Forget Zuckerberg – the tech giants don’t have to own the future | John Harris

Facebook, Google and Apple make the headlines, but there are many inspiring startups to dissipate the sense of techno-dreadA quarter of a century ago, the Canadian author Douglas Coupland published his third novel. Microserfs was the tale of a group of young Microsoft employees who decide to exit the realm of Bill Gates in Washington state and chase a dream of their own in California places that, back then, sounded like the epitome of futuristic magic: Palo Alto, Menlo Park. As well as prescient flashes of the world to come – “Beware of the corporate invasion of private memory,” warned one of its protagonists – what always stuck with me was its air of techno-optimism, perfectly crystallised right at the end, when the central character’s mother has a stroke and is rescued from silence by a set-up attached to an Apple Macintosh. She communicates via such staccato sentences as “I am here”, and “I feel U”; the novel’s closing pages capture her and her family marvelling at the fact that she has become “part woman/part machine, emanating blue Macintosh light”.The book was published in 1995, when computers suddenly offered an ever-expanding window on to the world. Many of us had no doubt that the leap from old to new represented nothing but progress. By the start of this decade social media platforms were being hailed as a means of individual and collective emancipation. But where has this faith in the future gone? Related: The rise of technology in care: how will it affect... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2018-12-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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This Is When Prince Harry's Memoir Is Due Out (And What To Expect)

The title and publication date of The Duke of Sussex's book, Spare, has been revealed. Continue reading at The Huffington Post

[ The Huffington Post | 2022-10-27 10:59:48 UTC ]
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Title and Pub Date of Prince Harry Memoir Revealed

The memoir by Prince Harry, announced by publisher Random House in July, finally has a title and a publication date: 'Spare' will be released on January 10, 2023. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-10-27 04:00:00 UTC ]
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'Harry Potter' actor Tom Felton explains how an escape from rehab helped his sobriety

In his memoir 'Beyond the Wand,' Tom Felton shares behind-the-scenes tales from the 'Harry Potter' franchise and chronicles his struggle with alcohol. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2022-10-18 20:19:47 UTC ]
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Harry Potter and Cracker actor Robbie Coltrane dies aged 72

The actor, known for playing Hagrid in the Harry Potter franchise and Fitz in the series Cracker, has died aged 72. Continue reading at BBC News

[ BBC News | 2022-10-14 18:09:44 UTC ]
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Scottish actor Robbie Coltrane, who played Hagrid in Harry Potter films, dies at 72

Scottish actor Robbie Coltrane, who played a forensic psychologist on the TV series Cracker and Hagrid in the Harry Potter movies, has died. Continue reading at CBC

[ CBC | 2022-10-14 17:36:32 UTC ]
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Robbie Coltrane: a totally singular talent from Cracker to Harry Potter – cerebral, physical and unforgettable

From early comedy in Tutti Frutti to damaged psychologist Fitz, via Hagrid, Falstaff, Blackadder and finally National Treasure’s complex, hard-to-hate lead, Coltrane – who has died aged 72 – was a one-off“You’re a wizard, Harry!”For an entire generation all over the world, this was the key... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2022-10-14 17:08:39 UTC ]
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How Women Writers Speculated Fictional Futures Free From Patriarchal Control

It is a truth universally acknowledged that there are as many definitions of “feminism” and “science fiction” as there are people who identify as feminists and science fiction enthusiasts—in fact, that is part of what makes both of these communities attractive to many people. However, by 1981,... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2022-10-11 08:53:20 UTC ]
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How Retelling Indigenous Histories Create a More Just Future

Emergence Magazine is an online publication with annual print edition exploring the threads connecting ecology, culture, and spirituality. As we experience the desecration of our lands and waters, the extinguishing of species, and a loss of sacred connection to the Earth, we look to emerging... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2022-10-11 08:52:45 UTC ]
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Amazon's Kindle Paperwhite drops to $100, plus the rest of the week's best tech deals

