Christchurch Shooting: My Brother Escaped the Australian Terrorist. But He Might Never Escape Islamophobia
Posted inFirst Person

Christchurch Shooting: My Brother Escaped the Australian Terrorist. But He Might Never Escape Islamophobia

My brother was in the mosque when Australian terrorist Brenton Tarrant opened fire at Christchurch’s Masjid Al Noor, leaving 50 people dead. Long before the call came, it was as if my family had been preparing for it our entire lives. Tarrant was only turning another cog in a giant wheel of violence, greased by generalised Islamophobia.
Will an AI Like A.I.SHA Be Our Reality Soon?
Posted inTechnology

Will an AI Like A.I.SHA Be Our Reality Soon?

AI mines data from everywhere — including the casual sexist text messages we send, dissing Pakistanis on WhatsApp, and our porn searches. Self-learning robots can build on these same learned biases. And A.I.SHA, who displays the worst traits of humanity, is no different.
Dear Army Brats, Who Made You the Authority on National Security?
Posted inPOV

Dear Army Brats, Who Made You the Authority on National Security?

In the last one month, since the Pulwama attack, among those doubling up as defence experts are smug army brats. Their fathers served in the forces, but these skilled piggy-backers have never left behind big city comforts. The odiousness of army brats is tiresome in peacetime, but insufferable when the real threat of conflict lurks in the air.