Check out these six links that we’re recommending to one another:
The Third Phase of Clean Energy Will Be the Most Disruptive Yet – Ramez Naam. “Ramez Naam is my go-to guy for understanding the future of energy. He makes a compelling point that it’s not about new clean energy being cheaper than new fossil fuels; rather, it’s when it’s cheaper to build new clean energy than to continue operating legacy power. And we’re almost there. In this phase of deployment, he argues, clean energy will ‘be limited only by the pace at which renewables can be deployed – the pace at which factories for solar panels, wind turbines, and batteries can be built; the pace at which labor forces can be trained to deploy them; the pace at which capital can be deployed to pay for their installation.'” (Alistair for Hugh).
Cars dominate cities today. Barcelona has set out to change that – Vox. “We think self-driving cars are going to change cities, but we’ve underestimated the downstream consequences of mobile phones. From ride-hailing, to finding routes, to unlocking last-mile scooters, to knowing when the next bus comes by, a connected citizenry commutes differently. Years ago, I visited Barcelona and was taken by their approach to livable urban spaces—they round the corners of blocks to create plazas ringed by restaurants, with playgrounds in the middle. And once again, the city is ahead of the curve. What would your city look like if we got rid of the car as the central design element?” (Alistair for Mitch).
An introduction to SOLID, Tim Berners-Lee’s new, re-decentralized Web – Arnav Bansal – Medium. “The web hasn’t turned out the way many of us hoped, and certainly hasn’t turned out the way its inventor, Tim Berners-Lee, hoped. We are slowly coming to the realization that the web we have built is a giant surveillance machine, with data and power concentrated among a few quickly growing monopolies: Facebook, Google, Amazon. Berners-Lee recently launched Solid, a tech stack built to re-decentralize the web, and help us regain control.” (Hugh for Alistair).
How wildlife bridges over highways make animals—and people—safer – National Geographic. “Cars dominate cities, but we tend to forget that the roads we build that dissect forests and wild landscapes can be deeply disruptive to the animals and vegetation that live there, making usual migrations dangerous, separating important root systems and vegetation mixes. This is bad for wildlife, and bad for humans too, whose cars often run into those animals going about their business. Building wildlife bridges can help make those long roads safer for everyone.” (Hugh for Mitch).
Facebook’s Role in Brexit – and the threat to democracy – Carole Cadwalladr – TED. “I’m just back from my annual pilgrimage to the TED conference. This was my eleventh time going to the event. This conference was very different. Usually, this is the place where technology is celebrated. Not this year. Knives were out for the big tech platforms and brands that are using our attention (and data) for their financial growth and monopolistic gains. My how things can change in just a few short years. Here’s journalist Carole Cadwalladr’s opening session take-down. It was riveting.” (Mitch for Alistair).
How Twitter Needs To Change – Jack Dorsey – TED. “This was a strange one. Twitter (and Square’s) Jack Dorsey sat through a conversation that dug deep into the many problems that these platforms have brought forth. Dorsey came off as calm, quiet and reflective. The mob wants change. Change is slow… which is strange when you consider that Silicon Valley is all about moving fast. I guess speed depends on who benefits from it?” (Mitch for Hugh).
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