Inspirational and good news.
Filter bubbles are real and impact our world in the most serious of ways. The recent massacre in New Zealand has shown this all too well. You’re probably wondering if there’s anything you can do stop the spread of online hate and the growth of “right wing” violence. Thankfully there is. The video above explores how stopping the spread of entry-level “edgy” jokes can stop people from descending into the internet hate machine.
Via MeFi
The self improvement industry is worth $10 billion dollars and rising. Greedy vultures flock to the industry to try to seperate people who are looking to better their lives from their money. Too many people are trying to make money rather than help others. Such a realization led one author to explore what industry “experts” get wrong. The hard truth about good self improvement exercises is that they won’t be fun, they’ll force you to question assumptions about you and the world you live in.
It took me a long time to accept the fact that just because something can be improved in my life, does not mean that it should be improved in my life.
The improvement is not the problem, it’s the WHY that’s motivating the improvement that matters. When one compulsively looks to improve oneself, without any greater cause or reason driving it other than self-aggrandizement, it leads to a life of immense self-preoccupation, a light and beneficent form of narcissism where one’s constant attention and focus is on oneself.
And ironically, this will probably make your life worse off
One of the families who helped American whistleblower Edward Snowden stay safe while he was in Hong Kong have arrived in Canada. Snowden provided proof to the world that the USA spies on everyone including their own citizens. Due to his brave act he was the most wanted man on the planet and his safety was not assured by any state. During those few days in Hong Kong a couple families provided Snowden shelter since they too knew what it was like to be threatened by their own government.
It’s so nice to see that refugees who were struggling took time to help another in a similar situation get a happy next step. You can find out more about the Snowden refugees at For The Refugees.
“They are extremely brave people who have nothing, but when someone in distress needed them, they opened their doors,” said Montreal-based Guillaume Cliche-Rivard, one of the lawyers with the group.
“Instead of letting them live in a terrible situation without a future, we wanted to do something for them, as they wanted to do something for Edward Snowden.”
Web design gets overlooked by users even though its impact on them is large. Bad design can lead to misunderstandings and to people accidentally buying something that they didn’t want to. In all likelihood you have had suffered from poorly designed websites. If you’re a person with any sort of disability then you also probably appreciate good web design because it takes into consideration accessibility. Good accessible design is a benefit to everyone for many reasons, and if you’re wondering why then check out the following article.
Without accessible technology, there’s a discriminatory gap between those who can get full use from their devices/products/services, and those who can’t. As technologists, we have a moral imperative and belief that technology can empower people of every language, culture, geographical location, ability, to do more — therefore, accessibility is a requirement of such a belief.
…with every new feature, every new website, the divide between those who are online and those who are not increases, making it all the more imperative to make the web available for everyone.
— Tim Berners-Lee
The kids these days aren’t alright with the world they’re inheriting. Many of the homes kids are growing up in will be under water if climate change continues at its current pace. Students who aren’t on the coast will still face extreme weather and crop shortages. Understandably, kids these days aren’t happy about this and want the situation to change. Inspired by reality, and the very determined Greta Thunberg, students are taking to the streets to let their parents, the olds, and politicians that this generation isn’t going to take it.
The posters students held up advertised statistics about the environmental impact of consumerism (including the grim fact that just 100 companies are to blame for large portions of global emissions), as well as slogans conveying their frustrations with inheriting a mess. “You mind if I breathe?†one read; “All we want is a future†said another.
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“The onus is being placed on young people who don’t even have that much money or power to do things,†Rubin said. “People in power are the ones who should be doing something not regular kids – it shouldn’t be up to us to save the world, but it is.â€