Comment Re:Standards need to be set (Score 1) 116
Comment Re:Just Plain Disgusting (Score 1) 138
a remotely Russian-related company bought some vaguely political advertising space?
I love to read Anonymous Coward's comments in a fake russian accent. It adds a lot of depth.
Comment Re:Just Plain Disgusting (Score 2) 138
They have bragged about how cheap and easy it is for them to hack our open society...
What many otherwise bright and internet-savvy people don't realize is that a few carefully written ads about gun control, abortion, immigration or taxes, which are targeted to the people who care about those issues most, can be fiercely motivating in the final days of an election. Pure propaganda works best, of course, as true believers don't fact-check. Multiply that effect by 100,000,000 page views and you wind up swinging a few key precincts. Get used to the new way of influencing popular thought.
Expect this to become more pervasive and more subtle. You can bet there are very smart people and big money working on this.
Comment Re:legalized bribery? (Score 1) 84
Comment Another great announcement (Score 1) 79
Comment But I heard it on the internet (Score 1) 119
Comment Careful what you wish for (Score 1) 259
We will need algorithms that can detect and "mod down" questionable research first. Not all papers, even peer-reviewed papers, are equal quality.