Data & Eggs
Volume 270
In this week’s edition: how quantum computing could break the internet, why it's hard for Americans to reach Formula One, and a new form of hydropower.
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STAATUS Index 2023
For the third consecutive year, we worked with The Asian American Foundation (TAAF) on STAATUS Index, a leading national study on American attitudes towards the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community. This year’s report shows us that while targeted attacks against Asian Americans may have declined over the past year, there's still plenty of work to do to make AAPIs feel welcome and included in American society. Visit staatus-index.org to download the full report and see interactive charts that summarize results from every question in the survey.
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Quantum computing could break the internet. This is how
For now, quantum computers remain too unstable to perform sophisticated operations for long. But a day is coming — commonly referred to as Q-Day — when quantum computers will be able to crack common encryption methods used to secure our digital data. That will have massive implications for internet companies, governments, and banks, so the world’s leading powers are now in a race to develop the technology first.
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Communicating in Color
King Charles officially took the throne on Saturday, marking the first coronation of a British monarch in 70 years. Even if the royal family rarely does press — Queen Elizabeth II famously only sat for one interview during her entire reign — they find ways to communicate. This project explores how the outfits of some of the royal family’s most prominent women have been used to send a message.
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Is It a Lake, or a Battery? A New Kind of Hydropower Is Spreading Fast.
For the last hundred years, hydroelectric power has been synonymous with big construction projects like the Hoover Dam. But a transformation is underway in hydroelectric energy; a technology called “pumped storage”, which doesn’t rely on the creation of major dams, has the potential to revolutionize how renewable energy gets created. Plans are already underway in China and the U.S. to lean more heavily into the technology.
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Why is it so hard for American drivers to reach Formula One?
The Miami Grand Prix took place over the weekend, the first of three scheduled F1 races in the United States this year. But even with the sport’s growing popularity in America, it’s still been notoriously difficult for an American driver to find his way onto the grid. This piece from The Washington Post explores why.
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How companies make it difficult to unsubscribe
Ever tried (and failed) to cancel a subscription to that streaming service you don’t use? Or tried to opt out of some newsletter you didn’t want to subscribe to in the first place (not ours, of course)? You may have encountered some “dark pattern,” a design technique that some companies implement to keep you as a customer. This project from The Pudding documents a bunch of dark patterns on the websites of household brands.