe it takes 21 days doing a task repeatedly, others think it takes 66 days. And there’s the science of willpower, emotions, feedback loops, and other factors involved. But the bottom line is to stick with it, and that’s what these websites, apps, and online courses will help you do.”

AROUND THE SEARCH AND SOCIAL MEDIA WORLD

University of Toronto: U of T alumna aims to bring the history of Emancipation Day, on Aug. 1, to a wider audience. “The history – and recent revival – of Windsor’s Emancipation Day is being closely followed by Tonya Sutherland, who graduated from the University of Toronto with a master’s degree in museum studies this year. Building on research for her 2018 capstone project, Sutherland and two other women from the Toronto area – retired teacher Catherine MacDonald and actor and producer Audra Gray – sought to bring this chapter of Black Canadian history to a wider audience.”

SECURITY & LEGAL

TorrentFreak: Google Takes No Action for 99.2% of Copyright Notices Targeting Internet Archive. “Copyright holders and anti-piracy groups might want to consider best use of their resources when sending takedown notices to Google targeting the Internet Archive. According to data published by Google, 99.2% of complaints against IA result in ‘no action taken’, with just 0.1% of complaints resulting in some kind of takedown.”

Bleeping Computer: Startups disclose data breaches after massive 386M records leak. “This week, BleepingComputer was the first to report that ShinyHunters, a threat actor known for data breaches, began to leak the stolen databases of eighteen web sites for free on a hacker forum. Most of the companies targeted by these attacks appear to be startups, with the full list of the 18 data breaches and their updated disclosure status are listed below.”

RESEARCH & OPINION

CNN: The video of my daughter’s murder is still on YouTube and Facebook. They should have to take it down. “My daughter Alison was murdered on live television on August 26, 2015. To this day, the video of her murder is still being hosted on YouTube and Facebook. Both platforms took down the original videos, but the videos were reposted by conspiracy theorists and other bad actors. Along with my advocacy for gun violence prevention, I’ve spent the last five years trying to get Facebook and Google, which owns YouTube, to take down the reposted videos.”

MIT Technology Review: Why Congress should look at Twitter and Facebook. “Removing popular individuals—and not just foreign influencers—is a significant step in the battle against disinformation, because influencers depend on their name as a brand. Without access to their name as a keyword, they experience difficulty reestablishing their audiences on other platforms. This is precisely why deplatforming works to prevent misinformation and harassment.” Good afternoon, Internet…

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