Robin Lately my deep learning focus has been on understanding artificial intelligence — not just how it works in terms of training data, random forests, etc., but its legal, ethics, and policy implications. Hence, I’m not terribly surprised a lawsuit’s been launched related to the use of artists’ work in training AI algorithms. In short, a … Read more
Over the past year I’ve been thinking more about artificial intelligence (AI) and the impact it is having on our society. AI has the potential to revolutionize many industries. There are significant implications for not only in the tech sector, but across our economy. All its potential ramifications are too much to cover in a … Read more
Sunday October 16, 2022 Yesterday I received the covid-19 bivalent vaccine produced by Pfizer-BioNTech. The US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has approved two updated bivalent boosters — the Pfizer and Moderna variants. Bivalent boosters are supposed to shield against the original covid-19 virus as well as the Omicron BA.4 and BA.5 variants. I thought … Read more
September 26, 2022 At my law firm, we generally keep a close eye on commercial real estate markets because working with investors and developers represents a significant portion of our activities. When covid-19 hit, I saw it as accelerating the trend towards distributed workforces and remote work. Particularly in larger urban areas subject to high … Read more
September 25, 2022 Today’s NY Times included a good article on the demise of the “starter home” in the United States. Whatever Happened to the Starter Home? – The New York Times (nytimes.com) This article struck a chord with me because of my work on affordable housing – which is harder to find and has … Read more
March 7, 2022 29% of global wheat production comes from Russia and Ukraine. A large proportion of the Middle East and North Africa import over half of their wheat from Russia and Ukraine. Then we have fertilizer. Potash is a huge input, with Russia and Belarus as the number 2 and 3 producers globally. With … Read more
March 5, 2022 Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has done more to unite Europe and reinvigorate NATO than I could have imagined. Between getting the Swiss to abandon their financial neutrality in support of financial sanctions, Germany rapidly scaling its military spending, and now even rumblings about Finland joining the fold, NATO seems to have a … Read more
03/12/2021 Lately I’ve been having a lot of discussions with colleagues about various pathways to net zero carbon as we undertake the arduous task of preparing the US’s nationally-determined contributions to greenhouse gas emission reductions under the Paris Agreement. One topic which keeps bubbling to the surface is the role of nuclear energy. There is … Read more
02/15/2021 I’m not going to write a long post today, because taking a dive into how our society can effectively respond to climate change would take a treatise or two. It would require a discussion of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change — the agreement struck in 1992 at the Rio Earth Summit — … Read more
02/10/2021 It’s cold outside. Even the trees think it’s cold. This morning it was 10F here in Kansas City. Over the coming weekend the temperature is supposed to drop to -10F. I don’t want to go outside and, thankfully, I don’t have to. Covid-19 has made me realize how lucky I am. Unlike many other … Read more