Recommended from Around the Web (Week ending October 3, 2015)

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

MIT TR Editorsarchive page

October 1, 2015

Sherry Turkle’s “Reclaiming Conversation”
The novelist Jonathan Franzen offers an interesting reflection on a new book about the perils of creeping technological dependence.
—Will Knight, Senior Editor, AI

The Jocks of Computer Code Do It for the Job Offers
Ashlee Vance takes a wry look at the world of competitive computer programming.
—Will Knight

How Radiohead’s “Kid A” Kicked Off the Streaming Revolution
A nice piece in Grantland recalls an online experiment that foreshadowed radical changes in the way music is produced, marketed, and consumed.
—Will Knight

Beijing’s Test Tube Baby
Frequent MIT Technology Review contributor Christina Larson creates an in-depth profile in Foreign Policy of a new breed of Chinese scientists who are moving out of the country’s traditional research system into private and semiprivate research entities.
—Nanette Byrnes, Senior Editor, Business Reports

That Big Security Fix for Credit Cards Won’t Stop Fraud
The U.S. rollout of credit and debit cards with chips will cost upwards of $200 million. Unfortunately, U.S. card issuers have chosen a flawed version of this technology.
—Tom Simonite, San Francisco Bureau Chief

The FAA Has Missed Its Congressionally Mandated Deadline to Regulate Drones
A good summary of the FAA’s progress, or lack thereof, toward regulating commercial drones.
—Mike Orcutt, Associate Editor

The Cost of Mobile Ads on 50 News Sites
What do ad blockers mean—not for publishers, but for users trying to get sites to perform better?
—Brian Bergstein, Executive Editor

A Breast Cancer Surgeon Who Keeps Challenging the Status Quo
A profile of a remarkable doctor suggests that reducing the use of surgery and even screening could improve our approach to breast cancer.
—Linda Lowenthal, Copy Chief

The Car That Killed Glamour
I thought the Tesla WAS a cool car. Shows how much I understand car culture.
—Linda Lowenthal

Stop Googling. Let’s Talk.
Interesting piece by MIT professor Sherry Turkle about the importance of putting away our phones and actually paying attention to each other.
—Rachel Metz, Senior Editor, Mobile

The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Drone Pilot
A deep dive on the mental toll it takes to pilot military drones.
—Kyanna Sutton, Senior Web Producer

Pigeon
Hard to tell whether this service is for real or not. In any case, bet it makes you smile.
—Kyanna Sutton