London Review Of Books – October 10, 2024 Preview
Category Archives: Reviews
AI Technology: Are Tesla Robotaxis Ready To Roll?
CNBC (October 2, 2024): For a decade, Elon Musk has championed the idea that one day Tesla cars will drive themselves as robotaxis. On October 10, the company plans to reveal a “dedicated robotaxi” design at an invitation-only event in Los Angeles.
Chapters: 3:18 Ch 1 – Tesla’s vision for autonomy 6:33 Ch 2 – Full self-driving 10:13 Ch 3 – Realizing the robotaxi 15:34 Ch 4 – Sizing up the robotaxi competition
Despite years of bold predictions and missed deadlines, fans of the company are holding out hope that Musk will finally deliver. Regardless of what the company showcases at its robotaxi day, experts are skeptical of the company’s strategy, citing its Auotpilot and Full Self-Driving technology as a barometer for Tesla’s progress, or lack thereof.
While Tesla has been developing its autonomous vehicles, competitors like Google-owned Waymo and Chinese companies like Pony.ai and Baidu have already launched commercial robotaxi services. With U.S. EV sales growth slowing, there’s a lot riding on Tesla’s potential pivot to autonomy. CNBC explores whether the company is ready for robotaxis and if Musk’s vision for driverless Teslas will become a reality anytime soon.
Research Preview: Nature Magazine – Oct. 3, 2024
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Why cannibal queens make a meal of fungus-ridden larvae
Ant larvae infected with a pathogenic fungus had better watch out for Mum.
Bronze Age clash was Europe’s oldest known interregional battle
Artefacts found in modern-day Germany suggest that northern and southern peoples clashed in the Tollense Valley millennia ago.
Mathematicians discover new class of shape seen throughout nature
‘Soft cells’ — shapes with rounded corners and pointed tips that fit together on a plane — feature in onions, molluscs and more.
Arts/Books: Times Literary Supplement – Oct. 4, 2024
Times Literary Supplement (October 2, 2024): The latest issue features ‘Canon Fire’ – Emma Smith and Brian Vickers on authorship in the golden age of theatre…
Country Life Magazine – October 2, 2024 Preview
Country Life Magazine (October 1, 2024): The latest issue features…
Mud-gilded places
In the first of a new series exploring England’s varied landscapes, John Lewis-Stempel discovers a paradise for wildlife amid the bleak desolation of the estuary
Pretty Chitty-Bang-Bang, we love you
Mary Miers reveals the origins of Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang, as Ian Fleming’s beloved magical flying car prepares to turn 60
Travel
- Rosie Paterson digs out some private hideaways
- Steven King experiences how the other half lived as he stays in the homes of some illustrious names
- A trip to Tuscany is the perfect tonic for Pamela Goodman
The rest is history
Michael Hall examines the noble art of history painting through the output of such masters as van Dyck, Rubens and Fuseli
Inigo Lambertini’s favourite painting
The Italian ambassador picks a profound classical work of art
Homesick for the olden days
Carla Carlisle takes a wistful look at history and admits we didn’t realise we had it so good
A Georgian triumph
John Goodall reveals the eight winners in this year’s Georgian Group Architectural Awards
Handsome and genteel
In the second of two articles, Jeremy Musson charts the revival of George Washington’s Mount Vernon mansion in Virginia
The legacy
Carla Passino hails the founders of the peerless Wallace Collection
Our last hurrah
October is the time for filling up winter stores, says Lia Leendertz
Bury me in a willow-shaped coffin
English osier beds are enjoying a revival, finds Jane Wheatley
Another string to the bow
Harry Pearson meets Britain’s master luthier Roger Hansell
The good stuff
Hetty Lintell goes wild for jewellery
Interiors
Bright and beautiful paint and wallpaper, with Amelia Thorpe
London Life
- Rosie Paterson follows the V&A’s precious cargo
- Samantha Cameron is in the hot seat
- Jack Watkins relives Primrose Hill’s Death Pyramid plan
- John Goodall asks whether enough is enough for the capital’s skyline
The world on the doorstep
Caroline Donald visits the gardens of China, Italy and Africa without leaving Seend Manor in Wiltshire
Kitchen garden cook
Melanie Johnson on quince
Foraging
John Wright gets imaginative in the kitchen with sweet chestnuts
The show must go on
James Fisher can’t see beyond an England cricket win in Pakistan
Politics: The Progressive Magazine- October 2024
How to Make a ‘War Reserve’ Nuclear Bomb
The dark art of crafting nuclear ‘pits’ was almost lost. Now it’s ramped up into a multibillion dollar industry.
Child Care Does Not Need To Be a Crisis
Our system leaves parents with unreliable waitlists and mortgage-size payments, while teachers go overburdened and underpaid.
Can Democrats Ride Ballot Initiatives to Victory?
The party realizes that progressive issues win voters, even when their candidates don’t.
Preview: Philosophy Now Magazine October 2024
Atomism & Smallism
Raymond Tallis wonders what the world is made from.
Reviews: How Motown Music Upheld Civil Rights
BBC (September 30, 2024): Paid In Full: The Battle for Black Music documents the extent of the historic injustice suffered by the music industry’s Black artists, including the disparity of profits received by them, despite having created the records that have driven the fabric and culture of popular music – from jazz and rock and roll to soul and rap.
Features interviews with Black titans of the music industry Cadence Weapon, Chaka Khan, George Clinton, Monie Love, Nile Rodgers, Gloria Gaynor, Ice T, Master P, and Smokey Robinson.
#PaidInFull #BlackMusic #musicindustry #music #exploitation #BlackHistory #civilrightsmovement #motown
International Art: Apollo Magazine – October 2024
Raising a glass to Campari’s photographic archive
Scenes of rowdy bars and tipsy revellers in the 20th century show a world that is both alien and comfortingly familiar
The dangerous beauty of Waterhouse’s nymphs
Sarah Moss returns to a Pre-Raphaelite painting that made a lasting impression on her in when she was a teenager
The Andalusian winery that pairs sherry with Spanish paintings
The veteran sherry-makers at Bodegas Tradición in Cádiz may have perfected their craft, but the winery’s collection of paintings by great Spanish artists is no less impressive
Preview: The New Yorker Magazine – October 7, 2024
Kamala Harris for President
The Vice-President has displayed the basic values and political skills that would enable her to help end, once and for all, a poisonous era defined by Donald Trump. By The Editors
Has Social Media Fuelled a Teen-Suicide Crisis?
Mental-health struggles have risen sharply among young Americans, and parents and lawmakers alike are scrutinizing life online for answers. By Andrew Solomon
Is a Chat with a Bot a Conversation?
An artificial voice has long been a dream of tinkerers and technologists. Now that A.I. can talk, though, we may forget who we’re talking to.
By Jill Lepore
Boomers Daily 