Do a search for “mass shootings” with virtually any search engine (Chrome, Google, Yahoo, etc.) and you will find the references at the top of the lists will be about mass shootings in the United States. Many Americans believe in “American exceptionalism.” And indeed America is exceptional in the rate that they turn guns on each other to settle personal grievances, but also, and horrifyingly, on total strangers with whom the shooter has never had any previous contact.
Continue reading How Technology Can Help Put an End to America’s Plague of Mass ShootingsCategory Archives: Looking Forward
Teaching Online – 10 tips for a better experience
In these viral times, a lot of universities will need to switch to video teaching, and for many teachers, this is a new experience. Here are two videos with tips on how to become a better video teacher. I have used video conferencing extensively since the mid-‘90s and also mentor young teachers.
The first video focuses on the video experience itself—and is valid for anyone using video conferencing to get a message across.
Coronavirus: Psychological Pain, Psychological Gain
It is no secret that for many people, the “stay at home” policies that have been adopted by many countries to combat the spread of the coronavirus is causing considerable psychological pain. However, there may also be a psychological benefit to be gleaned from this otherwise bleak situation. And that is a fundamental readjustment of our expectations, particularly in so-called “first world countries.”
Continue reading Coronavirus: Psychological Pain, Psychological Gain
Design Fictions to Mitigate Social Injustice in Possible Futures
Imagine this: It’s morning and you are starting your daily routine—go to work, bring kids to school, etc. You are quite late. You lift the door handle of the car; able to recognize your fingerprints, the car unlocks. You speak, “To Helen’s school please, then Martin’s school, then to work.” The car doesn’t respond. It’s rush hour and you need to bring the kids to school on time and then rush to work.
Your car’s machine-learning algorithm predicts you are likely to get a fine or worse, despite your intentions to drive consciously when kids are on board and stay under the speed limit. Almost like the “pre-crime” police units of the Tom Cruise sci-fi hit “Minority Report,” the algorithm uses police report data on parents who speed during rush hour when late for school or work. It neglects your law-abiding attitude. Fortunately, the personal digital assistant in your watch, sensing your car has been disabled, is already contacting the schools and your workplace with your estimated times of arrival and an excuse for your tardiness.
Continue reading Design Fictions to Mitigate Social Injustice in Possible Futures