New researches

Sunday, July 24, 2022

Global Wildlife Conservation, Wolfram|Alpha, FestivalNet, More: Sunday Afternoon ResearchBuzz, July 24, 2022

Global Wildlife Conservation, Wolfram|Alpha, FestivalNet, More: Sunday Afternoon ResearchBuzz, July 24, 2022
By ResearchBuzz

NEW RESOURCES

ScienceDaily: New database to support conservation. “The database presents a valuable tool for planning conservation actions at any spatial scale and preventing species extinctions globally. This represents a large volume of literature that captures a wide variety of threats such as the collection of medicinal plants, hunting, pollution, and alien invasive species, that are particularly difficult to account for in global datasets.”

TWEAKS AND UPDATES

Wolfram Blog: Wolfram|Alpha, Now in Español!. “The Spanish version includes all the math topics available in the English version. The wide diversity of math topics included in Wolfram|Alpha allows it to answer almost any question, from elementary math to differential equations and elliptic functions.”

AccessWire: FestivalNet(R) Updates Largest Database of Festivals and Fairs in North America (PRESS RELEASE). “From spring to winter, FestivalNet® covers 18,000 events around North America, each of which attracts hundreds or thousands of patrons, vendors, and visitors, creating opportunities in each host city, and a chance to experience new and exciting exhibits, games, food, and entertainment.”

USEFUL STUFF

KnowTechie: PicWish is one of the best image background removers out there. “This free image background remover and photo editor has a solid number of features. And even better, there are bulk editing options for those large jobs. Previously, you’d have to spend hours in Photoshop or offload the bulk work to someone on Fiverr.”

Gizmodo AU: Your Complete Guide to Google’s Best Time Waster, Google Earth. “Google Earth feels like a mixture between a mapping application and an educational tool, letting you pull off some really neat things with a render of the globe. What can you do with Google’s 3D world exploration tool, I hear you ask? Well, let’s explain.”

AROUND THE INTERNET WORLD

9to5Google: Carbon, a new programming language from Google, aims to be C++ successor. “Carbon, the latest programming language to be built within Google, was unveiled today as an experimental successor to C++.”

California State University San Marcos: Photographer’s Donated Collection Helps Preserve History of Region. “Thanks to the wisdom of [Bill] Dendle, the diligence of [Dan] Rios and the help of some history-loving friends, Rios’ life’s work as a photojournalist now belongs to the Cal State San Marcos library in perpetuity. Donated in 2018, the Dan Rios Papers, as the library’s Special Collections department has coined it, consists of an estimated one million images that were originally stashed in more than 40,000 envelopes and almost 200 boxes. The collection also contains large- and medium-format prints, contact sheets and hundreds of letters that Rios received over the years from readers who were affected by his photos.”

SECURITY & LEGAL

NBC News: Neopets says its website was hacked. “Neopets, a website where users take care of virtual made-up species of ‘pets,’ was hacked this week. On Wednesday, the Neopets Twitter account said it is aware that ‘customer data may have been stolen’ and that it’s launched an investigation ‘assisted by a leading forensics firm.'”

US Department of Justice: Man Arrested For Leading Role In $10 Million Tech Support Fraud Scheme That Exploited Elderly Victims . “Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced charges against VINOTH PONMARAN for participating in a conspiracy that for several years exploited elderly victims by remotely accessing their computers and convincing victims to pay for computer support services they did not need, and which were never actually provided. In total, the conspiracy generated more than $10 million in proceeds from at least approximately 7,500 victims.”

Reuters: Uber admits covering up 2016 hacking affecting 57 million passengers and drivers. “Uber Technologies Inc on Friday accepted responsibility for covering up a 2016 data breach that affected 57 million passengers and drivers, as part of a settlement with US prosecutors to avoid criminal charges.” Good afternoon, Internet…

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July 25, 2022 at 12:11AM
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SQL For App Developers, Black Nurses in Segregated Bermuda, Microsoft Office, More: Sunday ResearchBuzz, July 24, 2022

SQL For App Developers, Black Nurses in Segregated Bermuda, Microsoft Office, More: Sunday ResearchBuzz, July 24, 2022
By ResearchBuzz

NEW RESOURCES

PR Newswire: Cockroach Labs Releases Free “SQL for App Developers” Courses to Bridge Education Gap (PRESS RELEASE). “Most SQL courses available today are designed for database administrators, operators, and data scientists–this six-course SQL program was designed for app developers by app developers to fill that gap.”

