NEW RESOURCES

Isle of Man Today: Website is a one-stop shop for information about archaeology and old buildings . “Historic Environment Records are information services that provide access to resources relating to the archaeology and old buildings of a defined geographic area. They contain details on archaeological sites and finds, historic buildings and historic landscapes and are frequently updated. Information on the island’s historic places, archaeological sites, landscapes and historic buildings can be found on the site.”

BuzzFeed News: Surveillance Nation. “A controversial facial recognition tool designed for policing has been quietly deployed across the country with little to no public oversight. According to reporting and data reviewed by BuzzFeed News, more than 7,000 individuals from nearly 2,000 public agencies nationwide have used Clearview AI to search through millions of Americans’ faces, looking for people, including Black Lives Matter protesters, Capitol insurrectionists, petty criminals, and their own friends and family members. BuzzFeed News has developed a searchable table of 1,803 publicly funded agencies whose employees are listed in the data as having used or tested the controversial policing tool before February 2020.”

EVENTS

National Humanities Center: A virtual conference exploring the critical intersection between the humanities and artificial intelligence.. “Join us for a series of virtual events—presentations, conversations, webinars, film screenings, and an art exhibition—highlighting perspectives from leading humanists, scientists, engineers, artists, writers, and software company executives collectively advancing inquiry into key emerging questions…. Thanks to generous support from our sponsors, this conference is offered free of charge. However, registration is required to access conference sessions, view films, and explore the online art exhibit.” The conference takes place April 7-22.

NASA: Watch Next Space Station Crew Launch Live on NASA TV, NASA App. “Three space travelers, including NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei, are poised to launch Friday, April 9, from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan to the International Space Station. NASA Television, the agency’s website, and the NASA app will provide comprehensive prelaunch and launch-to-docking coverage.”

TWEAKS AND UPDATES

Yale University Library: Three new online student exhibitions reflect research in library’s collections. “Each year, Yale Library selects up to three students to transform their senior research papers or projects into the unique narrative form of a library exhibit with guidance and assistance from library staff. The exhibits are normally displayed in the Exhibition Corridor of Sterling Memorial Library, but with pandemic access restrictions, the 2020-2021 exhibits are now more widely viewable online. This year’s exhibits highlight the diversity of research underway in the library’s collections, with the three students coming from the English, Environmental Science, and Architecture departments at Yale.”

The Verge: Yelp is making it easier for users to search for Asian-owned businesses. “Yelp is rolling out a new tool that will allow businesses the option to identify themselves as Asian-owned, chief diversity officer Miriam Warren announced today. The new optional attribute will make it easier for Yelp users to find and support Asian-owned businesses easily.”

AROUND THE SEARCH AND SOCIAL MEDIA WORLD

The New Republic: How a Bunch of Revolutionary War Reenactors Got Caught Up in Facebook’s Purge of Militia Groups. “[Rory] Nolan belongs to historical reenactment groups that sometimes dramatize Revolutionary War-era militias (you can begin to see the problem), and he manages the Facebook and Instagram pages for several of them. He tried to establish new accounts under new email addresses, but they didn’t last long before getting swept up in the same moderation process. Again, they were banned with no possibility of appeal. And like that, Nolan’s social media presence—and much of his social life—quietly winked out of existence.”

Reform Austin News: Gov. Greg Abbott Publicly Slammed Facebook. Privately, He’s Courting the Social Media Giant to Build a Second Data Center in Texas.. “Last month, Gov. Greg Abbott blasted the actions of Facebook as ‘un-American [and] un-Texan,’ accusing it and other social media giants of spearheading a ‘dangerous movement to silence conservative voices.’… At the same time, his office was working quietly with the company with the hope that it will soon build a second data center in the state, according to documents provided to The Texas Tribune by the Tech Transparency Project, a technology research arm of the nonprofit watchdog group Campaign for Accountability.”

University of Dayton: University of Dayton faculty develop courses, digital archive to preserve Paul Laurence Dunbar’s legacy with $150K grant from Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. “The two-year, $150,000 Mellon Foundation grant provides funding for building the digital Dunbar Library and Archive, which will make hundreds of Dunbar-related documents artifacts freely available online. It also provides funding for faculty who want to integrate Dunbar into their courses and for students to participate in Dunbar-related research experiences. In addition, the grant provides funding for two organizational partners, Saint Louis University’s Center for Digital Humanities and Ohio History Connection.”

SECURITY & LEGAL

Interlochen Public Radio: Misleading social media ads bash a rooftop solar bill. They’re backed by big utility companies.. “Anyone scrolling Facebook in Michigan over the past week may have noticed ads attacking a new energy bill in the statehouse. The proposed legislation would allow more people to put solar panels on their homes or businesses. It gets rid of a cap limiting how many solar installations can connect to the grid. Social media ads say the proposal caters to out-of-state energy developers and threatens a reliable power grid. One of the ads reads, ‘Don’t let out-of-state special interests do to Michigan what they did to Texas.’ Clean energy advocates say the ads are misleading.

The Intercept: Lexisnexis To Provide Giant Database Of Personal Information To ICE. “THE POPULAR LEGAL RESEARCH and data brokerage firm LexisNexis signed a $16.8 million contract to sell information to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, according to documents shared with The Intercept. The deal is already drawing fire from critics and comes less than two years after the company downplayed its ties to ICE, claiming it was ‘not working with them to build data infrastructure to assist their efforts.'”

RESEARCH & OPINION

Video Games Chronicle: Analysis: 2,000 digital-only games will disappear when PlayStation closes its stores. “Although users will still be able to redownload their previous purchases for the foreseeable future, from July 2 it will no longer be possible to buy games on the PS3 or PSP online marketplaces, and come August 27 the same will apply to the Vita too. Of the games set to disappear from the formats, the vast majority are available on other platforms such as older PlayStation consoles or PC. However, around 138 games will essentially become lost forever once the stores close, our analysis suggests.” Good afternoon, Internet…

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