Stories

In the dream world of an executive, fandom is something like a parasitic disease — contagious through mere exposure, trafficking quickly between hosts with immediate contact and little to no external intervention. - Words from Eliza

The former head of the Château de Versailles, Christophe Leribault arrived after Des Cars’s desperate five-month struggle to save her job came to an end. A string of management failures had been confirmed in stinging reports from various bodies and parliamentary hearings in the wake of the heist. - The Art Newspaper

Linguistic diversity among AI systems is real and growing. Cultural worldview diversity, however, has not kept pace. - The Conversation

Independent venue closures, social media algorithms, streaming royalties and the rise of generative AI have contributed to a wider ecosystem that artists say is becoming increasingly difficult for working musicians to weather — and which they say makes the sustainability of touring more crucial than ever. - NPR

While union rules constrain Hollywood's use of the technology, Indian cinema is racing ahead, pitting efficiency against questions of creative authenticity and audience acceptance. - Reuters

The Uffizi said it had been targeted by a cyberattack on February ​1, but added that nothing had been stolen and no information lost. ⁠It also denied that the hackers had obtained security maps or that employees' phones had ​been infiltrated. - Reuters

The lawsuit was brought by Italian consumer advocacy group Movimento Consumatori, which alleged that the price hikes violate the Consumer Code, Italian legislation that aims to protect consumer rights. - Ars Technica

So the people who go to the fanciest colleges tend to have the most successful careers—this is not exactly news. The question of why this is the case, however, is surprisingly tricky to answer. - The Atlantic

Although I don’t buy the claim that AI is “inevitable” in some theoretical sense, I also feel like the current incentives in media and publishing, as Max Read recently argued, make it highly unlikely it won’t be used by some writers at some stage of the writing process. - The Third Hemisphere

“If given the stamp of approval, the deal will be notable for its unusually long term. Three-year deals have generally been the norm since at least the 1940s for Hollywood unions,” but the extended 2023 strikes changed things. - The Hollywood Reporter

“What is it about these heists that people like, as long as nobody gets hurt?” - The Guardian (UK)

Anthony Norman thought he was just doing a job. But no, says a writer for the weirdly Truman Show-like series: “It was so much more than we ever could have hoped for. … He’s a true hero.” - The New York Times

“What started as a technique to support human understanding in the face of increasingly complex tools became a way to replace human understanding. Ease became an unquestioned good. Complexity became something to hide.” - Slate

No, you can’t “steal” a book title, but this is … hm, interesting. - LitHub

“Edwards rose to prominence in 1963 with the first works of what would become his most notable series, ‘Lynch Fragments.’ … He combined fragments of found and recycled steel and welded them into forms of chains, sharp tools, barbed wire and other metal objects.” - Los Angeles Times (MSN)