Bernews: Emancipation Website & Art Exhibition Launch. “Earlier this week, the Department of Culture unveiled an exhibition entitled ‘Pioneers Who Persevered: Black Nurses in Segregated Bermuda,’ which is currently on display at the Bermuda Society of Arts. ‘The exhibition is partially virtual and links to a new Emancipation website developed by the Department, which chronicles key milestones in Bermuda’s history,’ a spokesperson said.”

TWEAKS AND UPDATES

Bleeping Computer: Microsoft starts blocking Office macros by default, once again. “Microsoft announced today that it resumed the rollout of VBA macro auto-blocking in downloaded Office documents after temporarily rolling it back earlier this month following user feedback. The change comes after the company improved its user and admin support documentation to make it easier to understand the available options when a macro is blocked.”

AROUND THE INTERNET WORLD

Hamilton College: Saving a Small Nation’s History. “In 2019, a team of Hamilton College staff and students traveled to the island of Nevis, birthplace of the College’s namesake Alexander Hamilton, to collaborate with staff members from the Nevis Historical and Conservation Society. Their goal was to digitize records in fragile physical condition and/or of significant historical value, including minutes of the Nevis Council, baptismal records from Anglican churches, and the only known printed copy of the Laws of Nevis (ca. 1773).”

MIT Technology Review: Chinese gamers are using a Steam wallpaper app to get porn past the censors. “Online porn is banned in China, so people there have to get creative to access it. Steam is one of the only popular global platforms still available in the country, and its community features, international high-speed servers, and increasingly hands-off approach when it comes to sexual content have made it an inevitable choice. Chinese users now make up at least 40% of Wallpaper Engine’s global user base, MIT Technology Review estimates.”

MarketingBrew: Reddit’s advertising policy seems to differ from subreddit to subreddit. “R/mileycyrus. r/mensrights. r/daftpunk. r/floridaman. These are the subreddits where, for one reason or another, Reddit doesn’t appear to allow advertising, according to a third-party tool. The results, pulled from the 2,500 most popular subreddits run through an API called Pushshift, show that despite spending the last decade courting advertisers and trying to address brand-safety concerns, Reddit’s actual brand-safety approach appears to be cautious, making it seem somewhat unpredictable and inconsistent.”

SECURITY & LEGAL

Ars Technica: South Carolina lawmakers want to banish abortion talk from the Internet. “Known as the ‘Equal Protection at Conception—No Exceptions—Act,’ the bill would ban any website from hosting or publishing any information about accessing or self-inducing abortion ‘knowing that the information will be used, or is reasonably likely to be used, for an abortion.'”

Associated Press: Secret Service Jan. 6 texts erased despite Congress’ request. “Secret Service text messages from around the time of the attack on the U.S. Capitol were deleted despite requests from Congress and federal investigators that they be preserved, the agency confirmed Tuesday in response to a subpoena from the House Jan. 6 committee.”

Engadget: T-Mobile will pay $350 million to settle lawsuits over massive data breach. “If you were a T-Mobile customer in August 2021, you may get a few dollars from the carrier in the near future. It has agreed to settle a consolidated class action lawsuit filed against the company over a data breach that exposed the personal information of 76.6 million ‘current, former and prospective customers.'”

RESEARCH & OPINION

University of Texas at Austin: New Partnership Will Scale Up Investment in Ethical AI Research and Innovation. “AUSTIN, Texas — The University of Texas at Austin and the MITRE Corporation, a nonprofit dedicated to solving problems for a safer world, have formed a partnership that includes accelerating innovative ethical artificial intelligence (AI) research currently underway by interdisciplinary teams of researchers who are part of UT Austin’s Good Systems research grand challenge.”

Washington State University: ‘Nomadic broadband’ helps rural first responders stay connected. “The nomadic system taps a variety of wireless technologies and unused TV and radio wavelengths to provide high‑speed internet in Washington’s rugged, rural Ferry County, where digital connectivity is the sparsest in the state. In an emergency, that void can leave residents and first responders in the dark.”

