The Pipwick Papers
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It's time for the weekly wander into a would outside gaming so grab a jacket and venture forth. Think of this as a cherry tree covered in blossom to enjoy. Except it's an electronic branch and the flowers are web links what don't look so impressive on Instagram.
This is not the Sunday Papers:
When you imagine a sensitive computer system that will be subjected to the harsh conditions of the stratosphere, you probably don’t picture it inside a $2 box meant for a picnic. But in the fast and dirty ethos of X Labs, the simplest solution is often the best one — and so it was that the flight controller on early balloons was jammed into a styrofoam beer cooler and set to the edge of outer space. The team keeps that original unit around as a memento.
A handful of journalists have been asked to appear at tribunals covering countries like the Balkan nations and Rwanda. But it’s a difficult proposition. Many American news organizations believe that by testifying in war-crimes tribunals, reporters jeopardize their neutrality and the safety of correspondents, especially as war reporting has become more dangerous.
ALEKS launched in 1999 and operated for more than decade on its own before it McGraw Hill purchased it in 2013 and is predicated on "completely individualized learning"; the program adapts based on an individual’s knowledge and skill set. Behind the scenes, the software builds a database detailing the proficiency of each student, information that is then used to formulate questions tailored to kids based on what they find most challenging. Essentially, the program—which is based on 20 years of research by cognitive scientists, mathematicians and engineers—can instantly assess the individual abilities of an entire class of students at a rate that would be impossible for most teachers.
But instead of “live fast, die young,” they were employing a different strategy. More like “stay safe and protect your giant sperm packages.”