Dumb of the Week
By Ben OlsonReader Staff Some very powerful metaphors came across the Dumb Desk this week, as we near the final months of the foul Year of our Lord 2025. First, in an apparent trolling...
Tagged: AI
Bloody fingers, happy soul
By Ben OlsonReader Staff My first guitar was used more as a prop than an instrument. I convinced my parents to buy it for me when I was in sixth grade. It was a...
New FX-Hulu series Alien: Earth is already a must-watch after four episodes
By Zach HagadoneReader Staff The Panida Theater just screened director Ridley Scott’s 1979 sci-fi/horror masterpiece Alien as part of its $5 movie series; and, while there is an entire dark constellation of other films...
Becoming (in)human
By Ben OlsonReader Staff “Operator…” “Agent…” “Help…” “Rrrgh, just let me freaking talk to somebody, you son of a…” If anyone had overhead me trying to call my internet provider’s support line over the...
Emily Articulated: AI (again)
By Emily Erickson Reader Columnist It was 2008 — The printer whirred as it spat out 14 pages of MapQuest directions. I swore under my breath as the banner ads emerged in full color...
2025 year in preview
By Reader Staff Even if you’ve never read any of the works of 19th-century German philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer, you’ve probably heard someone repeat his famous line: “A pessimist is an optimist in full possession...
Mad about Science: Artificial intelligence, redux
By Brenden Bobby Reader Columnist A few years have passed since we’ve last explored artificial intelligence. The last time I wrote an article dedicated to the subject was in 2018, and the scope and...
Emily Articulated: U.S. history, 2050 edition
By Emily Erickson Reader Columnist Flipping open to a glossy image of Barack Obama, the iconic “Hope” poster filled the page, with the former president’s calm, resolute expression etched in hues of blue, red...
Mad About Science: Artificial Intelligence I: The Present
By Brenden Bobby Reader Columnist If you’ve made it this far and didn’t scoff at the title, welcome to the present! After last week’s antics we know the basics of how AI works. You...