Amazon's Prime Early Access Sale is coming next week and we've already started to see a number of preview deals pop up. Devices like the Echo Show 5, Fire TV Stick 4K Max and Kindle Paperwhite have been discounted ahead of the event, and we expect to see more deals on Amazon gadgets during the... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2022-10-07 15:45:38 UTC ]
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How Lynne Tillman's 'Mothercare' helped me face my aging parents' future

David Ulin talks with Lynne Tillman about "Mothercare," her memoir on managing her mother's decline — just as he begins a similar journey. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2022-09-29 13:00:09 UTC ]
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Joan Didion Remembered at St. John the Divine

On September 21, hundreds gathered at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine to celebrate the life and work of writer Joan Didion, who died on December 23, 2021, at the age of 87. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-09-23 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Shares in Marie Claire publisher Future plunge as chief announces departure

More than £300m wiped off market value as company says Zillah Byng-Thorne is to step downFuture, one of Europe’s biggest and most successful digital media companies, has seen more than £300m wiped off its market value after the company said that chief executive Zillah Byng-Thorne is to step down... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2022-09-20 11:10:40 UTC ]
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John Green’s First Novel May Be Banned At His Old School

"Please don't ban my books in my hometown," John Green concluded in the TikTok. "It's really upsetting for my mom." Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2022-09-13 13:44:10 UTC ]
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My Cyborg Future: Alice Wong on Prophetic High School Poetry and Processing Pain

“All responses to the world take place within our bodies.” –Gloria Anzaldúa * In putting together my book and making selections from past work, I desperately wanted to include a poem from my high school literary magazine to give readers a glimpse of my inner emo goth self. I emailed a librarian... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2022-09-07 08:52:12 UTC ]
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Publishers on the Future of the Regionals

Large houses and small presses discuss the need for face-to-face fall bookseller gatherings. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-08-26 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon's Kindle Paperwhite drops to $110, plus the rest of the week's best tech deals

Labor Day is rapidly approaching and we're already starting to see more tech deals pop up across the web. Amazon discounted a bunch of its own gadgets this week, including the new Kindle Paperwhite, its Signature Edition and the Kindle Oasis, as well as a bunch of Fire TV Sticks and Fire... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2022-08-19 13:15:16 UTC ]
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Why Publishing Sitcoms Help Me Maintain Hope and Humor for the Future of the Industry

Hollywood can’t resist a literary adaptation. Frontlist, backlist—it’s all fodder for screenplays. The publishing world itself also feeds the insatiable page-to-screen pipeline: from 1930s and ’40s screwball satires about newspaper reporters (His Girl Friday, Meet John Doe, Mr. Deeds Goes to... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2022-08-18 08:53:31 UTC ]
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Dell XPS 13 Plus review: The future is now

At a glanceExpert’s Rating ProsFast CPUGorgeous 3.5K OLEDGreat audioConsOnly two USB-C PortsMiddling battery performanceNo headset jackOur VerdictDell’s XPS 13 Plus once again tries to set standard for all laptops and largely succeeds, but its battery life and lack of ports don’t... Continue reading at PC World

[ PC World | 2022-08-04 10:45:00 UTC ]
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What’s the point of Saudi Arabia’s giant sideways desert skyscraper? ‘A big, long symbol of power’

A linear city in the desert is a provocative vision of the city of the future—but it’s been tried before. Saudi Arabia’s proposal for a 105-mile-long building called the Line has all the stuff of a science fiction paperback. The stark desert setting. The kingdom in control of vast amounts of one... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2022-08-04 04:30:19 UTC ]
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‘This must be stopped’: US begins court battle against publishing giants’ merger

The justice department is seeking to block the $2.2bn merger between Penguin Random House and Simon & SchusterThe government and publishing titan Penguin Random House exchanged opening salvos in a federal antitrust trial Monday as the US seeks to block the biggest US book publisher from... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2022-08-01 16:24:36 UTC ]
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