On the latest What’s New podcast, we look at the mysterious and complex nature of human sight—“How We See,” with vision researcher Ennio Mingolla. Includes a discussion of the Mona Lisa and Leonardo’s insight; how frogs see flies; and the problems with self-driving cars’ vision.
Here at @NortheasternLib we have an opening for an Engineering Librarian, who will design experiential learning and research opportunities for engineering students using library content, spaces, tools, and services. I hope you’ll consider joining us.
The view from Northeastern’s library is spectacular right now
New issue of my newsletter is out: “Humane Ingenuity 9: GPT-2 and You” — The act of reading in an age when texts might be artificially generated by a computer, & more on renovating a library. (Or subscribe for all issues—it’s free.)
I think GPT-2 says less about artificial intelligence and more about how human intelligence is constantly looking for, and accepting of, stereotypical narrative genres, and how our mind always wants to make sense of any text it encounters, no matter how odd.
Teaching your kid how to drive is like being in a movie about a video game in which losing means you die in real life
New issue of my newsletter Humane Ingenuity is out: “Ebooks: It’s Complicated”—what went wrong with ebooks and e-readers, why Macmillan’s eight-week embargo on ebooks for libraries stings, and where to go from here. (Subscribe to the Humane Ingenuity newsletter.)
On the latest What’s New podcast, we go inside CERN and the Large Hadron Collider with physicist Louise Skinnari. Hear about the 40 terabytes of data produced per second, the search for dark matter, and how to write a paper with 4,000 authors. Tune in!
Belle has gotten good at blocking the stairs so you have to pet her.
Belle is concerned about the giant spider and dragon that have appeared on our neighbor’s porch
As the dean of a library, the possibility of a raccoon invasion is why I got a coonhound this year.
“You choose the web you want. But you have to do the work.” —@brentsimmons (Yep.)
Fall has reached the Post-Impressionism stage
My sister’s dog is so droopy he melts into the rug
New issue of my newsletter is out: “Humane Ingenuity 7: Getting Weird with Technology to Find Our Humanity”—weird tech art, gonzo data science, media archaeology, new life for old books and daguerreotypes, and much more. (Subscribe to get every issue in your inbox.)
On the latest episode of the What’s New podcast from the Northeastern University Library, I talk with Matthew Goodwin about using sensors to understand and predict behavior, with a special focus on caring for children with severe autism. Tune in!
Fall symmetry
Belle is enjoying a nice fall morning
Picked up a copy of @hodgman’s Medallion Status for my flight today and I’m sorry to report that it does NOT allow you to board the plane first.
Love this initiative from @AV_DiscoTech et al.: the Memory Lab Network, putting digitization/preservation tools and services into public libraries across the country. #DLFforum
This week my “Humane Ingenuity” newsletter comes to you from the Digital Library Federation forum, and I discuss the DLF Cinematic Universe after taking a stroll around Walden Pond.
My favorite slide from the first day of #DLFforum
Fun airport security line this evening on my way to #DLFforum: Doris Kearns Goodwin was right behind me, and the guy in front of me had a Super Bowl ring (couldn’t identify him, but yes, the ring set off the metal detector, which allowed him to say “Yeah, it’s a Super Bowl ring”)
“Go thou my incense upward from this hearth”
Walden Pond