Cornell University: Preventing scrollers’ remorse: How to know what users want. “A new model can help online media companies figure out what gives users long-term satisfaction – not just the instant gratification of continual scrolling – which may result in less time spent on the platform, but fewer users who quit entirely.” Good morning, Internet…

July 24, 2022 at 05:32PM
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Saturday, July 23, 2022

New York Unemployment Statistics, Multilingual Picture Database, Google Play, More: Saturday Afternoon ResearchBuzz, July 23, 2022

New York Unemployment Statistics, Multilingual Picture Database, Google Play, More: Saturday Afternoon ResearchBuzz, July 23, 2022
By ResearchBuzz

NEW RESOURCES

State of New York: Governor Hochul Announces Launch of New Online Dashboards to Expand Access to Unemployment Data. “The Local Area Unemployment Statistics dashboard, a joint effort between New York State and the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, provides monthly and annual employment, unemployment, labor force, and unemployment rate data for New York State, labor market regions, metropolitan areas, counties, workforce investment regions, and municipalities of at least 25,000 people. The Unemployment Insurance dashboard contains weekly data on benefits paid, beneficiaries, and initial claims sorted by region, industry, and program.”

Scientific Data: The Multilingual Picture Database . “In this paper we present the Multilingual Picture (Multipic) database, containing naming norms and familiarity scores for 500 coloured pictures, in thirty-two languages or language varieties from around the world. The data was validated with standard methods that have been used for existing picture datasets. This is the first dataset to provide naming norms, and translation equivalents, for such a variety of languages; as such, it will be of particular value to psycholinguists and other interested researchers. The dataset has been made freely available.”

TWEAKS AND UPDATES

The Verge: Google’s adding the app permissions section back to the Play Store after removing it. “Google says it’s rolling back its decision to remove a section from the Play Store that listed which permissions an app uses. The company had more or less replaced that info with its Data Safety section, which is supposed to give you an idea of what data apps are collecting and how that data is used. The problem, as several commentators pointed out, is that the information in the Data Safety section came from developers, whereas the app permissions section was generated by Google.”

USEFUL STUFF

Mashable: The 22 most useful free iPhone apps, according to Reddit . “Redditors are providing an online public service by recommending extremely helpful iOS apps that are absolutely free. There are adventure apps, sleep apps, education apps, sleep apps, mental health apps, food apps, sleeeep apppppps. Yeah, you get the point. Check out our compilation of the best free iPhone apps that Redditors love.”

AROUND THE INTERNET WORLD

NiemanLab: YouTube hit Channel 5 News is “reporting for people who don’t watch the news”. “Since hitting the road in 2019, [Andrew] Callaghan’s work has evolved beyond a parodic presentation of small-town news. He recently reported from Ukraine, interviewing the mayor of Lviv and refugees in the country and across the border in Poland. Much of the money that Channel 5 brings in is spent on operating costs for the traveling production, and the rest is split evenly between Callaghan and two collaborators.”

Poynter: Sri Lanka’s protests faced an information war. “Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa absconded via military aircraft to Singapore last week following protracted countrywide protests by Sri Lankans frustrated with what they saw as years of rank corruption, government overreach and economic mismanagement by the country’s ruling family. Rajapaksa’s resignation was the culmination of a financial crisis, mounting public criticism, hundreds of days of protests and an information war, in which state-sponsored media cast doubt on the legitimacy, viability and safety of the protests, at times under the guise of support.”

SECURITY & LEGAL

New York Times: Twitter Worker Accused of Spying for Saudi Arabia Heads to Trial. “While working at Twitter from 2013 to 2015, Ahmad Abouammo was responsible for helping celebrities, journalists and other notable figures in the Middle East promote their Twitter accounts. He handled requests for Twitter’s coveted blue verification badges and arranged tours of the San Francisco headquarters. But the Justice Department says he misused his access to Twitter user data, gathering the personal information of political dissidents and passing it to Saudi Arabia in exchange for a luxury watch and hundreds of thousands of dollars.”

