Column

Automation and artificial intelligence are commonly thought of as threats to only blue-collar jobs. That’s simply not true. In 2013, economists Carl Benedikt Frey and Michael Osborne released a report named “The Future of Employment: How susceptible are jobs to computerisation?” The authors examined the job security of 702 different fields, evaluating how at risk […]

How campfires and lazy conversation will save our lives Campfire stories are a strange genre, living in old memories of childhood summer nights. Maybe some people get the opportunity to sit around a fire and tell tall tales with friends a couple times a year, but very few people I know regularly tell campfire stories […]

Advancements in video games are (rightfully) leading to an increased concern about gaming addiction — and China is bad at fighting it There will soon be more PC gamers in China than the total U.S. population. The statistic alone is mind-boggling, but is even more perplexing when put in context. The massive number of PC […]

The so-called smartphone generation is more than just technologically obsessed   Although I’m not technically a Millennial — I was born in 1998 and missed the cutoff by two years — I’m not really part of Generation Z either. I don’t remember 9/11 but I certainly remember a time before Facebook and Instagram, when the […]

Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle (said NOT Plato) “Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle.” Everyone says Plato said so, but no one really knows. It’s like 2,500-year-old gossip. Besides, “Says Plato,” is a lot catchier for our mugs and mini wall art than “Says […]

Four major agritech corporations now account for 60 percent of the global seed market. It’s time to change that. Earlier this month, PepsiCo stepped down from a controversial league battle with Indian farmers over use of their patented potato seeds. The lawsuit originated when a group of farmers in the Indian state of Gujaret allegedly […]

Carl’s Jr.’s Beyond Famous Star burger offers a more environmentally-friendly option in Davis There I was: driving my friend back home from the emergency room at midnight. Starving. I missed my meal-prepping time window, so I had nothing to eat at home. I knew there was nothing open in small-town Davis, much less something to […]

Club Penguin established the social foundation on which the social, multiplayer games of today are built We’re living in the era of the digital world as an always online, dominant social space. Intimate moments are shared through an iMessage or DM. Close friends can be made through random matchmaking in a standard game of “Fortnite.” […]

The success of women is often judged on sexist terms I’ve had the privilege of being called “badass” a few times. Usually coming with an eyebrow raise or a nod of approval, it’s an expression of someone impressed, a compliment. And it’s sexist. Ubiquitously used to describe women who succeed, “badass” concentrates all the stupidity […]

Apple removes screen-time restriction tools, citing privacy, while selling a wife-tracking app The New York Times recently published an article on Apple’s year-long campaign of purging and restricting parental-control apps that allow users to restrict their children’s screen time. In defense of this move, Apple spokeswoman Tammy Levine cited privacy concerns, alleging that the apps […]

In times of constant, pervasive horror, we seek out cinematic incarnations of terrifying realities I am afraid now, more often and with more potency than in years past. House parties are storm clouds, raining lechery and Rohypnol. Concerts harbor men with rifles around every corner. Fire alarms wail like air-raid sirens. Sunny days are greenhouse […]

Through a concerted political effort, foreign countries are utilizing extensive financial ties to influence academia Talk about foreign interference in American politics seems to be everywhere these days. From allegations of Russian meddling in the 2016 election to debates over the role of  the Israeli and Saudi lobbies in persuading Washington politicians, discussion about the […]