Recommended from Around the Web (Week Ending July 19, 2014)

A roundup of the most interesting stories from other sites, collected by the staff at MIT Technology Review.

MIT TR Editorsarchive page

July 18, 2014

Amazon, a Friendly Giant as Long as It’s Fed
Amazon has become the most powerful force in the book business—but is the company helping an old medium adapt to the digital era or simply building a monopoly?
—Tom Simonite, senior editor, IT

Can the World’s Most Promising Electric-Car Battery Be Saved?
Interesting story about how a much-hyped battery technology’s star might be fading, much to the chagrin of the big automakers that bet on it.
—Mike Orcutt, research editor

You Gotta Read This!
John Borthwick looks at the data and finds a dichotomy: digital readers are skimming and reposting, while also spending more time on longer pieces.
—Nanette Byrnes, senior editor, business reports

The Industrial Revolution That Never Was
The role of technology in determining how the Industrial Revolution took hold.
—Brian Bergstein, deputy editor

World Cup Moments Re-Created in 8-Bit Art
Brazilian artist supplies plenty of giggle-worthy images by transforming World Cup soccer moments into Atari-style illustrations.
—J. Juniper Friedman, editorial assistant

Keep Reading

Large language models can do jaw-dropping things. But nobody knows exactly why.

And that's a problem. Figuring it out is one of the biggest scientific puzzles of our time and a crucial step towards controlling more powerful future models.