When Digital Dust Is Gathered, Constellation May Be Muddled
Big Data is considered a tool for finding correlations amid vast amounts of information. But without the ability to unearth causation, Big Data can only reveal so much.
Digital Life
Cher Fans Confused By Thatcher Twitter Hashtag
On Monday, a trending Twitter hashtag threw fans of Cher into a panic. It read: #nowthatcherisdead, all one word, referring to the late British leader. But many read it as "now that Cher is dead."
Pirates Steal 'Game Of Thrones': Why HBO Doesn't Mind
More than 1 million fans illegally downloaded the first episode of Season 3 of the popular HBO series this week — within 24 hours of its premiere. The illicit popularity of the show, based on George R.R. Martin's best-selling fantasy books, has wider implications for the future of TV.
The Ups And Downs Of Cyber Currency Bitcoin
Bitcoin is a virtual currency that's traded online. It's been on a wild ride lately, soaring in value during the Cyprus banking crisis. And this week, the price plummeted after a Bitcoin trading exchange was hacked.
Exploring The World's Highest Peaks From Your Couch
Have you ever wanted to see the view from the top of Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania? Google is making that possible — sending employees up the world's highest peaks with digital cameras, tripods and fisheye lenses to take photos that can be stitched together for a 360 degree view.
In A World That's Always On, We Are Trapped In The 'Present'
In Present Shock: When Everything Happens Now, Douglas Rushkoff cautions against living in the perennial, virtual now. "It's very hard for us to orient ourselves," he says, "to look forward to things, to join movements with goals, to invest in the future."
Op-Ed: The Battles Ahead Over Driverless Cars
Google's driverless cars have traveled more than 300,000 miles in real world conditions without any accidents. Advances in this technology raise questions about the future of U.S. transportation industries. In the Washington Times, Joshua Jacobs, Conservative Future Project, says a fight lies ahead.
Images Of The Dead And The Change They Provoke
Disturbing images of the dead and dying have long been used as tools to provoke change. After the tragedy in Newtown, Ct., some are urging the release of the crime photos, hoping that images of the massacre might lead to stronger gun control.
'Bowery Boys' Are Amateur But Beloved New York Historians
For their popular podcast, two longtime friends sit down at a kitchen table and share little-known anecdotes and historical facts about New York. Its bare-bones production hasn't hurt its popularity — it's been downloaded 5 million times in the past five years.
News Corp. Education Tablet: For The Love Of Learning?
The Amplify tablet is specially designed for K-12 classroom interaction. While the company touts the ability to improve teaching and learning, critics have questioned News Corp.'s motives.