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May 23, 2025
Heavy Metal
More than 7,000 years ago, humans first began mining copper. Since then, humans have mined more than 700 million tonnes. According to a fascinating study of the metals requirements of a net zero energy transition, the world will need to produce another 700 million tonnes of copper over the next 22 years. The study, by Simon Michaux of the…
May 23, 2025
Regulating Complex and Uncertain AI Technologies
A common cognitive bias, in which decision-makers unconsciously substitute a complex problem with a simpler, related one, was first described in 2002 by Daniel Kahneman and Shane Frederick. The concept of attribute substitution explains that, when faced with a complex judgment (target attribute), some may replace it with a more accessible, simpler judgment (heuristic attribute)…
May 23, 2025
The House Should Act Quickly to Repeal the Illegal, Expensive E-Rate Expansion
Earlier this month, the Senate passed S.J.Res.7. The resolution, sponsored by Senator Ted Cruz, would repeal a Biden-era Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rule allowing E-Rate funds to subsidize Wi-Fi hotspot lending programs for off-campus use. This well-intentioned but misguided rule violates clear statutory limits on agency power and threatens an increasingly unstable Universal Service Fund…
May 22, 2025
The Evidence So Far: What Research Reveals About AI’s Real Impact on Jobs and Society
As organizations race to integrate new AI models into their workflows, everyone is wondering what the effects will be on industries, jobs, and society: Will these new technologies complement human capabilities, create new opportunities, or replace workers across various sectors? The following table compiles research on large language models (LLMs), chatbots, and AI systems published…
May 21, 2025
First Amendment Fundamentals for Lawmakers as Courts Block Efforts to Protect Minors on Social Media
Lawmakers considering bills to safeguard minors from ostensible harms linked to social media platforms should carefully review two recent federal court opinions declaring unconstitutional state laws imposing parental-consent, age-verification mandates. US District Judge Algenon Marbley’s April decision from Ohio in NetChoice v. Yost and US District Judge Timothy Brooks’ March ruling from Arkansas in NetChoice…
May 20, 2025
The Politicization of Intelligence
Last week, Tulsi Gabbard, appointed by President Trump as the Director of National Intelligence, fired the top two officials of the National Intelligence Council (NIC) after The Washington Post and the New York Times reported that the Trump Administration had ignored the findings of its NIC related to its deportation efforts. Today, I explain what is going on, setting the stage…
May 20, 2025
How Much Paperwork, How Little Privacy for the Innocent?
Justice Kavanaugh asked some important practical questions during oral argument in the birthright citizenship case in the Supreme Court last week. The executive order in dispute purports to deny citizenship to children born in the United States based on the noncitizenship of their parents. “What do hospitals do with a newborn, what do states do…
May 19, 2025
Ten Provocative Graphs
The figures and data below are all hot of the press and shared to help get your weekend off to an intellectually stimulating start. Enjoy! The Earth is Darkening In a new posting, climate scientist James Hansen calls our attention to a “BFD”: Earth’s albedo (or reflectivity) is the portion (percent) of incoming solar radiation that…
May 16, 2025
The FTC’s Case Against Meta Looks Like Politics, Not Antitrust
The Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) antitrust case against Meta, Facebook’s parent company, is not really about protecting consumers or competition. It is an attempt to use regulatory power to dismantle a company based on political power, not law—a form of lawfare dressed in antitrust’s clothing. To make its case, the FTC first had to invent…
May 16, 2025
Congressional Crossfire: How Competing App Store Bills Create an Impossible Mandate
In Congress’s latest attempt to regulate Big Tech, two Republican lawmakers have created a policy paradox. In an effort to shape the future of app stores, each piece of proposed legislation undermines the other—yet both point out a critical blind spot in the conversation surrounding parental responsibility. Rep. Kat Cammack’s App Store Freedom Act would…