Month: January 2015

“…our children–and now increasingly Mexico’s children—are not growing up to be farmworkers.”

What’s Going on in the Workforce?
“…our children–and now increasingly Mexico’s children—are not growing up to be farmworkers.” So naturally, farming robots.
You know you want to read a paper about the maritime implications of exosuit technology. I mean, cyborgs underwater? It’s like space, but with fish. Sign me up!
“In a world where we focus on pixel-perfect design for your app, how can you not deliver ‘pixel-perfect’ service quality when the workers delivering your services interact with customers?” Hunter Walk talks about why he invests in startups that invest in their workers—whether those are engineers, or 1099-contractors.
Here’s a curious idea—an app that will loan money to workers with precarious schedules, in weeks when they don’t get enough hours—and they pay back when times are better.
Reputation, reputation, reputation
You may have missed this story when it first launched—I certainly did. Meet Tsu, the social network that pays you for creating content. Hit me up, if you want an invite.
Wanna freak out a bunch of politicians about the need for cyber security? Why not set up an open wifi spot at a conference they’re attending, and then announce that you’ve tracked their online activity.
Organizing Theory
“Effective resistance movements depend on networks that are flexible, durable, and can adapt their strategies to changing conditions over time.” In other words, social media can’t do it all. Duh.
From Partners
BLS has put out its statistics on union members in 2014—and it will be no surprise to any reader here that once again membership declined as a part of the overall workforce. CEPR has a detailed look at the demographics of the union workforce.
This week’s 40 years on update on Studs Terkel’s Working? Meet the Web Engineer.
Geeking Out
If Stephen Hawking is worried about the impact AI research could have on society, shouldn’t you be? Here is a great list of AI research that we should be supporting. If you’re on board, sign the open letter backing it up.
The first-ever 3D printed building has become a reality.
Sharing, Solidarity & Sustainability
Interesting interview by IPS’s Sam Pizzigati with researchers who study economic inequality and health outcomes.
Excellent analysis of the history of “sharing” companies, their strengths and weaknesses, by Juliet Schor.

On robot dresses & worker-owned coops (sadly, not in the same article)

What’s Going on in the Workforce?
Sarah Jaffe has a great long read in Al-Jazeera about worker-owned coops in the US, particularly focusing on the struggles involved in setting them up.  And Abby Scher has a good look at how solidarity economy activists in Reading, PA are working to promote co-ops and other forms of community-owned wealth in that city.  Incidentally, Forbes estimates that if Apple were a worker-owned coop, every employee would earn over $400K per year.
Geeking Out
Voice recognition software gets to be the butt of lots of jokes (and I’ll always love Siri for the way she pronounces “Conshohocken”), but it’s getting so good that we’ll soon live in a world where “devices don’t have keyboards.” I guess I won’t need those haptic gloves anymore…
Robotic spider dress that protects my personal space? Where have you been all my life?!?
Organizing Theory
Thinking about organizing a skillshare in your community? Here’s a good walk-through of every step of the planning process.
From Partners
Strong work from Moshe Marvit about the right’s new push on Right to Work—passing local ordinances.
“I realized my work wasn’t necessary.” And here’s this week’s Studs Terkel Working update from In These Times—meet The Data Entry “Associate.”
Sharing, Solidarity & Sustainability
What happens to a town when Wal-Mart moves out, especially after it’s destroyed every business?
Could we socialize life-saving technology to decrease inequality?
I’m always a fan of ways of organizing against the robot apocalypse—but are we really losing the moral high ground on basic income to libertarians & right-wingers?

“We are slowly entering the robotic revolution…”

What’s Going on in the Workforce?

“We are slowly entering the robotic revolution…” Look, there are even charts!  And technologist Martin Ford points out that automation and worker fears of replacement may lead to deflation as well.

Excellent piece from Forbes on the hazards that sharing economy workers face AFTER they get hurt at work.

If robots have temp agencies, can a robot union be far behind?

Sarcasm is a beautiful thing. Henry Blodget cheers on capital for “crushing” labor, and laments the probably outcome.

Geeking Out
Are you ready to drive your car with your watch?
There’s something strangely compelling about a robot with 3D vision…
Sharing, Solidarity & Sustainability
Can combining time banks & coops help to meet your community’s needs?
Reputation, reputation, reputation
Maybe we should replace “don’t be evil” with “don’t be creepy” as an internet age mantra? Until then, campaigns will be scraping your grocery receipts to target you.
The FBI thinks it doesn’t need a warrant to spy on your cell phone in public. Think about that at your next demonstration.
Organizing Theory
“Political squatting” helps win campaigns for fair housing in England.
From Partners
Philly folks—David Dylan Thomas is giving a talk at Penn on January 29th—details here. We interviewed David back in September of last year…
And for those of you in DC—The Century Foundation is having a conference on solutions to child poverty, on January 22.
This week brings another installment of In These Times updates on Stud Terkel’s Working—here’s the Adjunct Instructor.

“Don’t go back into your cave of despair.”

Organizing Theory
“Don’t go back into your cave of despair.” How to turn movement moments into movement power.
Want some policy ideas for how to bring fresh food into underserved communities? Union of Concerned Scientists has a toolkit for that.
Sharing, Solidarity & Sustainability
Relay Rides is the other thing you can do with your car to monetize it when you’re not quite willing to become a chauffeur…
“…if our reason for supporting different modes of sharing is a desire to create a more equitable and sustainable economic system, we need to significantly broaden our understanding of what constitutes a sharing economy.” 
“The idea that having a good job means being an employee of a particular company is a legacy of a period that stretched from about 1880 to 1980.” So says The Economist, writing about the sharing economy and the rise of the freelancer.
How Spanish groups are organizing collectively, including to provide trade education in communities.
Reputation, reputation, reputation
Pew on the future of privacy. “The current arms race of privacy between individuals who want it and governments who wish to eliminate it will continue unabated.”
From Partners
In These Times is revisiting Working by Studs Terkel, in its 40th year, with updated essays about work today. Here’s the Gravedigger.
Geeking Out
If you’re going to make a robot, it really ought to be a shark robot, right?
Welp. NASA emailed a wrench to the space station. H/t to reader Hannah Sassaman for this gem.
What happens when your bot breaks the law? Jeez, can’t I get my kids through high school before I have to worry about stuff like this?
What’s Going on in the Workforce?
In the “jobs so boring, it’s a good thing they made a robot for it” category? Testing car buttons.
On the other hand, do you really want fries with that? McDonald’s is introducing touchscreen ordering, to serve their next Xbillionth customer.
I continue to be convinced that artists and other content creators are going to be the people to figure out how this new economy works. Here’s Erik Arneson, talking about his success in giving away stories online, in order to build his distribution list.