The burst in digital borrowing has helped many readers, but it has also accelerated an unsettling trend. Books, like music and movies and TV shows, are increasingly something that libraries and readers do not own but, rather, access temporarily, from corporations that do. - The New Yorker
"Hundreds of productions have been performed at the Théâtre du Peuple, a 126-year-old playhouse 45 miles from the German border. Yet no matter how good the actors, they are often upstaged by the theater's unusual backdrop: a steep forest, visible right behind the stage." - The New York Times
If we want to figure out how network technologies like Internet and Blockchain will change the world, we need to understand how the nature of previous technologies determined the emergence of new political systems. - Uncharted Territories
"I'm wishing people would understand that I need to shore up this organization. So, if I drop dead, the organization won't be saying, 'Aunt Joan ain't here, what are we going to do?' I want them to say, 'Do this, and take care of that.'" - The New York Times
In joining forces, the foursome are betting they will be more effective together than separately at a time when the gallery sector has seen a 20 percent drop in sales, and many small and midsize galleries are closing. - The New York Times
"Founded in 1984 by American immigrants Shoshanna and Micah Harrari, the tiny workshop" — called King David Harps and located near Jerusalem — "was known internationally for its instruments, which are modeled after archaeological findings and specifications found in Talmudic and biblical verses." - Tablet
It has long been known that making eye contact with a robot can be an unsettling experience. Scientists even have a name for the queasy feeling: the "uncanny valley". - Reuters
"The effort, led by Amazon's Music division, includes paying podcast networks, musicians and celebrities to use the feature for live conversations, shows and events. … The feature is being built to focus on live music, but the tech giant is also eyeing talk radio programs and podcasts." - Axios
The public sphere has been replaced with emotional outbursts and opportunities for consumption. Museums have followed suit, relinquishing their mission to enlighten and challenge the public and offering mere content instead. - ARTnews
As petrodollars flowed and it became one of Latin America's most prosperous cities, Caracas built cultural and architectural landmarks such as Parque Central, the Museum of Contemporary Art, University City, and Teresa Carreño Theater. Now, amid shortages of money, staff, and good management, they're moldering away. - Bloomberg CityLab
"'I'm going to kind of make it up as I go along, but I have some starting points,' he says. Aside from the novella, it will feature short stories, literary gossip ('as long as it's not defamatory') and writing about books – and film." - The Guardian
As of Sept. 1, any adult in Texas may carry a gun in public, concealed or not, without any license. Private businesses and venues may still ban guns and use metal detectors, but staffers worry that communicating this to some patrons will be, er, challenging. - KERA (Dallas)
With the post-Katrina levees and fortifications having done their job, the city's art institutions suffered no flood damage. The worry is how long the collections can tolerate Louisiana heat and humidity without electricity to run the climate control systems. - Artnet
"The suspension is the latest salvo in a months-long joust between TV networks and the company that has long tabulated (their) viewership, … (as the) industry (seeks) a new yardstick as its audiences light out for new digital territory." - Variety
