Blake

Japanese AI Writes Novel, Passes First Round for Literary Prize

A short-form novel “coauthored” by humans and an artificial intelligence (AI) program passed the first screening process for a domestic literary prize, it was announced on Monday. However, the book did not win the final prize.

Two teams submitted novels that were produced using AI. They held a press conference in Tokyo and made the announcement, which follows the recent victory of an AI program over a top Go player from South Korea. These achievements strongly suggest a dramatic improvement in AI capabilities.

http://the-japan-news.com/news/article/0002826970

A short-form novel “coauthored” by humans and an artificial intelligence (AI) program passed the first screening process for a domestic literary prize, it was announced on Monday. However, the book did not win the final prize.

Two teams submitted novels that were produced using AI. They held a press conference in Tokyo and made the announcement, which follows the recent victory of an AI program over a top Go player from South Korea. These achievements strongly suggest a dramatic improvement in AI capabilities.

http://the-japan-news.com/news/article/0002826970

March 24, 2016 by Uncategorized

The libraries of Herculaneum: Not quite destroyed by Mt. Vesuvius?

It may require a particle accelerator, X-ray vision, and a highly toxic metal, but researchers believe they could soon be reading from the libraries of Herculaneum, an ancient Roman town destroyed by a volcano to the benefit of archaeology.

Scientists have discovered that ancient scholars in the town which, along with its more-famous neighbor, Pompeii, was destroyed by the volcanic eruption of Mt. Vesuvius used a lead-based paint, which they may be able to read using X-ray technology, Sonia van Gilder Cooke wrote for the New Scientist.

http://www.csmonitor.com/Science/2016/0322/The-libraries-of-Herculaneum-Not-quite-destroyed-by-Mt.-Vesuvius

It may require a particle accelerator, X-ray vision, and a highly toxic metal, but researchers believe they could soon be reading from the libraries of Herculaneum, an ancient Roman town destroyed by a volcano to the benefit of archaeology.

Scientists have discovered that ancient scholars in the town which, along with its more-famous neighbor, Pompeii, was destroyed by the volcanic eruption of Mt. Vesuvius used a lead-based paint, which they may be able to read using X-ray technology, Sonia van Gilder Cooke wrote for the New Scientist.

http://www.csmonitor.com/Science/2016/0322/The-libraries-of-Herculaneum-Not-quite-destroyed-by-Mt.-Vesuvius

March 24, 2016 by Libraries

Americans and Lifelong Learning – Pew Research Center

Most Americans feel they are lifelong learners, whether that means gathering knowledge for “do it yourself” projects, reading up on a personal interest or improving their job skills. For the most part, these learning activities occur in traditional places – at home, work, conferences or community institutions such as government agencies or libraries. The internet is also an important tool for many adults in the process of lifelong learning.

http://www.pewinternet.org/2016/03/22/lifelong-learning-and-technology/

Most Americans feel they are lifelong learners, whether that means gathering knowledge for “do it yourself” projects, reading up on a personal interest or improving their job skills. For the most part, these learning activities occur in traditional places – at home, work, conferences or community institutions such as government agencies or libraries. The internet is also an important tool for many adults in the process of lifelong learning.

http://www.pewinternet.org/2016/03/22/lifelong-learning-and-technology/

March 22, 2016 by Internet Libraries

James Patterson Has a Big Plan for Small Books

But Mr. Patterson is after an even bigger audience. He wants to sell books to people who have abandoned reading for television, video games, movies and social media.

So how do you sell books to somebody who doesn’t normally read?

Mr. Patterson’s plan: make them shorter, cheaper, more plot-driven and more widely available.

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/22/business/media/james-patterson-has-a-big-plan-for-small-books.html

But Mr. Patterson is after an even bigger audience. He wants to sell books to people who have abandoned reading for television, video games, movies and social media.

So how do you sell books to somebody who doesn’t normally read?

Mr. Patterson’s plan: make them shorter, cheaper, more plot-driven and more widely available.

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/22/business/media/james-patterson-has-a-big-plan-for-small-books.html

March 22, 2016 by Books

CMU Speck pollution monitors now available at Carnegie libraries | Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

At most libraries, a person can expect to borrow books, CDs or videos but never a device.

