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We are only now beginning to understand why the unstated norms that shape the design and use of computational algorithms need to be made more explicit—and therefore subject to critical public debate. For now, Google and Facebook don't have mastheads or editorial pages. The names of the people who make judgments about what an algorithm does are hidden. All we have is the veneer of mechanical neutrality and the invocation of an objectivity that operates beyond the human.
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From economic protectionism to police brutality to plain old corruption, small governments get into a lot of big brotherish kind of trouble. But if local government is sometimes bad, the alternative is not always better.
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The new U.S. Census report on poverty and income offers a glimmer of light in an otherwise somber landscape.
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More than ever we need locally based solutions to transform our communities, and nowhere is this more clear or powerful than with our food.
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A better understanding of the meaning and limits science will surely help correct the distorted and reductionist views that many today seem to believe scientific knowledge supports.
The virtual dimensions of assembly may yield insights for how we understand more traditional assemblies and the legal protections that we assign to them.