CNN: Justice Department seizes $500K from North Korean hackers who targeted US medical organizations. “The US Justice Department seized approximately half a million dollars that North Korean government-backed hackers had either extorted from US health care organizations or used to launder ransom payments, deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said Tuesday as she touted an aggressive US strategy to claw back money for victims of ransomware attacks.”

RESEARCH & OPINION

Brigham Young University: Unboxing videos on YouTube: What parents need to watch for. “Videos of a child influencer opening a toy and demonstrating how to play with it have become wildly popular on YouTube, many garnering tens of millions of views from children around the globe. In fact, Walmart has a line of toys based on the reviews of a prominent kid YouTuber, Ryan Kaji of Ryan’s World. Unbeknownst to child viewers, however, is the fact that many of the toys shown in unboxing videos are paid for or provided by a brand, with the goal of influencing children.”

BBC: Blake Lemoine: Google fires engineer who said AI tech has feelings. “Last month, Blake Lemoine went public with his theory that Google’s language technology is sentient and should therefore have its ‘wants’ respected. Google, plus several AI experts, denied the claims and on Friday the company confirmed he had been sacked.” Good afternoon, Internet…

July 24, 2022 at 12:21AM
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Global Plastics Policy Centre, National Gallery, Scientist-Artists: Embracing Duality, More: Saturday ResearchBuzz, July 23, 2022

Global Plastics Policy Centre, National Gallery, Scientist-Artists: Embracing Duality, More: Saturday ResearchBuzz, July 23, 2022
By ResearchBuzz

NEW RESOURCES

EurekAlert: One-stop policy shop opens, with solutions to end plastic pollution. “An invaluable new resource to help tackle plastic pollution on land and in the ocean is going live today. The Global Plastics Policy Centre (GPPC) online platform is the latest development from the University of Portsmouth’s Revolution Plastics research initiative. Free to all, it is a ‘one stop shop’ of independent, evidence-based advice on plastic policy.”

Brunel University: National Gallery creates immersive experience for families on Roblox. “A magical augmented reality family trail at the National Gallery has been adapted into a free at-home experience for Roblox, the global online platform connecting millions of people through shared experiences. The Keeper Council is a family-friendly experience launching this summer where aspiring museum ‘keepers’ from all over the world learn about the Gallery’s paintings and curate their own art collections.”

EVENTS

Vanderbilt University: Attend ‘Scientist-Artists: Embracing Duality’ virtual event on July 27. “Now more than ever, people are recognizing and exploring how art and science interact and influence each other, within research fields and scientist-artists themselves. Join Kendra Oliver, assistant professor of pharmacology and director and founder of ArtLab, for our next Lab-to-Table Conversation, in which we will explore how a group of self-identified scientist-artists are embracing this particular duality.”

TWEAKS AND UPDATES

TechCrunch: Twitch builds toward a ‘layered’ safety approach with new moderator tools. “On Twitch, interconnected channels already informally share information on users they prefer to keep out. The company is now formalizing that ad hoc practice with a new tool that lets channels swap ban lists, inviting communities to collaborate on locking serial harassers and otherwise disruptive users out before they can cause problems.”

9to5 Google: Google Photos website starts showing the backup quality of every image. “The tweaks and small additions to Google Photos continues with the Info pane on the web getting a rather useful ‘Backed up’ section.”

AROUND THE INTERNET WORLD

Engadget: Twitter welcomes more users but finds it harder to make money. “In the last three months, Monetizable Daily Active Users (mDAU) climbed from 39.6 million to 41.5 million, while global reach leapt from 189.4 million in April to 196.3 million today. Unfortunately, those increasing user figures did not see a boost in the company’s bottom line, and revenue was $1.18 billion, which is slightly down both year-on-year and quarter-on-quarter.”

BBC: Snapchat owner hit as advertising slump hits sales. “Shares in the owner of social media platform Snapchat have plummeted after it missed revenue expectations and warned it faces ‘incredibly challenging’ conditions. The firm says advertisers cut spending as they face supply chain disruptions.”

