Yes, everyone is angry that Facebook manipulated 700,000 users' timelines to see if they could help researchers prove emotions are contagious. But John Foreman isn't just annoyed about it. As a data scientist, he's thought deeply about where this is headed, and it's not good. He brings up the Kuleshov Effect first described by a Russian scientist, that images matter less than the sequence in which they are stitched together. And he concludes:

In this particular study in PNAS, we can see that the promise of data modeling at Facebook is not to "let humans be more human." It's not to "free their minds."

All of that machine reasoning isn't trying to make us more human so much as it is trying to make us more sad and predictable. And just wait until deep learning applied to image recognition can recognize and stream my selfie at Krispie Kreme next to a tagged photo of me and my love handles at the beach. Data-driven inferiority complexes for all!

The promise of data modeling at Facebook is to place us in chains made from the juxtaposition of our own content. We'll be driven into pens made of a few profitable emotional states where marketing content waits for us like a cattle gun to the skull.

This is an interesting read. Not surprising, but disappointing nonetheless. Time to ditch Facebook and spend more time on Twitter? He's got thoughts about that too.

Ever wish you could be transported across town at 250 kilometers per hour via magnetic transport tech? Get your butt over to Tel Aviv, Israel, then. According to the guys over at PanicaTech, Israel is getting ready to build the world's first ultra-modern transport system. From the article:

Company SkyTran, based at the National Research Center NASA Ames in California (USA), is going to create in Tel Aviv, the world's first high-speed rail transportation system-Maglev. Each "composition" will be designed for two people. At the moment, together with engineers from SkyTran NASA engaged in manufacturing the necessary elements, structures and capsules, which will then be sent to Israel for further installation of the transport network.

Initially, before the end of 2015 it is planned to construct a circular branch length of only about 400 meters. To test. If all goes well, then Tel Aviv will become the first city in the world, which will be installed full futuristic public transport system Maglev.

[Ed. note: yes, but can you drink a coffee at that speed?]

Here's a cool little video: This guy piloted a heli-drone through an ongoing fireworks display. The footage is pretty awesome. Looks I might have to go buy myself a quadracopter or equivalent after all!