With big tech & aid sectors increasingly cooperating, I ponder: How does big tech's monopoly on cloud services restrict solutions and innovation in humanitarian tech? My thoughts on the Access Now report: Mapping Humanitarian Tech. cxd.li/TK0qg3

Another topic that is ignored on so many levels. I learnt the other day that At temperatures above 30 degrees Celsius, the body struggles to recover during sleep.

Staggering number: China consumed more cement between 2011 and 2013 than the U.S. did in the entire 20th century. Source Le monde diplomatique German edition (march).

The introduction of ChatGPT has led to shifts in freelancing platforms, affecting job demand & earnings according to two studies. The effect was swift & unsurprisingly led to a decrease. the more competent freelancers were supposedly more affected. cxd.li/TnECrA

The 'pig butchering' cybercrime scam epitomizes this shift, merging emotional manipulation with high-tech deceit in a multi-layered exploitation unlike the simpler scams of the old days. It reveals a disturbing reality: victims are found at both ends. cxd.li/wTHtbk

Was LinkedIn ever truly about knowledge sharing? It has evolved into a showcase of ever-changing job titles and achievements. Nowadays, people seem to talk less about what they know and more about grabbing inflationary and ever-expanding pseudo roles.

When you think things can't get any more "efficient", faster, or shorter: From fast fashion to ultra-fast fashion, Chinese platforms like Pinduoduo are now directly "connecting" consumers with factories through their platform, Temu. cxd.li/Oh74rj

AI's ability to prioritize information effectively is questionable. Language models lack insight into our personal knowledge bases and fail to summarize what's most relevant. Yet, they can help analyze large text volumes for patterns. cxd.li/Rk70Dl

Are we really saving energy with more efficient ICT usage, or are we just consuming more energy with new devices? The paradox is real and illustrated in this eye-opening chart. cxd.li/dOdqat

Digital addiction „is characterized as a behavioral addiction involving 'the lack of autonomy to perform tasks without the use of digital devices" Hilarious. All office job worker are addicts. Some remarks on this paper „Digital Addiction in Organizations" cxd.li/KU56Me

Did you know that 66% of cloud hosting services are controlled by just three companies: Amazon, Microsoft, and Google? The concentration is real. What challenges does this pose for the future of the web? cxd.li/kfbj6v

Statistics have their limits. The important role of microworkers to improve large language models is finally more discussed. The industry is a global network of companies with dubious subcontractors, as shown in Antonio Casilli's interesting study. cxd.li/7tUdj0

It took me a while to understand how the CO2 footprint calculation is also a brilliant strategy to distract from what is going wrong in the production of goods. It shifts most of the debate onto the consumer instead of focusing on companies and their responsibilities.

The Anxiety Generation - Youth, Smartphones, and Dealing with the Challenges crisscrossed.net/en/insights/20… by Christian Kreutz

Incredible study that shows in what complex situation humanity has put itself in: Cleaner shipping fuel is contributing to ocean warming, scientists say reuters.com/business/envir…

Defining the Boundaries of Digital Public Infrastructure: Narrow and Broad Perspectives crisscrossed.net/en/blog/defini… by Christian Kreutz

Another story in German digital embarrassment. The biggest German digital provider, Deutsche Telekom, failed to handle a surge on their football streaming website. What an epic management failure.

The Daily Show pokes fun at the ‘CEO’ of X, Linda Yaccarino

Elon Musk’s journey from humanitarian to poster of rightwing memes theguardian.com/technology/art…