Where should ethics decisions be made?

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-04-06/the-google-ai-ethics-board-with-actual-power-is-still-around

The Google AI Ethics Board With Actual Power Is Still Around

Two weeks ago, Google established an external panel of experts to review thorny ethical issues related to artificial intelligence. It quickly imploded After a staff revolt over the panel's members, the company disbanded the panel on Thursday afternoon Its members never even got the chance to meet.

The episode illustrates the difficulty Google is having as it grapples with the societal implications of the powerful technology shaping its future. It’s hard to overstate how important AI is to the company. “It’s more profound than, I don’t know, electricity or fire ” said Sundar Pichai, the company’s chief executive officer, last year. But Google has been at the center of a widening public debate over how automated systems might disadvantage vulnerable groups or lead to large-scale job losses, and whether AI should be incorporated into weaponry.

… Critics familiar with the council see it as a whitewash. They say a board of top executives is unlikely to serve as a serious check on Google in situations where its stated ethical principles butt up against its financial interests. And multiple people inside the company said the agenda and decisions of this corporate board remain unclear months after launching. These people asked not to be identified for fear of retaliation.

Perspective. Another nail in their anti-trust/monopoly coffin?

https://venturebeat.com/2019/04/06/google-and-other-tech-giants-are-quietly-buying-up-the-most-important-part-of-the-internet/

Google and other tech giants are quietly buying up the most important part of the internet

Google makes billions from its cloud platform. Now it’s using those billions to buy up the internet itself — or at least the submarine cables that make up the internet backbone.

In February, the company announced its intention to move forward with the development of the Curie cable, a new undersea line stretching from California to Chile. It will be the first private intercontinental cable ever built by a major non-telecom company.

… Google isn’t alone. Historically, cables have been owned by groups of private companies — mostly telecom providers — but 2016 saw the start of a massive submarine cable boom, and this time, the buyers are content providers. Corporations like Facebook, Microsoft, and Amazon all seem to share Google’s aspirations for bottom-of-the-ocean dominance.

Perspective. Not sure why these are controversial.

https://www.cnbc.com/2019/04/06/microsoft-hololens-2-army-plans-to-customize-as-ivas.html

How the Army plans to use Microsoft's high-tech HoloLens goggles on the battlefield

Perspective. This is my industry.

http://www.huffpost.com/highline/article/capitalist-takeover-college/

The Creeping Capitalist Takeover of Higher Education

… The colleges would have you believe that none of this is their fault. They would point out that public schools took a huge financial hit during the recession when states slashed their education budgets. This is true, but that hardly explains the size and pace of the price hikes or the fact that tuition at private schools has exploded, too.

It also doesn’t explain why colleges have failed to take advantage of the best opportunity to radically drop the price of a good degree that I’ve seen in 15 years of watching and reporting on the industry. This opportunity doesn’t have the daunting price tag of worthy proposals like “free college.” It doesn’t require any action from Congress at all.

The answer is online learning.

It’s today!

https://www.yourtango.com/2018315367/best-funny-beer-memes-beer-puns-national-beer-day

39 Best Beer Puns And Beer Memes For National Beer Day (And, Well, Every Day)

National Beer Day falls on April 7^th this year.

[My personal favorite: “I don’t drink beer. I drink a wheat smoothie.”