November 7, 2024

The Download: what Trump’s victory means for the climate

This is today’s edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what’s going on in the world of technology. Trump’s win is a tragic loss for climate progress —James Temple Donald Trump’s decisive victory is a stunning setback for the fight against climate change. The Republican president-elect’s return to the White House…

AI and the future of sex

August 26, 2024
The power of pornography doesn’t lie in arousal but in questions. What is obscene? What is ethical or safe to watch?  We don’t have to consume or even support it, but porn will still demand answers. The question now is: What is “real” porn?  Anti-porn crusades have been at the heart of the US culture…

Move over, text: Video is the new medium of our lives

August 24, 2024
The other day I idly opened TikTok to find a video of a young woman refinishing an old hollow-bodied electric guitar. It was a montage of close-up shots—looking over her shoulder as she sanded and scraped the wood, peeled away the frets, expertly patched the cracks with filler, and then spray-painted it a radiant purple.…