Recommended from Around the Web (Week Ending June 27, 2015)
A roundup of the most interesting stories from other sites, collected by the staff at MIT Technology Review.
Betrayed by Dre?
Fascinating story about Beats headphones in which the creator of Monster (the audio accessory company, which did manufacture Beats) alleges he came up with the idea for the headphones brand and was later betrayed by Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine.
—Rachel Metz, senior editor, mobile
Why the Saudis Are Going Solar
Why is Saudi Arabia embracing solar power? So it can sell more oil instead of using it at home.
—Brian Bergstein, executive editor
The Internet of Things You Don’t Really Need
The history and implications of “conspicuous computation.”
—Nanette Byrnes, senior editor, Business Reports
L.A. to Nepal: America’s First Responders, California Task Force Two Follows Disaster Around the World
Composed of firefighters, doctors, and engineers from Southern California, California Task Force Two is sort of the Seal Team Six of international disaster aid. And with natural disasters on the rise, its work is only going to get more demanding.
—Richard Martin, senior editor, energy
A New Earthquake Early-Warning System for Mexico City
How a startup is building the only large-scale early-warning system for earthquakes outside Japan, in Mexico City.
—Tom Simonite, San Francisco bureau chief
Mobile Is Eating the World
Andreessen Horowitz analyst Benedict Evans is out with a slick, illustrative presentation that quantifies the rise of mobile computing all over the world.
—Mike Orcutt, research editor
The Robots Are Coming
Daniela Rus, a prominent professor, writes about the huge potential of robots, as well as the remaining challenges.
—Will Knight, senior editor, AI
Zane Lowe: The DJ Scratching out Beats 1 for Apple
A nice feature on Zane Lowe, the BBC radio DJ hired by Apple to head up music curation and broadcasting on Beats 1.
—Will Knight