Free Speech — It’s more than just the words
On Jan 11th, 2021, Parler, the alt right social media platform, found itself turned off and homeless, as Internet giants such as Amazon, Apple and Google, all booted it from their platforms in little more than 24 hours. The decision
Rethinking Machine Learning
Machine Learning, or ML, is attributed as a natural outgrowth of the intersection of Computer Science and Statistics. Machine Learning builds on both and focuses on the question of how to get computers to program themselves from an initial structure
Hacking the Pandemic: Taiwan’s Approach
When historians write the chapter on the COVID-19 pandemic, they will have plenty of cautionary examples, except maybe Taiwan. Taiwan may well provide the lesson in not only battling a public health crisis but also in civic engagement, innovation and
Social Media, Influence, and Democracy: Reconcilable Differences?
Did you know that about one in five US adults say they get their news primarily through social media? However, in addition to news, social media platforms have become incredibly efficient tools for spreading propaganda and disinformation credited with interference
Keeping it Real in an Information Deluge
Did you know our brains can only process about 120 Kb per second and can only do so serially? Yet every day we are deluged with 34GB of information. We also spend close to 8 hours every day interacting with
Decision Pitfalls in a Big Data World
Data growth is a direct consequence of advances in technology ranging from the smartphone to the Internet of Things devices. Today, the “datasphere”, or the volume of data in the world – is estimated to be over 60 Zettabytes. We
Machine-Made Decisions: Consequences of Consistency
Automated algorithm-driven decision-making systems are increasingly replacing humans in areas as varied as HR hiring, loan applications, insurance brokerage and even routine medical diagnostics. In some contexts, such as employment, decision making based on arbitrary criteria is legal, and in
The Hackable Home: Smart Devices, Dumb Security
From fitness trackers to connected cars, IoT (“Internet of Things”) devices have made our lives easier and more convenient. Despite their nifty features, many harbor poor design when it comes to security and privacy of the data they collect (and
Cleaning Up after Dirty Disinformation Tricks
“Falsehood flies…and the Truth comes limping after it,” wrote Jonathan Swift the Anglo-Irish writer and satirist in 1710. That was in the 18th century of course. Now in the 21st century, with the advent of the Internet, distribution platforms, and
Gaming the Players – QAnon
Have you ever wondered about the birth of bizarre conspiracy theories like QAnon on-line? And why, despite the farfetched fabric of these stories, so many people forsake their family and friends — the people they know — to join a