In it to win it

Do y'all know about this Suicide Squad shenanigans? I did not initially "GET" it. But my understanding is that the movie has gotten bad reviews, and super fans are super mad ... though they haven't seen it yet. Undeterred, they've petitioned to shut Rotten Tomatoes down, which seems like the very pinnacle of outrage-culture entitlement. But lo, it's not! Check change.org's "recent" feed! Now that is a veritable revelation...

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1. How Silicon Valley makes everything look the same. Think: raw wood tables, marble counters, exposed-brick everything. It's an aesthetic that's become embedded in apps like Foursquare and Airbnb -- which has, in turn, had a major impact on the look and feel of our cities.

2. There are few things in life that peeve me as much as Facebook's sign-on messages. You can't "welcome" me, you're a non-sentient webpage. And I don't care what I did on this day in 2010!!! These niceties aren't just annoying, though -- they're calculated attempts to invade my privacy. After all, I'm way more likely to give up my personal data to a corporation that asks politely!

3. Does fact-checking have a role on the post-truth Internet? My answer, you may know, is "eh, shruggie." But David Mikkelson, of Snopes.com fame, is nothing if not unrelenting. Since 1994, his site has debunked everything from UFO sightings to presidential statements. And despite the years and increased volume, he's not done disproving the fakes yet.

4. Can't believe there's Wi-fi on Everest when mine doesn't even work half the time. But YES, sure enough, even at the summit it is possible to get online. That was accomplished through a feat of complex engineering involving hotspots, repeaters and solar power. (The better to livestream the dangerous treks of Snapchat-equipped climbers!)

5. An appreciation of Pokemon Go, from someone who took the game to its limits. *Eighty* miles, almost all of the 'mons -- Brad Flora is in it to win it.

noice (link)

Postscripts: New Yorker cartoons on Instagram. Instagram on Windows 95. Why couples fight in Ikea and what virtual schools might look like. The game mechanics of Pokemon Go and the memeification of fracking. States keep trying to end revenge porn, but most of their laws are lacking. Why angry white dudes use the word "cuck." Why Facebook needs a public editor. How to hack ISIS and how to follow them (er, if you want) on Twitter.

A history of first-person shooters. A guide to China's most indispensable meme. Who knew #brand Twitter could be so delightful?! (Definitely not me.) Why angry white dudes use the word "cuck." Why people love Disney Princesses. Meet Kickstarter's saddest projects and Tinder's sociologist. Reddit is the new Ask Abby; crowdfunding is the new church. The one place where gun control advocacy has actually worked. In closing, an existential question: If a piece of media isn't online now, did it ever exist...? Talk about the right to be forgotten ...

Until next week!
@caitlindewey

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