But in a yearlong pilot project, the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh has allowed its members to check out — literally and figuratively — the Speck air-quality monitor developed by the Carnegie Mellon University CREATE Lab that measures indoor air-particulate pollution levels.

In fact, the trial has been so successful that all 19 libraries soon will have Speck monitors available for checkout for three weeks, with a library-system inventory now totaling 120 monitors through support from three local foundations.

Pilot-project success also has inspired Airviz, the CMU spinoff that sells the device, to give free Specks to 100 libraries nationwide along with support material and training, with a 15 percent discount on additional monitors. CMU robotics professor Illah Nourbakhsh led Speck’s development.

http://www.post-gazette.com/news/health/2016/03/21/CMU-Speck-pollution-monitors-now-available-at-Carnegie-Libraries/stories/201603210015

At most libraries, a person can expect to borrow books, CDs or videos but never a device.

But in a yearlong pilot project, the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh has allowed its members to check out — literally and figuratively — the Speck air-quality monitor developed by the Carnegie Mellon University CREATE Lab that measures indoor air-particulate pollution levels.

In fact, the trial has been so successful that all 19 libraries soon will have Speck monitors available for checkout for three weeks, with a library-system inventory now totaling 120 monitors through support from three local foundations.

Pilot-project success also has inspired Airviz, the CMU spinoff that sells the device, to give free Specks to 100 libraries nationwide along with support material and training, with a 15 percent discount on additional monitors. CMU robotics professor Illah Nourbakhsh led Speck’s development.

http://www.post-gazette.com/news/health/2016/03/21/CMU-Speck-pollution-monitors-now-available-at-Carnegie-Libraries/stories/201603210015

March 21, 2016 by Libraries

A Loaded Gun: The Real Emily Dickinson : Longreads Blog

Below is an excerpt from A Loaded Gun, by Jerome Charyn, who writes that Emily Dickinson was not just “one more madwoman in the attic,” but rather a messianic modernist, a performance artist, a seductress, and “a woman maddened with rage—against a culture that had no place for a woman with her own fiercely independent mind and will.” This story is recommended by Longreads contributing editor Dana Snitzky.
http://blog.longreads.com/2016/03/15/a-loaded-gun-the-real-emily-dickinson/

Below is an excerpt from A Loaded Gun, by Jerome Charyn, who writes that Emily Dickinson was not just “one more madwoman in the attic,” but rather a messianic modernist, a performance artist, a seductress, and “a woman maddened with rage—against a culture that had no place for a woman with her own fiercely independent mind and will.” This story is recommended by Longreads contributing editor Dana Snitzky.
http://blog.longreads.com/2016/03/15/a-loaded-gun-the-real-emily-dickinson/

March 20, 2016 by Uncategorized

NPR decides it won’t promote its podcasts or NPR One on air

Look, the impact of this “ethics” policy is going to be small. The number of people who want to listen to podcasts but won’t figure out how to download one without Steve Inskeep walking them through the process is tiny. There are plenty of ways NPR One can be effectively marketed through digital channels. But the issue here isn’t the impact of the policy — it’s what it tells us about NPR’s underlying strategy. Again, I have enormous sympathy for the people making these decisions at NPR — just as I had enormous sympathy for those working through an analogous set of questions at newspapers 5 or 10 years ago. But if you see a future, at a certain point you’ve got to commit to getting there.

NPR decides it won’t promote its podcasts or NPR One on air

Look, the impact of this “ethics” policy is going to be small. The number of people who want to listen to podcasts but won’t figure out how to download one without Steve Inskeep walking them through the process is tiny. There are plenty of ways NPR One can be effectively marketed through digital channels. But the issue here isn’t the impact of the policy — it’s what it tells us about NPR’s underlying strategy. Again, I have enormous sympathy for the people making these decisions at NPR — just as I had enormous sympathy for those working through an analogous set of questions at newspapers 5 or 10 years ago. But if you see a future, at a certain point you’ve got to commit to getting there.

