Parenting over the summer holidays, especially when juggling work and childcare, comes with significant challenges. One of those is screen time and staying safe online. Children’s time online has the potential to soar in the summer, and when you’re doing your best to work from home with the kids around, it’s pretty difficult to monitor what […] … learn more→

In 2001, social theorist bell hooks warned about the dangers of a loveless zeitgeist. In “All About Love: New Visions,” she lamented “the lack of an ongoing public discussion … about the practice of love in our culture and in our lives.” Back then, the internet was at a crossroads. The dot-com crash had bankrupted many […] … learn more→

Some unusual witnesses helped convict Alex Murdaugh of the murders of his wife, Maggie, and son, Paul. The first was Bubba, Maggie’s yellow Labrador retriever. Prosecutors used a recording of Bubba to place Alex at the site of the murders. Given Alex’s presence at the crime scene, other witnesses then revealed his movements, tracked his speed and […] … learn more→

Every day, thousands of web pages disappear without a trace. And with them, memories, knowledge, and fragments of our history vanish. When everything seems just a click away, it’s paradoxical that the World Wide Web (WWW) we call the Internet—that immense digital archive of our global civilization—is silently evaporating. From clay tablets to broken links […] … learn more→

Those who think that the initial exclamation mark ( ¡ ) is a prerogative of the Spanish language are mistaken. In 1668, John Wilkins suggested using that same mark to mark any statement that should not be interpreted literally, which, in short, he defined as the punctuation mark of irony . It may seem paradoxical that two centuries later, […] … learn more→

It’s nearly impossible to use the internet without being asked about cookies. A typical pop-up will offer to either “accept all” or “reject all”. Sometimes, there may be a third option, or a link to further tweak your preferences. These pop-ups and banners are distracting, and your first reaction is likely to get them out […] … learn more→

Digital devices have become our inseparable companions, and increasingly so at younger ages. A reality that presents both opportunities and risks for everyone, but especially for children. Social concern is high, and many countries are considering legislative measures to protect minors in digital environments. But beyond legislative measures, one of the keys to healthy digital use is […] … learn more→

My brother’s text messages can read like fragments of an ancient code: “hru,” “wyd,” “plz” – truncated, cryptic and never quite satisfying to receive. I’ll often find myself second-guessing whether “gr8” means actual excitement or whether it’s a perfunctory nod. This oddity has nagged at me for years, so I eventually embarked upon a series of studies with fellow […] … learn more→

Every day, users ask search engines millions of questions. The information we receive can shape our opinions and behaviour. We are often not aware of their influence, but internet search tools sort and rank web content when responding to our queries. This can certainly help us learn more things. But search tools can also return […] … learn more→

Ironically, Mark Zuckerberg’s attempts to muzzle his former employee, Sarah Wynn-Williams, once director of global public policy at Meta, seem to have created a bestseller. While Meta’s legal action successfully prevented Wynn-Williams (who worked there from 2011–17) from promoting her memoir, Careless People, her publisher has continued to promote it without her. In the week of its release, the […] … learn more→