OF THE
TIMES
The Atlantic reports on a new study suggesting that the famous "marshmallow test" is unreliable as a predictor of future economic instability. Excerpt: In the case of this new study, specifically, the failure to confirm old assumptions pointed to an important truth: that circumstances matter more in shaping children's lives than Mischel and his colleagues seemed to appreciate.
The employees who are resigning in protest, several of whom discussed their decision to leave with Gizmodo, say that executives have become less transparent with their workforce about controversial business decisions and seem less interested in listening to workers' objections than they once did. In the case of Maven, Google is helping the Defense Department implement machine learning to classify images gathered by drones. But some employees believe humans, not algorithms, should be responsible for this sensitive and potentially lethal work-and that Google shouldn't be involved in military work at all.Today's post will revisit a theme I spent considerable time and energy on last year. Namely, the tendency of human beings to focus on words versus deeds.
Historically, Google has promoted an open culture that encourages employees to challenge and debate product decisions. But some employees feel that their leadership no longer as attentive to their concerns, leaving them to face the fallout. "Over the last couple of months, I've been less and less impressed with the response and the way people's concerns are being treated and listened to," one employee who resigned said.
- Gizmodo: Google Employees Resign in Protest Against Pentagon Contract
Comment: For that matter, here's a link to Sott's own related research Forum.