CNN: Here today, gone tomorrow: China’s vanishing livestreamers. “The 30-year-old livestreamer, also known as Austin Li, was — until recently — one of China’s biggest internet celebrities, with 64 million followers on Taobao, an online shopping platform. He once sold 15,000 lipsticks within five minutes in a sales competition against Alibaba founder Jack Ma, winning himself the nickname ‘China’s lipstick king.’ But the superstar salesman has gone silent after his popular livestream show was abruptly cut off on the eve of the anniversary of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre this year.”

SECURITY & LEGAL

University of California Riverside: UCR practices for cyber threats against special archives. “It began with angry social media messages before ballooning into full threats and a takeover of UC Riverside computer systems controlling fire sprinklers at Tomas Rivera Library. That was the scenario of a cultural heritage preservation and cybersecurity drill held Wednesday, July 13 that included 25 participants from campus departments and off-campus partners who reacted in real-time to a fictional threat to the campus. It was first drill of its type on campus aimed at preserving irreplaceable heritage and special collections against cybersecurity threats, said Jason Espinoza, director of UCR’s Office of Emergency Management.”

The Register: Albanian government websites go dark after cyberattack . “According to a statement from the Albanian National Agency for Information Society (AKSHI), the websites of the Prime Minister’s Office and Parliament have both been pulled as has, critically, the e-Albania portal used by residents and foreigners alike to access public services. The latter is particularly alarming since the Albanian government closed many in-person services in favor of the e-Albania portal in May 2022.”

RESEARCH & OPINION

University of Melbourne: Bringing A Living Archive To Life . “Working with Indigenous partners and students in Australia and the US, we are engaging in creative practices, including storytelling through possum-skin cloak-making, intercultural collaborations and supporting the research through teaching and learning. These steps aim to enliven archived collections by making and doing, finding new ways to support Indigenous knowledges and stories.”

Tech Xplore: Aboriginal language could help solve complex AI problems. “An Aboriginal language could hold the key to solving some of the most challenging communication problems between humans and artificial intelligence (AI) systems. A new paper, published by Frontiers in Physics and led by UNSW Canberra’s Professor Hussein Abbass, explains how Jingulu—a language spoken by the Jingili people in the Northern Territory—has characteristics that allow it to be easily translated into AI commands.” Good morning, Internet…

July 23, 2022 at 05:31PM
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Friday, July 22, 2022

Anthony Burrill, Microsoft Store, Slack, More: Friday Afternoon ResearchBuzz, July 22, 2022

Anthony Burrill, Microsoft Store, Slack, More: Friday Afternoon ResearchBuzz, July 22, 2022
By ResearchBuzz

NEW RESOURCES

Creative Boom: Anthony Burrill launches his graphic ephemera archive to inspire the design community. “Anthony Burrill has launched an online archive this week featuring the graphic ephemera that inspires his process and work, making them available for anyone to download. Full of inspiring print, graphic design, typography and other pieces, it’s a treasure trove for any discerning designer.”

TWEAKS AND UPDATES

BetaNews: Microsoft changes its policy against the sale of open source software in the Microsoft Store . “Having previously upset software developers by implementing a ban on the sale of open source software in its app store, Microsoft has reversed its decision. The company says that it has listened to feedback — which was vocal and negative — and has updated the Microsoft Stores Policies, removing references to open source pricing. Microsoft has also clarified just why it put the ban in place.”

The Verge: Slack is increasing its prices and making big changes to its free plan. “Slack is putting its prices up in September, alongside some big changes to its free plan. It’s the first price increase since Slack launched in 2014, but will only affect users of Slack’s ‘Pro’ plan. On September 1st, monthly Pro subscriptions will increase from $8 to $8.75 per user per month, and annual Pro subscriptions will increase from $6.67 to $7.25 per user per month.”

AROUND THE INTERNET WORLD

New York Times: Fighting a Brutal Regime With the Help of a Video Game. “Opponents of the coup in Myanmar have flocked to a new online game that lets players shoot virtual soldiers while raising money for the real-life resistance.”

