"The real reason that the critique has shifted from 'people are too mean to bots' to 'people are too nice to them' is because the political economy of AI has suddenly and dramatically changed, and along with it, tech companies’ sales pitches." - Wired
Reddick "was a distinctive, instantly recognizable presence, even if he was not quite a household name. His voice was distinctive, too, as players of Horizon Zero Dawn, Destiny 2 and other video games on which he could be heard know." - The New York Times
“Activities that are interesting to read about (science experiments) are probably dull to do, while activities that are dull to read about (riding a bike) are interesting when you attempt them.” - Washington Post
Over the decades I’ve learned a huge amount about writing novels. I feel like I’m just learning on the job about screenplays. One key difference is that a screenplay is a contribution to something that a team is going to work on, so it’s necessarily a collaborative document. - The Millions
As anyone who has been forced to live in close proximity to building works for an extended period might understand, a growing movement of locals have grievances about the construction. - Artnet
I feel that we’re in a kind of new and important phase where directors especially, who never get to hang out with each other, feel like we all are trying to build community in a way that I don’t feel was as present pre-pandemic. There’s dialogue happening, and the idea of competition just doesn’t feel like the right way....
Half of the composers commissioned by the Sydney Symphony Orchestra for its flagship new music program, 50 Fanfares, are women. The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra will premiere 17 new Australian works in its 2023 season. More than half have been composed by women. - The Guardian
"The thing I love most about the movies is their ability to obliterate reason and abolish taste. You know the jump scare is coming, but you jump anyway. You suspect you should be offended by the joke, but you laugh helplessly in spite of yourself." - The New York Times
Mid-20th-century writing guides taught that this emphatic punctuation mark should be used sparingly -- not least because advertising and marketing overuse it. But ! filled a real void when it was invented in the 1340s, and it fills one now (which is why our text messages have so many). - MSN (The Washington Post)
Figures published on Friday by the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions show that while the number of visits to its sites rose by 69% in 2022 compared with the year before, this was still 23% lower than in 2019. - The Guardian
"Scientists working on the scorched interior of Notre-Dame de Paris have found iron was used in the cathedral's construction in the mid-12th century. It's an unexpected discovery that changes how researchers thought the church was built, and provides surprising insights on the iron trade in 12th-century Paris." - Gizmodo
AI image and text generation is pure primitive accumulation: expropriation of labour from the many for the enrichment and advancement of a few Silicon Valley technology companies and their billionaire owners. - The Guardian
"Amazon hasn't shared its exact reason for the change …, but one obvious explanation is that relatively few people are buying these subscriptions and it doesn't make financial sense to continue to support them." - Nieman Lab
The British Museum was the most-visited art museum in the UK in 2022—and the third globally. It reported 4.1 million visitors, more than three times higher than in 2021, when it received 1.3 million. However this number is still more than a third down on its 2019 number of 6.2 million. - The Art Newspaper
