Teaching autonomous cars to spot which objects are important and which aren’t, and then know what to do about it, is a difficult thing. – Aeon
Author: Douglas McLennan
Why Is The Tony Awards Show So Bland?
There’s a disconnect between the insistence on the theater world’s wokeness and the blandness and inoffensiveness of the show. Or perhaps there isn’t. – The New York Times
Maker Faire Has Shut Down And Laid Off Its Staff
For 15 years, MAKE: guided adults and children through step-by-step do-it-yourself crafting and science projects, and it was central to the maker movement. Since 2006, Maker Faire’s 200 owned and licensed events per year in over 40 countries let attendees wander amidst giant, inspiring art and engineering installations. – TechCrunch
Why Did A Hedge Fund Buy Barnes & Noble? Can Anything Save It?
Barnes & Noble will probably never be the cultural and commercial force it once was, even if it doesn’t end up quite those dire straits. It has missed too many opportunities by now. But it still has a chance to write a next chapter that doesn’t include its demise. – Bloomberg
The Challenges Facing MoMA When It Reopens This Fall
Roberta Smith: “MoMA’s imminent closing and reopening casts everything now on view in an unusual light. You can see the future bearing down on the museum’s fabulous if blinkered past, which is about to be stretched and rearranged. The question of how profoundly and effectively this will be done should keep us on the edge of our seats all summer.” – The New York Times
The Art Of Designing Sounds For Our Devices
Toss a file and you’ll hear the sound of crumpled paper hitting a wastebasket rim. Lock your iPhone and you’ll hear a padlock snap. As Apple sound designer Hugo Verweij explained at a recent developer conference, “it’s like using a universal language that is already understood by everyone.” – Wired
Major Generational Change At Paul Taylor Dance
They have been the face of the company for years — or, rather, the faces. Mr. Taylor picked his dancers for their individuality, both in looks and in spirit. And now they’re moving on… – The New York Times
Anyone Can Write A Book. Doesn’t Mean Their Book Is True…
“People trust books. When they read books by experts, they often assume that they’re as serious, and as carefully verified, as scientific papers — or at least that there’s some vetting in place. But often, that faith is misplaced. There are no good mechanisms to make sure books are accurate, and that’s a problem.” – Vox
Why Is Public Funding For The Arts So Problematic?
After 70 years, most people still don’t live within easy reach – in any sense – of the artistic riches enabled by Arts Council funding. After 70 years, most artists still earn very little for their creative work. Changing both situations involves redistribution, and that necessarily has losers as well as winners. One criticism that can be fairly made of Arts Council England is that it has not used the increases it gained in the past 25 years to change the underlying principles or pattern of its support. – Parliament of Dreams
Should You Watch Ron Howard’s New Pavarotti BioPic?
Phil Kennicott: “The best thing about Ron Howard’s polished new documentary, “Pavarotti,” is its compassion for the man, who emerges frail but not hollow, merely human and not the pathetic clown he so often seemed in his last decade.” – Washington Post