Houston Chronicle: ‘Send help’: Texans are venting frustrations about the scorching heat in hilarious TikTok videos. “It’s hot in Texas. It’s so hot that Texans are hilariously taking to TikTok to vent their frustrations about the scorching climate. User Texastori1990’s driveway pavement was so hot that she placed a skillet on it, added oil, a heap of salt and fried an egg. ‘Welcome to Texas,’ she said. ”

SECURITY & LEGAL

The Conversation: What do TikTok, Bunnings, eBay and Netflix have in common? They’re all hyper-collectors . “Consumer data is big business. In 2019, a report from digital marketers WebFX showed that data from around 1,400 loyalty programs was routinely being traded across the globe as part of an industry worth around US$200 billion. That same year, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s review of loyalty schemes revealed how many of these loyalty schemes lacked data transparency and even discriminated against vulnerable customers. But the digital environment is making data collection even easier.”

TechCrunch: Denmark bans Chromebooks and Google Workspace in schools over data transfer risks. “In a verdict published last week, Denmark’s data protection agency, Datatilsynet, revealed that data processing involving students using Google’s cloud-based Workspace software suite — which includes Gmail, Google Docs, Calendar and Google Drive — ‘does not meet the requirements’ of the European Union’s GDPR data privacy regulations.”

Hackread: APT Groups Trapping Targets with Clever Twitter Scheme. “According to researchers, state-backed [Advanced Persistent Threat] groups are trapping their targets by employing social engineering tactics including posing as Twitter employees and journalists.”

RESEARCH & OPINION

The Guardian: TikTok is fastest growing news source for UK adults, Ofcom finds. “TikTok is used by 7% of adults for news, according to the UK’s communications watchdog, up from 1% in 2020. The growth is primarily driven by young users, with half of its news followers aged 16 to 24.”

UWM Report: Automated hiring systems could be making the worker shortage worse. “There’s a worker shortage in the United States. As the country recovers from the pandemic, companies are trying to bring their employees back into the workplace but are finding that many of those employees are quitting – a so-called ‘Great Resignation.’ There are many factors behind this worker shortage, but Noelle Chesley thinks there might be one going overlooked: the use of automated hiring systems to fill those open positions.” Good afternoon, Internet…

July 23, 2022 at 12:59AM
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Facebook Roundup, July 22, 2022

Facebook Roundup, July 22, 2022
By ResearchBuzz

TWEAKS AND UPDATES

Wall Street Journal: Facebook Shifts Resources From News to Focus on Creator Economy. “Meta Platforms Inc.’s Facebook… is reallocating resources from its Facebook News tab and newsletter platform Bulletin, as the company focuses more on the creator economy, senior executive Campbell Brown told employees in a memo.” Gosh, this couldn’t have anything to do with the fact that Facebook is being increasingly forced to share ad revenue with publishers, could it?

Ghacks: Facebook has started to encrypt links to counter privacy-improving URL Stripping. “Facebook has started to use a different URL scheme for site links to combat URL stripping technologies that browsers such as Firefox or Brave use to improve privacy and prevent user tracking.” Facebook claims it’s fighting against scrapers. I don’t find that particularly credible.

AROUND THE SEARCH AND SOCIAL MEDIA WORLD

Bloomberg: Facebook Internal Memo on Rivals Undercuts Antitrust Defense. “Facebook’s parent company insists that its social-networking and messaging services have dozens of outside rivals, but an internal memo reveals that Meta Platforms Inc.’s top executives were more worried about the threat posed by its own products…. It outlines ways to prevent Instagram and WhatsApp, acquired by Facebook in 2012 and 2014 respectively, from cannibalizing Facebook’s trajectory.”

WIRED: Instagram Slow to Tackle Bots Targeting Iranian Women’s Groups. “IRANIAN WOMEN’S RIGHTS groups have for months faced a deluge of bots following their Instagram accounts and disrupting their digital outreach operations. Activists say that while they have repeatedly asked Meta, Instagram’s parent company, to stymie the flood of junk followers, more keep coming, totaling in the millions across dozens of organizations operating in Iran and elsewhere around the world.”

Variety: BBC Sets Zuckerberg Doc to Mark 20 Years of Facebook – Global Bulletin. “The series, which will have access to key players, insider testimony, personal journals and rare archive material, is made by Mindhouse Productions and was commissioned by Jack Bootle, head of commissioning, science and natural history at the BBC.”

