Material things

Swedish Students Are Going Back to School and Getting Analog Books

https://gizmodo.com/swedish-students-head-back-to-school-with-analog-books-1850826621 I hate school. Actually it’s not just school, I hate everything. I hate being the odd one out. Not everyone says something but they all have that look in their eye. A toxic mixture of pity and puzzlement. They know what’s in my bag when I walk into class,… Read the rest

The Game Boy that survived the Gulf War has been removed from Nintendo New York

https://www.theverge.com/2023/6/30/23780549/gulf-war-game-boy-nintendo-nyc There was a box of them. Of course it was poignant but we often smiled as we sorted through the collection. We told stories to each other and the kids as we lifted each one out. Trying to explain what it was, how it worked and what he’d done… Read the rest

Deepfakes for scrawl: With handwriting synthesis, no pen is necessary

https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2023/01/computer-generated-handwriting-demo-offers-deepfakes-for-scrawl Clients love visiting the offices. They smile as the receptionist politely asks them to leave their devices with him. They particularly love the smells. Not just the freshly brewing coffee but the inks, glue, papers, books. They all seem to make the same Proust joke and ask where Madeleine… Read the rest

The Hottest Gen Z Gadget Is a 20-Year-Old Digital Camera

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/07/technology/digital-cameras-olympus-canon.html It’s the blur for me. Not completely indecipherable or impossible to understand, just slightly… out. It fits with the way I see things. Nothing’s clear any more. I look at the world, politics, my future, my identity. Nothing is black and white. It’s all a bit fuzzy. I’m OK… Read the rest

Dispatch from an advertising future #259

Thames Water reviews data centres’ water use as London hosepipe ban looms https://www.ft.com/content/8d8bf26f-5df2-4ff6-91d0-369500ed1a9c The village had voted overwhelmingly for it. Some said the residents had no real choice. There weren’t many other options in that area. Those that could had moved away believing things were better in the South or… Read the rest