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| Oct 25, 2021 | » | Stories of Your Life and Others
14 min; updated Jul 30, 2023
Stories of Your Life and Others. Ted Chiang. 2010. ISBN: 9781931520898 . Tower of Babylon #religious-fiction #divine-retribution-motif Story focused on Hillalum, who lived during the construction of the Tower of Babel . notes that the Hebrew school version was more elaborate than the Old Testament account, e.g. the tower is so tall that it takes a year to climb, and when a man falls to his death, no one mourns, but when a brick is dropped, the brick-layers weep because it will take a year to replace.... |
| Apr 29, 2020 | » | Free Speech in Cyberspace
6 min; updated Sep 5, 2022
Should Platforms Be Neutral? Facebook banned praise, support and representation of white nationalism and separatism, because the two concepts cannot be meaningfully separated from white supremacy and organized hate groups. Furthermore, people that search for related terms will have “Life After Hate” suggested to them. Part of me is uncomfortable. Sure, Facebook is trying to do the right thing here. What if Facebook was replaced by some tyrannical government that censors opposition?... |
| Jul 4, 2021 | » | Rage Against the Algorithm
4 min; updated Sep 5, 2022
The lack of explanability is a common theme. Higher-ups claim the machine is unbiased, while the workers on the ground say, “It’s not me; it’s the computer”. Automating Inequality: How High-tech Tools Profile, Police, and Punish the Poor should be an enlightening read. Computers Can Solve Your Problem. You May Not Like the Answer The algorithm had four guiding principles: Increase # of high school students starting after 8am Decrease # of elementary school students dismissed after 4pm Accommodate the needs of special education students Generate transportation savings Unprecedented opposition to the algorithm’s solution.... |