NEW RESOURCES

Geoscience BC: Mining Geoscience Data to Put It on the Map. “Data for hundreds more mineral exploration and development reports in British Columbia can now be searched by location for the first time, thanks to a new Geoscience BC minerals project.”

Virginia Department of Health: Virginia Department of Health Launches Firearm Injuries in Virginia: Emergency Department Visits Dashboard. “Today, the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) launched a new data dashboard on firearm injuries in Virginia showing the number and rate of emergency department (ED) visits from 2016 to 2022. The dashboard shows firearm injury data by year, health district, age group, sex, and race/ethnicity across Virginia.”

KGW: Historians document Oregon’s unique ‘lesbian mecca’. “A new living history archive is now online to show a unique slice of Oregon life. The ‘Outliers and Outlaws’ project showcases communities of lesbians who made Eugene and southern Oregon home in the 1960s, ’70s, ’80s and ’90s.”

TWEAKS AND UPDATES

James Webb Space Telescope: How To See Webb’s First Images! . “The public release of Webb’s first images and spectra is July 12 – now less than two weeks away! The Webb team has confirmed that that 15 out of 17 instrument modes are ready for science, with just two more still to go. As we near the end of commissioning, we wanted to let you know where you can see the first Webb science data and how to participate in the celebration of Webb science!”

VentureBeat: Google announces big update to Password Manager . “Today, Google released a blog post announcing some key changes to Password Manager. The new changes will enable users who have multiple passwords for the same sites or apps, to automatically group them on Chrome and Android devices.”

USEFUL STUFF

Search Engine Land: 11 Google Sheets formulas SEOs should know. “While it’s not great at plotting ranking data (inverting the y-axis is always ugly), there are numerous ways to use Google Sheets for SEO. Here are 11 of the formulas and tips I find myself using for SEO on an almost daily basis – for keyword management, internationalization, content/URL management and dashboards.” Just ignore the SEO part. This is an excellent roundup of Google Sheets functions with quick, digestible examples.

AROUND THE INTERNET WORLD

Motor1: Ford Ends Print, Digital New Vehicle Brochures Starting July 1. “New vehicle brochures have been a staple in the auto industry for decades, but that long tradition could be coming to an end at Ford starting July 1. The automaker is reportedly ending the creation of brochures in both print and digital format, leaving Ford’s official website as the only source for current vehicle information.”

Rest of World: Diaspora communities reframe history, one Instagram post at a time. “Marwan Kaabour has always been a collector. The London-based designer traces the hobby back to his childhood in Beirut, Lebanon. ‘Perhaps the most serious collection was an insanely well-organized collection of Spice Girls merchandise,’ he remembers with a laugh. Today, Kaabour is collecting photographs, video clips, and other rare visual media on the Instagram account Takweer, a digital archive with 16,000 followers that maps the intersections of queerness and Arab history.

SECURITY & LEGAL

Ars Technica: Billing fraud apps can disable Android Wi-Fi and intercept text messages. “Android malware developers are stepping up their billing fraud game with apps that disable Wi-Fi connections, surreptitiously subscribe users to pricey wireless services, and intercept text messages, all in a bid to collect hefty fees from unsuspecting users, Microsoft said on Friday.”

WIRED: Young Thug and What Happens When Prosecutors Use Social Media. “YOUNG THUG AND Gunna are two of music’s most prolific, playful talents. Despite their mainstream rap stardom, they remain unafraid to shape-shift. For years now, by force of will and pure joy, they have kept the radio interesting. On May 11 they were arrested and charged in Georgia’s Fulton County Superior Court with conspiracy to violate the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act.”

TechCrunch: Amazon agrees to drop Prime cancellation ‘dark patterns’ in Europe. “Amazon has agreed to simplify the process required for cancelling its Prime membership subscription service across its sites in the European Union, both on desktop and mobile interfaces, following a series of complaints from regional consumer protection groups. The coordinated complaints about Amazon’s confusing and convoluted cancellation process for Prime were announced back in April 2021 — so it’s taken just over a year for the e-commerce giant to agree to change its ways.”

RESEARCH & OPINION

Washington Post: Okay, Google: To protect women, collect less data about everyone. “A search for ‘Plan B,’ a ping to Google Maps at an abortion clinic or even a message you send about taking a pregnancy test could all become criminal evidence. There is something Google could do about this: stop collecting — and start deleting — data that could be used to prosecute abortions. Yet so far, Google and other Big Tech companies have committed to few product changes that might endanger their ability to profit off our personal lives. Nor have they publicly committed to how they might fight legal demands related to prosecuting abortions.” Google has announced that it will be deleting some location data. Good morning, Internet…

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