This week, after another dismal debate performance, Jeb Bush saw his campaign buttons become the all-time least popular, surpassing the previous record holder.
- Old Print Article: Genius horticulturalist Luther Burbank dared question the existence of an afterlife (1906).
- Fred Trump had money, cars and houses, but sadly lacked a vasectomy scar.
- President Obama and Marilynne Robinson discuss the state of the novel.
- Tom Carson reviews the first volume of Niall Ferguson’s Kissinger bio.
- Sir Martin Rees thinks if there are ETs, they are intelligent machines.
- Machines aren’t about to “awaken,” but they do pose cascading risks.
- Robots may not take all the jobs. Lazy friggin’ robots.
- Luc Sante considers city life in the Digital Age.
- James Gleick takes a hopeful view of public libraries in the time of Google.
- Everything you can do with an iPhone was funded buy the gov’t.
- Sensors and such will ultimately inform the health sector.
- Algorithms want to kill all the lawyers.
- Terraforming the whole of Mars is a dream that will be deferred.
- Uber’s business model almost demands it shift to driverless.
- Sepp Blatter acknowledges he’s dishonest, but argues the details.
- Steven Levy quizzes Aaron Sorkin about the fabrications in Steve Jobs.
- Apple isn’t going into the university business, but should it?
- Much of Europe is purposely slowing GMO research. Bad move.
- Lots of Iranians are opting to get nose jobs. Why?
- In the early ’70s, NFL players were using rage-inducing drugs.
- A brief note from 1902 about a wife swap.
- A brief note from 1902 about a drunk monkey.
- A brief note from 1901 about an itchy woman.
- This week’s Afflictor keyphrase searches.