Link List #70: In which a meme is finally put to rest, big data tricks us, and a scientist marvels at a Commes des Garçons dress - Friends of Friends / Freunde von Freunden (FvF)

Link List #70: In which a meme is finally put to rest, big data tricks us, and a scientist marvels at a Commes des Garçons dress

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It’s been a turbulent week for global politics. A narrow miss in France, the continuation of Trump’s regime of chaos over the pond and, if that wasn’t quite enough, melting Polar ice caps are now releasing ancient, long-dormant bacteria into the atmosphere. It all reads like the prequel to a John Carpenter movie. As is fitting for such a moment, we’ve rounded up some of the internet’s boldest and most brilliant links from the past week.

Links

    • 1 This article in the LA Times tracks the recent, and welcome, rise of the female gaze. From Transparent to The Handmaid’s Tale, a new generation of female directors are showing us, at long last, how the world looks to women.
    • 2 Mention Brexit to many Brits and you’ll soon see a gloomy look sweep over their face: “the public was conned!” they’ll mumble, aware of the futility of such a retrospective statement. This article in The Guardian shows us the very depths of the Brexit scam, and the role of big data in duping the voting public.
    • 3 This week, Pepe the Frog, the flat-faced green meme of the U.S.-alt-right, has been killed off by its creator, cartoonist Matt Furie. While this may save him from his dastardly fate over the pond, Motherboard asks what impact, if any, did the meme have on the recent French election? Read more here.
    • 4 But that’s enough politics for now! In Racked this week, a real-life scientist talks dress tailoring—from the Euclidean geometry of a flat sheet of material to the mind-boggling engineering behind Rihanna’s Comme des Garçons gown at this year’s Met Gala.
    • 5 This beautiful essay in Catapult sees Jaya Saxena analyze her dual heritage, reclaiming her identity from those who imagine her to be everything from Greek to Jewish to Maori. As she says, “I have three different racial identities—white, Indian, and multiracial. It is not that I present as one more than the others; they are all whole and complete, and I am all of them.”

Thanks for reading! We hope our links inspire you and give you a small window into what the FvF office is enjoying this week.

For a visual update, check out our Instagram, full of stunning images from the FvF community.

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Text:Siobhan Leddy

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