Roundup: email markup, handling documentation, global warming, spotting fake news, minimalist living, design bias, an ancient game, AI experiments, and fake family
Nov. 10, 2017
Heml - Charlie
https://heml.io/docs/getting-started/guide
I haven't tried this and I'm not sure it's a good idea or if responsive email really needs its own markup language but it looks like it works and people seem to find responsive email hard so maybe this would help? It doesn't seem to have anything to stick it in a Rails app but I guess you could store the generated HTML.
Ask HN: How does your team handle knowledge documentation? - Charlie
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15637194
I thought this was an interesting HN discussion that might be of interest to others here given the the storied history of the unboxed wiki. I was also surprised that some companies hired librarians to help organise everything.
The three-degree world: the cities that will be drowned by global warming - Elena T
https://www.theguardian.com/cities/ng-interactive/2017/nov/03/three-degree-world-cities-drowned-global-warming
A guide to how the map of the world will change by the new "locked-in" projection of a 3 Celsius temperature growth this century.
Learning to spot fake news - An NPR guide - Elena T
https://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2017/10/31/559571970/learning-to-spot-fake-news-start-with-a-gut-check
In my home country, Romania, there's a running joke when you want to state facts that are highly unlikely. It starts by saying "British researchers have discovered that ...".
I've certainly used this when I want to make fun of people who say things that are obviously outlandish but want to validate their claim with bogus articles. It's a shortcut to saying: "if put to the test, what you're saying would be easily disproved."
I've noticed this is not something ingrained in anglophile culture, so here's the next best thing: a guide to spot fake news.
How I spent three years becoming a minimalist and you should too - Elena T
https://medium.com/the-mission/how-i-spent-the-last-3-years-becoming-minimalist-and-why-you-should-too-e9b761628d8d
I found this an interesting read. I wouldn't do all the steps in there, but I find myself agreeing with the premise: make more room in your life for the things that matter.
Balance your bias - Lawrence R
https://airbnb.design/anotherlens/
I've been reading a lot of comment recently about how AI can pick up subtle biases and loops from the people that make and program the models – which got me thinking if it applied to design too. Of course, any decision, choice or designed outcome can be hampered by a preconceived opinion. This project from Airbnb puts forward some processes to check your bias when doing design activities or actually whenever contributing in general to a project, to allow for more inclusive, empathetic and considerate outcomes.
The Royal Game of Ur playthrough - Neil vB
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WZskjLq040I
You're likely to see at least one or two board games being played at lunchtimes or evenings during a typical week at the Unboxed office, but probably not one that's this old. This light-hearted 'playthrough' video is presented by the curator at the British Museum and features a head-to-head game that dates from around 2500BC. If you wanted to settle an argument about rules from the original source you'd need to be able to read the Cuneiform script that's been pressed into an ancient clay tablet.
AI experiments (games) - Lawrence R
https://experiments.withgoogle.com/ai
Some Friday afternoon machine learning fun.
Paying for fake friends and family - Jack B
https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2017/11/paying-for-fake-friends-and-family/545060/
A mind blowing interview with the founder of a business for "Family Actors" in Japan.
Track of the Week - Murray S
Some lovely synth pop from a duo involved in many of my favourite Scottish bands. Bright and breezy, it's something to take the chill off as Autumn closes in (well, musically at least, if not lyrically).