WIRED: At Facebook, It’s Always Been All About Growth. “This week on Gadget Lab, we’re joined by Shirin Ghaffary from Recode and Alex Heath from The Verge. The new season of their podcast, Land of the Giants, is all about Facebook’s transformation into Meta and what it means for the billions of people on Facebook, and in the world at large.” Audio along with a beautifully-formatted transcript on the same page.

SECURITY & LEGAL

Ars Technica: Facebook users’ lawsuit forces Mark Zuckerberg to give 6-hour deposition. “In 2018, when Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg testified for a Senate hearing following the Cambridge Analytica scandal, his most frequent response to questions was some iteration of the evasive phrase ‘my team will get back to you.’ Four years later, plaintiffs in a subsequent California class action lawsuit claim that Meta’s team of designees on various topics have been just as unprepared to answer questions as Zuckerberg was before the Senate.”

CNN: Another company called Meta says Facebook rebrand ‘obliterated’ its business. “Meta Platforms, the company formerly known as Facebook, has been sued for trademark infringement by MetaX LLC, a company that says it does business publicly as Meta and had been operating in the virtual and augmented reality technology space for years before Mark Zuckerberg announced his company’s rebranding.”

WIRED: A Lawsuit Against Meta Shows the Emptiness of Social Enterprises. “EARLIER THIS YEAR, Meta and its largest content moderation partner in Africa, Sama, were accused of union busting, forced labor, and human trafficking. The lawsuit claims that ‘misleading job ads’ lured potential employees from across Africa who, once realizing the true nature of the work, often had no means to get home. And when content moderator Daniel Motaung attempted to organize his colleagues for better working conditions and pay, Sama fired him.”

Euronews: UK tribunal quashes Meta-Giphy deal block, regulator to reconsider ruling. “Britain’s competition regulator said on Monday it would carry out another review of Facebook owner Meta’s acquisition of Giphy after a tribunal quashed its original decision to block it. Britain’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) last year ordered Meta to sell animated images platform Giphy, which it acquired for a reported $400 million, because of its concerns about a loss of a possible competitor in advertising, and the potential impact on social media rivals.”

Techdirt: Facebook Is So Sure Its Erroneous Blocking Of Music Is Right, There’s No Option To Say It’s Wrong. “Facebook muted 41 seconds of a video [Markus Pössel] uploaded to Facebook because Universal Music Group (UMG) claimed to own the copyright for some of the audio that was played. Since the music in question came from Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier, and Bach died in 1750, there’s obviously no copyright claim on the music itself, which is definitely in the public domain. Instead, it seems, the claim was for the performance of this public domain music, which UMG says was played by Keith Jarrett, a jazz and classical pianist, and noted interpreter of Bach. Except that it wasn’t…”

RESEARCH & OPINION

The Miami Student: Facebook algorithm may favor the Republican party, study co-authored by Miami University professors finds . “New research from Miami University has shown that a change in the Facebook algorithm may have increased the visibility of posts from local Republican parties. Professors from Miami and Wright State University (WSU) found that, despite posting more, Democratic parties received significantly less interaction on their posts.”

July 22, 2022 at 06:18PM
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CMU Language Classes, Celebrating 50 Years of Black Studies, Google Calendar Spam, More: Friday ResearchBuzz, July 22, 2022

CMU Language Classes, Celebrating 50 Years of Black Studies, Google Calendar Spam, More: Friday ResearchBuzz, July 22, 2022
By ResearchBuzz

NEW RESOURCES

Carnegie Mellon University: Modern Languages Launches Online Language Courses. “The Department of Modern Languages at Carnegie Mellon University is proud to announce the launch of its new online language programs for Chinese, French and Spanish. … Learners seeking to improve their language skills on their own schedule can choose from two options depending on their preferred method of study — self-paced independent study ($10), or an instructor-led program with weekly meetings and a small group of peers ($50). Certificates will be awarded for successful course completion.” You do not have to have a CMU affiliation to take the classes..

University of Nebraska Omaha: Charting Our Path: Celebrating 50 Years of Black Studies Online Exhibit Opens. “‘Charting Our Path: Celebrating 50 Years of Black Studies (1971-2021)’ digital exhibit is now available online through the UNO Libraries’ website. The exhibit shares the history of one of the oldest Black Studies departments in the nation, highlighting the complex relationship between university administrators, students, and the Omaha Black community.”

