Ian Robinson's Weekly Digest - 6th June 2021

I’m typing this with a sore arm after getting my second vaccine shot yesterday. Science wins again! Hopefully all of you will have had your vaccine shots, or will get them soon. Don’t be like Mirror Julie when you do! 😊

Seven articles and thirteen new music releases in this weeks post below. As always, get me on Twitter to discuss anything or to ask questions.

Astrophotography: 40 Megapixel Image of the Sun - Andrew McCarthy - Link

Don’t look directly at the Sun they say. Good advice. Look at this image instead!

Legacy Computing: Old-school computing: when your lab PC is ancient - Nature - Link

I recently decided to get a new iPhone after using my current one for almost three years. An eternity for me when it comes to technology. Lot’s of scientists and lab technicians are still using decades-old computers to keep their experiments going. Yikes!

Cybersecurity: Hacker Lexicon - What Is a Supply Chain Attack? - Wired - Link

Andy Greenberg does some excellent writing for Wired on cybersecurity. His book Sandworm is also a must-read. In the first of two articles by him in this weeks post, he explains what a Supply Chain Attack is.

Cybersecurity: The Full Story of the Stunning RSA Hack Can Finally Be Told - Wired - Link

And in this article, Andy Greenberg goes into detail on the RSA hack from ten years ago. Now that those involved first-hand can talk about it.

Technology Trends: Gartner Top 10 Data and Analytics Trends for 2021 - Gartner - Link

Gartner’s top 10 trends that they say will drive the technology landscape over the next year or so. Grouped under three headings: Accelerating Change - Operationalising Business Value - Distributed Everything. An interesting set. You could debate if this is the top 10 to focus on. But that’s the point of lists like this!

Books: The Englishman trying to save American bookstores from Amazon - FT Magazine - Link

An excellent long read on how James Daunt rescued Waterstones from almost certain bankruptcy and how he’s been drafted in to try to do the same for Barnes & Noble in the USA. This link will allow three people to bypass the FT paywall. I’m told you can also scroll down and read it below the subscription banner if one is presented.

Books: Lawrence of Arabia, Paul Atreides, and the Roots of Frank Herbert’s Dune - Tordotcom - Link

I love Frank Herbert’s Dune. And I love David Lean’s Lawrence of Arabia film. There are obvious similarities in the stories and settings. This article by Dr Kara Kennedy comparing and contrasting them is ace. If Lawrence of Arabia led to Dune, then it also led to Star Wars. As shown by the similarities between Dune and Star Wars outlined here and here.

Japanese Breakfast - Jubilee (Album) - Apple Music - Spotify - Twitter

MØ - Live to Survive (Single) - Apple Music - Spotify - Twitter

Sigrid - Mirror (Single) - Apple Music - Spotify - Twitter

Jessie Ware - Please (Single) - Apple Music - Spotify - Twitter

Dea Matrona - Stamp On It (Single) - Apple Music - Spotify - Twitter

When Rivers Meet - We Fly Free (Album) - Apple Music - Spotify - Twitter

Zoe Wees - Golden Wings (EP) - Apple Music - Spotify - Twitter

Maddie Regent - Salt (Single) - Apple Music - Spotify - Twitter

Angèle Dubeau & La Pietà - Immersion (Album) - Apple Music - Spotify - Website (Angèle Dubeau)

Ghosts Of Our Former Selves - Sea of People (Single) - Apple Music - Spotify - Twitter

Kaktus Einarsson - Kick The Ladder (Album) - Apple Music - Spotify - Twitter

Haiva Ru - Toxic (Single) - Apple Music - Spotify - Twitter

Leif Ove Andsnes - Mozart Momentum - 1785 (Album) - Apple Music - Spotify - Twitter

Here are Apple Music and Spotify playlists with all the singles and one selected track from each album or EP. In no particular order. Play them on shuffle!