Erin Carson
@erincarson.bsky.social
Managing Editor, News & Features at ZDNET. Ex-CNET, TechRepublic. Occasional newsletter writer. Always: Interested in how science, tech and the internet change the way we live.
Here in Nashville, the zoo is fending off a proposed data center, right behind it. I dug into why this particular fight is getting so much attention. www.zdnet.com/article/amer...
The cloud vs. clouded leopard: America's data center backlash on display at Nashville Zoo
As fights against data centers spring up around the country, the latest showdown in Nashville has a furry face.
zdnet.com
Apple’s Spatial Reframing feature is cool — who hasn’t wished they could change their camera angle on a photo after the fact? The implications for disinformation give me hives.
One of my favorite topics is mid-century American cooking. You know, those wild lime gelatin molds. It was a time when industrialization hit home cooking and changed how we eat forever. For my newsletter, I wrote about how that shift has a lot in common with AI. open.substack.com/pub/silicons...
What jarred pasta sauce can teach us about AI
Is skills atrophy the price of convenience?
open.substack.com
I’ve been having a lot of fun working on my newsletter, Silicon Sea. This month, I wrote about AI slop and figured out what else to say about it other than “I hate it.” W/ thanks to @pbooth81.bsky.social for the interview! open.substack.com/pub/silicons...
Can’t stop the slop
AI slop is ruining the casual internet – it’s also warping how we accept reality.
open.substack.com
Wrote a piece for my newsletter, Silicon Sea, about all those TikTok videos telling you to RUN to Target. Or Costco. Or wherever. siliconsea.substack.com/p/the-shoppi...
The shopping videos triggering your caveman instincts
Stop telling me to RUN to Costco.
siliconsea.substack.com
Two shirts seen at the airport: “I don’t care. Work harder!” “I’m trying.”
before tiktok, before bluesky, before twitter, before meta, before it all, there were sewers. after all, there will be sewers.
Wrote a piece for my newsletter, Silicon Sea, about watching social media turn to ruins. siliconsea.substack.com/p/watching-t...
Watching the Ruins of Social Media
On the eve of the TikTok ban, thoughts on how social media becomes a ghost town.
siliconsea.substack.com
First post goes out tomorrow morning!
Erin Carson@erincarson.bsky.social · 2y agoI was lucky enough to cover the intersection of tech/science/the internet and the way we live our lives for years. There’s so much more to say, so I’m launching a tech culture commentary newsletter. It’s free. Monthly. Intro send slated for the end of the week. siliconsea.substack.com
I was lucky enough to cover the intersection of tech/science/the internet and the way we live our lives for years. There’s so much more to say, so I’m launching a tech culture commentary newsletter. It’s free. Monthly. Intro send slated for the end of the week. siliconsea.substack.com
Silicon Sea | Substack
Tech and culture commentary. Click to read Silicon Sea, a Substack publication.
siliconsea.substack.com
This was one of my favorite things published on the internet period this year.
McSweeney's@mcsweeneys.net · 2y agoOur 3rd most-read article of 2024. (Also, our 1st most-read CAPTCHA of '24):
The bleeding edge humor of me asking, “Do you take Apple Pay?” at the Apple Store yesterday.
There’s a 26-volume, 54-pound copy of the Warren Commission Report on this list, which is McSweeney’s level unhinged and I love it.
The Atlantic@theatlantic.com · 2y agoA group of Atlantic staff and friends offer 65 eclectic ideas for bringing more merriment, adventure, and wonder to the ones you love. See more of our 2024 Gift Guide: theatln.tc/E57Ip4qw
1/ Here’s a story about how journalism works. Spoiler Alert: This is how we decide *not* to publish. We were recently looking at Pete Hegseth’s different statements over the years about West Point, where he has said he was admitted. First stop: West Point.
It'll start telling you to put glue on dishes you would never even dream of
The Verge@theverge.com · 2y agoSundar Pichai says Google Search will ‘change profoundly’ in 2025
Contains such blazing AI-driven insight as “yeah, that’s a great track.”
The Washington Post@washingtonpost.com · 2y agoSpotify users wait all year for the annual Wrapped feature that summarizes their year in listening, and 2024’s edition takes the data drop to a new level with an AI-generated personalized podcast.
The simmering discontent over Spotify Wrapped not being out yet is the only online outrage I can accept.
“Our tests found that no publisher—regardless of degree of affiliation with OpenAI—was spared inaccurate representations of its content in ChatGPT.” www.cjr.org/tow_center/h... via @columjournreview.bsky.social
How ChatGPT Search (Mis)represents Publisher Content
ChatGPT search—which is positioned as a competitor to search engines like Google and Bing—launched with a press release from OpenAI touting claims that the company had “collaborated extensively with t...
cjr.org
“Whether children find ways to get past the restrictions is beside the point, [Prime Minister] Albanese said.” … is it?
The New York Times@nytimes.com · 2y agoBreaking News: Australia has passed a sweeping ban on social media for children under 16, one of the world’s most comprehensive measures aimed at safeguarding young people from potential hazards online. nyti.ms/3VbiGzc
Books We Love returns with 350+ new titles handpicked by NPR staff and trusted critics. Find 12 years of recommendations all in one place — that's nearly 4,000 great reads.
Books We Love
Here are 350+ great reads from 2024 hand-picked just for you by NPR staff and trusted critics.
apps.npr.org
After almost entirely dipping out of the *other place* in Nov. ‘22, I think I’ve forgotten how to do this.
I didn’t know I could love clickbait this hard, but here we are https://techcrunch.com/2023/07/24/heres-why-elon-musks-rebranding-of-twitter-to-x-is-good-actually/
Here's why Elon Musk's rebranding of Twitter to 'X' is good, actually | TechCrunch
Maybe Elon Musk's rebranding of Twitter to 'X' was actually good?
techcrunch.com
