October 1, 2023

Brooklyn Reader: Brooklyn Public Library Announces Expansion of Books Unbanned Program

Brooklyn Reader: Brooklyn Public Library Announces Expansion of Books Unbanned Program. “The library recently debuted a new podcast series titled ‘Borrowed and Banned.’ Created by award-winning producer Virginia Marshall, the seven-episode series investigates the alarming rise in book bans over the years. The podcast will feature conversations with authors that have been impacted by book bans, including Maia Kobabe, George M. Johnson, and Mike Curato, to name a few. BPL has also launched a new page on its website that gives teens the opportunity to submit their past experiences with censorship, including the potential dangers they face as they seek the freedom to read, according to the library.”

Tweaks & Updates 0
September 28, 2023

Turning the page on banned books: LA libraries widen access to restricted titles (USC Annenberg Media)

USC Annenberg Media: Turning the page on banned books: LA libraries widen access to restricted titles. “In response to increasing book challenges in California schools, a new motion from the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors aims to widen access to restricted titles by giving every California resident access to LA County libraries’ e-book database.”

Around the Search & Social Media World 0
September 23, 2023

Vox: Stuart Russell wrote the textbook on AI safety. He explains how to keep it from spiraling out of control.

Vox: Stuart Russell wrote the textbook on AI safety. He explains how to keep it from spiraling out of control.. “So what do we need to know about AI right now? What are the questions we should be asking? And how should we be preparing for whatever’s coming? To get some answers, I invited Stuart Russell onto The Gray Area. Russell is a professor of computer science at UC Berkeley and the author of Human Compatible: Artificial Intelligence and the Problem of Control.”

Around the Search & Social Media World 0
September 20, 2023

MIT Press: The MIT Press announces the Open Encyclopedia of Cognitive Science, a paradigm shift in open access reference works

MIT Press: The MIT Press announces the Open Encyclopedia of Cognitive Science, a paradigm shift in open access reference works. “For over a generation, the MIT Encyclopedia of the Cognitive Sciences has been an essential resource for researchers and students of cognitive science and neuroscience. Today, the MIT Press proudly announces its intellectual successor—the Open Encyclopedia of Cognitive Science (OECS), a dynamic and openly accessible web reference poised to guide the next generation of exploration. Thanks to generous funding from James S. McDonnell Foundation and the Allen Institute for AI, the first set of articles will be published in 2024.”

New Resources 0
September 18, 2023

Semafor: The Princeton researchers calling out ‘AI snake oil’

Semafor: The Princeton researchers calling out ‘AI snake oil’. “In July, a new study about ChatGPT started going viral on social media, which seemed to validate growing suspicions about how the chatbot had gotten “dumber” over time. As often happens in these circumstances, Arvind Narayanan and Sayash Kapoor stepped in as the voices of reason. The Princeton computer science professor and Ph.D candidate, respectively, are the authors of the popular newsletter and soon-to-be book AI Snake Oil, which exists to ‘dispel hype, remove misconceptions, and clarify the limits of AI.’”

Research & Opinion 0
September 17, 2023

Ars Technica: “Most notorious” illegal shadow library sued by textbook publishers [Updated]

Ars Technica: “Most notorious” illegal shadow library sued by textbook publishers [Updated]. “Publishers suing include Cengage Learning, Macmillan Learning, McGraw Hill, and Pearson Education. They claimed that Library Genesis (aka Libgen) is operated by unknown individuals based outside the United States, who know that the shadow library is ‘one of the largest, most notorious, and far-reaching infringement operations in the world’ and intentionally violate copyright laws with ‘absolutely no legal justification for what they do.’”

Security & Legal Issues 0
September 14, 2023

The Guardian: Charity launches award and database to encourage diversity in children’s books

The Guardian: Charity launches award and database to encourage diversity in children’s books. “Inclusive Books for Children (IBC) [is] a new charity which has launched a website hosting a database of inclusive books. Site visitors can browse through more than 700 book recommendations and search the database to find books featuring protagonists with specific characteristics.”

New Resources 0
September 13, 2023

Jewish News: More than 36 volumes of work by Rabbi Lord Sacks to be made digitally available

Jewish News: More than 36 volumes of work by Rabbi Lord Sacks to be made digitally available. “A digital library, leading publisher and The Rabbi Sacks Legacy are collaborating to bring previously unpublished literary works by the late Chief Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks to the digital realm…. Ultimately, all of Rabbi Sacks’ works published by Koren, which focus on Jewish texts and teachings, will be available to the public on digital platform Sefaria—more than three dozen volumes in total.”

Around the Search & Social Media World 0
September 12, 2023

Verdict: OpenAI faces further copyright lawsuits from leading authors

Verdict: OpenAI faces further copyright lawsuits from leading authors. “Three more authors have filed copyright lawsuits against OpenAI alleging their works were used in the training of its ChatGPT AI. The authors, Michael Chabon, Rachel Snyder and Ayelet Waldman, have all claimed their published works have been used in the training process of ChatGPT without their consent or knowledge.”

Security & Legal Issues 0
September 12, 2023

The Verge: Internet Archive appeals loss in library ebook lawsuit

The Verge: Internet Archive appeals loss in library ebook lawsuit. “The Internet Archive announced today that it has appealed its loss in a major ebook copyright case. A notice indicates that it’s filed with the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in Hachette v. Internet Archive, a publishing industry lawsuit over the nonprofit group’s Open Library program. The appeal follows a settlement that saw the Archive limit access to some of its scanned books as well as a second suit filed by music publishers over the Archive’s digitization of vintage records.”

Security & Legal Issues 0
September 11, 2023

TorrentFreak: Z-Library Opens ‘Z-Points’ Around the World to Share Paper Books

TorrentFreak: Z-Library Opens ‘Z-Points’ Around the World to Share Paper Books. “Z-Library, which is commonly known as a pirate ebook repository, has opened up 11 physical book distribution points around the world. From the United States to South Sudan, there are Z-Points in every inhabited continent. The ultimate goal is to broaden the library’s scope to the physical realm, further promoting book sharing.”

Around the Search & Social Media World 0

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