NEW RESOURCES

Yale News: Gallery view: School of Art offers ‘virtual’ tours of student work. “Spring is thesis season at the Yale School of Art (SoA) — an opportunity for students to showcase their capstone projects after two years of intensive training and artistic development. Typically, the annual thesis exhibitions draw crowds to the school’s Green Hall Gallery, including visitors from New York City and elsewhere seeking to engage with the work of promising artists. This year, unable to host the public due to the pandemic, the SoA is offering virtual 3D tours that allow viewers to explore the shows from their laptops, smartphones, or tablets.”

EVENTS

Smithsonian: Hirshhorn Announces Fourth Season of Free Online Artist Talks, a Series Enjoyed by Over 22,000 Viewers So Far, March 17–May 26. “The program, which started as a summer series in July 2020, is the first time the museum has hosted conversations with artists consecutively every week. Together with Hirshhorn curators and acclaimed moderators, digital audiences from around the world can engage with renowned creatives and join the crucial conversations happening on a global scale. The upcoming spring season of ‘Talking to Our Time’ will stream 11 live talks, highlighting a diverse group of artists and collectives: Diana Al-Hadid, Teresita Fernández, Charles Gaines, Rachel Harrison, Deana Lawson, Riva Lehrer, Catherine Opie, Jacolby Satterwhite, Michelle Stuart, Danh Vō and Anicka Yi.”

TWEAKS AND UPDATES

MarketWatch: Big Tech CEOs pounded over social media’s role in promoting misinformation, extremism . “The chief executives of Google parent Alphabet Inc., Facebook Inc., and Twitter Inc. alternately were filleted, grilled and otherwise pummeled before the House Committee on Energy & Commerce on Thursday.”

AROUND THE SEARCH AND SOCIAL MEDIA WORLD

Slate: Non-English Editions of Wikipedia Have a Misinformation Problem . “During World War II, Unit 731 of the Japanese military undertook horrific medical experimentation in Manchukuo (Northeast China). Among other things, members of Unit 731 intentionally infected people with the plague as part of an effort to develop bioweapons. The unit’s crimes have been well documented. But if you read the Japanese Wikipedia page on Unit 731 in January, you wouldn’t get the full story. The article said that it is ‘a theory’ that human experiments actually took place. It was just one example of the whitewashing of war crimes on Japanese Wikipedia, as I discovered when I was researching the war.”

New York Times: Clueless About Discord? Read This.. “The talking and texting app Discord is popular with video gamers who use it to plot strategy for blowing up virtual enemies. But Mieke Göttsche and Bianca Visagie, avid readers from South Africa, use Discord for hosting thoughtful book club discussions. I spoke with Göttsche and Visagie to better understand the appeal of Discord and why it has been in deal talks with Microsoft for a transaction that could top $10 billion. Talking through how their book club uses the app helped me to better understand what the fuss is about.”

SECURITY & LEGAL

Houston Chronicle: Texas AG Ken Paxton refuses to release texts, emails sent during pro-Trump rally and Capitol riot. “The Texas attorney general’s office is attempting to withhold all messages Ken Paxton sent or received while in Washington for the pro-Donald Trump rally that devolved into a riot at the U.S. Capitol. Several news organizations in Texas have requested copies of the attorney general’s work-related communications. The Texas Public Information Act guarantees the public’s right to government records — even if those records are stored on personal devices or online accounts of public officials.”

SC Magazine: Policyholders may be the primary target in hack of cyber insurance provider CNA. “Insurance firm CNA Financial, a prominent provider of cyber insurance, confirmed a cyberattack against its systems, which has some concerned that cybercriminals may target policyholders. Cybercriminals generally know that companies represented by a cyber insurance company are more likely to pay a large ransomware demand than an uninsured business that doesn’t have the financial backing.”

DefenseNews: US military conducted 2 dozen cyber operations to head off 2020 election meddling. “In the run up to the 2020 presidential election, U.S. Cyber Command conducted over two dozen missions to block foreign adversaries’ efforts to undermine voting integrity, the commander told senators Thursday.”

RESEARCH & OPINION

BBC: Police warn students to avoid science website. “The City of London police’s Intellectual Property Crime Unit says using the Sci-Hub website could ‘pose a threat’ to students’ personal data. The police are concerned that users of the ‘Russia-based website’ could have information taken and misused online.”

OTHER STUFF I THINK IS COOL

The Register: Ticker tape and a binary message: Bank of England’s new Alan Turing £50 must be the nerdiest banknote ever. “Due to hit circulation on 23 June, the design replaces the relatively short-lived incarnation featuring Matthew Boulton and James Watt. Instead, the update will show the scientist Alan Turing and the Automatic Computing Engine (ACE) he developed….Also celebrating Turing’s imminent arrival on the note is UK agency GCHQ, which has created a set of puzzles that produce 11 words or names to be tapped into the agency’s Enigma machine simulator.” Good evening, Internet…

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