Update on the Twitter Archive at the Library of Congress | Library of Congress BlogThe Library now has a secure collection of tweet text, documenting the first 12 years (2006-2017) of this dynamic communications channel—its emergence, its applications and its evolution. Today, we announce a change in collections practice for Twitter. Effective Jan. 1, 2018, the Library will acquire tweets on a selective basis—similar to our collections of web sites. The Library regularly reviews its collections practices to account for environmental shifts, diversity of collections and topics, cost effectiveness, use of collections and other factors. This change results from such a review. Alfie Kohn: The Tests Are Lousy, So How Could the Scores Be Meaningful? | National Education Policy CenterIn short, am I really so addicted to data that I prefer misleading information to none at all? –worth remembering that educators are so starved for validation that they’ll put X company certified educator in their email signature A Look Back – Futility ClosetOn the grounds of the Fortress of Kruševac, in Serbia, is a “window to the past” that depicts the donjon tower as it appeared in its medieval heyday. At its height it served as the entrance to a medieval fortified town, the seat of Moravian Serbia. Remembering Coffee High School of Florence, Al. | FacebookThat’s my grandmother in […]

Japanese Amusement Park Asks Roller Coaster Riders Not To Scream : Coronavirus Live Updates : NPR“Please scream inside your heart,” and not out loud, the park is asking. diy making large pot out of aluminum cans AI Weirdness • When data is messyWhy was it looking for human fingers when it was supposed to be looking for a fish? It turns out that most of the tench pictures the neural net had seen were of people holding the fish as a trophy. It doesn’t have any context for what a tench actually is, so it assumes the fingers are part of the fish. LOOPY: a tool for thinking in systems Hype House and the Los Angeles TikTok Mansion Gold Rush – The New York TimesBut unfortunately many Airbnbs in Los Angeles have a no-filming rule. (Homeowners worry about, among other things, tripods scratching the floors and the potential property damage that comes with YouTube stunts.)

The mystery of the ‘ghost trees’ may be solved – SFGate Redwoods can also clone themselves, further complicating scientists’ understanding of them. Vast rings of related plants communicate via their roots, and during the hard months of winter and early spring, they’ll distribute nutrients evenly among themselves. Scientists have spilled dye onto trees at one end of a grove and traced it through the root network all the way to the other side. “Most people, when they come to the redwood, they look up at the canopy,” Kuty says. “But down is where the action is.” This collaboration lasts only until summer comes. Then every tree, sprout and branch must fend for itself. Those that can’t photosynthesize enough sugar are cut off from the shared root system and discarded during what’s known as the autumn “needle drop.” Douglas Coupland: ‘I’m actually at my happiest when I’m writing on a plane’ | Books | The Guardian There’s a kind of existential heebie-jeebies that accompanies the abandonment of routine: what if I lose my skills and they never come back? What if I become too fragmented? What if the forces of the future I’m trying to depict crush me like a bug? But then, nothing ventured, nothing gained. Live asynchronously. If your job requires even an ounce of creativity, you’ll do your best […]