All posts by Intellicurious

News, Views and Reviews for the Intellectually Curious

The New York Times — Thursday, June 27, 2024

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Supreme Court Rejects Challenge to Biden Administration’s Contacts With Social Media Companies

The case, one of several this term on how the First Amendment applies to technology platforms, was dismissed on the ground that the plaintiffs lacked standing to sue.

Joe Biden: The Old-School Politician in a New-School Era

After more than half a century in Washington, President Biden has learned to make deals and work across the aisle. But that instinct is rarely rewarded in today’s political climate.

When the Terms of Service Change to Make Way for A.I. Training

Tech companies have been making subtle and not-so-subtle changes to their rules for better access to data for building A.I. We took a look at some of them.

What Jamaal Bowman’s Loss Means for the Left

Mr. Bowman’s win in 2020 seemed to herald an ascendant progressive movement. In 2024, the center is regaining power.

Preview: MIT Technology Review – July/August 2024

MIT Technology Review (June 26, 2024): The new issue features The Play issue – Did you know you could surf in the desert? New pools make it possible–but at what cost? Learn how AI is bringing an unprecedented expansiveness to computer and video games and how high-tech supershoes are helping athletes run faster and more safely. Plus: Gamification was always a dubious concept–so how did it take over the world?

How gamification took over the world

Gamification was always just behaviorism dressed up in pixels and point systems. Why did we fall for it?

Supershoes are reshaping distance running

Kenyan runners, like many others, are grappling with the impact of expensive, high-performance shoes.

How generative AI could reinvent what it means to play

AI-powered NPCs that don’t need a script could make games—and other worlds—deeply immersive.

Scientific American Magazine – July/Aug 2024

Scientific American Volume 331, Issue 1 | Scientific American

Scientific American (June 26, 2024): The July/August 2024 issue features The New Science of Health and Appetite – What humans really evolved to eat and how food affects our health today…

To Follow the Real Early Human Diet, Eat Everything

Nutrition influencers claim we should eat meat-heavy diets like our ancestors did. But our ancestors didn’t actually eat that way

People Who Are Fat and Healthy May Hold Keys to Understanding Obesity

“Heavy and healthy” can be a rare or common condition. But either way it may signal that some excess weight is just fine

Ozempic Quiets Food Noise in the Brain—But How?

Blockbuster weight-loss drugs are revealing how appetite, pleasure and addiction work in the brain

Arts/Books: Times Literary Supplement – June 28, 2024

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Times Literary Supplement (June 26, 2024): The latest issue features ‘More is More’ – Claire Lowdon on excess; Flaubert’s moral vision; Twenty years of British Politics; Quantum Mechanics and Medieval women….

News: Macron Warns Of ‘Civil War’ In France, Mass Protests Surge In Kenya

The Globalist Podcast (June 26, 2024): A look back at the leaders debate in France and Macron’s stark words over immigration policies. Plus: protests in Kenya intensify, our Quality of Life series casts an eye on Vienna and Japan unearths rare metals.

The New York Times — Wednesday, June 26, 2024

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Israeli Military Must Draft Ultra-Orthodox Jews, Supreme Court Rules

The court ruled there was no legal justification for the ultra-Orthodox exemption from service, a decision that threatened to split Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s wartime government.

Anti-Tax Riots Rock Kenya, as President Vows Crackdown on ‘Treasonous’ Protesters

At least five people were killed in clashes with the police that erupted after lawmakers approved tax increases that critics said would drive up the cost of living for millions.

The Pro-Israel Donor With a $100 Million Plan to Elect Trump

Miriam Adelson long operated in the shadow of her powerful husband, Sheldon Adelson. Now, after his death, she is playing in politics as a solo practitioner for the first time.

Heat Is Killing Thousands, and Big Events Have Not Adjusted

The deaths of at least 1,300 pilgrims during the hajj point to the growing threat that climate change poses to beloved gatherings.

Politics: Foreign Affairs Magazine – July/Aug 2024

July/August 2024

Foreign Affairs (June 25, 2024): The latest issue features ‘Does America Need a New Foreign Policy?…

A Foreign Policy for the World as It Is

Biden and the Search for a New American Strategy

“America is back.” In the early days of his presidency, Joe Biden repeated those words as a starting point for his foreign policy. The phrase offered a bumper-sticker slogan to pivot away from Donald Trump’s chaotic leadership. It also suggested that the United States could reclaim its self-conception as a virtuous hegemon, that it could make the rules-based international order great again. Yet even though a return to competent normalcy was in order, the Biden administration’s mindset of restoration has occasionally struggled against the currents of our disordered times. An updated conception of U.S. leadership—one tailored

The Return of Peace Through Strength

Making the Case for Trump’s Foreign Policy

Si vis pacem, para bellum is a Latin phrase that emerged in the fourth century that means “If you want peace, prepare for war.” The concept’s origin dates back even further, to the second-century Roman emperor Hadrian, to whom is attributed the axiom, “Peace through strength—or, failing that, peace through threat.”

America Is Losing the Arab World

And China Is Reaping the Benefits

News: Javier Milei Visits Europe, Criminal Charges For Boeing Safety Issues

The Globalist Podcast (June 25, 2024): As Javier Milei’s Europe visit wraps up, Oscar Guardiola-Rivera assesses the international reaction.

Plus: why US prosecutors are recommending that Boeing should face criminal charges and we reveal which city has won the bronze medal in Monocle’s Quality of Life Survey.

The New York Times — Tuesday, June 25, 2024

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Abortion Debate Shifts as Election Nears: ‘Now It’s About Pregnancy’

Pilgrim Deaths in Mecca Put Spotlight on Underbelly of Hajj Industry

More than 1,300 people died, and a Saudi official said most of them were not registered for the pilgrimage. That left them with little protection from the heat.

Washington Post Publisher Says He Aided Hack Inquiry. Scotland Yard Had Doubts.

Will Lewis gave a “green light” to delete emails during a major journalism scandal engulfing Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp.

Is Delaying Menopause the Key to Longevity?

Scientists are studying how to keep the ovaries working longer — and potentially, prevent age-related diseases in the process.

Previews: The New Yorker Magazine – July 1, 2024

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The New Yorker (June 24, 2024): The new issue‘s cover features Klaas Verplancke’s “Chilling” – Coming up with creative ways to stay coo;…

What Can We Expect from the Biden-Trump Debate?

Until recently, it wasn’t clear that the two men would ever share a stage again. Now there’s a potential for even greater stakes and strangeness than four years ago. By Evan Osnos

The Doctor Tom Brady and Leonardo DiCaprio Call When They Get Hurt

Neal ElAttrache, the surgeon to the stars of sport and screen, can fix anything. By Zach Helfand

John Fetterman’s War

Is the Pennsylvania senator trolling the left or offering a way forward for Democrats? By Benjamin Wallace-Wells