There’s no mystery as to what happened in the U.S. this week. Thanks to the large number of Americans who stood up and said “enough” there’s a better chance for things changing than there was the last time I published one of these Sunday Morning Reading columns a few weeks ago. Oh, there’s still work to be done, still dangers ahead, and questions remain. But our chances are better. Some, but very little of that appears in this week’s links beyond this preamble. While we gear up for the work ahead, continuing to struggle with much of the angst that brought us to this moment, let’s enjoy the chance we’ve created and enjoy the knowledge we’re able to share with each other.
“Humility is the bridge to knowledge, an antidote to fear, and provides a strength that leads to compassion and grace.” So goes the subhead of David Todd McCarty’s piece Nobody Knows Anything, And Other Things I’ve Learned. Know that and most mysteries can be solved.
With a chance of changing directions in the air the question to be asked is Where Are We Going? That’s the question Sean Heber asks in a blog post about tech that at its core is a good companion piece to McCarty’s above. On it’s own it asks more than a question.
I think it would be hilarious if in the end the pushback against AI ends up gaining steam due to religious objections. Jowi Morales talks about the first such exemption in Man Granted First-Of-Its-Kind Religious Exemption Against Mandatory AI Use At Work — Humanist Argues That Offloading Thinking To LLMs Violates His Beliefs, Title VII Accommodation Protects Employee.
Speaking of the mysteries of heaven and hell, this surfaced a couple of weeks ago while I was on a grandparent duty marathon, but it’s worth marking here. Certainly in light of this week’s electoral outcome. David Gibson digs into The Gospel According To Peter (Thiel).
Cory Doctorow thinks the road to hell is paved with badly thought-through tech policy. Not only that, it was foreseeable and foreseen. If you’ve paid the slightest attention you don’t need all the info contained in the numerous links he provides to back his thesis, nevertheless check out Autodoxing.
Paul Krugman takes a look at America’s Backlash Against Oligarchy. I agree that was one of the many backlashes across the country. There’s no mystery there. The unsolved riddle is how will it continue?
As to solving mysteries, Jennifer Quellette introduces the man behind the world’s most famous mystery solver in Meet The Real-Life Scottish Surgeon Who Inspired Sherlock Holmes. It’s an interview, but for Holmes fans one worth reading.
To close out this week it turns out there’s more mystery around the debate about whether or not William Shakespeare alone authored all of his work. In Rivals Or Not? Shakespeare And Marlowe Co-Authored ‘Edward III,’ New Study Finds, Jan Bartek takes a look.
(Photo taken by the author)
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