TWEAKS AND UPDATES

CNBC: Google adds a new way to block calendar spam. Here’s how to use it. “The new Google Calendar feature, rolling out now, will only display events on your calendar if the invite comes from a sender you know, like people in your contact list, people you’ve interacted with before or colleagues. You can also choose to have all invitations appear on your alendar or just the invitations you’ve accepted. The default option is to show invitations from everyone.”

Search Engine Journal: Google Lets Businesses Set Auto Responses To Common Questions. “Google is rolling out a new feature for Business Profiles that allows you to set up automated responses to frequently asked questions from customers. Using this feature, you can suggest questions for people to ask when messaging your business via your Google Business Profile. Similar to how a customer service chatbot works on business websites.”

ZDNet: Microsoft makes sharing Excel workbooks in Teams happen in real-time with ‘Excel Live’. “Microsoft is continuing to make real-time collaboration actually work inside Teams. Its latest effort in this space is called Excel Live. This feature will be available in public preview at the end of August. Microsoft officials announced Excel Live on Day 1 of the company’s annual Inspire partner conference on July 19.”

USEFUL STUFF

The Verge: Today I learned Amazon will recycle small electronics for free. “If you have a flip phone that you haven’t used in over a decade, or maybe even a broken tablet, Amazon will pay for a shipping label that you can use to send it in to get recycled. Apparently, this recycling program has been a thing for a while now, but several of us at The Verge never even knew about it until we saw this tweet from journalist Dave Zatz, and thought it might be a good idea to spread the word.”

AROUND THE INTERNET WORLD

Denver Post: This Denver shoe shiner’s videos might put you to sleep — but that’s the point. “Today, [Jason] Dornstar makes many of his videos in the back room of Homer Reed Ltd., a family-owned menswear store across from the historic Brown Palace Hotel. Tucked away behind the dressing rooms, his space isn’t glamorous by any means — he’s set up at a workshop bench in a grimy corner decorated with trinkets and stickers, a shelf lined with rows of cans filled with polish, wax and creams. A shiny silver YouTube creator award stands out against the clutter, commemorating the day he passed 100,000 subscribers. He calls his corner the ‘Shine Dungeon.'”

Variety: Penske Media Corp. and Getty Images Set Photo Distribution Partnership. “Penske Media Corp. and Getty Images have set a partnership for photographs that will include Getty representing PMC’s growing collection of exclusive images from Variety, WWD, Rolling Stone, Billboard and other brands.”

SECURITY & LEGAL

Reuters: Limits on personal data gathering by Google, Facebook, others advance in U.S. House. “A U.S. House of Representatives committee approved on Wednesday a bill to create the first U.S. privacy law limiting personal information collected online by companies like Alphabet’s Google and Meta’s Facebook. The House Energy and Commerce Committee approved the bill by a margin of 53-2. It now goes to the House floor. A companion bill is before the Senate.”

CNET: FBI Warns Fake Cryptocurrency Apps Are Defrauding Investors. “Cybercriminals are creating fake cryptocurrency apps in an effort to defraud investors, according to a Monday warning from the FBI. The bureau’s cyber division identified 244 victims that have been swindled by fraudulent apps, accounting for an estimated loss of $42.7 million.”

RESEARCH & OPINION

CSUF: Artificial Intelligence Has Fundamentally Changed Branding, Says New Study. “Decades ago, the practice of branding and marketing relied heavily on creativity. Today, that is no longer the case according to research led by Cal State Fullerton Professor of Marketing Chiranjeev Kohli. With the advent of artificial intelligence — machines that think like humans — and a growing amount of data on consumer purchase behavior, Kohli has conducted research to shed light on what he describes as a fundamental change in marketing and branding.”

The Conversation: Go glammas! How older people are turning to TikTok to dispel myths about ageing. “Many older people are turning to TikTok – best known as a playground for Gen Z – to reframe the experience of ageing and kick back against age stereotyping.” Good morning, Internet…

July 22, 2022 at 05:31PM
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