http://www.niemanlab.org/2016/03/npr-decides-it-wont-promote-its-podcasts-or-npr-one-on-air/

March 20, 2016 by Uncategorized

Reimagining Libraries In The Digital Era: Lessons From Data Mining The Internet Archive

As the digital revolution fundamentally reshapes how we live our lives, libraries are grappling with how to reinvent themselves in a world in which they are no longer a primary gatekeeper to knowledge. As I wrote in 2014 for the Knight Foundation’s blog, “perhaps the future of libraries lies in a return to their roots, not as museums of physical artifacts for rental, but as conveners of information and those who can understand and translate that information to the needs of an innovative world.” As the Knight Foundation wraps up their most recent Challenge on reinventing libraries for the 21st century (which has attracted over 225 submissions to date) and as the nation prepares for a new Librarian of Congress to shepherd the organization into the digital era, what might the future of libraries look like?

http://www.forbes.com/sites/kalevleetaru/2016/03/19/reimagining-libraries-in-the-digital-era-lessons-from-data-mining-the-internet-archive

As the digital revolution fundamentally reshapes how we live our lives, libraries are grappling with how to reinvent themselves in a world in which they are no longer a primary gatekeeper to knowledge. As I wrote in 2014 for the Knight Foundation’s blog, “perhaps the future of libraries lies in a return to their roots, not as museums of physical artifacts for rental, but as conveners of information and those who can understand and translate that information to the needs of an innovative world.” As the Knight Foundation wraps up their most recent Challenge on reinventing libraries for the 21st century (which has attracted over 225 submissions to date) and as the nation prepares for a new Librarian of Congress to shepherd the organization into the digital era, what might the future of libraries look like?

http://www.forbes.com/sites/kalevleetaru/2016/03/19/reimagining-libraries-in-the-digital-era-lessons-from-data-mining-the-internet-archive

March 20, 2016 by Archives Internet Libraries

Library Freedom Project and Werner Koch are 2015 Free Software Awards winners

The Free Software Foundation (FSF) today announced the winners of the 2015 Free Software Awards at a ceremony held during the LibrePlanet 2016 conference at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). FSF president Richard M. Stallman presented the two awards: the Award for the Advancement of Free Software and the Award for Projects of Social Benefit.

http://www.fsf.org/news/library-freedom-project-and-werner-koch-are-2015-free-software-awards-winners

The Free Software Foundation (FSF) today announced the winners of the 2015 Free Software Awards at a ceremony held during the LibrePlanet 2016 conference at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). FSF president Richard M. Stallman presented the two awards: the Award for the Advancement of Free Software and the Award for Projects of Social Benefit.

http://www.fsf.org/news/library-freedom-project-and-werner-koch-are-2015-free-software-awards-winners

March 20, 2016 by Librarians Libraries

A Mashup Of Laundromat and Library

Poor mothers often spend way too much time hunched over a washboard. What if they could use those hours to curl up with their kids and read a book instead? A group of friends at Oxford University plans to find out by developing a combination childhood education and laundry services center, a concept they’ve dubbed a “Libromat.”

The five team members have extensive backgrounds in childhood education, and they pooled their talents to apply for the 2015 Hult Prize, a $1 million award for young social entrepreneurs tackling some of the world’s biggest problems.

This year’s challenge: provide self-sustainable education to impoverished urban areas.

From Rinse, Spin, Read To Kids: It’s A Mashup Of Laundromat and Library : Goats and Soda : NPR

Poor mothers often spend way too much time hunched over a washboard. What if they could use those hours to curl up with their kids and read a book instead? A group of friends at Oxford University plans to find out by developing a combination childhood education and laundry services center, a concept they’ve dubbed a “Libromat.”

The five team members have extensive backgrounds in childhood education, and they pooled their talents to apply for the 2015 Hult Prize, a $1 million award for young social entrepreneurs tackling some of the world’s biggest problems.

This year’s challenge: provide self-sustainable education to impoverished urban areas.

From Rinse, Spin, Read To Kids: It’s A Mashup Of Laundromat and Library : Goats and Soda : NPR

March 19, 2016 by Librarians Libraries

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