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Let’s keep the Green New Deal grounded in science

Advocates hope the proposal will inspire voters, but that’s no reason it has to ignore the latest research. Read more »

Giving algorithms a sense of uncertainty could make them more ethical

Algorithms are best at pursuing a single mathematical objective—but humans often want multiple incompatible things. Read more »

We’d have more quantum computers if it weren’t so hard to find the damn cables

Quantum machines will deliver the next great leap forward in computing, but researchers building them can’t easily get some of the exotic components they need. Read more »

This Ikea kitchen might teach industrial robots to be less dumb and more helpful

Nvidia’s new robotics lab will see if robots can learn to fetch the ketchup, load the dishwasher, and—eventually—make a cake. Read more »

We could still prevent 1.5 ˚C of warming—but we almost certainly won’t

New research finds we’d need to immediately stop building fossil-fuel-burning vehicles, planes, and factories. Read more »

Hate lawyers? Can’t afford one? Blockchain smart contracts are here to help.

Mainstream online legal services are getting serious about using crypto to automate bits of what they do—and lower the bar to entry for us all. Read more »

A neural network can learn to organize the world it sees into concepts—just like we do

Generative adversarial networks are not just good for causing mischief. They can also show us how AI algorithms “think.” Read more »

When Chinese hackers declared war on the rest of us

Many thought the internet would bring democracy to China. Instead it empowered rampant government oppression, and now the censors are turning their attention to the rest of the world. Read more »

Smart cities could be lousy to live in if you have a disability

Cities sometimes fail to make sure the technologies they adopt are accessible to everyone. Activists and startups are working to change that. Read more »

Israel’s “startup nation” is under threat from the tech giants that nurtured it

Global companies trying to tap into Tel Aviv’s unique innovation ecosystem are threatening to destroy the very thing they came for. Read more »