Things from my Newsblur - 2017: Part 1

In an effort to start 2017 off on the right foot, here's a “Things from my Newsblur (formerly Google Reader)” to start off the New Year.    It's quite the bumper edition, but hopefully the light (comic?) relief at the end will help!

There’s a massive restaurant industry bubble, and it’s about to burst

This is the third part of a series, and in it the author talks about the challenges facing restaurants and why America’s golden age of restaurants is coming to an end.  It’s something that resonates with Our Man, given the closure over the last 12 months of some of his neighborhood favourites.  Part 1 (about the Good Food Revival Movement) and Part 2 (about the impact of a shortage of cooks) are also both well worth a read.  (Thrillist, Kevin Alexander)

Brexit:  How rebel MPs outfoxed Cameron to get an EU Referendum 

While the result is far from universally popular, this article on the background of how the UK ended up with an EU referendum vote is intriguing.  In some ways, it is reassuring as this is how politics is supposed to work!  A small & determined band of backbench MPs required a lot of skill and discipline, along with some large slices of luck, and fortunate timing, as well as misjudgments from their opponents to just get the referendum that they wanted.  Our Man thinks that the minority/backbenchers should have some way to make their case, but that it should be hard and require those traits listed above.  (BBC, Mark D’Arcy)

Farewell to the Chief

A whole bunch of Bloomberg columnists assess President Obama’s two-term presidency; irrespective of your opinion of President Obama, there’s probably at least one view you agree with (and one you can’t stand) in there.  (Bloomberg, various)

The Fourth Industrial Revolution: a primer on Artificial Intelligence (AI)

“From Amazon and Facebook to Google and Microsoft, leaders of the world’s most influential technology firms are highlighting their enthusiasm for Artificial Intelligence (AI). But what is AI? Why is it important? And why now? While there is growing interest in AI, the field is understood mainly by specialists. Our goal for this primer is to make this important field accessible to a broader audience.” (Medium, David Kelnar)

The Great AI Awakening

A look at how Google used AI to transform Google Translate, and a broader look at some of the impcats of machine learning.

(New York Times, Gideon Lewis-Kraus)

2016 Blockchain Year in Review

While there are no mainstream uses for Bitcoin, or the Blockchain and though it seems to have been around for a while, it’s far from dead.  Here’s a brief primer on the blockchain & bitcoin and some of the most important data from 2016.  (The Control, Nick Tomaino)

How Blockchains Could Change the World

“Ignore Bitcoin’s challenges. In this interview, Don Tapscott explains why blockchains, the technology underpinning the cryptocurrency, have the potential to revolutionize the world economy.”

(McKinsey & Co, interview with Don Tapscott)

Finally, some light relief…
To be or not to be

After all there are just so many ways to say the iconic phrase.  Here’s the RSC with some special guests, at Shakespeare Live, pointing that out.   (Shakespeare Live on Vimeo)

Yes Minister – Why Britain Joined the European Union

Yes Minister (and the ‘sequel’ Yes Prime Minister) is a satirical British sitcom from the early 1980’s, and one of OM’s favourite shows.  Like all good satire, there’s more than a hint of truth to it and although this is ~30yrs old that still holds true.  (BBC on Youtube)

A Sushi Master’s Five Simple Rules for Not Embarrassing Yourself

Some simple rules on how to avoid embarrassing yourself, when you’re sitting at the sushi bar and the chef’s hard at work making your delicious dinner. (Bloomberg Pursuits, Kate Krader)