Happy Saturday!
The Grind is proud to launch Ben’s List, a curated list of the best science, technology, and design news of the week, put together by Staff Writer Ben Penchas.
- Tesla’s Model S just got a software update that allows for Autpilot, namely three new features: Autosteer, Auto Lane Change, and Autopark. Autosteer keeps the car in lane on the highway. Auto Lane Change changes lanes autonomously when the driver switches the turn signal on. Autopark can parallel park for you. [via Quartz]
- Why all the fuss about Tesla? If you have never heard of Tesla–or you are wondering why its cars are all the rave–Tim Urban has the full story. [via Wait But Why]
- Would a mandatory bike helmet law be a good idea? Alarmingly, many cycling advocates say the answer is no. The reason is simple: studies show the more bikers on the road, the safer it is to be a biker. Since mandatory helmet laws make biking more of a hassle, they decrease ridership and make cycling more dangerous. [via The Wall Street Journal]
- Reid Hoffman, who started LinkedIn, is teaching “Technology-Enabled Blitzscaling” here at Stanford, shares his big idea about networking: in today’s uncertain job market, the most valuable asset you have is your personal network. Relentless networking is the only job security. [via The New Yorker]
- Why is Twitter dying? In short: abuse. “We once glorified Twitter as a great global town square, a shining agora where everyone could come together to converse. But I’ve never been to a town square where people can shove, push, taunt, bully, shout, harass, threaten, stalk, creep, and mob you…and you can’t even call a cop. What does that particular social phenomenon sound like to you? Twitter could have been a town square. But now it’s more like a drunken, heaving mosh pit.” [via Medium]
- Why hasn’t the paperclip been improved upon? The answer seems to lie in its minimalist, familiar design that simply works. “Most everyday objects—like the key, or the book, or the phone—evolve over time in incremental ways… But if you could step into an office in 1895… you might find a perfectly recognizable, shiny silver paper clip sitting on a desk.” [via Slate]
Send Ben Penchas recommendations at bpenchas ‘at’ stanford.edu.