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Human Rights in Embroidery, Digital Twins, Nike in China, Martha Graham’s Diplomacy, and Facial Recognition’s Origins (Weekend Reads, 2/29/20)

Weekend Reads is an eclectic curation of seven fascinating articles I’ve recently encountered. These are posted here in a spirit of open dialogue, curiosity, and explorative conversation (Bollinger, 2019, para. 6; Hatch, 2019, para. 19-23) . Hope you find these as thought-provoking as I have. Thoughtful, well-reasoned, and respectful comments are always welcome.


THE ANONYMOUS WOMEN WHO EMBROIDERED THE CRUEL HISTORY OF THE CHILEAN DICTATORSHIP
“The arpilleras narrated the course of Pinochet’s brutal dictatorship through bold colors, broad stitching, and striking imagery, often incorporating fabrics from their disappeared children’s clothes.”
Hyperallergic, Rosa Boshier, 2/21/20


REFRAMING HUMAN SERVICES FOR GREATER IMPACT
“To realize the full value of human services community-based organizations, we need to change both the narrative around what they do and the structures funding them, stressing shared values and a commitment to outcomes.”
Stanford Social Innovation Review, Susan N. Dreyfus & Tracy Wareing Evans, 2/13/20


CHINA COMPELS UIGHURS TO WORK IN SHOE FACTORY THAT SUPPLIES NIKE
“But hundreds of these workers did not choose to be here: They are ethnic Uighurs from China’s western Xinjiang region, sent here by local authorities …”
Washington Post, Anna Fifield, 2/29/20


UNCOVERING THE HIDDEN LIFE OF MARTHA GRAHAM, MODERN DANCE ICON
“Historian Victoria Phillips examines the power of cultural diplomacy in her new book, Martha Graham’s Cold War.”
Columbia University News, Sabina Lee, 2/10/20


ARGUMENT: THE LEFT AND RIGHT ARE WRONG ABOUT INEQUALITY
“The problem isn’t trade or corporations – it’s the monopolization by professional groups of high-profit services.”
Foreign Policy, Jonathan Rothwell, 1/17/20
See also: The Inefficiency of Inequality: Why America’s Staggering Wealth Disparity is an Economic Problem (Foreign Policy, Altman, 2014)


DIGITAL TWINS OF HEARTS COULD HELP DIAGNOSE AND TREAT CARDIAC DISEASE
“Making a virtual heart”
The Economist, Sheffield, 2/27/2020
See also: Project Aims for Digital Twin of Cardiovascular System (The Engineer, 2/24/20)


THE SECRET HISTORY OF FACIAL RECOGNITION
“Sixty years ago, a sharecropper’s son invented a technology to identify faces. Then the record of his role all but vanished. Who was Woody Bledsoe, and who was he working for?”
Wired Magazine, Dan Winters, 1/21/20


Image: Gerd Altman, Pixabay

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