Showing 1 - 10 of 160
US can't rely on inflation shamanism
News, Published on 23/09/2024
» Google "shamanism" and you will find that it is "a tradition of part-time religious specialists who establish and maintain personalistic relations with specific spirit beings through the use of controlled and culturally scripted altered states of consciousness." Every element of that definition applies to monetary policymaking today, as illustrated by the reaction to the US Federal Reserve's Sept 18 decision to cut the short-term interest rate by 50 basis points.
Marxist leads presidential vote as Sri Lanka rejects the old order
Published on 22/09/2024
» COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — Marxist candidate Anura Kumara Dissanayake led the early counting in Sri Lanka’s presidential elections Sunday, riding a wave of popular anger at the established political order that has run the South Asian nation’s economy into the ground.
Julian Assange pleads guilty, securing his freedom
New York Times, Published on 26/06/2024
» SYDNEY — Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, pleaded guilty Wednesday to a felony charge of violating the US Espionage Act, securing his freedom under a plea deal that saw its final act play out in a remote US courtroom in Saipan in the Western Pacific.
Ripe time to allow AI whistleblowers speak out
News, Published on 18/06/2024
» Here's an AI advancement that should benefit all of us: It's getting easier for builders of artificial intelligence to warn the world about the harms their algorithms can cause -- from spreading misinformation and displacing jobs, to hallucinating and providing a new form of surveillance. But who can these would-be whistleblowers turn to? An encouraging shift toward better oversight is underway, thanks to changes in compensation policies, renewed momentum to speak out among engineers and the growing clout of a British government-backed safety group.
The high cost of GPT-4o 'giveaway'
Oped, Published on 08/06/2024
» With the launch of GPT-4o, OpenAI has once again shown itself to be the world's most innovative artificial-intelligence company. This new multimodal AI tool -- which seamlessly integrates text, voice, and visual capabilities -- is significantly faster than previous models, greatly enhancing the user experience. But perhaps the most attractive feature of GPT-4o is that it is free -- or so it seems.
A taste of art
Life, Amitha Amranand, Published on 25/04/2024
» We were told from the beginning to not think of Street Food Theatre as performing art, but rather an "experience". We were also informed of the belief of the project's creator that art can take place everywhere.
Are scientific breakthroughs on the decline?
News, Published on 27/12/2023
» This year had barely begun when scientists got some jolting news. On Jan 4, a paper appeared in Nature claiming that disruptive scientific findings have been waning since 1945. An accompanying graph showed all fields on a steep downhill slide.
Literature Festival highlights regional narratives
Life, Published on 02/11/2023
» The "Bangkok Literature Festival" returns with a platform to spotlight Southeast Asia in the literary world, at Neilson Hays Library, Surawong Road, on Saturday and Sunday, from 9am to 6pm.
Beyond populism
Oped, Postbag, Published on 10/10/2023
» Re: "Saving the amnesty bill", (Editorial, Oct 9).